Saruni Camp :: Holiday Destinations :: Choices Wild Limited

ABOUT SARUNI :

THE CAMP :

Saruni is the new, deluxe and intimate tented lodge set in a private conservation area outside the Masai Mara Game Reserve. With accommodation for only 12 guests in six spectacular tented cottages, it is set in a remote valley at the heart of the most exciting wilderness of Kenya. Saruni offers a new concept of African safari: the thrill of a real African adventure lived in harmony with the Masai warriors coupled with high standards of style and comfort. The tents are furnished with colonial antiques, Persian carpets and African art. The atmosphere at the camp is informal but elegant.

Starting with June 2003, its selected guests will be able to explore the plains, mountains and rivers of the Mara aboard open Land Rovers and on foot, walking with guides and Masai trackers. It's the new Masai Mara without the minibuses but with the small luxuries that have always been part of the old safari.

The camp is the permanent home of a cosmopolitan, multilingual European couple, a writer and a doctor, who have chosen to share their dream with a few guests. It's part of Private Wilderness, the best portfolio of privately-owned properties in Kenya.

The camp works in a close relationship with the Maasai and has a low impact on the environment thanks to the use of solar power and the recycling of waste.

From its many verandahs you can enjoy a view considered the best in the region. The area is malaria-free, at an altitude of about 1,900 metres above sea level. It is reached from Nairobi by car (5-6 hours) or by airplane (1 hour).

We look forward to meet you at Saruni,
Riccardo Orizio and Pia-Sophie Wool

LOCATION & MAP :

Location:	Maasai Mara region, South West kenya, on the Koyaki-Lemek Group Ranch, at an altitude of 1,900m., tucked in a forested valley and overlooking the Mara plains
Access:	70 minutes by scheduled flight from Nairobi (Air Kenya flies twice a day to the Mara Safari Club airstrip, 40 minutes of exciting game drive from the camp); 1 hour by private charter from Nairobi to Nwgesi air strip (15 minutes from the camp); 5 hours by car / tour van from Nairobi.
Style:	Innovative design with six spectacular permanent "tented cottages", huge verandahs, antique furniture from Europe, Africa and India, Persian carpets, Maasai art. A traditional safari camp with modern technology and modern amenities built to ecological standards. The atmosphere is informal but elegant.

ACCOMMODATION :

Twelve guests are accommodated in 6 cottages, one of which is designated as a special honeymoon suite called Morani House. The cottages have thatched roofs, large en-suite bathrooms with hot (solar boiler) and cold running water, shower and bidet. Each cottage has 220v electricity generated by solar power. Water is recycled for a water hole where wildlife drinks during the day and night in front of the main verandah.

HEALTH:

Saruni has a resident doctor. The camp sits in a malaria free area.

COMMUNICATIONS:

Saruni has a satellite telephone and email facilities.

ACTIVITIES :

Game Drives in special "game viewing" Land Rovers
Safari Walks in the forests and in the plains accompanied by Masai trackers
Bush breakfast, bush dinner, bush lunch, bush picnic, sundowners
Bird Watching
Visits to Maasai communities
Special week for "children's camp" (age 9 to 13)
Day excursions to Rusinga Island, Lake Victoria

SEASON AND CLIMATE :

SEASONS:

The camp is open all year round. The migration of wildlife from the Serengeti reaches this area in June-July and stays until September-October. In the months outside the migration, the resident wildlife remains impressive. April / May and November are "rain seasons", blessed by green grass, flowers and birds.

CLIMATE:

Temperatures are very comfortable year-round. During the day the temperature is dry and sunny. During the night is cool. Daytime highs are 90F / 33°C and night time lows are 60F / 15°C.

RATES :

Rates valid from June 2003 to 20th December 2003:

US$ 370 per person, per night, sharing

US$ 480 per person, single occupancy

US$ 250 per person, per night, for a child in third bed

In addition, US$ 30 per person per day is charged by Koyaki-Lemek Wildlife Trust (Park Fee)

WHAT IS INCLUDED:

Full board accommodation, all activities (except excursions to Rusinga Island), transfers to and from airstrip, soft drinks, house wines, beer, bottled water, spirits and laundry.

WHAT IS EXCLUDED:

Champagne, special wines, health insurance, transfers and flights to and from Nairobi.

THE MAASAI MARA :

The Masai Mara Game Reserve of Kenya covers 1,672 square kilometers between 1,500 and 2,100 metres above sea level. It's part of the ecosystem called Serengeti in neighbouring Tanzania. Around the Masai Mara Game Reserve there are several "group ranches", ancestral wildlife areas owned collectively by the Maasai communities. The Lemek-Koyiaki Group Ranch, where Saruni is set, has a size of 149,000 hectares. Its natural treasures are managed by the Lemek-Koyiaki Wilderness Trust.

The Masai Mara region is considered the jewel of the African wildlife: nowhere in the continent can you find the same abundance and variety of wild animals. Also considered a prime area for ornithologists, the area is teeming with herbivores. Millions of wildebeest, gazelle, zebra, buffalo, impala, topi, hartebeest, giraffe, eland, elephant, dik-dik, steinbock, hippo, warthog live their natural life cycle alongside the predators, lion, cheetah, leopard, hyena, jackal. The Mara region is also one of the best wilderness areas in Africa to observe rare species, like the rhino and the wild dog.

The scenery goes from the rolling hills dotted with acacias, made famous by endless wildlife documentaries, to the lesser known mountains, rivers and valleys where the vegetation can be very green and lush.

The highlight of the Masai Mara is the famous migration of wildebeest which move north from the Serengeti in July and August in search of grass. They return south in October before the rainy season. Watching millions of these animals move together in mass is truly a humbling experience for human visitors.

The Masai Mara is, above all, the home of the Maasai, a traditional semi-nomadic people known for its beauty, its intelligence and its deep love and understanding for the African wilderness.

In the recent years, the Masai Mara has entered a period of renaissance. After running the risk of developing too fast, a more considerate form of low-impact, sustainable tourism is emerging.

To live in this African bush is a privilege. Saruni, north of the Aitong area, offers a chance to share it. Each day is a different adventure at our tented lodge, overlooking the plains but set in a shady valley where the animals wander in total freedom. Elephants and bushbacks, baboons and impalas come and drink at our waterhole, in front of the main verandah.

PHOTO GALLERY :

Please click on the images below to view larger photos.

HOSTS & CONSERVATION:

The camp is the permanent home of Riccardo Orizio and Pia-Sophie Wool, a cosmopolitan, multilingual European couple, who have chosen to share their dream with a few guests. Riccardo is an author and former foreign correspondent. His books are published in several countries. Pia is a doctor whose work, based at the nearby Aitong dispensary, is financed by donors and by the revenues generated by the camp.

CONSERVATION AND COMMUNITY PROJECTS:

After running the risk of developing too fast, a more considerate form of low-impact, sustainable tourism is emerging in the Maasai Mara. Saruni is part of this renaissance. Its goal is to help the Maasai communities to make tourism profitable and therefore to encourage the conservation of the environment. Saruni finances a project of public health for the Maasai communities. This project can be visited by guests on request.