ANGAMA MARA – MASAI MARA RESERVE

Angama Mara is a stunning and very luxurious camp split into two separate camps of 15 tented suites each and sits high above Kenya’s Maasai Mara where some of the most romantic scenes from Out of Africa were filmed. Built on the edge of the Great Rift Valley on one of the most sought-after sites on the continent this lodge offers heart stopping views as far as the eye can see across the Mara and into the Serengeti. The lodge boasts outstanding game viewing 12 months of the year with private access to the reserve.

Inspired by the Swahili word for ‘suspended in mid-air,’ Angama Mara floats 1,000 feet above the Maasai Mara where every morning hot air balloons sail past the 30-foot-wide floor-to-ceiling glass fronts of each suite.

Perched right on the edge of the escarpment each of the huge tented suites has floor-to-ceiling glass spanning all along the front to make the most of the dramatic views. The interiors are uncluttered and comfortable with splashes of Masai red, French khaki, copper and brass.

The lodge is perfectly complemented by Angama Safari Camp – an exclusive-use mobile tented camp sited deep in the Mara Triangle amidst the mega herds of the Great Migration.

LOCATION

The camp is located in the Masai Mara Reserve in Kenya. Access is via daily scheduled flights from Nairobi’s Wilson Airport directly to the Mara – approximately a 45-minute flight, depending on routing, followed by a safari from the airfield to the camp.

CAMP

Angama Mara’s elegant and classical tented suites have an 11-metre wide floor-to-ceiling glass front and each tent has the amazing view. Every day the sunrise provides guests with early morning theatre as the hot air balloons float gently by.

Highly polished parquet floors, distinctive splashes of Maasai red, a handsome drinks cabinet (with personal bar and safe tactfully tucked away), vanity with double basins, separate toilet, writing desk with ample charging points and tablet with guest information, WiFi, Africology guest amenities, a collection of East African books, a beautiful John Vogel woven screen, and a butler’s lobby allowing for the discreet delivery of early morning tea and coffee all add to the comfort in your suite.

Angama Mara’s architecturally dramatic guest areas were inspired by Nairobi’s Muthaiga Club, built in 1917 and famously featured in the movie Out of Africa. Typical of early colonial design in Africa, the inside of the guest areas become the outside and vice versa.

The main area is essentially one room entirely wrapped in stacking glass doors and divided by internal columns, floor level changes and distinctive roof features. There is no defined sitting room, dining room or bar – just a charming mix of everything. The front of the building floats off the edge of the Escarpment with ponds wrapping the back of the guest area and expansive deck and baraza hanging off the edge of the Rift Valley

A dramatic shingle-clad drinks armoire welcomes guests, from where they can be served by their butler or even better mix their own cocktail. By night, the softly-lit architecture of the Maasai brick walls and the cone-shaped buildings are stunning and the Library – a lovely quiet, handsome brick-clad oval room perfect for private dining houses WiFi and a thoughtfully chosen collection of books and films on Africa.

The Pavilion is the only common shared area and sits in the heart of the lodge between the two camps. With endless views of the Mara and easily reached by footpath from both camps you will find the Fitness Room with Technogym equipment and stacking floor-to-ceiling glass doors overlooking the Mara.

The lodge has an infinity swimming pool of 12m x 6m, enclosed on three sides for privacy, with both shaded and unshaded sun loungers, a Safari Shop showcasing the very best of Kenya and cloakroom facilities for those guests with a late checkout and a late night flight from Nairobi.

Angama Mara welcomes children of 6 years and older the lodge has four sets of interconnecting tents which allow children to move freely between their tent and their parents’ in complete safety and privacy.

ANGAMA SAFARI CAMP

Angama Safari Camp is a light-footprint sole-use tented camp accommodating up to eight guests in four lovely ensuite tents set deep in the Maasai Mara. This unique camp captures the romance and adventure of the glorious Golden Age of safaris where you can enjoy the comforts of 21st century camping but with the thrill of having nothing but canvas between you, the Mara and year-round abundant wildlife right on your doorstep.

ACTIVITIES AND WILDLIFE

Although the Maasai Mara is especially renowned for its prides of lions (including the Angama Pride, just below the lodge), the other members of Africa’s Big Five – leopard, elephant, buffalo and black rhino – are also regularly sighted, together with hyena, jackal, cheetah and the bat-eared fox, and of course the Mara River is home to numerous pods of hippo and some of Africa’s largest crocodiles. Great photographic opportunities present themselves with topi standing perched on anthills, Maasai giraffe moving gracefully across the plains, and both Grant’s and Thomson’s gazelles grazing peacefully amongst Coke’s hartebeest, impala and herds of lovely eland, the continent’s largest antelope.

