About Maasai Mara
The Maasai Mara is Kenya's share of the great Serengeti ecosystem, a sweep of rolling grassland in the country's southwest named for the Maasai people and the Mara River that winds through it. Its reputation rests on sheer abundance: resident big cats — lion prides, cheetah on the termite mounds, leopard along the river thickets — plus elephant, giraffe, and huge herds of plains game, all in a landscape of long views and flat-topped acacias.
From roughly July through October the Mara hosts the most dramatic act of the Great Migration, when wildebeest and zebra in their hundreds of thousands surge north from the Serengeti and mass at the Mara River's crossings. Even outside migration season, the Mara's game viewing ranks with the best in Africa, and visits with Maasai communities add a human dimension that few safari destinations can match.
Pavlus Recommendations
How our planners would spend a day in Maasai Mara.
Float over the plains at sunrise
A dawn hot-air balloon safari drifts silently over herds waking on the grasslands, ending with a bush breakfast on landing. It's the Mara's signature splurge, and travelers rarely regret it.
Wait at a Mara River crossing
In migration season, the spectacle of wildebeest plunging past waiting crocodiles is nature's greatest drama. Patience is part of the experience — and when a crossing starts, it is unforgettable.
Visit a Maasai village
The Mara is Maasai land, and a village visit — the songs, the homes, the cattle culture — grounds the safari in the people who have shared this landscape with wildlife for generations.
Micato Journeys That Visit Maasai Mara
| Journey | Region | Days | Next Departure | From |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Micato Grand Safari | East Africa | 15 | Aug 11, 2026 | $40,150View & Get Price |
| East Africa’s Golden Savannahs | East Africa | 15 | Aug 6, 2026 | $39,750View & Get Price |
| The Hemingway Wing Safari | East Africa | 14 | Aug 6, 2026 | $31,450View & Get Price |
| The Great Herds of Kenya & Tanzania | East Africa | 13 | Aug 5, 2026 | $31,750View & Get Price |
| The Heart of Kenya & Tanzania | East Africa | 12 | Aug 5, 2026 | $25,000View & Get Price |
| Private Kenya Safari | East Africa | 13 | Your dates (private) | $38,650View & Get Price |
| African Splendour | Southern Africa | 17 | Aug 8, 2026 | $45,100View & Get Price |
Every journey is all-inclusive, with 100% guaranteed departures. See full day-by-day itineraries → or call 800-528-9300 for your unadvertised Pavlus price.