Due to Masai Mara National Reserve being essentially a wilderness area, there is no Masai Mara airport as such to fly to in Masai Mara or near the reserve and the area is instead served by a network of all weather gravel airstrips. Keekorok airstrip, at one time the only tarmac airstrip in the park and now converted to a high standard gravel runway, along with Serena Airstrip, are both among the primary and most well known airfields in the reserve. There are scheduled twice daily flights from Nairobi to Masai Mara that stop at several airstrips per flight. Additionally there are several airlines that serve this route including Air Kenya, SafariLink and Governors Aviation. The nearest international airport to Masai Mara is the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, a flying distance of one hour.
Travelers would need to know which airstrip in Masai Mara they should use when booking their flights as there are close to a dozen airtsrips in Masai Mara, including the community wildlife conservancies and game ranches surrounding the main Reserve. It is imperative to fly to the airstrip nearest to your accommodation to avoid unnecessarily long transfers which also happen to be rather expensive. Some of the most common airstrips include Keekorok, Siana, Musiara, Ol Kiombo and Serena airstrip and we have detailed below which lodges and camps are served by each airstrip.
Keekorok Airstrip is located southeast of Maasai Mara National Reserve, giving easy access to Lonwalet Hill and Ol Tukai Hill. The geographical coordinates of this airport are:1° 35' 9.00"S, +35° 15' 6.00"E (Latitude:-1.585832; Longitude:35.251667).The airstrip mainly serves Keekorok Lodge, Mara Sarova Game Lodge, Sekenani Camp, Mara Sopa Lodge, Mara Topi Safari Lodge, Ashnil Camp and Cottars Camp. Read more about Keekorok Airstrip in detail at this page.
Mara Serena Airstrip is the Kenya's largest civilian airport in Maasai National Reserve mainly serving Mara Serena Camp and other neighbouring lodges and camps. The geographical coordinates of this airport are:1° 24' 18.00"S, 35° 0' 36.00"E (Latitude:-1.405000; Longitude:35.010000). Read more about Mara Serena Airstrip in detail at this page.
Musiara Airstrip is one of the most famous airstrips in Maasai Mara National Reserve, located on the northernmost region of the reserve serving Governor's Camp, Moran Camp, Serian Camp, Little Governor's Camp and Neptune Mara Rianta Camp. The geographical coordinates of this airstrip are: latitude -1.299666 and longitude 35.058746 ( Latitude DMS: 1°17'58.8"S, Longitude DMS: 35°3'31.49"E). Read more about Musiara Airstrip in detail at this page.
Kichwa Tembo Airstrip is located on the North Most region of Maasai Mara National Reserve also known as by its IATA code KTJ. The geographical coordinates of this airstrip are: Longitude: 2° 6' 5'' W, Latitude: 11° 6' 19'' N . The airstrip serves camps like; Kichwa Tembo Camp, Bateleur Camp, Kilima Camp, Mpata Lodge among others. Read more about Kichwa Tembo Airstrip in detail at this page.
Siana Springs Airstrip is located in the Siana Group Ranch. The airstrip mainly serves Siana Springs Camp, Mara Bushtop, Porini Main Camp, Ol Seki Hemingways Mara and Leleshwa Camp. The GPS coordinates of this airstrip are latitude -1.483(S) and longitude 35.417(E). Read more about Siana Springs Airstrip in detail at this page.
Ol Kiombo airstrip (Longitude: 35° 6' 36'' E Latitude: 1° 24' 30'' S) is located just north of the Talek River serving clients staying at Mara Intrepids, Mara Explorer, Fig Tree Camp, Porini Lion Camp, Tipilikwani Mara Camp, Base Camp, Naibor Camp and Kicheche Bush Camp. Read more about Ol Kiombo Airstrip in detail at this page.
Ngerende Airstrip connects clients staying in various camps like; Ngerende Island Lodge, Kicheche Mara Camp, Mara Safari Camp, Saruni Camp, Lokoswan Camp and Richards Camp. The geographical coordinates of this airstrip are: latitude -1.084(S), longitude 35.186(E) and 5510.00ft elevation. Read more about Ngerende Airstrip in detail at this page.
