Fairmont Mara Safari Club

Pros: location is excellent, very nice amenities, food is very good, and game drives with Moseka were also good (despite not finding a male lion). I was injured during this trip and the nurse Betty took great care while redressing my wounds. All staff were very polite. The property itself is beautiful. Wake up service and morning coffee delivery was a very nice personal touch. View of mara river and hippos grunting away will never be forgotten. Cons: disorganised staff - they didn't know we were on our honeymoon trip despite telling them in advance. Phone did not work in the room and our room was in the far wing of the property. There were a lot of staff at the property who mentioned that they are assigned to us specifically but then we had to rely on the other staff. During checkout, they couldn't figure out we had prepaid in advance. They booked hot air balloon for us on the day of checkout only to then later rush us to pack in hurry when they could have simply told us to keep our luggage ready a day in advance.

My husband and I had a wonderful experience: The tent accommodation was luxurious, clean, and thoughtfully equipped, the food was great and there was a variety to choose from a la carte. The atmosphere was very relational and welcoming. Our safari guide and driver Dominic was kind and knowledgeable. He answered our questions and found the wildlife we were most interested in. Aside from the large animals he impressed us with his detailed knowledge of birds. We enjoyed a long morning out with Dominic, complete with breakfast under a tree in the park on the way to a Massai village. The first night the hippos created an interesting, but noisy soundscape. Good to bring wax earplugs!

What an incredible and magical place. We are still without words to describe our experience. It was moving and inspiring. The Fairmont staff really go above and beyond to make you feel comfortable and special. I highly recommend a massage by Patience while overlooking the hippos. The real highlight of the trip was the serene drives spent in the Mara with our guide, Mike. He is a remarkable source of experience and knowledge and he went above and beyond to ensure each game drive was special. He has a unique talent of predicting what the animals might do next, which gave us truly unique experiences like seeing the elusive leopard descend from a tree and prowl across the fields looking for a new place to rest. He also brought a great personality and sense of humor to our hours of jeep drives. We know we have to return again someday.