Amboseli National Reserve covers 160 square kilometre in southern Kenya, close to the Tanzanian border. The name Amboseli comes from the word "empusel," which in the language of the local Maasai tribe means "salty dust." When you drive around in Amboseli you will certainly see and feel why the Maasai gave the park this name. The world's highest free standing, snow-covered equatorial mountain, Kilimanjaro gave the park and surroundings its appearance. The “old” volcano periodically erupted and covered the area with dusty volcanic ash. Nowadays the melting snows of Kilimanjaro flow underground into the park and make Amboseli quite lush in places. Most wildlife have their favourite places and the easy access to water in the park make Amboseli a top place for many animal species.

By the 1930s, the area was very popular with hunters, photographers and filmmakers. In 1974, the government of the now independent nation of Kenya designated it Amboseli National Park, setting aside the land exclusively for wildlife and tourism. The Masai, the ancestral inhabitants of the land, were sent to live outside the new park's boundaries. On 28th September 2005, The Minister for Tourism and Wildlife published an official notice declaring that Amboseli National Park was to become Amboseli National Reserve. The reserve is now placed under the care of the Olkejiado County Council compared to previously when Amboseli National Park was managed by the Kenya Wildlife Service. Olkejiado County Council is formed of a coalition of Maasai communities who have lived in and around the Amboseli region for centuries. For the Amboseli Maasai this was a long desired wish, but many expert are still debating this decision and only time will tell who was right.

Amboseli has an elephant population of around 1200 animals and this population is one of the few in Africa which didn’t suffer from poaching. Cynthia Moss did an extensive study about the Amboseli elephants and a book was written about them: Elephant Memories. The reserve has an open character which makes spotting lions much easier. Here the change of seeing a so called kill is much higher than anywhere else in Kenya. The African Buffalo’s have increased in numbers the past couple of years and the fascinating animals can be seen bathing and feeding in the swaps. Also plains animals like zebra, giraffes, wildebeests, impala and antelope are in large numbers to be found in the reserve. The famous migration of the animals which follow the rains is also an annual event in Amboseli. Animals like antilope, eland and also elephants migrate between Amboseli and Tarangire (Tanzania). Sometimes this means that the reserve is not as crowded with animals as one might suspect.

The following accommodations are recommended by Africa Miracles:Satao Elerai, Ol Tukai Lodge, Amboseli Serena Lodge, Amboseli Sopa Lodge, Tortilis Camp, Amboseli Porini Camp.

Distances and location:
Amboseli is accessible through 2 routes from Nairobi, but the route through Namanga is the most rapid route, approximately 3.5 hours drive. The location of your accommodation can of course still add extra travel time. You can take a flight from Nairobi and land one hour later on the airstrip of Amboseli. From Mombasa the route through Tsavo West is the fastest and most pleasant way and will take approximately 5 hours. The distance to Tsavo is about 2 – 3 hours, but this is actually one big game-drive.

Excursion options:
A. Visit to Amboseli Elephant Research Project, by appointment only.
B. Visit to Enkongo Narok swamp
C. Visit to the Observation Hill
D. Other short excursions are sundowners, short nature walks (outside the park boundaries), horseback riding and bush
    breakfast / lunch / dinner (or a nice picnic).