One of the best safari companies for epic Kenya Safaris with African Budget Safaris

Gamewatchers Safaris is one of the best safari companies for affordable Kenya Safaris. And, that's not all they do!  

The great news is that Gamewatchers Safaris offers high-quality budget African safaris, not just luxury safari packages. Thus, we proudly feature a handpicked selection of their well-priced Kenya Safari Tours on our website. 

Porini Camps Masai Mara Safari in Kenya

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To cast your net wider, browse our nearly 100 different Kenya Budget Safaris with a variety of top African safari companies. This gives you more choices. Budget-wise and in terms of travel style, group size, safari destinations, vehicles, and more.

With the help of our safari experts, it's easy to find the ultimate Kenya Safari for your budget and needs. We know there are lots of choices, but we help you to find the best safari for you–be it a luxury camping trip, family safari, or small group adventure tour. And, if we can't find the right one, our safari experts can tailor-make a Kenya Safari just for you, without busting your budget.

(Or, just compare affordable Gamewatchers Safaris on African Budget Safaris).

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Why Gamewatchers Safaris is one of our favourite African safari companies

Gamewatchers Safaris is one of our most treasured African safari partners. We love working with them because they are leaders in eco-tourism and community-based wildlife conservation. Their commitment to responsible tourism, and their outstanding personalized service, places them firmly ahead of the pack.

Porini Bush Camp - Gamewatchers Safaris

Our Kenya Safaris with Gamewatchers are always in demand and our clients rave about their well-priced safaris!

All About Gamewatchers Safaris & Porini Camps in Kenya

• Who is Gamewatchers Safaris Ltd & what are they famous for?
• What does Gamewatchers Safaris do?
• Where are Gamewatchers Safaris & their Porini Camps found in Africa?
• How Gamewatchers protects key habitats, people & wildlife in Kenya
• What makes Gamewatchers Safaris one of the best safari companies in Africa?
• Why choose Gamewatchers Safaris for your Kenya Safari?
• How much do Gamewatchers Safari Tours cost?
• Gamewatchers Safaris Reviews on Tripadvisor
• Porini Camps in Kenya: what makes these exclusive tented camps special?
• Gamewatchers & Porini Camps Covid-19 Protocols
• The best Budget Kenya Safaris with Gamewatchers Safaris

Do you have a specific question, or ready to plan your Gamewatchers Safari?

Get personalized advice (for free) from one of our friendly travel experts who can answer all your questions, and tailor-make an affordable Kenya Safari for you in a jiffy.

Gamewatchers Adventure Camp at Masai Mara

Who is Gamewatchers Safaris Ltd and what are they famous for?

They are a leading African safari tour operator that also owns and runs the award-winning Porini Camps in Kenya. Established in 1989, Gamewatchers Safaris is one of the longest-running African safari companies. They have been operating in Kenya for over 30 years.

This safari company is famous for its exclusive tailor-made safaris and eco-friendly Porini Camps in Kenya.

Private Conservancy Masai Mara in Kenya

The company is owned by Kenyan citizen, Jake Grieves-Cook, who founded Gamewatchers Safaris in 1989. An icon in African tourism and wildlife conservation, Jake has been involved in Kenya's safari industry since 1972! 

Gamewatchers Safaris has a team of about nine African safari consultants and a team of customer services staff on the ground in Kenya. Other staff members include a Managing Director, Corporate Affairs Manager, Conservation & CSR Coordinator, and Product & Marketing Manager. Gamewatchers Safaris & Porini Camps also has over 10 safari experts (travel consultants) representing them across the globe, from the USA and UK to India and Australia. 

Then there are all their camp managers, game rangers, drivers, and hospitality staff members at the Porini Camps in Kenya. They employ about 240 staff members at the Porini Camps and conservancies alone. Job preference is given to local Maasai people from the communities that own the conservancies so their camp staff consists mostly of Kenyans from the area.

Mara Porini Camp staff in Kenya

All-in-all there is a massive team of international and local people involved in running Gamewatchers Safaris & Porini Camps in Kenya and beyond.

