Elephant and buffalo graze the open valley opposite Naboisho Camp, close enough to watch while the coffee is still warm. Lion can be heard most nights from inside the tent. The nine tented suites look out across the plains toward a waterhole, and beyond them the conservancy runs on into acacia woodland northeast of the Maasai Mara National Reserve.
Lion can be heard most nights from inside the tent.
Naboisho means “coming together” in Maa, a reference to the conservancy’s origins and not a marketing flourish. A resident pride of around twenty-two lion holds this country, part of a healthy population across the conservancy. Cheetah, giraffe and elephant stay year-round instead of following the migration, so the low season never empties the landscape the way it can inside the reserve.
The national reserve keeps its guests to daytime drives on set tracks. On private land the guides can do more, taking vehicles off-road to reach a sighting properly, running night drives after dark, and walking guests out on foot behind armed Maasai trackers. Full-day trips into the Maasai Mara National Reserve can be arranged too, and fly camping under the stars in a quiet corner of the conservancy.
A cheetah on a kill is watched by one or two vehicles, not fifteen.
Many of the guides grew up on this land and read it with a fluency no course can teach. Vehicle numbers are kept low across the conservancy, so the crush that builds around a sighting elsewhere never arrives here. A cheetah on a kill is watched by one or two vehicles, not fifteen. There is time to sit with it, engine off. It is a quieter, closer way to see the Mara.
Rebuilt in 2023, the camp now reads as a hybrid of canvas and solid structure: tented walls and big screen windows on one side, glass sliding doors and a heavy thatched roof above. Natural textures and handcrafted furniture keep the decor quiet and leave the outlook to do the talking. Each of the nine tented suites has a king or twin beds, indoor and outdoor showers, a flushing toilet and a veranda over the plains. Game gathers at the waterhole within sight of a morning coffee, and the plains open beyond. The main lodge is open-fronted, and the pool faces the same view.
Dining is communal and unfussy. Long tables, home-cooked food that leans on East African flavours, and an afternoon tea built each day around whatever has come out of the oven. Breakfast might be laid out under an acacia after an early drive, while dinner returns to the central thatched building. A private table on the lawn or beside the pool can be arranged when you would rather eat alone. Meals follow the drives instead of a timetable, and nine suites set the scale for the whole place.
Game gathers at the waterhole within sight of a morning coffee, and the plains open beyond
The camp opened in 2011, a year after more than five hundred Maasai landowners agreed to set their land aside for wildlife instead of cattle. Lease payments now reach over seven hundred families, a guaranteed income that also funds clean water, schooling and renewable energy. A nightly conservation levy paid by guests feeds straight into that work. It is the reason the lion are here at all, and the reason a pride of around twenty-two can hold its ground on country that could as easily have been grazed.
Naboisho Camp belongs to a larger safari group, so it lacks the personality of an owner-run outfit where the founder greets guests at the fire. What it gives instead is consistency and some of the strongest guiding in the conservancy, a fair trade for many. Families are well served here, with two purpose-built suites that each hold two en-suite bedrooms around a shared lounge. Children aged five and over are welcome, and a programme built for them teaches younger guests to track animals and read the bush.
accommodation
Nine tented suites take king or twin beds, among them two family suites of two en-suite bedrooms around a shared lounge. Each has indoor and outdoor showers, a flushing toilet and a private veranda over the Naboisho plains. Rebuilt in 2023 in canvas, glass and thatch, and finished with natural textures and handcrafted furniture.
activities
Morning and afternoon game drives run across the conservancy, with full-day trips into the Maasai Mara National Reserve on request. Night drives, guided walking safaris with Maasai trackers, off-road driving and fly camping are possible here because Naboisho is private land. Cultural visits to Maasai villages, hot-air ballooning and horse riding round out the activities.
conservation
Naboisho Camp is a founding tourism partner in the Mara Naboisho Conservancy, established in 2010, where over 700 Maasai landowners lease their land for wildlife and receive direct income. A nightly guest conservation levy funds clean water, education and renewable energy projects, alongside local employment and guide training run through the conservancy.
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 Mara Naboisho Conservancy, about forty-five minutes to an hour by light aircraft, and the camp meets you for the short drive in. We build the flights into your itinerary. If you would prefer your own aircraft, we can arrange a private charter to the conservancy, typically a Cessna Caravan or Pilatus PC-12, timed to your international arrival.
The bush planes take soft bags of around fifteen kilograms per person including hand luggage, so a duffel is best. Nairobi is five to six hours away by road if you would rather 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. Naboisho's resident lions, cheetah, giraffe and elephant stay put year round rather than following the migration.
That means the low season here never empties the way it can inside the reserve, so the quieter green months are a genuine prime rather than a compromise.
The migration reaches the wider Mara from July to October, with the river crossings in the national reserve peaking in August, and a full-day drive from the camp reaches them. The conservancy also sits close enough that herds spread onto its plains in the migration months.
The rest of the year, Naboisho carries a healthy lion population, including a resident pride of around twenty-two, so the big-cat viewing holds up whatever the season. Many guests come as much for the resident predators as the migration.
Because Naboisho is private land, the guides can drive after dark, walk you out on foot with armed Maasai trackers, and leave the track to reach a sighting properly, none of which is allowed inside the national reserve. In a quiet corner of the conservancy, a night out under canvas can also be arranged.
You can still cross into the reserve on a full-day drive when you want the migration, so basing in the conservancy gives you both the extra freedoms and the set-piece crossings. With vehicle numbers kept low, sightings here rarely draw a crowd.
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.