The Mara Triangle is also home to more than 470 bird species, including almost 60 raptors such as vultures and martial eagles. Surely the loveliest of them all has to be the graceful crowned crane, always found in pairs, together with secretary birds, lilac-breasted rollers, long-crested eagles, superb starlings, pygmy falcons and endangered ground hornbills to name just a few.

Safari days are as action-packed or as gentle as guests choose them to be. In addition to consistently excellent game viewing, including Africa’s Big Five, guests can experience hot air ballooning, walking safaris, garden-to-table lunches in the Shamba, hosted photographic safaris, editing their images in the Photographic Studio, a fitness center, a 40-foot-long swimming pool, a curated gallery of African art, clothing and jewellery, and a sun-filled studio where local Maasai women work at beading bespoke items – or simply do nothing at all.

Game drives at Angama Mara – are planned according to what you would like to do as there is no set programme. Descending down Angama Mara’s private road you are in the Reserve in around 10 minutes.

Hot Air Ballooning – watch the hot air balloon as it is inflated, with a steaming cup of Kenyan coffee in hand. Just before dawn lift off into the skies and watch the sun rise and a multitude of animals below while floating over the Mara. Come back down to earth for a champagne breakfast in the middle of the savannah.

Walking Safaris – you have access to a huge tract of wilderness along the Siria Escarpment. Escorted by a Maasai naturalist guide, walks can be as long or short as you prefer. Discover the smaller details – fascinating plants, birds, insects and animals and the role they play in traditional Maasai beliefs and customs.

Photography – visit Angama Mara’s Photographic Studio for a private tutorial with our on-site wildlife photographer who will help you come to grips with your camera. Hire photographic equipment or learn more about the editing process on our large-screen Apple desktops. Explore the Mara on a private photographic safari with one of our resident specialist guides. Those who prefer to put down their cameras, the in-house photographer can capture these special moments in a professional photoshoot.

The Shamba – explore Angama Mara’s lovely kitchen garden followed by a soil-to-fork lunch under towering moth trees. Crusty bread, local cheese, chilled rosé and the freshest of salads served with the Mara as a backdrop!

Out of Africa Picnics – intimate private picnics on the Out of Africa kopje – checked blankets, comfy cushions, canvas safari chairs, a picnic and sparkling wine on ice – everything you could need for elegant romance.

Sundowners in the Maasai Boma – traditional dawa (local mojito) in hand toast the sun as it descends behind the Rift Valley from the vantage point of the lodge’s Sundowner Boma to the sound of Maasai warriors as they perform singing, dancing and jumping.

Bush BBQ – gather in a lantern-lit forest for dinner cooked over the coals and dine at long, wooden tables, off enamel plates with dishcloths for napkins. It’s fun, it’s relaxed and most of all, it’s delicious.

Visit the Beading Studio – leading off the Safari Shop is a sunny studio for Maasai ladies who come daily to bead bespoke items. Guests can try their hand at beading or perhaps have the ladies bead a name bracelet or an item of their clothing.

Run with a Kenyan – join the Angama Running Club and see how you fare against this nation of great athletes as you jog along the Escarpment with the possibility of encountering plains game such as giraffe and zebra along the way.

Visit a Maasai Manyatta – enjoy a rare opportunity of gaining a deeper understanding into everyday lives of the Maasai, their ways and their fascinating culture while shopping for keepsakes to take home.

Mara Conservancy Canine Patrol Training – a hands-on opportunity to learn about the invaluable work of the Mara Conservancy’s canine unit and observe and participate in training exercises.

GIVING BACK

Angama Mara is founded on the principle of running a profitable business in order to make a meaningful and sustainable difference to the communities that live around the lodge and the wildlife and land that surround it.

Each guest at Angama Mara contributes a US$10 per night donation to the Angama Foundation which is active through three fields of work: Education, Healthcare and Conservation. Projects are identified and prioritised together with the lodge’s neighbouring communities, the Mara Conservancy and NGO’s who have a track record of making an impact in the region. The Foundation is also open to micro-donations facilitated through the lodge’s Safari Shop.

ANGUMA MARA IS OPEN ALL YEAR ROUND

THE CAMP WELCOMES FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN AGED 6 YEARS AND OLDER AND HAS DEDICATED FAMILY TENTS