Kenya: Why It's Still The Place To Be This Summer
When you look beyond the headlines there are more reasons than ever to visit Kenya this year!
For a start, crowds are down, because of fears about ebola and terrorism. That's great news for those of us who realise that these issues are being blown way out of proportion. It means less crowded migration crossing points on the Mara river, better quality wildlife sightings generally, and competitive prices in lodges.
If that’s not enough to get you scrambling to book, there are a million other reasons too. Quite simply, without tourism and the revenue it generates, Kenya and her people and her wildlife all suffer. And if that happens, there may not actually be conservancies and animals for us to return to when all this hullaballoo has died down. Even a temporary closure of lodges, and absence of tourists and guides in the conservancies would make it easier for poachers to move in.
Two reasons to go now: Less crowds, and
keeping our guides working out in the conservancies helps to deter poachers.
So it’s really worth taking another look at those negatives you may have heard about Kenya recently.
Terrorism
Like many popular destinations around the world Kenya has experienced some isolated incidents in the last couple of years. However, they have been targeted around Nairobi and the Somali border in the extreme north of the country. We, on the other hand, safari right at the other extreme of this vast country, right down in the Maasai Mara on it’s southern border, where no terrorism has been recorded in recent years at all. Nor do we spend any time in Nairobi – we simply fly in and fly out again straight away. In real terms there is no advice from the UK Foreign Office to avoid the Maasai Mara and we would not continue to operate here if advice changed.
Ebola
Did you know that you are actually closer to the ebola region in London than you are in the Maasai Mara? Yes, Africa is that big! The UK Foreign Office does not view Kenya as an Ebola risk country. In addition, Kenya's entry policy for those travelling from the ebola zone countries of Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea is much stricter than the present UK policy.
If the situation changes we will of course revise our advice, but ebola is not a recognised risk at present and should not put you off travelling to Kenya.
So, once you look beyond the headlines, Kenya is actually looking like a brilliant bet this year – and if you’d like to join us on the photo safari of a lifetime there’s still time to book!
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