What does Gamewatchers Safaris do?

This internationally acclaimed African safari company specializes in personalized (tailor-made) safari experiences to small, eco-friendly lodges and camps.

Gamewatchers Safaris offers some of the best tailor-made safaris to private wildlife conservancies and top national parks in East Africa. They take visitors to the leading eco-safari lodges, hotels, and camps in Kenya, Tanzania, and elsewhere. Of course, this includes safaris to Porini Camps and the other eco-safari camps they manage.

Kenya tented camp room

The smaller safari camps they visit provide a more intimate and exclusive African safari experience. But, Gamewatchers Safaris is more than a tour operator and camp owner. It is an active champion of wildlife conservation and sustainable tourism in Africa.

In 2020, Gamewacthers Safaris launched an initiative called “Adopt-an-Acre” to help sustain the wildlife conservancies and camps during the COVID-19 pandemic. With the drop in tourism, this initiative enables anyone to adopt parts of the conservancies in Kenya with donations being used to pay the landowners and staff salaries. (More about this Adopt-an-Acre in Kenya Initiative).

Where are Gamewatchers Safaris & their Porini Camps found in Africa?

Gamewatchers Safaris Ltd is based in Kenya with its headquarters located in Nairobi. They offer safari tours in Kenya, Tanzania, and Rwanda as well as beach holiday packages to Zanzibar and other African beach destinations.

In Kenya, their safari destinations include Masai Mara, Amboseli, Tsavo, Ol Pejeta, Lake Nakuru, Laikipia, Samburu, Lewa Downs, Meru, and Shompole. 

Ol Kinyei Conservancy - Masai Mara

Their collection of safari camps is in Kenya. These include the acclaimed Porini Camps, located in Ol Pejeta Conservancy (near the Aberdare & Mount Kenya national parks), Selenkay Conservancy (at Amboseli National Park), and Ol Kinyei Conservancy and Olare Orok Conservancy (both in the Greater Masai Mara Ecosystem).

Porini Mara Camp - Gamewatchers Safaris

They also run two Adventure Camps in Selenkay and Ol Kinyei conservancies, the Rhino River eco-lodge in Meru National Park, and the Nairobi Tented Camp in Nairobi National Park.

Ol Kinyei Adventure Camp in Kenya

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How Gamewatchers protects key habitats, local people, and wildlife in Kenya?

Gamewatchers Safaris has played a pivotal role in creating and sustaining private conservancies in Kenya. 

Jake Grieves-Cook (the founder of Gamewatchers Safaris) is one of the leading pioneers of eco-tourism in Africa. In the late 1990s, he introduced the ‘conservancy concept’ as an alternative approach to wildlife conservation in Kenya. This conservancy model entails leasing land from the local Maasai to create game reserves, called wildlife conservancies, next to the national parks.

Wildebeest giraffes large

In 2005, Gamewatchers Safaris & Porini Camps established Ol Kinyei Conservancy in partnership with 171 local landowners. This was the first conservancy in the Greater Masai Mara Ecosystem. It still belongs to the local Maasai and now comprises 17,500 acres. 

In 2018 Ol Kineyei achieved IUCN Green List status for “its good governance, sound design and planning, and effective management”.

Porini Rhino Camp Maasai Culture

Today Gamewatchers Safaris runs six Porini Camps in private conservancies that they have been instrumental in creating and sustaining. These conservancies continue to bring direct benefits to the people and wildlife in Kenya, serving as a successful model for conservation in Africa and beyond.

Porini Rhino Camp - Gamewatchers Safaris

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The Conservancy Concept explained by Gamewatchers Safaris founder Jake Grieves-Cook

What makes Gamewatchers Safaris one of the best safari companies in Africa?

Sustainable and responsible tourism is at the heart of what they do. The core mission of Gamewatchers Safaris & Porini Camps is:

"...using tourism to protect habitat and partnering with communities as we do that." - M. Brar, MD of Gamewatchers Safaris & Porini Camps

Gamewatchers Safaris plays a critical role in Kenyan wildlife conservation and local socio-economic development through their involvement in private conservancies and their eco-safari camps. Beyond this, they also contribute to social upliftment in Kenya through CSR programs.

