Richard Branson is always in the new with another great idea, but this is one of the more interesting enterprises we’ve heard of in a while. Working with the locals in Kenya’s Maasai Mara reserve, he created Mahali Mzuri – a luxurious “camp” designed to satisfy the most discerning travelers, while also having a minimal impact on the environment.
Located on the northern boundary of the Maasai Mara, the property was initially divided between a multitude of Maasai families, which wasn’t bad economically as well as ecologically. The Motorogi Conservancy was created when 277 local families decided it would be more beneficial to combine all that land rather than keeping it fragmented – and one of the results is the Mahali Mzuri eco-camp.
The name of the place means ‘beautiful place’ in Swahili and the moniker is thoroughly deserved. It’s a small camp made up of just 12 tent suites, making its impact on the environment very limited, as well as maintaining an air of privacy and secludedness – you are, after all, in the middle of the savanna! The facilities, however, are top-notch – there’s everything you’d expect from a high-end hotel in Europe or North America, even Wi-Fi and an infinity pool.
A visit to Mahali Mzuri costs almost $600 a night, so it would definitely put a dent in your budget. But at the end of the day, this eco camp is the perfect example of how you can integrate tourism into wild, unspoiled places, without disrupting it in any way.
[Inhabitat]
