Reviews of Little Governors'
Wildlife sightings and reviews
23 independent comments and wildlife information from our travellers who have visited Little Governors' and kindly agreed to share their thoughts. They do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa
100% success
69% success
75% success
0% success
100% success
100% success
100% success
100% success
100% success
92% success
83% success
75% success
54% success
20% success
0% success
0% success
"Little Governors' Camp review"
Lunch was outside on the decking and tremendous, overseeing the various wildlife which entertained us in the water and out - especially the roaming warthogs and elephants who came through the camp, much to everyone's amusement. Dinner was inside the restaurant and a slight downer in that it felt that it could have been anywhere. I guess we were spoilt by lunch being outside with the view.
The staff are great, again, like our previous two stops, very attentive and friendly. They are happy to engage if guests are which is great.
One slight disappointment was that we had a clearly inexperienced guide, Johnson. He was taciturn and didn't explain where we were going and would spend long periods not saying anything. We kept having to ask him what the plan was and what we were looking for. We were clearly spoilt by Simon at Kicheche but I would at least expect to be given some information about animals proactively rather than keep having to ask and receive one or two word answers. He was clearly shy and only occasionally did he come out of himself and this questions whether he is in the right job. He did, like, Simon, have a superb eye for the animals and spotted things from great distances which we would have never seen ourselves.
We have scored this experience as Excellent across all areas as, in summary it was, but there are a couple of things which could have made it even more special. The picnic breakfasts are average and the sundowners caused an issue for us until we spoke to the Camp Manager but this should have been proactively sorted rather than us having to deal with it ourselves. Just a few issues to focus on but there is no doubt the camp is a fine experience." See all these reviews: 7n in Kenya
Black Rhino
Multiple sightings
Buffalo
Multiple sightings
Cheetah
Multiple sightings
Eland
Multiple sightings
Elephant
Multiple sightings
Giraffe
Multiple sightings
Hippo
Multiple sightings
Lion
Multiple sightings
Spotted Hyena
Multiple sightings
Striped Hyena
Multiple sightings
Wildebeest
Multiple sightings
Zebra
Multiple sightings
"Little Governors' Camp review"
Excellent guiding (Collins) and friendly helpful staff. Good vegetarian food. Spectacular arrival across the Mara River.
Excellent sightings - big herds towards Mara river in south of reserve. Be aware there is no off road driving so can't always get so close - we would recommend combining Little Governor's with Mara North conservancy.
Camp appears relatively large on paper but does not seem that way when you're there.
Highly recommended." See all these reviews: 9n in Kenya
Black Rhino
1 sighting
Buffalo
2 sightings
Cheetah
1 sighting
Elephant
6 sightings
Giraffe
3 sightings
Hippo
4 sightings
Leopard
1 sighting
Lion
5 sightings
Spotted Hyena
1 sighting
Wildebeest
5 sightings
Zebra
5 sightings
"A wonderful location - hard to fault. "
Nice to be so close to the airstrip. Excellent food, the manager George is very present and friendly and staff very friendly and attentive.
A wonderful location - hard to fault." See all these reviews: 13n in Kenya
"Little Governors' Camp review"
Buffalo
10 sightings
Cheetah
1 sighting
Eland
3 sightings
Elephant
10 sightings
Giraffe
8 sightings
Hippo
10 sightings
Leopard
3 sightings
Lion
10 sightings
Spotted Hyena
3 sightings
Wildebeest
10 sightings
Zebra
10 sightings
"Another return to Little Governors"
There was a good choice on the menu at lunch and dinner. The food was well prepared and very good quality. We very much enjoyed all of our meals. We took breakfast out with us in the morning so that we could have extended game drives and only ate breakfast in camp on the last day. Both types of breakfast were very good. We had excellent service at mealtimes.
Our driver/guide was Oliver and we were very lucky to have the vehicle to ourselves for the whole time. Our first two game drive were in the Musiara area. The driving conditions in that section were very difficult due to recent rainfall. Our first pm drive was in good weather and very relaxed with a decent amount of game. The following morning was difficult for everyone... it rained most of the time and animals were hiding! The high grass made sighting even harder. Consequently we did our other game drives in the Mara Triangle. (The easy access to this is a big advantage of staying at Little Governors, as opposed to the other Governors Camps).
We had some good sightings and a couple of memorable 'road blocks'. The first was a male lion who decided that the road was a very warm and comfy place to lie down and have a nap! This happened just as we were going to head back to camp. There was no way round him so we, and several other vehicles simply had to wait for him to move. On another day a large tusker decided to monopolise the road in front of our vehicle. He seemed a bit grumpy so Oliver gave him space and we followed slowly at a distance. He eventually moved off into the grass. (One disadvantage of the Mara Triangle is that there is no off road driving allowed).
We thoroughly enjoyed our stay at Little Governors. However it is the first time that we have stayed there and not seen any cheetah." See all these reviews: 13n in Kenya
Black Rhino
2 sightings
Buffalo
10 sightings
Eland
2 sightings
Elephant
10 sightings
Giraffe
Multiple sightings
Hippo
10 sightings
Leopard
3 sightings
Lion
3 sightings
Wildebeest
1 sighting
Zebra
Multiple sightings
"Little Governors' Camp review"
Our guide, Isaac, who we have had several times was excellent. He was very empathetic to our requirement as we had our daughter and two granddaughters with us.
