Arrive in Nairobi, where you are met and transferred to your hotel that overlooks the open bush of Nairobi National Park. From the terrace, wildlife often comes into view—plains game moving across the grasslands, birdlife gathering near the water and, at times, larger animals appearing at a distance—offering an early glimpse of the wild Africa you’re about to explore. This evening, gather for a welcome dinner with your Field Guide and fellow participants. You’ll be introduced to the experience that awaits, learning what's been lost within the landscape, what is being restored and how your time in the field will contribute to that work.
Fly by bush plane into the Maasai Mara, where your first game drive begins soon after landing. Wildlife is immediate and abundant—herds moving across open plains, predators never far behind—offering a clear view of how a fully functioning savanna operates. This is a landscape built for movement. Antelopes gather in sweeping numbers across rolling grasslands, elephants and giraffes move between stands of acacia, and lions are encountered here with notable frequency. The density and visibility of wildlife make patterns easier to follow—who moves where, and why.
Continue to Nat Hab’s Mara East Camp, set within a private conservancy bordering the national reserve. With strict limits on vehicles and guests, wildlife viewing here is uncrowded and unhurried, and animals move freely across protected land that serves as a key migration corridor between the Mara and the Loita Plains. Your camp places you directly within this setting. Canvas tents are spaced for privacy, each with an en suite bathroom and shaded veranda overlooking the plains. Evenings unfold by lantern light, with time around the fire as the sounds of the Mara carry across the darkness.
Travel across the Mara to Enarau Conservancy, turning this transfer into one of the most revealing drives of the trip. What begins as a classic safari—wildlife moving across open plains, herds grazing and predators never far off—gradually shifts as you move deeper into the conservancy. Animals become less frequent, vegetation thins and the effects of long-term land use come into view. The contrast unfolds in real time, offering a rare, side-by-side look at how ecosystems function—and how they begin to break down.
Arrive at your research station set within the conservancy. The work begins just beyond your door, with the surrounding terrain serving as your field site and the research team guiding each day’s efforts. After settling in, meet the scientists leading the project and begin your orientation. You’ll learn how the land has changed, what is being tested and how your time here will contribute to restoring habitat and supporting wildlife movement.
Work at Enarau centers on both monitoring and restoration, with each day offering a different way to understand how this landscape is changing—and how it can be brought back. Alongside scientists, you’ll move between field sites and research areas across the conservancy, contributing to ongoing efforts shaped by conditions and research priorities. You may walk or drive transects to spot and record mammals and birds, noting group size, behavior and location to understand how wildlife is using the area. In other locations, you’ll measure vegetation and ground cover to track how habitat is recovering. Camera traps extend what can be seen in the field, capturing wildlife activity over time, and you’ll assist with setting, checking and reviewing images. Restoration work is hands-on, including planting native species and supporting nursery operations.
Throughout, your Lead Scientist and research team guide the work, explaining what you’re seeing, how data is collected and how it informs restoration. Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) is integrated directly into these methods, shaping how the land is managed and how recovery is approached. Your participation forms the third strand of this shared approach, strengthening rewilding efforts to bring wildlife back to areas where it once lived.
On select afternoons or evenings, head out by vehicle for a working safari. These drives combine wildlife viewing with data collection, as you record sightings, observe behavior and compare how animals use different parts of the conservancy. The experience shifts from simply seeing wildlife to understanding how it moves through a changing environment.
Between field sessions, there is time to rest and take in your surroundings. Many species of birds have already returned to the Enarau basecamp, and downtime gives you ample time to observe some of the region's iconic species, often just beyond your cabin! Evenings are unhurried, often spent reviewing images, sharing observations and hearing from scientists through informal discussions and structured presentations that bring additional depth to the work. By the end of your time at Enarau, you’ll have a clear understanding of how this landscape is changing—and how your work contributes to that process.
Begin the day with focused restoration work—one of the most hands-on and rewarding parts of the experience. Working alongside scientists, you’ll take part in efforts that directly shape the landscape, from planting native species to supporting nursery operations and maintaining experimental plots. You may also contribute to vegetation surveys, measuring cover, abundance and productivity to understand how different areas are responding. This is where the work becomes tangible. The changes you help put in place remain part of the conservancy, contributing to habitat recovery and the gradual return of wildlife over time.
In the afternoon, visit the Mara Triangle Rhino Sanctuary, one of the region’s key efforts to protect black rhinos within the Greater Maasai Mara ecosystem. Here, you gain insight into how a species once pushed to the brink is monitored and protected through intensive management and long-term conservation planning.
Continue to a nearby cultural center, where time spent with Maasai community members offers a deeper understanding of how conservation and livelihoods are closely linked. Local knowledge, land stewardship and daily life all play a role in shaping how this ecosystem is managed—and how restoration efforts continue.
Visit one more survey area, checking camera traps to see how wildlife is using the conservancy. Patterns begin to emerge—movement, absence, return—offering a clearer picture of how this landscape is responding to the work underway. Spend time alongside researchers reviewing findings and interpreting what the data reveals, connecting your fieldwork to the broader conservation effort. In the evening, gather for a final dinner to reflect on your experience and celebrate your accomplishments, knowing the vital role you’ve played in restoring this ecosystem.
Spend a final morning at the conservancy before transferring to the airstrip for your return flight to Nairobi. Depart with a clearer understanding of how ecosystems recover—and a direct connection to the science and people working to restore the Maasai Mara.
