If you are looking forward to — or at least considering — going on safari in Africa, be aware that the Maasai Mara Reserve conservation fees will increase to $200 per person for twelve hours of entry in the park per day for the dry season effective as of Tuesday, July 1, 2025.
Maasai Mara Reserve Conservation Fees Will Increase to $200
Maasai Mara National Reserve is located in Narok County in Kenya and shares a border with Serengeti National Park in Tanzania to the south. It is a popular area to go on safari to see cheetahs, lions, leopards, elephants, giraffes, and other wildlife that is native to Africa.
The fee has already increased from $80.00 per person per day to $100.00 per person per day for the green season effective as of Monday, January 1, 2024. The fee increased from $100.00 per day per person to $200.00 per day per person on Monday, July 1, 2024; but it was once again reduced to $100.00 per person per day on Wednesday, January 1, 2025. The dollar amounts in this article are all in United States dollars.
Revenue that is generated from the conservation fees which are paid by visitors contributes to the sustainability of Maasai Mara National Reserve for the long term with:
- Preservation of the habitat preservation
- Initiatives to discourage and prevent poaching
- Community development projects
- Environmental education programs
Other fee structures are in place for other groups — including but not limited to vehicles, children, students, and people who are not international visitors.
The conservation fee is usually included when embarking on a safari tour — but the increase fee will most likely be passed on to the customer in the form of an increased price for the safari.
The green season is less expensive in Maasai Mara National Reserve because the weather is rainier than the dry season — but you may get to witness and experience:
- Fewer crowds and greater exclusivity
- More enjoyable conditions for photography
- The viewing of the babies of animals
- Greater than 200 species of birds
- The Great Migration of wildebeest and zebra
- Enjoying saving money versus going on safari during the dry season
Final Boarding Call
I was fortunate to go on a safari which was operated by Nomad Africa Adventure Tours for six days in Maasai Mara National Reserve for a total of fewer than $700.00. The experience was simply so amazing that the only way it could have been any better is if I saw a leopard up close — which I almost had the chance to do if someone in the vehicle ahead of us did not scare it away.
Because these fees were levied by the government of Narok County in Kenya, less expensive options for safaris are available elsewhere — such as in Tanzania or South Africa.
I am reporting on this news so that you are aware of the cost of the significant increase of the conservation fees alone. In the almost sixteen months since this fee system has been in effect, I have seen almost no coverage or news about it elsewhere. The conservation fee may be reduced once again to $100.00 per person per day on Thursday, January 1, 2026 — but no official news has been released as to whether this will occur.
If you are interested in viewing more photographs from the safari on which I experienced, please click on any photograph in this article — such as a photograph of a lion if you want to see more photographs of lions.
All photographs ©2015 by Brian Cohen.
