A Public Health Researcher’s Case for the Maasai Mara

By Safari News — Africa Calling Safaris, Partner desk, Nairobi · 14/10/2026

Updated 23 October 2026

A visitor from Tbilisi, who works as a public health researcher and describes himself as wary of travel superlatives, has returned from the Maasai Mara convinced the region’s reputation is earned. His October 2026 trip, organised by Nairobi-based Africa Calling Safaris, included flights, transfers, two camps and a dedicated vehicle throughout. The itinerary moved deliberately from quieter corners of the Mara ecosystem toward the main reserve, allowing him to build familiarity before encountering the largest wildlife concentrations.

The standout moment came on the second afternoon, when the group located a pride of three adult females and seven cubs on a kopje, feeding on a kill made roughly two hours earlier. As the sun dropped behind the Esoit Oloololo escarpment, the guide switched off the engine; two of the youngest cubs fell asleep mid-meal, oblivious to the vehicle. Quieter encounters left an equal impression — a giraffe browsing acacia canopy, hippos surfacing rhythmically in a pool, and a martial eagle picking apart a monitor lizard while the guide named each bird species gathered nearby.

October falls near the close of the wildebeest migration’s crossing season, and on the fourth day the group witnessed one of the last river crossings, as roughly 800 animals gathered for two hours before entering the Mara River together. Crocodiles were present, but the herd crossed without casualties — a more typical outcome, the guide noted, than wildlife documentaries suggest.

Travellers connecting from the Caucasus or Europe typically route through Nairobi, with onward light-aircraft transfers into the Mara arranged by the operator. The visitor described the ecosystem as pressured but still largely intact, calling the experience an unreserved recommendation for those weighing a similar trip.

Based on reporting by Safari News, the travel desk of Africa Calling Safaris (Nairobi), GTour’s partner for East Africa. Read the original there.

Photo: CT Cooper / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0