NAROK, Kenya, Jul, 22 – Hotels and camps at the Maasai Mara Game reserve are hopeful of reaping big ahead of the wildebeests’ migration season.
The peak season runs from August to September when millions of wildebeests spectacularly cross River Mara from the Serengeti National Park in Tanzania to the Maasai Mara game reserve in Kenya.
The event attracts thousands of international and local tourists who book the hotels and camps around the game reserve to get the golden chance of watching the world’s eighth wonder.
Kichwa Tembo hotel Manager James Chege reiterated that the bookings were impressive for the first time since Covid-19 rocked the tourism sector in 2020. He said the high-end hotel has received huge bookings and that the business is now back to normal.
“Most of the camps and lodges in the park have started recalling their staff that had been fired two years ago when Covid-19 rocked the tourism sector,” he said.
The manager hoped for a great season asking the tourism department to ensure all the visitors at the park adhered to regulations to curb spread of Covid-19 as visitors from all corners of the globe were expected.
Some of the tourists who have already arrived at the Mara were excited to be in the country saying the game reserve was one of the best places a person would like to visit.
Two couples, Mr and Mrs K. Graham and Mr and Mrs N. George who are on honeymoon revealed that Mara was their dream destination regretting that their scheduled Mara trip was unable to happen two years ago due to Covid-19 pandemic.
Local beadwork traders and artists are also reaping huge as their business has attracted more foreign and local customers.
Joshua Ndienka, a traditional Maasai dancer and beadwork artist said the season kicked off earlier and they are enjoying huge profits.
“We are happy because we are now selling as we used to sell before the onset of Covid-19. We expect to do more business even as the peak season approaches,” he said.
Narok County gets a higher percentage of its domestic revenue from the Maasai Mara game reserve estimated to be Sh 3 billion per year.
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