Angama Mara — Maasai Mara, Kenya

The interiors of too many African safari lodges are a reminder of colonial times; rooms are adorned with leather trunks, zebra-skin rugs line the floors, and maps - that display countries that no longer exist - hang from the walls. At Angama Mara though, this is certainly not the case.

Located at the Ngong Hills in Kenya’s national game reserve, Maasai Mara - the same location author Karen Blixen famously speaks about in her book Out of Africa - the property is the vision of South African couple Steve and Nicky Fitzgerald who, drawing on three decades of experience building and operating safari lodges, wanted to create a space unlike anything else in the country.

So, together with the help of designer Annemarie Meintjes and Johannesburg-based architects Silvio Rech and Lesley Carstens, they conspired to create a series of 30 luxury tented suites, set over two separate camps, each with endless vistas across the Maasai Mara below.

Set on the ridge of the continent’s Great Rift Valley, the vibe is resolutely modern African romance with a floor-to-ceiling glass front that opens onto a broad timber deck. Inside, creamy hues and concealed lighting add to the mystique, while sleek furnishings from Cape Town-based John Vogel are highlighted with smatterings of distinct Maasai reds.

After watching the sun rise from your deck with a cup of coffee delivered by your personal butler, distractions are aplenty, beginning with a gentle hot air balloon ride along the Mara River and over the plains, a post-breakfast game drive, or a spot of retail therapy at the Safari Shop in the main Pavilion.

In the kitchen, food is fresh and local and can be enjoyed wherever takes your fancy. We suggest a candle lit dinner on your private deck, enhanced with the untamed soundtrack of the wilderness below.

ADDRESS

Maasai Mara National Reserve

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