"Our community outreach projects include donations towards school fees and equipment and the employment of local community members as rangers to protect the widlife."

Not only are they a socially and environmentally sustainable company but they are also one of the oldest and most experienced safari companies in Africa. Even better, their decades of experience are rooted in the Kenya safari industry. Who better to experience the wild places and wildlife of Kenya with?

Kenya safari vehicle

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Why choose Gamewatchers Safaris for your Kenya Safari?

Their safaris and tented camps are highly rated and sought-after. And their mission – to conserve wildlife and support local communities in Kenya through low-impact tourism – is 100% worth supporting.

Bush walk Mara Porini Camp in Kenya

Many of the Gamewatchers Safaris include flights from Nairobi to the national parks and conservancies and back. This cuts out the long cross-country drives and gives you more time to explore the destinations and watch animals in the wild. Even their more budget-friendly safaris (featured on African Budget Safaris), often include flights between Nairobi and Masai Mara National Reserve.

Fly-in Kenya Safari - Gamewatchers Safaris

10 More Reasons to Choose Gamewatchers Safaris

1. Tailored safaris to the best parks and reserves in East Africa
2. Accommodation at smaller, more exclusive safari camps
3. Transport in 4x4 safari vehicles, not vans 
4. Experienced and acclaimed safari operators
5. Leaders in eco-tourism and community-based conservation
6. Specialist safaris: birdwatching, photography, walking, golfing, hot-air ballooning, and mobile camping 
7. Private 4x4 and fly-in safaris
8. Weddings and honeymoon safari packages
9. Expert safari guides and staff members

Oh, and 10 they offer the best Kenya safaris when it comes to value-for-money!

Mara Porini Camp Safari in Kenya

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Still not convinced about Gamewatchers? Watch this...

How much do Gamewatchers Safari tours cost?

The cheapest Kenya Safari Tours with Gamewatchers Safaris cost from $1,300 to $2,300 per person. The 3-day Kenya Safari Packages include scheduled flights from Nairobi to Masai Mara (return). These are tented camping safaris so you stay in walk-in safari tents (with en-suite bathrooms), not in rooms at a conventional lodge. 

Porini Bush Camp Tent, Kenya

Thus, the tented camps provide more comfort than standard camping (in dome tents) but they have less impact on the environment and cost less than lodge safaris in Kenya.

Their most pricey budget Kenya Safari costs about $4,300 to $5,000 per person. But, that's for a 12-day Kenya Lodge Safari to Masai Mara, Amboseli, Tsavo, Samburu, Lake Nakuru, and the Great Rift Valley including 4x4 transport, most meals, a qualified guide, and more! This is not a tented camping safari. You stay at high-quality safari lodges.

Kenya Safari Lodge

Of course, they offer more expensive, luxury safaris in Kenya and other African countries. If you want to spend more on a private, tailor-made safari talk to one of our African travel advisors who can design a customized safari program for you. We pride ourselves on creating excellent-value safari packages, at no extra charge.

Or, check out our nearly 100 Budget Kenya Safari Packages on African Budget Safaris.

Gamewatchers Safaris Reviews 

Rated 5-Star on TripAdvisor, Gamewatchers Safaris boasts 244 Excellent & Very Good reviews. Review titles range from ‘Life-Changing Experience’ and 'Gamewatchers Rocks!' to ‘Over the Moon’ and ‘Magical, exceptional, unparalleled.'

Gamewatchers Porini Mara Camp, Kenya

Browse the Gamewatchers Safaris Reviews on TripAdvisor.

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Porini Camps in Kenya: what makes these exclusive tented camps special?

The Porini Camps are small, eco-friendly tented camps located in the exclusive private conservancies of Kenya.

Porini Bush Camp Kenya Safari

These intimate safari camps are set in wildlife conservancies near or bordering on the best Kenya national parks, from Masai Mara to Amboseli and Tsavo. The wildlife conservancies are home to an abundance of wildlife and offer some of the finest game-viewing experiences in Kenya.

