JW Marriott Masai Mara Lodge

We had an absolutely amazing trip to the JW Masai Mara. We saved up our Marriott points for 2 years in order to go and it was worth every point! The resort is truly luxurious and the service is top notch. The staff will help you arrange everything you need leading up to the trip and are extremely responsive. Shout outs to -Nicholas: An absolutely amazing guide and storyteller. He was extremely knowledgeable and authentic. He was very patient with everyone's questions. -Festus: Our second guide after Nicholas had to step away, was the rhino whisperer! He found an elusive rhino when our group made it clear this was a priority. He found the rhino laying down in the middle of a herd of buffalo. He was the first guide to spot it that day. Everyone in our group was ecstatic. -Naicherwa: Our sweet and helpful server. She always remembered our preferences. -Victor: Our favorite bartender. His positive energy, good vibes, knowledge and story sharing was awesome. He also made great drinks. -Patrick, Josiah, and Richard: Also great bartenders who were very personable and professional. Josiah was very light hearted and fun at the sundowner! -Moses and Felix: So kind and helpful with the camera and photos. We love our professional looking photos from the resort's cameras and we couldn't have done it without their help. -Ivy at the spa was amazing and I thoroughly enjoyed my spa treatments Tips for future travelers: -If you go in "summer" (May - September) - bring warm clothes! The first hour of the morning drive and the last hour of the evening drive was truly chilly. I thought about bringing my winter knit hat but didn't and regretted it. My ears were pretty cold at times and my safari hat was not doing it. Bring layers, the temperature at the beginning and end of every drive are vastly different and you want to be able to go up or down. -A full day private game drive seems unnecessary on several levels. We expressed interest in one, but after we explained to our guide that the reason was to see a "crossing" he explained that there were actually no crossings currently happening. Further, if we wanted to see the big river we could propose to our jeep group we have a longer morning drive to do this and then shorten the afternoon drive, which everyone readily agreed too. So we got to go to the river without an all day drive. Also, the animal activity during the middle of the day is pretty low. Mornings and evenings are the best time (considering night drives are not allowed). Finally, it is just a really long day to sit for hours in the jeep. Even if I wanted the privacy of a private driver I would still ask them to go back to the resort mid day. -Definitely use the resort's high tech cameras. This is a huge benefit of the resort and is baked into the rate so not using it is missing out. They charge only $25 for use of high tech cameras and huge lenses. But basically if you keep the camera on "auto" you don't have to do much to get really professiona

Amazing safari experience and an immersive service at the lodge. We couldn’t be happier with our trip, we saw the big 5 and many other animals, were treated amazingly by all staff, and cannot wait to return. I cannot recommend the staff enough, Victor’s cocktails, Patrick’s service, Allan’s guiding , and Milton rescheduling our itinerary as plans changed. Lastly, the onsite nurse was very helpful and appreciated. Allan really worked to make sure our safari group was cohesive and fun. He listened to what we wanted to see and somehow made it happen!

The entire property and staff work together to make an incredible experience for the guests. The rooms are gorgeous and comfortable. The entire staff goes out of their way to make sure that you have whatever you need when you need it and accommodate all sorts of requests. All the food, game drives and experiences are included. The guides for the game drives are so knowledgeable and share so much insight. The ability to rent a professional camera and get help with it made for incredible pictures for our family. Everything here works so well that going to another place afterwards was a tough transition. From pick up at the airstrip until the farewell it’s all perfect.