3 operators banned from Mara after clients alighted from cars
The management of Maasai Mara Game Reserve has banned three Kenyan tour companies from accessing the reserve for flouting park regulations.
Three tours and travel companies have been banned from accessing the Maasai Mara National Reserve for the next 30 days.
The Maasai Mara National Reserve Chief Administrator Christine Koshal called out the tour companies for allowing their clients to alight from their vehicles during the wildebeest migration on August 8 and 9.
“You violated the park rules and regulations by obstructing wildebeest crossing and also putting the visitor’s lives at risk. This is by allowing them to alight at undesignated points in the game reserve,” read a notice to the tour companies.
The three tours and travel companies that have been banned are Sun World Safaris, Mario Tours and Twiga Tours.
Wildebeest migration from the Serengeti National park in Tanzania to the Kenyan side occurs between the months of July to September attracting many local and international tourists.
It’s considered as one of the seven new wonders of the world. It attracts a lot of local and international tourists.
However, this year the number of international tourists has declined significantly due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Speaking at the Maasai Mara Game reserve over the weekend, Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala said international tourism was slowly resuming after the government opened the airports for international travels.
“We are glad that Kenyans are flocking in large numbers to the Maasai Mara. Currently, most of the lodges are fully booked. The Coronavirus pandemic affected the tourism sector,” he said.
At the same time, Balala warned those camps at the Maasai Mara flouting the set regulations that their days were numbered.
“We want Maasai Mara to be ranked the best game reserve in the world. Hence we cannot allow camps that do not meet the criteria to continue operating here,” Balala said.
He also urged Kenyans to embrace local tourism during the pandemic.
“We are glad that Kenyans are flocking in large numbers to the Maasai Mara, currently most of the lodges are fully booked. The coronavirus pandemic really affected the tourism sector,” said the CS.
Early in June, Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) announced that park entry fee would be slashed by 50 per cent to encourage local tourism.