Besides teeming with large mammals (lions, elephants, leopards, cheetahs, and more) the wildlife conservancies are private and thus visitor numbers are limited to the handful of guests staying at the eco-friendly Porini Camps.

Porini Rhino Camp Wildlife in Kenya

Accommodation at the Porini Camps is comfortable and offers exceptional value for money. These are not luxury camps with private hot tubs and personal butlers. They are authentic African safari camps set inside exclusive private conservancies.

Porini Amboseli Camp in Kenya Safari

Perks of Porini Camp Safaris in Kenya include:

• an authentic African Safari experience off the beaten tracks
• tailor-made wildlife safari programs customized to suit you
• night and day game drives in open-sided 4x4 safari vehicles instead of minivans
• uncrowded wildlife sightings in private conservancies where tourist numbers are kept low
• eco-friendly safari accommodation at the award-winning Porini tented camps
• expert Maasai guides and friendly local staff
• guided walking safaris, scenic sundowners, and bush dining
• direct flights to Porini Camps from Nairobi (return) cutting out long drives
• camp stays directly support wildlife conservation and the local Maasai people

Porini Lion Camp walk - Gamewatchers Safaris

The Gamewatchers Safaris' Porini Camps in Kenya:

1. Porini Amboseli Camp in the Selenkay Conservancy (at Amboseli National Park)
2. Porini Rhino Camp in Ol Pejeta Conservancy (at Aberdare & Mount Kenya national parks)
3. Porini Mara Camp in Ol Kinyei Conservancy (at Masai Mara National Reserve & Naboisho Conservancy)
4. Porini Cheetah Camp in the Ol Kinyei Conservancy (at Masai Mara & Naboisho Conservancy)
5. Porini Lion Camp in the Olare Motorogi Conservancy (Greater Masai Mara National Reserve)
6. Porini Bush Camp in Ol Kinyei Conservancy (at Masai Mara & Naboisho Conservancy)

Gamewatchers Safaris Adventure Camps:

In addition to the Porini Camps, Gamewatchers also operates two Adventure Camps in Kenya's private conservancies. These budget-friendly safari camps offer a high-quality safari experience at an excellent price. Accommodation is in dome tents, but you explore the same exclusive wildlife conservancies as guests staying at the Porini Camps.

• Selenkay Adventure Camp (Amboseli National Park region)
• Ol Kinyei Adventure Camp (Masai Mara & Naboisho Conservancy area)

Selenkay Adventure Camp Kenya

Other Safari Camps run by Gamewatchers Safaris & Porini Camps:

• Rhino River Camp in Meru National Park
• Nairobi Tented Camp in the Nairobi National Park

Gamewatchers Safaris - Nairobi Tented Camp

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Best Budget Kenya Safaris with Gamewatchers Safaris & Porini Camps (on African Budget Safaris)

Fly-in Kenya Safaris to Tented Camps

All of these Budget Kenya Safaris stay at the exclusive Porini Camps owned and run by Gamewatchers Safaris. The tented safaris to Masai Mara conservancies all include return flights between Nairobi and Masai Mara. Accommodation is in comfortable tented rooms (walk-in safari tents) with en-suite bathrooms at the eco-friendly Porini tented camps.

Porini Lion Camp lounge - Kenya

• 3-Day Fly-in Masai Mara Exclusive Camp Safari - stays at Porini Mara Camp in Ol Kinyei Conservancy at Masai Mara (includes flights from Nairobi to Masai Mara, return).
• 3-Day Masai Mara Bush Camp Fly-in Safari - stays at Porini Bush Camp in Ol Kinyei Conservancy at Masai Mara (includes flights from Nairobi to Masai Mara, return)
• 4-Day Fly-in Masai Mara Exclusive Camp Safari - stays at Porini Mara Camp in Ol Kinyei Conservancy at Masai Mara (includes flights from Nairobi to Masai Mara, return).
• 4-Day Masai Mara Bush Camp Fly-in Safari - stays at Porini Bush Camp in Ol Kinyei Conservancy at Masai Mara (includes flights from Nairobi to Masai Mara, return).
• Fly & Drive Amboseli & Ol Pejeta Safari - stays at Porini Amboseli Camp in Selenkay Conservancy and Porini Rhino Camp in Ol Pejeta Conservancy (includes ground transport from Nairobi to Amboseli, a flight from Amboseli back to Nairobi, and flights from Nairobi to Ol Pejeta Conservancy, return).
• 5-Day Masai Mara & Private Reserves Fly-in Safari - stays at Porini Mara Camp in Ol Kinyei Conservancy and Porini Lion Camp in Olare Motorogi Conservancy (includes flights from Nairobi to Masai Mara, return). 

