Basecamp Leopard Hill: Our full report
Opened in 2018, Basecamp Leopard Hill is one of the newest and most luxurious of the Basecamp Foundation’s ...
... safari camps in the Maasai Mara. It is set in a small clearing in the beautiful Naboisho Conservancy. With only six smart tents it offers good quality accommodation and the fantastic wildlife-viewing opportunities of the conservancy.Basecamp Leopard Hill is the sister camp of Basecamp Eagle View and Basecamp Wilderness Camp. The camps’ owner is a Norwegian financier with a desire to conserve Kenya’s natural environment, and the Basecamp camps attract a diverse range of guests from Scandinavia and around the world.
The lounge tent is simply furnished but comfortable, the focal point being a large stone and brick fireplace which creates a cosy atmosphere on cooler evenings. Here you can find a couple of large sofas and a low table scattered with photo books. There is a selection of board games, a pith helmet or two dotted around, and armchairs overlooking the open plains. The neighboring dining tent is set up with individual tables and a hot drink station where you can help yourself to tea or an espresso throughout the day.
The six guest tents are well spaced out for privacy, each one overlooking one of three waterholes where animals frequently come to drink. The tents are raised on wooden decks with a veranda at the front. Each deck area has a small firepit and your room attendant will light a fire in the evening to accompany your sundowner drinks.
Inside, the tents are spacious and attractive, with wooden floors, double or twin beds, a coffee table and daybed. The décor draws its inspiration from East Africa and India, using traditional wooden carvings and cow hides sitting alongside tapestries, Indian elephant cushions, and oriental fabrics. The stand-out feature for us is the retractable roof. At the press of a button the fabric roof retracts to reveal the sky, leaving just a thin mosquito net between you and the stars. At the back of each tent, the good-sized bathroom has twin washbasins, indoor and outdoor plumbed showers, a hairdryer, and complimentary bathrobes, slippers, wellies, ponchos and toiletries.
In addition to the four standard tents, Basecamp Leopard Hill has a family tent comprising two separate tents set together on the same wooden deck. There is also honeymoon tent which is the furthest tent away from the central area. This tent comes with its own private lounge furnished in a similar style to the rest of the camp.
Activities at Basecamp Leopard Hill revolve around game drives in the Naboisho Conservancy. As this is a wildlife conservancy, not the public Maasai Mara National Reserve, the rules are much more relaxed and you can go on night drives with infrared equipment to look for nocturnal species such as white-tailed mongoose and bush babies. We found the guides very pleasant and keen to please, and we certainly saw a lot of wildlife, however, we felt they have slightly less experience than some guides at the pricier camps, emphasised by their slight tendency to overuse the radio.
As well as shared game drives, Leopard Hill offers walking safaris, which are led by the camp’s safari guides, an armed ranger, and some of the local Maasai camp security, armed with spears. These typically last a few hours and aim to see the birds, plants, and smaller species of the Maasai Mara ecosystem. On our last visit, we loved walking 11km between Leopard Hill and sister-camp, Eagle View, which was incredibly scenic and bought us close to spotted hyena, zebra, giraffe, topi and warthogs. Walks between their sister-camps are a fun alternative transfer if staying in with multiple Basecamp properties during your visit. You can also combine a walking safari with fly-camping, spending the night in a small dome tent in the middle of the bush.
When you’re weary of game drives and bush walks, you can indulge in a free 30-minute complementary massage in the privacy of your tent, or pay for a different or longer treatment. These are easily booked with the on-site therapist.
All the Basecamp properties have strong environmental credentials. Basecamp Leopard Hill is run entirely on solar power, with no need for a back-up generator. The camps also have strong ties with the local community and support a number of charitable initiatives such as the Maa Trust, a women’s cooperative with a range of projects, from traditional beadwork making to the production of local honey. The Basecamp Foundation has also been instrumental in setting up and supporting the Koiyaki Guiding School which trains people from the local Maasai community to become safari guides.
During our last visit, we really enjoyed how many female silver qualified and trainee guides are working with Basecamp, and much of the front-of-house team is also female.
Our view
We really liked Basecamp Leopard Hill during our last visit. It’s very comfortable and certainly has all the appearance of a luxury safari camp, with fun added features such as the bedroom's retractable roofs. We loved the quiet, secluded location and think it offers excellent value for money, too. What it perhaps lacks is the refinement and finesse of higher-end properties. However it’s a great choice if you’re looking for a stylish safari camp without a very high price tag, and are looking for a peaceful atmosphere and relaxed pace.
Geographics
- Location
- Maasai Mara Conservancies, Kenya
- Ideal length of stay
- Stay here for three or four nights to explore the Naboisho Conservancy.
- Directions
- The closest airstrip is Naboisho-Ol Seki airstrip, which is around a 45-minute drive from the camp.
- Accessible by
- Fly-and-Transfer
Food & drink
- Usual board basis
- Full Board & Activities
- Food quality
- We enjoyed the food at Basecamp Leopard Hill and found it to be on the simple, hearty side.
Breakfast can either be packed and taken into the bush for your morning drive, or a more formal affair back at camp. You can expect a selection of fresh fruit, yoghurt, and bread followed by a hot breakfast with eggs cooked to order.
Lunch is normally three courses, typically starting with soup, which may be followed by a creamy pasta dish, and then finished with a sweet course such as ice-cream. On our last visit, we enjoyed a light green salad followed by a deliciously spicy curry and vanilla ice cream.
The three-course dinner can either be in the dining tent, or sometimes on your own private veranda. We ordered roast beef with creamy mashed potatoes (which was a little tough), and dessert was once again vanilla ice cream. - Dining style
- Individual Tables
- Dining locations
- Indoor and Outdoor Dining
- Further dining info, including room service
- Room service can be arranged on request.
- Drinks included
- House drinks are included.
Children
- Attitude towards children
- Basecamp Leopard Hill accepts children of all ages.
- Property’s age restrictions
- There are no age restrictions.
- Special activities & services
- All Basecamp properties operate the Dorobo Children’s Club, and guides can show children how to make bows and arrows and look for animal tracks around the camp. Childminding can also be arranged. However this is by camp staff and not professionally trained babysitters.
- Equipment
- There are two cots that can be provided with advance notice.
- Generally recommended for children
- There is a family tent, and the camp does accept children of all ages, however we feel that the camp has quite an adult atmosphere and families with young children may be better suited to sister property Basecamp Eagle View.
- Notes
- The camp is unfenced and wildlife regularly wonders through, so children need to be supervised at all times.
Our travellers’ wildlife sightings from Basecamp Leopard Hill
Since mid-2018, many of our travellers who stayed at Basecamp Leopard Hill have kindly recorded their wildlife sightings and shared them with us. The results are below. Click an animal to see more, and here to see more on our methodology.

