From Ena’s Little Black Book – Kichwa Tembo Tented Camp on the edge of the Masai Mara with leopards and a hot-air balloon at dawn.
My Mom had waited her whole life for this. Our guide Zack took one look at her and called her Mama Safari. He wasn’t wrong.
Kichwa Tembo sits on a private concession bordering the Masai Mara National Reserve, where the Saparingo River meets the open plains, and it has been doing what it does since andBeyond first set up camp here in Kenya, which is to say a very long time and very well. This is a bigger property than Elephant Pepper, livelier at mealtimes, with forty tents spread across riverine forest and open savanna. The Superior View tents face the plains directly and the sunrise from the veranda is, frankly, not fair.
Zack is the kind of guide who makes you feel the Mara is his personal domain and he is generously sharing it with you. We watched a leopard hunt get interrupted mid-stalk by a Grey Crowned Crane launching overhead, calling out over the treetops like it owned the sky. We caught a glimpse of a black rhino, one of the most elusive animals on the continent, and an elusive cheetah moving through the grass. Leopards sunbathing on termite mounds. Herds of elephants crossing the plains. We floated over all of it in a hot air balloon at dawn, the silence broken only by the occasional burst of flame from the burners above. The Mara does not perform for you, it just keeps doing what it does, completely indifferent, endlessly extraordinary.
The kitchen deserves a separate mention. On the first night, the chef noticed my mother reaching for the chillies and quietly produced a bowl just for her. From that meal onwards, every single sitting included an Indian dish made specifically for her. It is the kind of hospitality that has nothing to do with a checklist.
Insider Note
Book a Superior View tent, the Mara plains views from the veranda are worth every penny of the upgrade. Request Zack as your guide. Do the hot air balloon, it departs before dawn and is worth every early alarm. Stay at least four nights; the Mara reveals itself slowly.
Destination · Masai Mara, Kenya
Best time to visit · The Mara rewards visits year-round. July – October brings the Great Migration and river crossings. January – March offers excellent big cat activity and quieter camps. May – June turns the landscape lush and green, shoulder season pricing and the best chance of having a camp to yourself. October – January captures the tail of the migration, the short green season, and calving on the plains.
This is the kind of place I plan trips around.
The Mara is one of those destinations where the right camp, the right guide, and the right few extra days make all the difference between a safari you’ve been on and one you’ll be telling your grandchildren about. If you’re dreaming of a trip like this, your own or traveling with me, that’s exactly what I love to do.
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