These Fly-in Kenya Safaris with Gamewatchers do not require participation from guests in the running of the camps or operations. You can simply relax and enjoy being on safari in the middle of the African bush, while the staff take excellent care of you.

Porini Rhino Camp Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya

Fly-in Kenya Lodge Safari

This affordable Kenya Safari combines ground (overland) transfers and flights. Accommodation is in traditional Kenya safari lodges selected by Gamewatchers Safaris and not at the Porini Camps.

Amboseli lodge pool, Kenya Lodge Safari

Fly-in Kenya Camping Safaris

The Kenya Camping Safaris stay at the Gamewatchers Safaris Adventure Camps. These budget-friendly Kenya Safaris include flights and comfortable camping accommodation*. 

• 4-Day Amboseli & Private Game Reserve Fly-in Camping Safari - stays at Selenkay Adventure Camp in Greater Amboseli (includes flights from Nairobi to Amboseli, return).

*The style of camping on these Kenya Safaris is a step up from basic camping. Guests sleep on camping beds with linen and pillows and the spacious tents have en-suite bathrooms. The guides and crew also take care of all the cooking, camp chores, and logistics. 

Selenkay Adventure Camp tent

4x4 Kenya Lodge Safaris (overland)

These Budget Kenya Safaris include safari lodge accommodation, ground transport, and most expenses. They all start and end in Nairobi. 

• 5-Day Kenya Lodge Safari: Masai Mara, Nakuru & Aberdare - stays at high-quality safari lodges inside Masai Mara, Aberdare, and Lake Nakuru National Parks.
• 5-Day Kenya Lodge Safari: Tsavo & Amboseli Parks - stays at top-quality safari lodges inside Tsavo National Park and Amboseli National Park.
• 7-Day Kenya Safari: Masai Mara, Tsavo & Amboseli - stays at high-quality, affordable safari lodges inside Masai Mara, Tsavo, and Amboseli.
• 8-Day Masai Mara & Northern Kenya National Parks 4x4 Safari - stays at well-selected safari lodges inside Masai Mara, Samburu, Aberdare, and Lake Nakuru National Park.
• 8-Day Masai Mara, Samburu, Nakuru 4x4 Kenya Lodge Safari - stays at comfortable safari lodges inside Masai Mara, Samburu, and Lake Nakuru National Park
• 12-Day Kenyan Game Parks 4x4 Lodge Safari - stays at top-quality safari lodges in Tsavo, Amboseli, Samburu, Aberdare, Lake Nakuru National Park, and Masai Mara National Reserve.

Gamewatchers Safari - Kenya Lodge

Contact African Budget Safaris to find out more about our affordable Kenya Safaris with Gamewatchers Safaris & Porini Camps or other top safari companies in Africa. 

Planning a safari in Masai Mara and looking for more options? Browse our Budget Masai Mara Safari Tours.

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Gamewatchers Safaris, Kenya - African Budget Safaris

Not sure? Let us tailor-make an affordable Kenya Safari that's perfect for you

It's easy to design your own tailor-made Kenya Safari with African Budget Safaris.

African Budget Safaris creates the best tailor-made safaris on a budget. We pride ourselves on creating the ultimate affordable safari packages customized to our clients' wants and needs. 

If you don't see the Kenya Safari Tour that is right for you, contact us to design an affordable safari adventure just for you. 

Kenya Adventure Camp campfire