Amboseli Safaris

With Mount Kilimanjaro as its backdrop, Amboseli National Park is the most popular park in Kenya after the Masai Mara. The park lies approximately 240km south-east of Nairobi, very close to the Tanzania border. The snowcapped peak of Mount Kilimanjaro dominates every aspect of Amboseli National Park. The park is famous for being the best place in Africa to get close to free-ranging elephants. The abandoned manyatta (Maasai villages) dotted around the park reminds you that this is the home of the tall proud Maasai people. Years ago this was also the locale around which Ernest Hemingway spun his stories of big game hunting in the wilds of Africa.

Amboseli Price Guide

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How to get there

Amboseli National Park has a single airstrip for light aircraft at Empusel gate. Other airstrips exist at Kilimanjaro Buffalo Lodge and Namanga town.
SUNSAFARIS can arrange for transfers to the camps and lodges in Amboseli National Reserve.

Air
To/From Nairobi: Air Kenya has once daily flight (1 hour flight) from Wilson Airport in Nairobi.

To/From Mombasa: Mombasa Air Safari flies here from Mombasa and Diani (1 hour flight).

Land

The usual approach to Amboseli National Park is via Namanga on the Nairobi - Arusha road. Allow around four hours driving time from Nairobi. The other road is via Emali on the Nairobi - Mombasa road.

Amboseli Serena Lodge

The lodge is nestled in the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro, hidden beneath a copse of giant acacia trees and beside a gently flowing spring. The low red adode style cottages are inspired by local Masai architecture. Each guest room has a distinct Masai Manyatta mood and is furnished with artwork by a renowned local artist. Aberdares National Park is in the Kajiado District, Rift Valley Province in Kenya. The ecosystem spreads across the Kenya Tanzania border.

Amboseli Serena Lodge

Amboseli Porini Lodge

Amboseli Porini consists of 9 luxury tents under the Acacia Tortilis trees. It is set up along the lines of the traditional hunting safari camp, so there are no permanent structures like bar or restaurant or swimming pool. The large comfortable tents are furnished with double or single beds, solar electric lights and an en-suite bathroom with safari shower and flush toilet.In addition to the better known big game such as elephant, lion, cheetah, giraffe and zebra.

Amboseli Porini Lodge

Amboseli National Reserve Game Viewing

Introduction

Amboseli National Park embodies five main wildlife habitats: open plains; acacia woodland; rocky thorn bush; swamps and marshlands. The park also covers a part of the Pleistocene lake basin, now dry. Within this basin is the temporary Lake Amboseli that floods during heavy rainfall. This fragile ecosystem displays an impressive wildlife variety, with more than 50 mammal species. The best game viewing is in the eastern half of the park in the vicinity of Ol Tukai Lodge and lakes Engoni Naibor and Loginya. In the dry bush country towards Namanga you will find two interesting antelope - the fringe-eared oryx and the long-necked gerenuk.

Game Viewing

The kings of the park are the elephants, which are present in large numbers. They are easy to spot and photograph due to the flat and naked terrain. Amboseli's elephants are said to be the biggest in Kenya and can be found in the swamps where they share the cool waters with the hippos that hide beneath the papyrus.

The park is also home to a large resident population of wildebeest, Burchell's zebra, Thomson's and Grant's gazelle, buffalo, warthog, impala, waterbuck, dik dik, Maasai giraffe and eland. Coke's hartebeest and white-bearded gnu are also commonly spotted on game drives. Vervet monkey and yellow baboon inhabit the scarce woodlands, mainly around Ol Tukai Lodge. Lion, spotted hyena, black-backed jackal, wild cat, bat-eared foxes and caracal are also found in Amboseli National Park. Leopards, cheetah and black rhino are quite rare.

Birdlife is abundant, especially near the lakes and swamps. The yellow weaver bird, Taveta golden weaver, Taita falcon, southern branded Harrier eagle and Superb starling are some of the resident birds found around the park.
Observation Hill allows for an overall view of the park, especially the swamps and elephants.

Seasons

The climate in Amboseli National Park is mainly hot and dry although situated in the rain shadow of Mount Kilimanjaro. The maximum average temperature of the warmest month is 33C during the day, while that of the coldest is 27C. An annual rainfall of 300mm per annum is distributed in two seasons: April to May and November to December.