Amboseli
An old lake bed on the Tanzanian border, swamps on the plain, elephants studied for more than half a century, and Kilimanjaro on the southern horizon.
- Arrival
- Jomo Kenyatta International · NBO
- To the park
- About 156 km by air from NBO to the park airstrip
- Private jets
- Into Nairobi; light aircraft to Amboseli
- Best time
- January to February · June to October
The city
Elephants under the mountain.
Amboseli National Park covers only 392 square kilometres of Kajiado County, but it lies at the centre of an ecosystem of some 8,000 that runs across the border into Tanzania. Much of the floor is a dry Pleistocene lake bed; the park also protects two of the region's five main swamps. Cynthia Moss has studied its elephants since 1972, and one of them, Echo, followed for almost four decades, became the most researched elephant in the world.
The land was set aside for the Maasai in 1906 and became a national park in 1974; the people of the area are still mainly Maasai. The weather follows the two rains: the long rains peak in April with more than 250 mm, the short rains in November. June to October is dry and comfortable, around 24 to 28 °C, and January and February are warm and fairly dry.
- The swamps Two of the five main swamps of the Amboseli ecosystem lie within the park, the wettest ground on a dry floor.
- The old lake bed A dried-up Pleistocene lake in the open centre of the park, where some 400 bird species have been recorded across Amboseli.
- Kilimanjaro Across the border in Tanzania, 5,895 metres high, the backdrop to the park on clear mornings.
Arriving
Nairobi, then a strip in the park.
Amboseli has its own airstrip inside the park, about 156 kilometres south of Nairobi's main airport as the plane flies. A second field, Kimana, lies in a private sanctuary of 5,700 acres in the wider ecosystem, about 45 minutes by road from the park.
- Nairobi 35 min
- Addis Ababa 2 h 00
- Doha 4 h 50
- Muscat 5 h 05
- Frankfurt 8 h 40 long-range jet
When to go
January to February, and June to October.
Warm and dry for much of the year, with highs of 24 to 30 °C. Two wet spells mark the year: March to May, peaking in April, and a shorter one in November and December. The dry months, June to October, see less than 40 mm each.
- 29° J 51
- 30° F 50
- 29° M 106
- 27° A 254
- 25° M 154
- 25° J 39
- 24° J 26
- 25° A 15
- 27° S 13
- 28° O 36
- 28° N 134
- 28° D 95
Elsewhere in Kenya
More reasons to come.
- Nairobi A national park on the edge of the city, and Wilson airport for the bush flights.
- Masai Mara Lions, and the river crossings of the migration from July to October.
- Laikipia Private conservancies on the plateau north of Mount Kenya.
- Lamu A Swahili town without cars, of dhows and old stone houses.
- Diani A beach south of Mombasa, of white sand and coral.
Flying to Amboseli?
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A Business or First Class seat on a scheduled airline, or an aircraft of your own. Tell us the date and how many are travelling, and we reply with one final price, our margin included.