The Masai Mara is located 270 km west of Nairobi, at the southwestern corner of the country, with the Tanzanian border delimiting its southern edge.

There are two ways of getting to the Masai Mara National Reserve.

One is by plane, option preferred by a large number of tourists as it's more comfortable. A small tourist airplane takes around 45 minutes from Nairobi's Wilson airport (against the 6 hours for the road trip). Though quicker, air travel is costlier and aseptic.

The second -and most common- way of reaching the Masai Mara is by car (want to rent one?). It's most rewarding too, as you'll get the chance to see the attractions along the route, most notably the Great Rift Valley, even if the road conditions are often bad and sometimes terrible.

From Nairobi you take the A104 highway to the Kedong valley (direction Naivasha and Nakuru). After the Kikuyu Escarpment, which overlooks the Great Rift Valley, and before the town of Kijabe, take the B3 road left. Drive for other 20 km until Narok, a small town some 150 km from Nairobi where visitors to the Masai Mara usually stop for fuel and you can do some African tribal handcrafts shopping (wooden masks and sculptures, textiles, etc.) in the many stands.

Some 20km from Narok, at Ewaso Ngiro, where the paved road ends, there is a crossroad.

The first road left (C11) doesn't take to the Reserve but to the Loita hills, where it's possible to climb mount Subugo (2,683 m.a.s.l.) to Lost Aloe Crag (camp at 2,133 m.a.s.l.).

The second road left (C12) takes to the eastern sector of the park, where the Keekorok Lodge is found. After taking the C12 drive for 40km until the road divides, though both tracks lead to the Masai Mara (through different gates), eventually converging at Keekorok. The path to the right takes to the Sekenani Main Gate, while the other to the Ololamutiek Gate.

The road that Ewaso Ngiro continues straight leads to the town of Ngorengore, from where, turning left on the C13, you'll reach the western sector of the Masai Mara, where the Mara Serena Lodge is located. This road is less common as it's usually in bad conditions, specially after rain.

Compare car rates and rent an off-roader for exploring the Masai Mara National Reserve by yourself.