Basecamp Leopard Hill: Our full report
Opened in 2018, Basecamp Leopard Hill is the newest and most luxurious of the Basecamp Foundation’s safari ...
... camps in the Maasai Mara. It is set in a small clearing in the beautiful Naboisho Conservancy. With only six smart tents it offers good quality accommodation and the fantastic wildlife-viewing opportunities of the conservancy.Basecamp Leopard Hill is the sister camp of Basecamp Eagle View and Basecamp Wilderness Camp. The camps’ owner is a Norwegian financier with a desire to conserve Kenya’s natural environment, and the Basecamp camps attract a diverse range of guests from Scandinavia and around the world.
The lounge tent is simply furnished but comfortable, the focal point being a large stone and brick fireplace which creates a cosy atmosphere on cooler evenings. Here you can find a couple of large sofas and a low table scattered with photo books. There is a selection of board games, a pith helmet or two dotted around and armchairs overlooking the open plains. The neighboring dining tent is set up with individual tables and a hot drink station where you can help yourself to tea or an espresso.
The six guest tents are well spaced out for privacy, each one overlooking one of three waterholes where animals frequently come to drink. The tents are raised on wooden decks with a veranda at the front. Each deck area has a small firepit and your room attendant will light a fire in the evening to accompany your sundowner drinks.
Inside, the tents are surprisingly spacious and attractive, with wooden floors, double bed or twin beds, coffee table and a daybed. The décor draws its inspiration from East Africa and India, using traditional wooden carvings and cow hides sitting alongside tapestries, Indian elephant cushions and oriental fabrics. Overall we liked it, and felt that the tents did deliver some wow factor, however the styling probably is a little confused – colonial safari camp meets Indian tea shop. The stand-out feature for us is the retractable roof. At the press of a button the fabric roof retracts to reveal the sky, leaving just a thin mosquito net for protection. At the back of each tent, the good-sized bathroom has twin washbasins, indoor and outdoor plumbed showers, a hairdryer and complimentary toiletries.
In addition to the four standard tents, Basecamp Leopard Hill has a family tent comprising two separate tents set together on the same wooden deck. There is also honeymoon tent which is the furthest tent away from the central area. This tent comes with its own private lounge furnished in a similar style to the rest of the camp.
Activities at Basecamp Leopard Hill revolve around game drives in the Naboisho Conservancy. As this is a wildlife conservancy, not the public Maasai Mara National Reserve, the rules are much more relaxed and you are can go on night drives here to look for nocturnal species such as white-tailed mongoose and bush babies. We found the guides very pleasant and keen to please, and we certainly saw a lot of wildlife, however we felt they have less experience than guides at the pricier camps, emphasised by their slight tendency to overuse the radio.
As well as shared game drives, Leopard Hill offers walking safaris, which are led by the camp’s safari guides and are typically escorted by a local Maasai warrior armed only with a spear. These typically last a few hours and aim to see the birds, plants and smaller species of the Maasai Mara ecosystem.
Walking safaris can be a great way to experience the Maasai Mara, however we have serious reservations about walking in a big game area without an armed ranger for protection. We were informed that for an additional cost of US$50 we could hire an armed ranger for the walk. If you would like to do walks while staying at Leopard Hill, we will only book them for you on that basis. You can also combine a walking safari with fly-camping, spending the night in a small dome tent in the middle of the bush.
When you’re weary of game drives and bush walks, you can indulge in a massage in the privacy of your tent. These are easily booked with the on-site therapist. In 2019 these started at around US$40 for 30 minutes. The managers told us about plans to build a small spa, however there was no projected date for this at the time of our visit.
All the Basecamp properties have strong environmental credentials. Basecamp Leopard Hill is run entirely on solar power, with no need for a back-up generator. The camps also have strong ties with the local community and support a number of charitable initiatives such as the Maa Trust, a women’s cooperative with a range of projects, from traditional beadwork making to the production of local honey. The Basecamp Foundation has also been instrumental in setting up and supporting the Koiyaki Guiding School which trains people from the local Maasai community to become safari guides.
Our view
We really liked Basecamp Leopard Hill when we visited in 2019. It’s very comfortable and certainly has all the appearance of a luxury safari camp. We loved the quiet, secluded location and we think it offers excellent value for money, too. What it perhaps lacks is the refinement and finesse of higher-end properties. However it’s a great choice if you’re looking for a stylish safari camp without a very high price tag.