Olare Orok airstrip is located within the Olare Motorogi Conservancy to the north of Kenya's famous Maasai Mara National Reserve. The Airstrip serves all the lodges and camps within the Orok Conservancy like Mahali Nzuri Safari Camp. Read more about Olare Orok Airstrip in detail at this page.
Mara North Airstrip is located inside Mara North Conservancy serving Kicheche Mara Camp, Saruni Mara Camp and Saruni Wild Camp. The GPS coordinates of this airstrip are: S 01°08.73’ , E 35°07.48’ , Elevation 5,515ft. Read more about Mara North Airstrip in detail at this page.
Angama Mara Airport is a regional airstrip located in the Masai Mara Region in the Southwest part of Kenya and is also known as by its IATA Code ARA. The airstrip accommodates regular flights travelling to and from this airstrip with air carriers such as Mombasa Air Safari, Air Kenya and Safarilink. The geographical co-ordinates of this airstrip are: 1° 16′ 19” S; 34° 57′38”E. It mainly serves Mara Angama Lodge, Mara West Camp and other neighbouring lodges/camps. Read more about Angama Airstrip in detail at this page.
Ole Seki airstrip is located at the end of a ridge in the Naboisho Conservancy, northeast of the Maasai Mara National Reserve. It is around 10 minutes drive to Hemingways Ol Seki Mara Camp. The GPS coordinates of this airstrip are: latitude -1.378(S), longitude 35.378(E) and it has a length of 2.17 kilometres. Read more about Ol Seki Airstrip in detail at this page.
Wilson airport is the domestic airport of Nairobi, located along Langata road, fairly close to Carnivore Restaurant and on the way to Karen and Nairobi National Park. The airport is small but fairly busy and efficient. Transfer time from city center is 20 minutes traffic free but more like an 45 minutes in normal traffic, and most local flights require that you be at the airport at least an hour before the flight.
Typically all the main airlines have morning and afternoon flights, with the same aircraft turning back to Wilson after every flights. The flight time is approx. 1 hour though actual time depends on how many stops the flight will make, ( known as ''hops'') as they land to drop or pick up passengers from various airstrips. Most flights limit stops to the fewest possible so the timing of an hour to the Mara is practially fairly accurate. See the schedule below.
| Daily Flights to Masai Mara ( Approximate Timings) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flights | From | To | Dep | Arr |
| Morning Flight | Wilson | Masai Mara | 10:00 | 11:00 |
| Masai Mara | Wilson | 11:00 | 12:15 | |
| Afternoon Flight | Wilson | Masai Mara | 14:45 | 15:45 |
| Masai Mara | Wilson | 15:45 | 17:00 | |
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High Season: 16 December - 31 March & 1 July - 31 Octomber Low Season: 1 April - 30 June & 1 November - 15 December |
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Due to the sheer volume of passengers flying to Masai Mara during the peask season months from July to October, both Safarilink and Air Kenya place an additional midday flight service to handle the passenger numbers. During these months we recommend booking early enough to secure seats.
As mentioned above these include Air Kenya, Safarilink, Mombasa Air Safaris and Governors Aviation. These airlines generally have an excellent safety record and operate to high standards with professional staff.
Enquire for Flights
Flying Safari package to Masai Mara are convenient due to the short one hour flight versus the 5 to 6 hour road journey from Nairobi. Flights to Masai Mara being readily available, a flying package safari is possible to book for most Camps and Lodges. Flying to the Mara is also recommended for those who want to enjoy game drives in Open sided safari vehicles. You can also check Mombasa to Masai Mara Flights.
Connecting to Zanzibar InternationlAirport - New Terminal: For travelers who want to fly to Zanzibar after their Safari in Masai Mara, various flight connections are available from Nairobi including on airlines such as Kenya Airways and Fly 540.
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