When Tarquin and Lippa Wood married and took over the Olerai farm, they set about undoing what decades of cattle ranching had done to the land. Working alongside their Maasai neighbours, they began restoring grazing worn thin by the herds. Wildlife has come back to the riverbanks as the grazing recovered. Out of that work came House In The Wild, opened to guests in 2013.
Wildlife has come back to the riverbanks as the grazing recovered.
The house looks over the Mara River in Enonkishu Conservancy, on the northern edge of the Maasai Mara. The Woods still live nearby with their children, and the place runs like a home, not a hotel. They founded the conservancy, and the Mara Training Centre alongside it, where pastoralists learn regenerative land management. Guests are welcome to visit either.
Camphor trees follow a bend in the Mara River, and seven cottages stand well spaced along it, holding ten bedrooms between them. Whitewashed walls, exposed beams and handmade local furniture give each the feel of a home. The bathrooms open onto outdoor showers, some with copper baths, and every veranda turns toward the river or the lawns running down to it.
Evenings settle around a fire, the river running below.
Most mornings, coffee arrives on the veranda before the first game drive, the sound of the river carrying up with it. Hippos work the water beneath the cottages, bee-eaters nest in the banks, and Sykes’ and vervet monkeys move through the trees overhead. Evenings settle around a fire, the river running below. Beyond the lawns, the bush is loud well into the night.
Every booking comes with a private vehicle and a Maasai guide, so the pace is yours rather than a shared itinerary’s. Drives range across Enonkishu, Lemek and Ol Chorro, an expanse of private land that now holds lions, leopards, cheetahs and wild dogs, and the elephants that returned as the grazing recovered. Because these are conservancies and not the national reserve, days can stretch into night drives, off-road approaches and walking safaris, with limits on how many vehicles may gather at any one sighting.
The estate reads more like a country home than a safari camp. The middle hours belong to the lawns, to a swimming pool and to croquet, boules and table tennis set out on the grass. Beyond them the land invites exploring on foot or otherwise. Guides lead bush walks and e-bike rides, and horses carry you across the property. The Mara River gives itself over to fishing. Sundowners and bush breakfasts are set up across the conservancies, and when the mood takes you, a hot air balloon can be arranged to carry you over the plains.
Guides lead bush walks and e-bike rides, and horses carry you across the property.
The chefs cook from the shamba, the organic garden that supplies most of the produce, in what the Woods call a wild-food approach: fresh, seasonal and built around whatever the garden and the river give up. Meals move around the estate instead of settling in one dining room, so you might eat by the fire in the main lounge with its Swahili-style bar, privately on a cottage veranda, poolside, or under the stars. Around 80 percent of the produce is sourced locally, and roughly 90 percent of the staff come from within five kilometres of the lodge.
Enonkishu began as worked-out ranchland, and the conservancy grew from the Woods’ work with their Maasai neighbours to graze it differently. At the Mara Training Centre, local pastoralists learn regenerative grazing on a curriculum built with the Savory Institute. The lodge runs largely on solar power, and the water it uses is filtered through constructed wetlands before it reaches the river. Firewood comes from a sustainable plantation, never indigenous forest. Guests can visit local schools, a tree nursery and a nearby rhino sanctuary.
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accommodation
Seven cottages hold ten bedrooms, sleeping up to twenty guests. The one- and two-bedroom options, among them Marula, Kisaru, River, Warburgia and Hippo, are all en-suite with private verandas. Bathrooms have indoor and outdoor showers, some with copper baths, and whitewashed walls, exposed beams and handcrafted furniture run throughout.
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activities
Private game drives run day and night across Enonkishu, Lemek and Ol Chorro conservancies, with off-road driving and walking safaris permitted outside the national reserve. Beyond the vehicle, guests can e-bike, ride horses, fish the Mara River, and play croquet and boules. Bush breakfasts, sundowners and balloon flights can be arranged, alongside visits to the rhino sanctuary.
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conservation
Tarquin and Lippa Wood founded Enonkishu Conservancy and the Mara Training Centre, where local pastoralists learn regenerative grazing with the Savory Institute. Rewilding former ranchland brought wildlife back to the riverbanks. The family supports local schools, employs 90 percent of staff from within five kilometres, and runs the lodge largely on solar power.
Get in touch and let’s start the conversation. An initial consultation helps us understand what you’re looking for, whether that’s specific experiences, luxury touches, or marking a special occasion, and from there we’ll guide you through what’s possible so you can decide if we’re the right fit.
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You fly from Nairobi's Wilson airport to an airstrip in the northern Mara, about forty-five minutes to an hour by light aircraft, and the lodge meets you for the transfer to the Enonkishu Conservancy on the Mara River. We arrange the flights and timings. If you would prefer your own aircraft, we can arrange a private charter, typically a Cessna Caravan or Pilatus PC-12, timed around your international flights.
The bush planes take soft bags of around fifteen kilograms per person including hand luggage, so a duffel is best. A road transfer from Nairobi takes five to six hours if you prefer to travel overland.
The Maasai Mara sits at around 1,500 to 1,800 metres, below the altitude at which malaria risk falls away, so both the CDC and TravelHealthPro treat it as a malaria area and antimalarial tablets are usually advised. The risk is lower than on the hot, humid coast but it is real, and it rises after the rains.
Because this is a health matter and guidance is reviewed regularly, please confirm the current position with a travel clinic or your doctor before you travel, and take the usual care against bites once the sun is down.
Days are warm and the mornings and evenings cool, so open-vehicle game drives at dawn can feel cold. The long rains fall roughly March to May and shorter rains around November, greening the plains; the dry months in between are clear and dusty.
Pack neutral colours, a warm fleece and a windproof layer for early drives, sun protection and a hat for the day, and a light waterproof in the green season. Closed shoes for any walking, and binoculars are worth bringing.
July to October is the migration window and the busiest at the crossings, while the green months around November and from March to May bring lush plains, calving and far fewer vehicles. Enonkishu sits on the northern edge of the ecosystem, where the rewilding work keeps game moving along the river.
The river setting and the mix of activities mean the camp rewards a visit in any season, so the choice is largely about migration spectacle versus a quieter, greener landscape.
House In The Wild grew out of a project to undo decades of cattle-ranching damage, and that rewilding sits at the centre of a stay: game now moves along the Mara River, and pastoralists learn regenerative land management at the neighbouring training centre, which guests can visit. It runs like a home rather than a hotel.
Being in the Enonkishu, Lemek and Ol Chorro conservancies rather than the reserve, the days run to private night drives, walking, e-biking, riding, fishing the Mara and even croquet, with balloon flights and the rhino sanctuary arranged nearby. It is a broader, more hands-on stay than a pure game-drive camp.
It is one of the more family-minded places in the Mara, run like a family home, with seven well-spaced cottages holding one or two bedrooms that suit couples and families alike. The e-biking, riding, river fishing, croquet and boules give children plenty to do beyond the vehicle.
Walking safaris and some activities carry age limits, so tell us your children's ages and we will shape the days around them and arrange a private vehicle where it helps.
rated five stars by our clients
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our approach
Every journey starts with a conversation. We take the time to understand your vision before we start planning.
Whether by phone or in person, we work with you directly to shape something that is considered, personal, and expertly delivered.
