Rebecca Miano: Tourism CS Nominee Defends Hike In Maasai Mara Entry Fees By 100 Percent

Tourism Cabinet Secretary (CS) nominee, Rebecca Miano, on Saturday, August 3 gave her views on the entry fees for foreign tourists at the Maasai Mara Reserve in Narok County which rose by more than Ksh17,000 in July. The 100 percent price rise saw those tourists above 18 years begin paying Ksh26,500 (USD 200) to access the park.

While appearing for vetting before the National Assembly Committee on Appointments, Miano revealed that she had been briefed about a Tourism Strategy 2021/2025 that was formulated with the participation of all stakeholders.

This is after she met Ministry of Tourism officials and the Narok County Government, which briefed her on the reasons behind the hike in entry fees, before her vetting.

Tourists during a game drive at Maasai Mara. /MAASAI MARA NATIONAL RESERVE

The county government had confirmed that the Masai Mara Park Fees for 2024 were increased to USD 100 per non-resident adult per day from January 1, 2024, to June 30, 2024, and USD 200 per non-resident adult per day, from July 1, 2024, onwards, broken down as follows:

“As I was preparing to appear before this Committee, I did meet with ministry officials, and the sector and discussed with Narok County, and I want to share with you the information that I gathered. There was a strategy, Tourism Strategy 2021/2025, that was formulated with the participation of all stakeholders.

“Some of the findings in that strategy is that there are things that needed to be done to make Maasai Mara more competitive, and one of the proposals that I will discuss is that the rates for Maasai Mara had not been increased for the last 15 years despite the cost of managing the parks and many other costs,” Miano stated.

She further pointed out that the stakeholders had proposed reviewing the rates, to help generate more finances.

“The Stakeholders in that strategic meeting did recommend a review of the rates that are applicable so that there are enough finances to develop Maasai Mara, maintain it and modernise it,” she added, further noting that the revised rates were to be implemented from January 2024.

Other than the hiked fees, a 12 (twelve) hour ticket validity was effected. Some of the points to note were that guests staying outside the reserve were to be required to pay a daily entry fee wherein the ticket would be valid from 6 am to 6 pm.

“Secondly, all guests departing from the Reserve by road should exit the reserve no later than 10 am. Exit beyond this time will attract an additional entry fee,” read the directive on the website.

Meanwhile, Kenyan adults touring the area continued to pay the Ksh3,000 entry fee whereas children and students had the entry fee set at Ksh1,000. Local residents (from Narok County) have their rates set at Ksh2,000 for adults and Ksh500 for children above 10 years.

In response, some tourists turned to Serengeti National Park in Tanzania which offered different fees designed to be competitive while also supporting conservation and community projects.