Reviews of Ilkeliani Camp

"Ilkeliani Camp was an overall amazing experience! The manager, Eric, coordinated a 4 night stay with us that was in our opinion, the epitome of service. From the moment we arrived we were provided a detailed overview of the camp and all the services they provide. The camp itself has a beautiful observation deck, where we saw giraffes multiple times across the river. The camp also has a swimming pool, campfire pit/lower observation deck, and a very large and comfortable lounge/lobby area. Our tent was luxurious, having everything we need and more, along with views across the river to the Maasai Mara Reserve.

The staff at the camp were incredible to say the least. Our waiter, Molindo (John) provided us with top notch service during our meals, always making sure we were taken care of to the highest standard. Our housekeeper, Robin, kept our room immaculate, always asking if we needed anything above and beyond the high standard he was maintaining. Other staff including Mercy and Natasha, always took time out of their duties to have a conversation with us and shared about their lives, which we truly appreciated. We even got the opportunity to get to know our night time security, Lasiamon (Tom), who was assigned to our tent at night to keep the many animals away. Getting to know Tom was a pleasure as well and we appreciated the work he and the other night Maasai did which would often go unnoticed.

The manager, Eric, took the time out of his duties to escort us to the local Maasai Village (highly recommend if you have the chance). The food was absolutely amazing, with the chefs checking in with us every meal. On our last night, the staff sang and danced and made a cake just for us saying “welcome back again” for a future visit. Our only recommendation, and definitely not a criticism, would be to have a few options for some local traditional dishes to be served on the menu. Overall, the staff made this camp above and beyond what we could have ever expected in terms of luxury and service.

Our game drives were incredible. Our driver, Jemlik (spelling?) was a master at finding an enormous amount of wildlife. We saw plenty of lions/lionesses, elephants, giraffes, buffalo, and even a few cheetahs, among a ton of other animals every where you looked. The amount of wildlife is enormous within the Maasai Mara reserve. The only other place we can compare it too is the Lewa Conservancy in the Laikipia region where the wildlife wasn’t as plentiful (still saw an incredible amount in the conservancy as well). That being said, there was many more safari jeeps in the Maasai Mara compared to the conservancy, so it doesn’t feel as private of an experience. We also felt like the game drives were a little more time oriented (ex. Once 6:30pm hit we felt like we were rushing back to camp) compared to our drives at the Lewa Safari Camp. Jemlik arranged a breakfast in the bush for us, as well a sundowner (evening drinks and snacks watching the sunset in the bush). We were in awe of the amount of wildlife we saw and what we call the “national geographic” documentaries playing out right in front of our eyes. Lastly, if you have a chance and can bend the budget to include a hot air balloon ride, it was worth every penny and we had an amazing experience!

Overall we had an unbelievable positively experience at Ilkeliani and couldn’t recommend this camp enough. Thank you to everyone at this camp for an amazing safari adventure!" See all these reviews: 7n in Kenya