Cottars Private House: Information from the owner

Cottar's Bush Villa

The contemporary African style house can be rented only on an exclusive basis and comes with a dedicated staff of 8. The house has a large living room, a dining room, a magnificent viewing deck and 5 en-suite bedrooms, all with stunning views.

Balloon ride over the Masai Mara ($450 pp)

The day begins with an early morning wakeup call at 3.30am with tea and coffee followed by a 4am departure to the launch site to enjoy a balloon safari over the Maasai Mara. The drive from camp to the balloon site takes about one and a half hours.

At dawn you will board and take off, rising as the sun rises, floating in whichever direction the winds of the morning take you. The pilot can precisely control the altitude of the balloon, sometimes flying at treetop height, sometimes lower. At other times he will ascend to one thousand feet or more to see the enormous and wonderful panorama of the Masai Mara, offering a unique perspective and great photographic opportunities of the wildlife below. The flight will last about an hour and upon landing, you will enjoy a full breakfast with a traditional Champagne toast.

Conservation and Community Tour

Join the conservancy rangers on a patrol over the beautiful Olentoroto hill, listen and learn about the struggles and dreams of the local community, as they face their day to day mission of wildlife conservation. Have lunch with the conservancy managers at the Conservancy Camp and get a deeper understanding of this community based conservancy; the work that CWCT does, and how you can have an impact. After lunch you can walk / drive to the local village and/or disperse Seedballs with the Olpalagilagi Schools Conservancy Club.

Day and night wildlife drives

We visit both inside the Masai Mara National Reserve and outside, in our OlderKesi

Conservancy. You can do either morning, evening or all day game drives. Please note that viewing the main migration river crossings requires a full day out as they are located some way from camp. We believe that wildlife viewing should be a private , special and un-rushed experience.

Evening Talks

We are now offering evening talks on the following topics which all guests are welcome to attend:

- The history of Cottars

- The history of the Maasai

- A talk on Conservation

- Stargazing

Guided Bush Walks

All walks are led by a professional guide and accompanied by a licensed gun bearer. Bush walks can start from camp or can be a part of a game drive. They give you the

chance to view the unique ecosystem from a completely different perspective, and to learn about botany and entomology, and how to interpret animal tracks and signs.

The walk can be as long or as short as you wish.

Local School Visit

Spend a few hours visiting our local primary school, you will get to meet the children and sit in on a few classes if you wish, or join in on the daily football game. Something for those seeking a more engaging and immersive safari experience.

Maasai Village visit ($20 pp)

Visit a Maasai Village and experience their rich culture. This involves a trip to their Manyattas (mud huts), village setup (security, healthcare, education and management of resources e.g. meals, water, firewood), local market with wonderful Maasai artefacts/attire for sale, their live-stock and much more. You will learn about ancient traditions as well as contemporary struggles and adaptations to modern life.

Maasai Warrior School (all ages)

Children and families are invited to learn the ways of a warrior with the African bush as your classroom. A session includes spear throwing; bow and arrow practice; Maasai jumping, dancing,singing, beading and tracking, depending on age and ability.

Pool Time

The 1920s Camp and the Bush Villa each have their own swimming pools for guests to enjoy as and when they wish.

Running with a Maasai Warrior

For the more energetic travellers, morning or evening runs can be arranged with a local Maasai warrior as your guide.

Seedball Dispersal

You are given packets of Seedballs and as you drive or walk on your safari, please throw the seedballs out, one at a time. They are encased in a special coating which will activate at the right time for germination. Your packet contains approximately 225 indigenous tree, or grass or plant or flower seeds that are critical to the Mara-Serengeti ecosystem.

We are replenishing the tree species that are endangered in our area. Indirectly, we are also supporting species such as elephants, butterflies, bees and other insect life that is key to the biodiversity in this area. This year, our aim is to plant 30,000 indigenous trees. Your complimentary packet will help us get towards our target, thank you for helping our local ecosystem and helping Cottars become net positive!

Spa Treatments (starting from $50)

We have a number of treatments available at the Spa which is located near the main Mess Tent area. We only use organic ingredients and allow our guests to choose the ingredients to make their spa experience truly bespoke.

Sustainability Tour

A short walk around camp visiting our 4Cs centre and back of house; our veg garden, solar power set and sustainability initiatives.

Swimming and or fishing at the Waterfall (seasonal)

A 45 minute drive away to the sand river with your guide where you may swim under the falls, dive of the rocks and do some fishing for CatFish with local style fishing rods and hooks.

Traditional Canvas Bush Bath

After a day out game driving, soak and relax in our unique canvas bush bath: A traditional style canvas bath is set up in the open-air outside your tent, as you bathe, you can enjoy the wild beauty of the Masai Mara, this is best done watching the sunset from your tent between 6 - 7pm.

Traditional Maasai singing and dancing

Under the vast African sky, while enjoying an evening cocktails by the fire, guests get to enjoy the time-honoured celebration of song and dance by our local Maasai warriors.