The manager, George, made sure that everything was in order for us asking regularly how our stay was going.
A really excellent location and first class camp which is run extremely well." See all these reviews: 8n in Kenya
Black Rhino
1 sighting
Buffalo
10 sightings
Cheetah
2 sightings
Eland
3 sightings
Elephant
10 sightings
Giraffe
10 sightings
Hippo
10 sightings
Lion
10 sightings
Spotted Hyena
10 sightings
Zebra
10 sightings
"Little Governors' Camp review"
Special kudos to Chef Kenneth and the dining and bar staff." See all these reviews: 8n in Kenya
Buffalo
7 sightings
Cheetah
2 sightings
Eland
3 sightings
Elephant
8 sightings
Giraffe
6 sightings
Hippo
4 sightings
Leopard
2 sightings
Lion
5 sightings
Spotted Hyena
3 sightings
Zebra
6 sightings
"Little Governors' Camp, a great place for our return to Africa "
The food was good and our guide Joseph was superb. One of the best at spotting wildlife in the distance in our 14 years of Safari holidays.
We saw so many lions, every day, different prides in one day cheetah on one occasion, elephants, buffalo, antelope and hippo.
We would love to stay again." See all these reviews: 10n in Kenya
Buffalo
10 sightings
Cheetah
1 sighting
Eland
5 sightings
Elephant
Multiple sightings
Giraffe
2 sightings
Hippo
6 sightings
Lion
5 sightings
Spotted Hyena
2 sightings
Wildebeest
Multiple sightings
Zebra
6 sightings
"Little Governors Camp review"
Not nearly as much game as we expected but for someone who is a first time safari visitor probably OK.
Our guide, Moses, on our two morning drives almost said nothing. On both mornings he drove for almost an hour without explaining what he was looking for or what we were doing. Gave the impression he didn't want to be bothered talking. Fortunately the amazing scenery made up for his silence. He did a bit more talking in the evening drives when prompted. I think he is tired of the job and I would feel sorry for anyone only visiting this camp for their safari experience and getting Moses.
Altogether a fabulous place to stay. Moses needs a break." See all these reviews: 13n in Kenya; 9n in Zanzibar
Buffalo
10 sightings
Elephant
10 sightings
Giraffe
8 sightings
Hippo
10 sightings
Lion
2 sightings
Spotted Hyena
8 sightings
Zebra
10 sightings
"Smiley, warm and welcoming!"
We really liked the individual dining arrangement, as opposed to communal tables. This system gave us freedom to dine when we wanted (within reason) and the opportunity to enjoy time alone during breakfast and lunch overlooking the scenic marsh. In the evenings we loved having a drink in the bar before moving to the candlelit area for dinner. The menu provided a nice choice and the food was excellent.
Our safari guide, Moses, was very experienced and he provided us with some outstanding Lion and Hyena encounters. However, the spotted cats proved elusive. We were able to get some super photos.
This is one of the best camps we have stayed at during our African travels. It combined very well with our other camp, Karen Blixen." See all these reviews: 6n in Kenya
Buffalo
6 sightings
Eland
1 sighting
Elephant
7 sightings
Giraffe
6 sightings
Hippo
7 sightings
Leopard
1 sighting
Lion
7 sightings
Spotted Hyena
7 sightings
Wildebeest
1 sighting
Zebra
2 sightings
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Other lodges in Maasai Mara National Reserve
Alternative places to stay in this same area.
Rekero
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Tangulia Mara
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Governors' Camp
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Serian Nkorombo
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Sala's Camp
Sala’s Camp is a comfortable and intimate tented camp, with seven tented rooms, located on the banks of the Sand River, in the far south of the Maasai Mara National Reserve.
Governors' Il Moran
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Sand River Camp
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Ngenche Safari Camp
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Basecamp Maasai Mara
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Tipilikwani Camp
Tipilikwani Mara Camp is a larger, mid-range tented camp offering good value from its base on the Talek River just outside the Mara National Reserve.
Mara Expedition Camp
Mara Expedition Camp is a small luxury camp located on the banks of the Ntiakitiak River inside the Maasai Mara National Reserve.
Topi House
Topi House is a very good, three-bedroom fully staffed private house on the fringes of the Maasai Mara National Reserve.
Mara Serena Safari Lodge
Mara Serena Safari Lodge is a large safari hotel with views of the Mara River, in the Mara Triangle sector of the Maasai Mara National Reserve.
Governors' Private Camp
Located on a secluded bend of the Mara River, Governor’s Private Camp has just eight tents and is booked on an exclusive basis.
Angama Mara
Angama Mara is a top-end luxury tented camp on the Siria-Oloololo escarpment of the Maasai Mara ecoystem, just above the Mara Triangle sector of the Maasai Mara National Reserve.
Naibor Camp
Naibor has a great location in the Mara reserve, and offers accommodation to suit different budgets, with stylish high-end tents and some simpler ones too.
