Elewana Sand River Masai Mara

With carefully curated interior designs, these luxury tents have cultivated the air of the glamorous 1920s, when Hollywood stars flocked to Kenya to witness the natural marvels of this land. The interior fixtures and furnishings create a time capsule for the golden age of Hollywood, and guests can recline in the Masai Mara, in much the same fashion as Vivien Leigh or Marlon Brando may have done.

These beautiful safari tents have been styled in a 1920’s nouveau riche style, harkening back to the lavish tented safaris from the Golden Age of Cinema. Recline like a movie star in your chic abode, and revel in attentive five-star service. These spacious double rooms enjoy 49m2, where care and attention has been put into each detail of the fixtures and furnishings.

For families enjoying the safari experience, this 87m2 tent, with two en suite rooms, the family has ample room to retire and relax. This safari brings guests back to the 1920’s, and makes for a delightful retreat, escaping to a time capsule on the banks of the Sand River.

The camp offers dining under tented cover, or al fresco, enjoying the marvellous views from the veranda for a truly beautiful dining experience. An open-air, sunset dinner brings a tangible air of romance to any evening meal, with exquisite food being served to guests in an unforgettable dining experience. Further, the camp’s classic bar underpins a mainstay safari tradition, the sundowner! Nothing compares to the majestic equatorial sunsets with a glass of champagne in-hand.

The Sand River camp guides are at home in the Maasai Mara, and know their backyard intimately. All the guides are Bronze or Silver level Kenya Professional Safari Guides Association certified, and some of the camp’s guides have guided in this area for 20 years! Guests will share game drives unless the “exclusive use of vehicle” has been pre booked at an extra charge.

This is the best part of the Maasai Mara – a year-round game viewing experience like no other!

The great migration of thousands of zebra and wildebeest coming north from the arid Serengeti plains looking for fresh grazing mill around the whole of the fertile Mara eco-system for as long as the grazing lasts, usually about 4 to 5 months. The Mara River crossings happen during the middle of the day, when the animals are thirsty, come to the river to drink and are pushed across by the crowds of animals behind them. The camp recommends staying out for the whole day with a picnic lunch; the Sand River camp is situated close to the action, in a prime spot to witness the Great Migration.

Take a moment to sit back, enjoy the spectacular views, the smells, the colours, and the gentle breeze. Bush breakfasts are a chance to enjoy a full breakfast, al fresco, in the middle of the plains, surrounded by wildlife. “Sundowners” are a safari tradition – after a day of safari; stop, watch the spectacular sunset; traditionally with a gin and tonic in hand!

Known for their beautiful beadwork, spear in hand and bright red coloured “shukkas” (blankets worn as clothes); the Masai are our hosts, it is they who have kept this land pristine, living in harmony with their cattle and the incredible wildlife that the Mara is home to. They are a people who are proud of their heritage, and although they find some of the new western trappings useful – mobile phones, motor bikes, they prefer to continue to live in their traditional way. Many of the Sand River staff are Masai, and enjoy welcoming you to their home, not far from camp.

The Masai live in semi-permanent huts known as Manyattas and it is the role of the wife to construct the hut from cattle dung and grass. The families will show you round their home for a fee (payable separately, ask the manager for details), and will want to take the opportunity to sell their traditional handicrafts – bargain hard! Sand River Masai Mara works closely with the community, and there are ways that you can get involved. Visits to the local school further give guests an insight into the work they are supporting by visiting an Elewana property, as the partnership between the school and Elewana’s Land & Life Foundation is demonstrated in this enriching visit.

Take a refreshing dip in Sand River’s infinity pool, flanked by beautiful greenery. This charming pool is nestled amongst the landscape, and guests can enjoy a wait service from the bar for ultimate refreshment.

Elewana is dedicated to sustainability through conservation work, and community support, and ensures that 50-75% of its staff are members of the local community, especially in camps set within community conservancies. This has allowed rural communities to enjoy a steady stream of income, and rely less on the livestock and agriculture which provide increasingly uncertain streams of revenue in an age of climate uncertainty and changes in weather patterns.

Continuing on the agricultural vein, Elewana ensure that wherever possible, local produce is sourced at their camps, reducing the length of supply chains, and curtailing the detrimental environmental impact of food exportation which makes up the vast majority of the agricultural industry.

With properties in some of the most biodiverse areas on the continent, Elewana has embraced the responsibility of contributing to the protection of both the habitat in which the wildlife lives, as well as specific vulnerable and endangered wildlife species. Pioneering efforts in “Parks Beyond Parks” initiatives have helped to establish the protection of these ecosystems outside of the fixed boundaries of National Parks and Conservancies. In total this initiative has helped protect land between both Kenya and Tanzania extending to over 1.36 million acres. Further site specific initiatives include anti-poaching in Amboseli and human-elephant conflict mitigation in Tarangire, as well as turtle and colobus monkey conservation in Diani.

