losaltos

I just read a very negative review of Little Governor's Camp in the Mara and am now concerned as I am booked there. In a nutshell the reviewer said it was: a white bread camp, only for seriously fit folks, had no night drives, room had mosquitos and black flies. UGH. Anyone else have good/bad experiences at this camp?

atravelynn

I don't recall if the bread was white, whole wheat, rye, or sourdough. I do recall the warthog that joined me for lunch when dining alfesco (I did not feed it) and the elephant that rudely cut in front of all the polite guests at the buffet table. Seriously, I saw that the white bread description was followed by the phrase "way too tame" which seems to contradict "only for seriously fit folks."

To me white bread means dull and boring, which does not describe LG. The excitement does not approach that of having a hippo rub its behind against a pup tent at night or watching a young leopard put its nose up to the just zipped tent netting. But the swampy (mosquito-less in my experience) pond that the camp overlooks had antelope and elephant activity. The sounds of the bush such as lions roaring were evident in the night. Warthogs and a few antelope made the camp their home.

The seriously fit refers to how you arrive at the camp, which is by sitting in a small boat that is poled or pulled by rope (all done for you) across a stream. Then you must exit the boat and climb an embankment. Assistance is available if needed and the typical guest is not neccesarily a Kili climber but a middle aged tourist, like me.

No night drives--correct. If you stay inside the park, night drives are prohibited. There is an exception to that rule, sort of, and it is Mara Serena, which is inside the park. The night drives at Mara Serena take place all within the Serena property and do not venture into the park property. Other camps outside of the Mara may provide night drives.

Mosquitos and black flies--not that I recall in the dry season. The beds are equipped with mosquito netting, which is typical of most Mara establishments, for your protection while you sleep. I always use the netting but rarely detect anything flying around.

I had a great experience with the camp, staff members and the driver/guide. The location is excellent during the migration. I would return in a moment.

If you search for Little Governor's in the forum, I think you'll find the majority of the reviews are positve.

sdb2

I agree with atravelynn's comments. I was there last September and enjoyed the place. It sits on a marsh which had a fair amount of game around or in it. I did not encounter mosquitos or flies, but I did manage to lunch with a warthog (atravelynn's?) by my side. I was told that the night before I arrived a small group of elephants decided to march through the camp during dinner and that the staff did a great job of making sure guests were not injured. I thought the tents were comfortable and I liked the torches that were used for lighting at night. There is a bit of a hike, and a short river crossing, to the safari vehicles. Unless you're carrying 25 lbs of photo gear on your back (me), the walk is not that demanding. On one of the hikes up the embankment a green snake darted across my path, so you never knew when something interesting would pop up.

Because a picture is worth a thousand words, take a look at this photo ( http://globitude.com/picture/9224/fullsize ) to get a feel for the place. The tents are reached after a not too distant walk on the far side. The game vehicles are at the top of the steps on the near side.

atravelynn

Sdb2, was the warthog short, stout, tusks, a few unruly whiskers, but impeccable manners? If so, I am sure it was the same gentleman I dined with or at least a family member.

That picture takes me right back. Lovely and a perfect depiction.

It does remind me to offer this hint: Sprinkles can crop up at any time now, and there were some showers during my LG stays. To protect your camera gear and your clothes as you traverse the river in the open boat and then ascend the stairs, always have some water proof protection for your camera at the ready and rain gear for you. This was more important at LG than other places I have stayed when rain started to fall.

pattyroth

We stayed there over 20 years ago and it was magical for our entire family! Reading the descriptions above, it sounds the same. Who needs night drives when you have wonderful day drives and a walk to dinner with a Masai guide and then listen to the hippos nearby "belching?" during the night?

sdb2

Yes! that's him. In addition to those attributes, he also had a penchant for gherkins.

I also experienced rain, sometimes very heavy, during my 8 days in the Mara. Whenever I saw the rain coming, and that's fairly easy on the Masai Mara plains, I would ask the driver for 2 ponchos, one for me and one for my photo gear.

sundowner

I don't think you will find many reviews like the one you are referring to. I was there in Feb07 and Main Governor's Camp in Sept09. I'm barely fit and I'm carrying 20 lbs of camera gear, I don't like night drives and after early mornings and nearly all day game drives I'm ready for dinner and bed, and I did not experience any mosquitoes or black flies in either of the seasons I was there.

I will definitely return and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. I think you should consider yourself lucky to be going there.

Richard_Trillo

To bring the two sides of the argument together a bit, the thing about LG, like the other Governors properties, is that it's become a victim of its own success. This whole "Governors corner" of the reserve, if I can call it that, with three camps, hundreds of staff, dozens of vehicles and often more than 150 guests is just too busy. There's still lots of wildlife, I Iove the wooded settings, and LG in particular has a great location as it's on the right bank (west side) of the Mara River, physically separated from thousands of other visitors. But if you're paying the sort of money that Governors Camps charge, then I would really recommend a smaller luxury tented camp in one of the Mara community conservancies neighbouring the reserve (Offbeat, Kicheche or Porini, for example) where visitor numbers are lower, game concentrations, and certainly predator numbers often higher and ratio of qualified guides to visitors *much* higher. The fact is that if you compare what GCs offer with the standards of smaller properties, they're seriously overpriced.

Just my views, of course! I know plenty of people love Little Governors, even some who have stayed at other high-end camps.

Richard

canadian_robin

Sdb2's photo would be enough to sell me on the camp - what a wonderful way to reach a camp.

I have not stayed at LG, but camped just south of it on the Maji ya Ndege campsite for a week in August 2009. My DH and I were self-driving, and the area around LG (the west side of the river) was one of our favourite places to game drive. Contrary to the impression given by Richard, we did not find the area busy, and the game viewing was excellent. I am actually rather shocked to learn how many guests "Governors Corner" can accommodate - the camps must not have had many guests when we were there, although we were there during the peak season/migration. The crowds/vehicles were not evident to us. We actually found the area around Serena Lodge far busier.

We never saw a mosquito or black fly and our campsite was in an area with a lot of still water.

The review you read seems to be a rather isolated/exceptional review, and I would treat it as that. Robin

losaltos

Thank you all for your comments. I am happy to hear that others have enjoyed the camp -- and glad to know that I may have gentlemanly company for dinner. I stand gherkins at the ready! sdb2: Loved the photo....thanks for that...

atravelynn

I posted a bunch of rate info on LG, Offbeat, Porini, etc. by accident on the wrong thread.

http://www.fodors.com/community/afri...masai-mara.cfm