Kenya expert
Geographics
- Location
- Maasai Mara Conservancies, Kenya
- Ideal length of stay
- Stay here for three or four nights to explore the Naboisho Conservancy.
- Directions
- The closest airstrip is Naboisho-Ol Seki airstrip, which is around a 45-minute drive from the camp.
- Accessible by
- Fly-and-Transfer
Food & drink
- Usual board basis
- Full Board & Activities
- Food quality
- We did not have a chance to sample the food at Basecamp Leopard Hill, however we have previously eaten at its sister property Basecamp Eagle View and we understand that the food at Leopard Hill is very similar. We found the food at the other Basecamp properties to be simple, hearty safari fare and actually rather tasty.
Breakfast can either be packed and taken in to the bush for your morning drive, or a more formal affair back at camp. You can expect a selection of fresh fruit, yoghurt and bread followed by a hot breakfast with eggs cooked to order.
Lunch is normally three courses, typically starting with soup, which may be followed by a creamy pasta dish, and then finished with a sweet course such as ice-cream. The three-course dinner can either be in the dining tent, or sometimes on your own private veranda. - Dining style
- Individual Tables
- Dining locations
- Indoor and Outdoor Dining
- Further dining info, including room service
- Room service can be arranged on request
- Drinks included
- Drinks are at extra cost, with a glass of wine costing around $6 and a local beer around $4. Soft drinks cost around $3.
Children
- Attitude towards children
- Basecamp Leopard Hill accepts children of all ages.
- Property’s age restrictions
- There are no age restrictions.
- Special activities & services
- All Basecamp properties operate the Dorobo Children’s Club, and guides can show children how to make bows and arrows and look for animal tracks around the camp. Childminding can also be arranged. However this is by camp staff and not professionally trained babysitters.
- Equipment
- Cots can be provided with advance notice.
- Generally recommended for children
- There is a family tent, and the camp does accept children of all ages, however we feel that the camp has quite an adult atmosphere and families with young children may be better suited to sister property Basecamp Eagle View.
- Notes
- The camp is unfenced and wildlife regularly wonders through, so children need to be supervised at all times.
Our travellers’ wildlife sightings from Basecamp Leopard Hill
Since mid-2018, many of our travellers who stayed at Basecamp Leopard Hill have kindly recorded their wildlife sightings and shared them with us. The results are below. Click an animal to see more, and here to see more on our methodology.
100% success
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0% success
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Communications
- Communications
- WiFi is available on the lounge and dining area. There is intermittent phone signal.
- Water supply
- Borehole
- Water supply notes
- Showers are plumbed and solar heaters provides hot water. Filtered drinking water is provided in the tents.
Health & safety
- Malarial protection recommended
- Yes
- Medical care
- Staff are first-aid-trained and there is a first aid kit on site. For anything more serious the nearest doctor is in Talek, around 20km away and an hour by road.
- Dangerous animals
- High Risk
- Security measures
- There are discreet 24-hour security guards around the camp and guests are escorted by askaris after dark.
- Fire safety
- There are fire extinguishers in the tents and communal areas.
Activities
4WD Safari
Birdwatching
Cultural excursion
Guided walking safari
Hot air ballooning
Night drive
Extras
- Disabled access
- On Request
- Laundry facilities
- Laundry can be arranged at an additional cost of around $3-5 per item.
- Money
- There are electronic safes in the tents.
- Accepted payment on location
- Cash payments in US dollars and Kenyan shillings are accepted. The camp can accept card payments with either Visa or MasterCard, and there is no surcharge.
Other lodges in Maasai Mara Conservancies
Alternative places to stay in this same area.
Kicheche Bush Camp
Kicheche Bush Camp is a smart and intimate tented camp with a relaxed atmosphere and the perfect base in the Mara for keen photographers.
Kicheche Mara
Kicheche Mara Camp has just ten tents and a rustic and comfortable feel. It is set by a stream in a pretty area of the Mara ecosystem's Mara North Conservancy.
Kicheche Valley
Kicheche Valley is a boutique tented camp in a wooded district of the Mara ecosystem's Naboisho Conservancy, with plenty of wildlife in the area.
Naboisho Camp
Naboisho Camp is one of the most luxurious of the handful of camps in the Naboisho Conservancy. It offers day and night game drives, game walks and full creature comforts in the bush.
