On Safari in Kenya with Cottar Family
Calvin Cottar carries on the family safari tradition.
PRIME photo courtesy of Cottar Safaris
The Cottar Safari tradition began in 1919. Eighty years on, we continue to provide an unparalleled safari experience to discerning clients in Africa. Extending an era of luxury and quality, Cottars Safari Service returns to the original spirit and essence of 'safari', reminiscent of a golden era - an era of romance, professional guiding, adventure and elegance.
Our flagship camp is the Cottars 1920s Safari Camp which is situated in the Masai Mara, bordering the Serengeti and Loliondo reserves in an untouched 250,000 acre exclusive concession providing the discerning client a guarantee of privacy and an abundance of wildlife.
The best months for traveling to Kenya are June through the end of October and then December through the end of March; the camp however is open year round
1920s Safari Camp
A 1920's era feel to this camp set near the Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya. This camp gives you the authentic feel of that unique era when the word 'safari' became indelibly imprinted on the imagination of the adventurer, past and modern. Extending an era of luxury and quality, Cottars Safari Service returns to the original spirit and essence of 'safari', reminiscent of a golden era - an era of romance, professional guiding, adventure and elegance.
Drawing on eighty years of Safari service, the Cottar family will provide guests with the highest standard of personalized and professional guiding. Tailor made itineraries ensure the safari provides a unique experience for our guests. Recalling an era of luxury and quality, Cottar's 1920's Safari Camp in the Maasai Mara returns to the original spirit and essence of 'safari', reminiscent of a golden era - an era of romance, professional guiding, adventure and elegance, in a timelessly unspoiled setting with panoramic views and boundless game.
The Cottar's 1920's Safari Camp is situated in our extensive and exclusive concession between the Maasai Mara, Serengeti and Loliondo reserves where a few Purko Maasai clan roam. This area has been untouched by any kind of tourism or development and offers the discerning client a guarantee of privacy.
Most importantly, while the Mara has a reputation of being over congested with mass tourism, we have kept the secret of our area for years - no hot air balloons flying overhead, no minibuses buzzing around, no nearby lodges or low flying aircraft to disturb your special moments. The area is more akin to being in the expansive Serengeti National Park, but with the advantage of 'off the road' driving due to the very low vehicle density of the area, and the fact that we can walk and operate 'night drive' activities in our community concession.
The camp accommodates up to twelve clients in authentic white canvas tents, which are spacious and luxuriously furnished and incorporate original safari antiques from the '20's; private en suite dressing rooms and bathrooms (with old-fashioned showers and flushing toilets), the main bedroom and an outdoor veranda.
Guest activities include game drives guided by professional guides in either state of the art modern four wheel drive cars, in our authentic or old wooden car. Alternatively, a tented reading room with an extensive array of African and modern books and magazines will allow those who wish to merely while away an afternoon resting and viewing the most splendid panorama.
As our concession is outside the game parks, therefore guided walks and night drives are allowed and highly recommended. By walking, guests can get that much closer to nature, and if an opportunity to track wild game presents itself, our trained trackers will take guests even closer still. On a more self-indulgent note, our masseuse will now be based full-time at the camp for complimentary massages, manicures and pedicures. Any other needs that guests may have will be met by butlers who have been trained to provide guests with discreet, yet attentive service.
Family History
Cottars 1920's Camp is the longest established safari outfitting company in Africa registered in British East Africa in the year 1919 by Chas Cottar and operated by him and his sons, Bud, Mike and Ted during the 20's, 30's and 40's. By Mike's son Glen and his wife Pat in the 50's, 60's, 70's and 80's and now by Glen's son Calvin and his wife Louise, as joint owners in the 90's and 2000's.
Cottars Safari Service is a family business that has depended for the last 80 years on providing clients real value for the money and real adventure, descriptions of which we are in many of the classic and contempory books. We are not in the Safari business - it is our way to continue living in the land we love and our preferred way of life.
