​User Reviews – Amboseli NP

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Ellinor Johansson   –  
Sweden SE
Visited: April 2015 Reviewed: Jul 1, 2015

Overall rating
4/5

Amboseli National Park offers a wide variety of scenic views and landscapes. Amboseli is close to Kilimanjaro and therefore especially offers nice views of the mountain, usually with animals in front. The roads are 'better' than in other parks, making it easier to drive on your own ('better' if you want to drive by your self, but worse if you want a genuine off-road experience, like in Buffalo Springs National Reserve).
When booking accommodation, make sure to do your research. We booked what a local travel agency said was a five star hotel (Serena) but it was far from! I would not recommend staying there unless three star with mainly an indian buffet is what you're seeking.
While at Amboseli, you should also go to the viewing point on top of a hill (ask at hotel where it is or if going on an arranged trip, the guide should know) for a 360 view of the park.

nyotsz Visited: July 2015 Reviewed: Jul 11, 2015

At Amboseli National Park (Kenya) you are guaranteed to meet the African plains elephant
Overall rating
4/5

Between the dates of June 21st - 26th 2015, I was at Amboseli National Park in Kenya, a park that is four hours drive away from the capital city in Nairobi. Alternatively you have flights from Wilson airport in Nairobi. At the entrance of the park we were greeted with a heavy presence of a stern but friendly security agents.
The park, located on the slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro the highest mountain in Africa (the highest free standing mountain on earth); boasts a high concentration of African plains elephants and a healthy population of spotted hyenas. I didn't get to see lions but felt their presence every night as they declared their dominance of the animal kingdom with roars that silenced all night sounds including the sounds of night insects.
The temperatures at the park varied from hot during the day to relatively cold at night. But I enjoyed my stay at Amboseli Serena lodge where they had extra beddings for those averse to cold nights like me. The food at my hotel was satisfactory and the breakfast superb.
The community surrounding the park are a friendly lot and add to the relaxed atmosphere. A downside to my stay at the park was that the game drives are a dusty affair and I should have carried a dust mask with me. Overall I give Amboseli a thumbs up for the elephant population.

Karla Laguna   –  
Mexico MX
Visited: June 2015 Reviewed: Jul 26, 2015

Email Karla Laguna  |  20-35 years of age  |  Experience level: first safari

Overall rating
4/5

You will see the biggest elephants! Their horns are huge and the landscape is really interesting.

Rich Vliet   –  
United States US
Visited: June 2015 Reviewed: Sep 2, 2015

Email Rich Vliet  |  50-65 years of age  |  Experience level: first safari

Lots of elephants and views of Mt. Kilimanjaro at Amboseli National Park
Overall rating
4/5

Amboseli had a very large number of elephant herds in addition to the scenic backdrop of Mt. Kilimanjaro. Fortunately, the mountain was clearly visible each afternoon we were there, providing some great photo-ops with the wildlife in the foreground. While not the largest park we encountered in Kenya, it was still very big and provided a fairly diverse range of wildlife (from elephants, hippos, zebra, hyenas and lions) as well as topography. We hiked up Observation Hill for a very nice view of Kilimanjaro. Our accommodations were at Amboseli Sentrim Camp which was very nice for both our room and food. Our Kenyan driver was fantastic (provided by Vintage Africa Tours), and his knowledge of the area was extensive.

Vinay   –  
India IN
Visited: October 2015 Reviewed: Nov 15, 2015

Email Vinay  |  20-35 years of age  |  Experience level: first safari

Overall rating
4/5

Being a smaller park it does not have much of a bush vibe but offers plenty in term of wildlie, birds and scenic beauty. Kilimanjaro stands tall on clear mornings. Good place for birding enthusiasts, the marsh offers opportunity to spot storks and water birds.

nasmohamed_photography   –  
Saudi Arabia SA
Visited: December 2001 Reviewed: Mar 4, 2016

Email nasmohamed_photography  |  35-50 years of age  |  Experience level: over 5 safaris

Amboseli is a beautiful park
Overall rating
4/5

Amboseli is a beautiful park. Animals are plentiful and there is always opportunity to take photographs of them with a backdrop of the kilimanjaro mountain.

Gabriel Olushola   –  
Qatar QA
Visited: February 2016 Reviewed: May 1, 2016

Email Gabriel Olushola  |  35-50 years of age  |  Experience level: first safari

Awesome
Overall rating
4/5

It was a great moment in Kenya. all service by safari was awesome. am so delighted having them as my tour guide.

