The savannah of the Amboseli National Park spreads across the Kenyan/Tanzanian border, about 240km south east of Nairobi. At just 392 square kilometres, it’s one of the smaller National Parks in Kenya. This can definitely be an advantage. It is famous for being one of the best places in Africa to see free-range herds of elephants up close in their natural habitat, and the Observation Hill at the south-east end of the Park gives spectacular views of the entire area. The swamp which lies at the base of the Observation Hill is also a great place to see elephants, as well as hippos and buffaloes, congregating to cool down in the mud and water.

Amboseli allows for myriad photo opportunities for the professional and amateur photographer alike. Imagine showing your friends and family a photo you took of Mount Kilimanjaro at dusk – that’s better than any postcard, surely? If you were planning on staying there, the Amboseli Serena Lodge offers uninterrupted views of the vast plains, with Kilimanjaro in the near distance.

One phenomenon of Amboseli you probably couldn’t capture on camera, however, is the mirages. They’re produced in the shimmering heat which rises from a vast, dried-up lake bed lying in the north-west of the park, and with a group of weary wildebeest sloping across the other side of the bed and the heat of the African sun beating down on your back, it really is an experience which can’t be reproduced.

Aside from the wildlife, Amboseli is one of the best places in Kenya to encounter the nomadic Masai people, who have occupied this land for centuries. Renowned for their fearlessness in battle and daring in fighting animals, these proud people rely on the grazing in these plains, and so must be attuned completely to their environment. Hastily throwing up huts made from poles and mud, the Masai abandon their temporary dwellings when the grazing is done and move to wherever the herds can feed. Amboseli is scattered with such dwellings, both occupied and abandoned.

Tags: Family Camping, National Park, Summer Camps

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