Since Chas Cottar's days, the quality of safaris in Kenya has generally deteriorated as operators sacrificed adventure for convenience, safaris have become over-itinerized, limited to congested big name parks and having no room for the flexibility that always was the vital essence of the original safari. Calvin and Louise work hard to keep the vital essence of safaris alive, and we evoke the light, the smells, and the unchanging atmosphere of Africa of the 1920s' the heyday of the early explorers.
The Masai Mara
Our Concession is situated in the only part of the Maasai Mara where your privacy can be ensured and where you will never see minibuses. Cottars 1920s Camp is situated adjacent to the Serengeti National Park and Masai Mara National Reserve, on Olderikesi Group Ranch. This ranch is immense, and Cottars has the exclusive tourist rights.
The Cottars have for the last 30 years focused on a very special part of Africa in the country of Kenya in a unique wilderness area that is adjascent to the Serengeti National Park of Tanzania and the Maasai Mara National Reserve of Kenya. This area is home to the largest concentration of terrestrial wildlife on earth - the immense wildebeast, Zebra and plains game migration that numbers over to 2.5 million animals. The landscape is rolling savannah of high altitude (6000ft), with no fences or man made structures, and with pure wildlife that has not been trans located or manipulated by man; we have one of the highest success rates of big five sightings in Kenya although our focus is never on trying to see more species or checking off a list of species.
Highest concentration of wildlife in Africa, part of the Serengeti - Mara ecosystem, 1,500 square kilometers in size, famous for its numbers of species and big cat viewing.
The Annual wildebeest migration is the largest terrestrial wildlife Population on earth, all in breathtaking 'Out of Africa' scenery. This spectacular expanse of open grassland covers 320 sq km in the south-west corner of Kenya. It receives ample water from the tree-lined Mara River, a tributary of the Talek River. The western border of the park features the Oloololo Escarpment as well as the highest concentration of game. This area is often difficult to traverse as the swampy ground often becomes impassable after heavy rains. Because of its accessibility from Nairobi, the eastern edge of the park is most popular with tourists and minibuses.
The highlight of the Mara is undoubtedly the great migration of wildebeest which move north from the Serengeti in July and August in search of lush grass. They return south in October before the rainy season. Watching millions of these animals move together in mass is truly a humbling experience for human visitors. Other animals are commonly spotted in the park including the big cats: lions, cheetahs, and leopards. Lions are often found in large prides and it's not uncommon to see them hunting. Elephant, buffalo, zebra, and hippo roam in large herds while the topi, impala, and Coke's hartebeest are also abundant.
The official designation of the Maasai Mara is as a park reserve, and it therefore does not have national park status. The primary difference is that a park reserve allows people to graze their animals and shoot game if they are attacked. National parks set aside the entire area for wildlife and the natural environment with no allowances for pastorial grazing. The Maasai Mara region is the traditional land of the Maasai people who often find themselves in competition with the wildlife and tourists for scarce resources. When the game reserve was established in the early 1960s, much the their native land was put off limits and pressure for land became intense. Constant conflict with land authorities led to settlement programs which have met with only limited success. As a nomadic, pastorial-oriented people, Maasai traditions scorn the concept of agriculture and land ownership. The tension continues as traditional ways clash with the 20th century.
Accommodations vary greatly in the Maasai Mara region and include all levels of convenience from tented camps to luxury lodges. Most establishments organize game drives in the early morning and late afternoon when the wildlife is most active. Like all wild areas in Kenya, the Mara can be deceptively dangerous. It is advised that tourists not travel off the beaten path alone, nor is it wise to travel in anything other than a four-wheel drive vehicle as the terrain is often difficult.
Our Concession
We are situated in the only part of the Maasai Mara where your privacy can be ensured and where you will never see minibuses.
Camp is situated adjacent to the Serengeti National Park and Masai Mara National Reserve, on Olderikesi Group Ranch. This ranch is immense, and Cottars has the exclusive tourist rights.
