Kenyans will now be forced to hire vehicles for game drives into the world-famous Maasai Mara National Reserve after Narok County banned entry of private cars.
Alex Nabaala, the chief park administrator of the reserve, made the announcement.
“In line with the implementation of the Maasai Mara Management Plan, we have banned the usage of private vehicles for game drives. The vehicles that will be used for game drives are only the safari trucks, safari land cruisers and safari vans,” the statement reads.
Private vehicles were previously expected to pay as little as Sh400 for cars with less than six seats. Now, they will have to hire vehicles starting from Sh19,000 for a game drive on top of the Sh1,000 entry fee.
A safari van also known as a tour minibus costs about Sh19,593 ($150) and seats a maximum of 8 passengers though 6 is the ideal number for optimal comfort. The vans are safari-customised, having features such as pop-up game viewing roofs, UHF radio call, individual seats, and in some cases limited recline and cooler boxes.
Typically most lodges and camps in the core Masai Mara National Reserve and surrounding conservancies are accessible using Safari Tour Vans. However, certain conservancies outside the reserve only allow 4x4 vehicles because most safari tour vans are two-wheel drive.
The 4x4 Safari Landcruiser costs about Sh26,124 ($200) to hire per day for a maximum of six passengers. They are costlier because of their comfort and ability to manoeuvre off-road circuits. Some vehicles also come with air conditioning and electric cooler boxes.
Non-residents are currently being charged Sh13,052 ($100) per day as entry fees and will have to pay Sh26,124 ($200) starting July 1 this year.
