Kenya safari

Planet

Activity:
The highlight of this trip is going on game drives in the Masai Mara Game Reserve and Lake Nakuru National Park, where we hope to spot some the ‘Big 5’ and countless other fascinating species. First of all, by visiting these protected areas, we must pay park fees which go towards community and environmental initiatives in this area. We are very mindful of the environment and local groups we encounter anyway and maintain a strict ‘leave no trace’ policy.

Conservation:
Our local operators are trustees of the Kicheche Community trust, which runs several programmes for the benefit of people and wildlife. For communities to prosper within and in the vicinity of wildlife conservancies it's important for these communities to be protected from the wildlife and vice versa. In 2012 Kicheche Trust donated half for the construction of 5 predator free bomas (small groups of housing). The trust also part sponsors the Naboisho Lion project in Naboisho Concervancy, Masai Mara, which helps to protect and monitor local wildlife. By travelling with us, you are not only raising awareness about animal welfare but contributing to these vital projects.

UK Office:
It all starts at home so we have first worked at reducing our carbon footprint in our UK Offices. Through energy conservation measures and recycling policies, we are proud to be actively reducing the waste produced and our impact on the environment. We support various projects all over the world to try and give something back to the places we visit.

People

Accommodation and Meals:
We will be spending three nights in a luxury tented camp and 2 nights in a lodge. Both accommodations are locally run and locally staffed, so by choosing to stay here, we are supporting employment opportunities for communities in surrounding areas. Most meals are supplied and we are keen to source ingredients from as nearby as possible as a means of generating income for small businesses within the local community and producing fresh, authentic food for clients. Breakfasts and lunches often include freshly baked biscuits, fruit, cakes and hot drinks.

Community:
We usually use Ilkeliani Camp, which assists the surrounding Masai communities of the game reserve in conserving their wildlife and environment. By using this accommodation, we contribute to a number of initiatives they run. The camp provides for the Masai people whereby they receive a bed night fee for every guest night in the camp. Unlike most camps in the Mara who charge their clients an extra "hidden" conservation fee, Ilkeliani contributes to this cause directly from their profits. This enables the Masai to benefit from their natural resources in a sustainable and non-destructive way so to better able to care for their families and improve their standard of living.

Charity:
Through Ilkeliani, we support the ‘Pack for a Purpose’ initiative. We encourage guests to bring school supplies and equipment with them and then provide transport to the Molibanny Primary School which is located near the Mara Reserve. The school educates children between the ages of 6 and 13 in the surrounding villages on the edge of the Masai Mara. The school often has difficulty obtaining items like book bags, chalk, coloured pencils and notepads so our contributions- and those of our guests- are really greatly appreciated here. We have also raised considerable money for various projects in Kenya including the predator free bomas project and supporting S.A.F.E Kenya (http://safekenya.org/) which uses street theatre to educate about the harms of female genital mutilation.

Group Size:
This small group tour has a maximum of 16 participants, meaning that we have a low impact on the environments and communities we visit and are able to ensure that we do not disrupt or lead to the displacement of local people. The small number also allows us to stay in unique, family-run hotels that cannot benefit from coach tours and other mass tourism due to their limited sizes.