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Last checked: October 2026.
This page goes deeper than our general guide to how much a safari costs, which compares countries. Here the subject is Kenya alone: every fee line that applies, what the lodge rate does and does not cover, and why the same four nights can cost two or three times as much in one month as in another.
Every price below is a "from" figure or a published rate for a named place and date. None of it is a trip price. Two travellers in the same camp can be quoted different totals once dates, room type, vehicle and flights are set.
The detail
Start with the fees, because they do not negotiate. Park and reserve fees are set by authorities, charged per person, and identical whoever you book through.
| Where | Per adult | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Maasai Mara National Reserve | US$100 a day (1 Jan–30 Jun); US$200 a day (1 Jul–31 Dec) | A 12-hour ticket. Set by Narok County, not Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS). Narok's own tariff is not published online, so the figure rests on press reports |
| Amboseli, Lake Nakuru | US$90 a day | KWS fees from 1 October 2025; no seasonal split |
| Nairobi National Park, Tsavo East, Tsavo West | US$80 a day | Same KWS sheet |
| Meru, Aberdare | US$70 a day | Same KWS sheet |
| Tsavo East, Tsavo West and Amboseli on one ticket | US$215 | A combined ticket on the KWS sheet |
| Tsavo West and Amboseli on one ticket | US$150 | A two-park ticket on the same sheet; useful if you pair the two |
Children pay less on the KWS sheet (US$45 at Amboseli and Lake Nakuru). One caution: the High Court issued orders in October 2025 over the new KWS fees, and the case was reported as still pending in mid-2026. The rates are being charged.
What the fees add up to. Fees alone, per adult, with no bed, vehicle or flight counted: four days in the Mara reserve come to US$800 in August and US$400 in March. Two days in Amboseli come to US$180. Add a Mara conservancy stay and the reserve fee may fall away for those nights, but the conservancy has its own fee.
A worked example, one adult, October 2026 rates. Four nights at Emboo Camp (Talek River) in August: 4 × US$900 lodge rate + 4 × US$200 reserve fee = US$4,400. The same four nights in June: 4 × US$650 + 4 × US$100 = US$3,000. Both are before flights, the eTA, Asilia's conservation charge, activities and gratuities, and assume one reserve fee per night; they are examples at published rates, not a Nobu trip price. Two nights in August pay the top rate and top fee for the least time, so a short Mara stay is where the season hurts most.
Conservancy fees are sometimes inside the lodge rate and sometimes on top. The Mara's community conservancies charge a nightly fee per guest, and published estimates vary widely, so we print no figure. Even within one operator the wording varies: Asilia's Encounter Mara and Naboisho Camp pages list a "conservancy bednight fee" as included and "conservancy fees" as excluded on the same page. Conservancy fees are, in large part, the lease income paid to the Maasai landowners who keep the land open to wildlife, which is why they are worth seeing on the quote rather than avoiding. Ask for the answer in plain words, because the fee is the first thing that goes missing when two quotes are compared. The Mara fee comes back into play if you also drive into the reserve itself.
Lodge rates follow the calendar more than the star rating. Four of these are rates each operator showed on its own site in October 2026; the Mara Serena range is a reseller's guide (Go2Africa), not the operator's, per person per night sharing, full board, in US dollars.
| Band (our grouping) | Example | Highest published 2026 rate | Lowest published |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mid | Mara Serena Safari Lodge (reseller, Go2Africa) | Guide range US$175–470, "a guide only" | — |
| Upper | Emboo Camp (Talek River) | US$900 (1 Jul–31 Oct) | US$500 (1 Apr–31 May) |
| Upper | Encounter Mara (Naboisho) | US$940 (1 Jun–31 Oct) | US$500 (Apr 2027) |
| Top | Rekero Camp (Talek) | US$1,450 (1 Jul–31 Oct) | US$910 (June, Nov–mid Dec) |
| Top | Naboisho Camp | US$2,250 (1 Jun–31 Oct) | US$690 (Apr–May 2027) |
Read across, the lowest published rate in these camps is between about a third and two-thirds of the high-season rate. In Emboo's case, June costs US$650 against US$900 in July, and the Mara reserve fee halves in the same stretch. At reserve-side camps such as Emboo and Rekero, June is therefore the least expensive month of the long dry season (June to October), with the grass still long in places; conservancy camps such as Encounter Mara and Naboisho charge high-season rates from 1 June. The months are laid out in our best time to visit Kenya and Maasai Mara guides.
Flying or driving. Wilson Airport to the Mara takes about 45 minutes by light aircraft and five to six and a half hours by road. Light-aircraft fares are quoted at booking and are not published by the airlines, so we print none. Flying costs more and returns most of a day; on a short trip, that day is often the better spend. Bush flights also limit luggage, so pack in soft bags.
Group size changes the shared costs, not the fees. A vehicle and guide are one cost split among everyone in it, so a family of four fills a safari vehicle more efficiently than two travellers. Park fees stay per person regardless. Solo travellers usually pay a single supplement, which should appear as its own line. A small group can bring the vehicle cost down; see our group and small-group safari page.
What sits outside the lodge rate. International flights, the Kenyan eTA (fee starting at US$30 on the official site, with a travel health insurance requirement tied to it from 5 October 2026; details in our Kenya entry guide), activities such as balloon flights, and gratuities.
Key facts
Mara reserve fee: US$100 a day January to June, US$200 July to December, per adult. Worked example: four nights at Emboo Camp, one adult, US$4,400 in August or US$3,000 in June, before flights. KWS parks: US$70–90 a day, one rate all year. Conservancy fees: sometimes in the lodge rate, sometimes on top; make your quote say which. Lodge examples: about US$175 to US$2,250 per person per night sharing, by camp and month. Flights: Mara light-aircraft fares quoted at booking. Biggest swing: July and the Mara fee doubling. Prices are: "from" figures, not trip prices.
Planning it with Nobu
A Kenya cost is easy to misread because one quote lists the conservancy fee and another leaves it out. Our quotes list each park fee, tax (VAT) and flight on its own line, with the lodge rate and the extras, and say when a price list is out of date, so you compare like with like. We say plainly when a month, a camp or a route costs more than it delivers.
Is it right for you?
This page is right for you if you are comparing two operators' Kenya quotes, or you are a family deciding between June and August in the Mara. Choose another page if you want ideas for spending less, in which case see our affordable safari in Kenya story, or you are planning a top-end trip, in which case read luxury safari in Kenya. For Tanzania's fees, see the Tanzania safari cost guide.
Journeys to consider
- The Mara, unhurried. — Five days in one place, where the conservancy and season choices above matter most. The Mara, unhurried
- In the company of giants. — Four days in Amboseli, on a single KWS fee. In the company of giants
- Wild places. Good company. — Six days in a small group, with the vehicle cost shared. Wild places. Good company.