Lekha Suraweera   –  
Australia AU
Visited: May 2016 Reviewed: Jun 12, 2016

Email Lekha Suraweera  |  50-65 years of age  |  Experience level: 2-5 safaris

I had a wonderful wildlife experience at Amboseli National Park
Overall rating
4/5

We were a group of 8 photographers, and we stayed at Amboseli Serina lodge for two nights. We were very pleased with our accommodation and food at the lodge. As we went just after the rains, the park was lush green everywhere. The wild animals had babies with them and it was a pleasure to watch the baby elephants with their mothers and their families. The bird life was less than we had expected , but the ambience of this park with the Mount Kilimanjaro at the background was breath taking. We photographed elephants blowing dust at each other and also baby elephants playing in the mud. The scenery was wonderful and we took sunset and sunrise photos at Amboseli with elephants and water holes in the foreground.
We experienced good weather, no rain and the temperatures were cooler than I had expected. The climate was very pleasant indeed. We travelled with Arunga tours and we had two very capable drivers /guides for our two four wheel drive vans. I would recommend Amboseli National Park to any traveller who appreciate wildlife

Migara Wijesinghe   –  
Sri Lanka LK
Visited: July 2016 Reviewed: Aug 15, 2016

Email Migara Wijesinghe  |  20-35 years of age  |  Experience level: over 5 safaris

My first glimpse of African wildlife, extraordinary wildlife and beautiful landscapes
Overall rating
4/5

Well, Amboseli was our first stop of our 13 day expedition in Kenya. Something that we read when planning our trip was that most people try to skip Amboseli and Aberdare and spend more time in Maasai Mara, but we decided not to and yes, we were rewarded. You don't get the same type of giraffes in Maasai to begin with, so you'd lose out on that.
Amboseli was simply great, really loved the landscapes which included Mt. Kilimanjaro. We were lucky enough to see herds of elephants, giraffes, zebras and a group of flamingos. The weather was chilly during the day and rather cold in the night (I'm from Sri Lanka and it gets pretty hot here, 34 degrees during the day). My highlight at Amboseli was when we tried taking photographs of the milky way over Mt. Kilimanjaro at about 1AM. It was freezing, but I managed to get a few shots of the night sky in all its glory. (must do, if you're a photographer). One of the travellers in our group (my mother) is a bird watcher and she spotted quite a few number of birds in Amboseli.

We stayed one night and that was at the Amboseli Sopa Lodge. The hotel was good and the food was excellent. A small note to travellers coming in from hot climate countries, you might want to wear winter clothes when you go to bed since it gets very cold during the night. Transportation and guides were brilliant, they were the same two guides we had for the whole stay in Kenya. We travelled about in two safari ready luxury coaches with plenty of space for the eleven us + baggage.

Remember - Do not skip Amboseli :)

oonat   –  
Kenya KE
Visited: October 2016 Reviewed: Nov 15, 2016

Email oonat  |  35-50 years of age  |  Experience level: over 5 safaris

Beautiful Kiliminjaro overlooking a small but wildlife-rich National Park teeming with beasts.
Overall rating
4/5

My road research proved correct as there is only one road from Nairobi to Amboseli and that is the C103 off the A109 Mombasa Road. It was a smooth tarmac road offering fantastic views of the South Rift Valley. Amboseli itself is a compact park - easy to navigate and drive around - and it was the first of Kenya's game parks to actually offer me an illustrated map, which was really useful.

Barely through the gate and you see wildebeest and ostrich...then giraffe, impala and then a herd of elephants. I had a pass for 48 hours and the first day I drove one loop around the park concentrating on the animals - as Mount Kilimanjaro was typically shrouded in cloud for the day. There is usually only an hour at dawn and an hour at dusk when the peak is visible. True enough, the following morning it was clear at 6am but clouded over shortly after. On my third day of the trip, things were delightfully different. The peak stayed could-free until 8:30am which allowed me to re-enter the park and take some coveted photographs of wildlife and mountain in harmony. This was definitely the highlight of the trip. Other Kenya parks are flat but Amboseli serves up Mount Kilimanjaro which actually ticks many travellers' life-ling ambitions - mine included.

The accommodation, AA Lodge, was perfect - self-contained chalet / bandas are very private and quiet. It didn't matter to me that I was outside of the Park as my resident Park fee was valid for 48 hrs. The pool was essential; it was so dry and hot that the dip in the water was a necessity. There were very few guests and the food was plain but the service was faultless. Such friendly staff.

Average User Rating

  • 4.7/5
  • Wildlife
  • Scenery
  • Bush Vibe
  • Birding

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  • 1 star 1
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