About this hotel
General information
&Beyond Bateleur Camp is a classic tented safari camp in a quiet western corner of the Masai Mara, set beneath the forested Oloololo escarpment. It is made up of two small camps, North and South, with nine tents in each, so no more than 36 guests stay at any one time. The tents and guest areas look across open plains scattered with balanites trees, a landscape the Maasai have long called the ‘spotted’ land.
The interiors pair antiques, Chesterfield sofas, vintage trunks, polished silver and copper bathtubs with pieces made for the camp by local Maasai artisans, from ottomans covered in wedding-skirt fabric to beaded rungu door handles. Every tent is looked after by a private butler. Three meals a day, most drinks, two activities a day, laundry and airstrip transfers are included.
Location
The camp lies on the &Beyond Kichwa Tembo concession, which borders the Masai Mara National Reserve to the west, where the Great Rift Valley begins. Kichwa Tembo means ‘head of the elephant’ in Swahili; the land is leased from Maasai landowners and explored almost exclusively by &Beyond guests. Light aircraft fly twice a day from Nairobi’s Wilson Airport to the Kichwa Tembo airstrip, and transfers between the airstrip and the camp are included. The Mara can also be reached by road from Nairobi in a 4x4.
Spa
The massage sala looks out over the plains and has two tables, for couples or individual treatments. Treatments use Healing Earth products and therapies, from full-body massages to targeted work, and can also be given in the guest’s own tent.
Sports & leisure
The concession gives direct access to the routes of the Great Migration, and &Beyond guides shape each day around their guests. Experiences include:
- morning and afternoon game drives in open 4x4 vehicles across plains rich in plains game and predators, with full days out and a picnic lunch when the migration is in the area;
- night drives by spotlight in search of the savanna’s more elusive residents;
- guided bush walks on the concession, reading tracks and the sounds of the bush, with a pair of SWAROVSKI OPTIK binoculars per tent for the length of the stay;
- a dawn hot-air balloon flight over the reserve, about an hour aloft, followed by champagne and a full English breakfast in the bush (at extra cost);
- a visit to a Maasai homestead to learn about daily life and local crafts (at extra cost), and Wild Impact community visits to local projects, among them the restoration of the Nyakweri forest;
- picnics, bush breakfasts and dinners in the open, and sundowners on the plains;
- a gym beside the South Camp pool with a treadmill, elliptical trainer, exercise bike and free weights, plus a gym-in-a-basket delivered to the tent on request;
- weddings, blessings and engagements celebrated in the Maasai tradition.
Drinking water is bottled on site, so the camp does away with plastic bottles, and most of the energy used at &Beyond’s Kenyan camps comes from renewable sources.
For children
Young guests can join the &Beyond WILDchild programme: making fire the traditional Maasai way, beading with Maasai women, playing traditional Maasai games, a forest walk with a guide to look for birds and animal tracks, butterfly spotting and a game of football with the camp team. On request, and at extra cost, staff members who are good with children can look after them.
Restaurants & bars
The cooking draws on fresh produce, much of it from the camp’s own organic vegetable garden, and on Kenyan hospitality, with plated service throughout. Meals move between several settings:
- the South Camp boma, an open-air enclosure under the sky for fireside dinners;
- the extended deck at North Camp, overlooking the plains;
- tables beside the pools of both camps, and private dinners for two at the tent;
- the South Camp bar, open to guests of both camps — a coffee bar serving Kenyan coffees by day and a gin bar with more than 16 craft gins and inventive cocktails by night;
- breakfasts, lunches and dinners out in the bush, and afternoon high tea before the evening drive.
Drinks are included, except champagne, cognac and fine wines.
Swimming
Each of the two camps has its own unheated infinity pool with views over the Masai Mara plains, and meals can be taken beside the water.
Rooms
Eighteen spacious tents on wooden platforms, nine each in North and South Camp, two of which combine as the Luxury Family Tent. Interiors bring together hardwood floors, antiques and leather sofas, and every tent has its own butler.
Each tent has a weather-protected ‘star bath’ open to the night sky, indoor and outdoor showers, a separate WC, a private veranda with a built-in daybed, a personal bar and coffee station, ceiling fans, a safe, a hairdryer, a telephone and Wi-Fi.
Luxury Tent
A tent with a bedroom set up as a double or twin and an en-suite bathroom with a sky-view bath and indoor and outdoor showers. The large private veranda with a daybed faces the plains; sleeps two.
Luxury Family Tent
Two Luxury Tents, one double and one twin, linked by an interior passage and a shared lounge, each with its own bathroom and veranda with a seating area. Sleeps two adults and two children, or three children on request.
Photos are for illustrative purposes only. Actual room layout, furnishings, décor, views and amenities may differ from those shown and may vary between rooms of the same category. Hotel and room descriptions are based on information provided by the property and are believed to be accurate at the time of publication, but are not guaranteed. The hotel may renovate or change its rooms, facilities, restaurants and services at any time without notice. The final details of your stay are confirmed at the time of booking. See our Terms of Use.