The Land & Life Foundation is the charitable face of the Elewana Collective, which is committed to supporting local people and wildlife within its areas of operation. With subsidisation by Elewana itself for operational costs, 100% of each donation goes directly to the benefit of neighbouring communities, schools, and the ecosystems around Elewana camps.

The Land & Life Foundation carry out various initiatives within Kenya and Tanzania, such as its ‘Wildlife Warrior Programme’, and educational programme which is focused on training the next generation of conservationists. This education is premised on the cultural exchange of knowledge down the generations, and engages the young students with activities from trivia, poetry, drama, art, and creative writing, to foster a culture of profound love for the environment within these conservationists in the making! As of 2018, 40 of the best young conservationists were awarded Wildlife Warrior Scholarships for the rest of their primary and secondary education with help from the programme’s donors. The programme aims to increase its scholarship base by a minimum of 10 new scholars each year.

The Land & Life Foundation have endeavoured to provide tangible benefits to the communities living around Elewana’s protected areas, and believe that it is a responsibility they must hold up as an integral feature of sustainable tourism in East Africa. With the support of donors, the Land & Life Foundation is continually working to improve the infrastructure within rural areas, to improve access to healthcare and education to many disadvantaged communities in Kenya and Tanzania.

The foundation continues to communicate, and work closely with these developing clinics and schools in order to better ascertain the needs of these institutions in real-time as they become more and more established, whether the most effective aid be infrastructure, supplies, or training. In the past 5 years, the foundation has provided healthcare to over 1285 patients, and has trained clinicians from 5 clinics to serve over 40,000 people. The primary schools supported by Elewana and the Land & Life Foundation have received over $300,000 in donations over the last 5 years, providing the schools with everything from books, desks, classrooms, and kitchens to sports kit and uniforms, drought-relief food provisions and scholarships for 5 or more years.

The Elewana Collection is a bastion of Eco-Friendly tourism in East Africa, having made significant steps towards the protection of the environment on both a local and broader level. Having made considerable efforts to reduce its carbon footprint, Elewana’s lodges are equipped with state-of-the-art power systems, using solar energy in conjunction with power-storage technology to ensure minimal emissions from fuel usage.

Elewana’s Lodges are designed to minimize their environmental impact on the surrounding area, championing the “Ban the Bottle” initiative since 2018. Providing guests with complimentary Elewana branded aluminium bottles, the use of reusable bottles was shown to prevent 160,000 plastic bottles from entering landfill per year. As such, Elewana camps uphold a high recycling standard, ensuring that recycling procedures are followed wherever possible, creating an environmentally conscientious culture. Further, Elewana’s camps were the first tourism providers in East Africa to go to “Was with the Straw” in 2019, now providing biodegradable paper straws at all of its camps.

Elewana has creatively combined its environmental policy with community support, providing opportunities for artisans in Tanzania, sending its recycled glass to the Shanga workshop in Arusha and creating beautiful artistic pieces with the recycled material. Elewana’s initiative has supported disadvantaged Tanzanians, whilst preserving their artistic culture and providing them with opportunities for commerce at Elewana camps.

Elewana’s environmental policies have earned its properties Eco-Ratings from Eco Tourism Kenya, earning 1 bronze, 2 silver, and 6 gold awards across its 9 properties. Its 6 gold properties have received international STEP certification with Sustainable Travel International an organization accredited by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC), whose core mission is to “establish and manage global sustainable standards with the aim of increasing sustainable tourism knowledge and practices among public and private stakeholders.” Elewana’s Tanzania properties are all either SEED or SAPLING certified with Responsible Tourism Tanzania.

The Land & Life Foundation carry out various initiatives within Kenya and Tanzania, such as its ‘Wildlife Warrior Programme’, and educational programme which is focused on training the next generation of conservationists. This education is premised on the cultural exchange of knowledge down the generations, and engages the young students with activities from trivia, poetry, drama, art, and creative writing, to foster a culture of profound love for the environment within these conservationists in the making! As of 2018, 40 of the best young conservationists were awarded Wildlife Warrior Scholarships for the rest of their primary and secondary education with help from the programme’s donors. The programme aims to increase its scholarship base by a minimum of 10 new scholars each year.

With properties in some of the most biodiverse areas on the continent, Elewana has embraced the responsibility of contributing to the protection of both the habitat in which the wildlife lives, as well as specific vulnerable and endangered wildlife species. Pioneering efforts in “Parks Beyond Parks” initiatives have helped to establish the protection of these ecosystems outside of the fixed boundaries of National Parks and Conservancies. In total this initiative has helped protect land between both Kenya and Tanzania extending to over 1.36 million.