100% success

100% success

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100% success

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100% success

20% success

0% success

0% success

0% success

0% success
Communications
- Communications
- WiFi is available in the rooms but not in the communal area. There is intermittent phone signal.
- Water supply
- Borehole
- Water supply notes
- Showers are plumbed and solar heaters provides hot water. Filtered drinking water is provided in the tents.
Health & safety
- Malarial protection recommended
- Yes
- Medical care
- Staff are first-aid-trained and there is a first aid kit on site. For anything more serious the nearest doctor is in Talek, around 20km away and an hour by road.
- Dangerous animals
- High Risk
- Security measures
- There are discreet 24-hour security guards around the camp and guests are escorted by askaris after dark.
- Fire safety
- There are fire extinguishers in the tents and communal areas.
Activities
4WD Safari
Birdwatching
Cultural excursion
Guided walking safari
Hot air ballooning
Night drive
Private activities
Extras
- Disabled access
- On Request
- Laundry facilities
- Laundry is included, except ladies' delicates. Soap is provided in the rooms for washing these in the sinks.
- Money
- There are electronic safes in the tents.
- Accepted payment on location
- Cash payments in US dollars, Kenyan shillings, GBP pounds and Euros are accepted. The camp can accept card payments with either Visa or MasterCard, and there is no surcharge.
Other lodges in Maasai Mara Conservancies
Alternative places to stay in this same area.