Offbeat Mara
Offbeat Mara is a small traditional camp that appeals to safari traditionalists, located in one of the Maasai Mara’s quiet conservancies.
Encounter Mara
Encounter Mara is located in the private Naboisho Conservancy – a game-rich area of the Mara ecosystem – and offers a contemporary take on the traditional, low-impact luxury safari camp.
Elephant Pepper Camp
Elephant Pepper Camp is a small 10-tent bush camp, put together in the traditional "campaign" style, and including a large honeymoon/family tent.
Serian
Serian is a luxury tented camp on the east bank of the Mara River in the Mara North Conservancy. It is the sister camp of Ngare Serian, on the west bank.
Mara Plains Camp
Mara Plains is one of the very best camps in the Mara ecosystem. Located in the Olare Motorogi Conservancy, just outside the Mara reserve, it has access to three wildlife-viewing areas.
Kicheche Fly Camp
Kicheche Walking Wilderness Fly Camp is a temporaray dome tent camp set up for participants in Kicheche's two-day walking safari between Kicheche Valley and Kicheche Bush Camp.
Basecamp Eagle View
Basecamp Eagle View is a community-focused safari camp in the Naboisho Conservancy, with a strong emphasis on responsible tourism and a spectacular location.
Porini Lion Camp
Porini Lion Camp is a pioneering, community focused eco-camp, with excellent guides and game viewing, in the predator-rich, Olare Motorogi Conservancy.
Hemingways Ol Seki
Magnificently located tented lodge on a bluff looking south across the Naboisho Conservancy toward the Maasai Mara National Reserve.
Saruni Wild
Saruni Wild is a rustic and traditional safari camp in the Lemek Conservancy, with just three tents and limited electricity.
Offbeat Ndoto
Small and intimate, Offbeat Mara is set in a valley above the (often dry) Olare Orok River within the Mara North Conservancy.
Porini Mara Camp
Porini Mara Camp is a small, pioneering eco-camp in the first private conservancy in the Mara region, with comfortable accommodation and a range of activities.
Ngare Serian
The luxurious Ngare Serian and its sister camp Serian face each other across the Mara River on the western side of the Mara North Conservancy
Karen Blixen Camp
Karen Blixen Camp sits on a meander of the Mara River in the Mara North Conservancy, just beyond the northern boundary of the Maasai Mara National Reserve.
Cottars 1920s Camp
Cottar's 1920s Camp is a classic, luxury tented camp with a 1920s safari theme, located in its own conservancy on the southeast border of the Maasai Mara National Reserve.
Leleshwa
Leleshwa was a delightful, boutique safari camp on the picturesque banks of a tributary of the Talek, with an extensive, little visited game area on its doorstep.
Mahali Mzuri
Mahali Mzuri is a strikingly modern tented camp in the Virgin Limited Edition group, in a remote part of the Mara ecosytem's Olare Motorogi Conservancy. It has lovely views and all the luxuries of a five-star hotel.
Saruni Mara
Saruni Mara is a luxurious permanent lodge, on the remote northern edge of the Mara North Conservancy, with stunning views, good guiding and very private and comfortable rooms.
Mara Nyika
Mara Nyika is one of the newer additions to the Naboisho Conservancy and offers a luxurious and exclusive safari.
Basecamp Wilderness
Basecamp Wilderness Camp is a simple, traditional tented camp, set in a remote valley in the Naboisho Conservancy in the Mara ecoystem.
Mara Bushtops
Mara Bushtops is a luxury safari hotel on a private concession, outside the Maasai Mara National Reserve, with the emphasis on comfort, relaxation and good food and wine.
Mara Toto Tree Camp
Mara Toto Tree Camp is located on a wooded bend of the Ntiakatek River, 1km south (as the pied crow flies) from its sister camp, Mara Plains. It's the offspring of the original "Mara Toto" which was swept away in floods.
Cottars Private House
Cottar's Private House is one of the few truly luxurious, modern private houses in the Mara ecosystem, spoiling its guests with first-rate staff, a swimming pool and wonderful views.
Basecamp Mara Houses
Basecamp Mara Houses consists of three private houses located in the northernmost part of the Mara North Conservancy.
Entumoto
Entumoto is a high-end tented camp, with a swimming pool, situated in a very pretty location on the east side of the Maasai Mara ecosystem.
