Amboseli National Park is a top tourist destination that is found in the south-eastern part of Kenya. The large herds of elephants that are found within the National Park and other types of wildlife have made it popular with tourists. The park is home to thousands of wildlife with some specific animals like lions, leopards, buffalos, elands, zebras, and giraffes among others. It is home to over 400 bird species like the Long toed-lapwing, spike-heeled lark, greater flamingo, Rufous chatterer, yellow-necked spurfowls, lesser flamingos, Pangani longclaw, steel blue whydah, and Taveta golden weaver.
Amboseli National Park offers various activities to tourists like game drives, birding, horse riding, cycling, nature walks, and cultural walks, visit Lake Amboseli, and also has great views of Mountain Kilimanjaro which can easily be viewed from the observation hill and the hot air balloon rides.
Visitors to the Amboseli National Park
Amboseli National Park receives many tourists and these are categorized into different groups which are residents, non-residents, citizens, and Students. Below is a detailed explanation of the different groups of tourists who visit the National Park.
- Non-residents: these are tourists from different countries that neither work nor stay in Kenya.
- Students: these are visitors that are between 3 to 23 years and explore the National Park on an organized tour with a recognized institution. The trip is normally about research and education purposes and there is a special fee for students who come on organized tours with institutions. Student fees are only eligible if the organizers of the tour write to the Kenya wild service and this has to be done at least two weeks before the trip.
- Citizens: citizens are tourists that have Kenyan citizenship and East African citizenship and this proof must be presented at the gates. Countries in East Africa include Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, South Sudan, DRC, Burundi, and Rwanda.
- Residents: residents are tourists that live and work in Kenya but do not have citizenship in Kenya. Residents have to provide proof of their working and resident’s permit while at the park’s entrance.
- Children: to be considered a child, you must be 3 to 18 years.
The Kenya wildlife Authority recently released new park fees for Amboseli National Park and these are going to be effective from July 2022 till December 2024.
Park entrance fees
Every tourist is supposed to pay entrance fees and these rules were set up by the park management and the Kenya wildlife service. The fee that is paid at the entrance is always valid for only one day and is best known as park fees. Below is a list of the different groups of tourists and how much each is supposed to pay.
Low season high season
Non-residents $40 for adults $70 for adults
$20 for children/students $20 for children/students
Citizens 600 kshs for 860 kshs for children/student
215 kshs for children/students 215 kshs children/students
Residents 600 kshs for adults 215 kshs children/students
215 kshs for children/students 215 kshs children/students
Fees paid per activity
Some activities are paid for independently and these are horse riding, hot air balloon rides, night game drives, cycling and nature walks safari the fees are paid per person and are valid for one day.
Horse riding minus the rider 2585 kshs
Horse riding on private horses 1030 kshs
Nature walks 1500 kshs
Night game drive 2155 kshs
Security guided tours (4 hours) 1720 kshs
Cycling safari 215 kshs
Security guided tour (over 4 hours) 301 kshs
Camping fees
Camping in Amboseli is categorized into two that is public camping sites and special camping sites. The camping fees that are paid depend on the category of your choice.
Public campsites
Citizen 250 kshs 200 kshs for children/students
Non-residents $30 for adults $25 for children/ students
Residents 600 kshs for adults 300 kshs for children/students
Special campsites
Citizens 500 kshs for adults 200 kshs for children/students
Non-residents $50 for adults $25 for children/ students
Residents 600 kshs for adults 350 kshs for children and students
Reservation fees 7500 kshs
Cancellation fees 7500 kshs
The annual pass fees
Annual pass fees in Amboseli are paid once a year and these allow the tourists to have full access too of Amboseli National Park for a full year.
Children/students annual pass 10340 kshs
Adult annual passes 43100 kshs
Annual passes for Personalized tour driver 6000 kshs
Corporate annual passes 103440 kshs
Vehicle fees
Vehicle fees are charged depending on the capacity of the vehicle. The vehicle fees are also valid for only 24 hours.
Less than 6 seats 300 kshs
6 to 12 seats 1030 kshs
13 to 14 seats 2585 kshs
25 to 44 seats 4050 kshs
45 seats and above 5000 kshs
Vehicles stationed in the park
Vehicles stationed in Amboseli National Park pay an annual fee paid according to the weight of the vehicle and type.
Type of vehicle weight of vehicle fees
PSVs (6 seats) less than 2 tonnes 10000 kshs
Commercial vehicles (6 seats) less than 2 tonnes 10000 kshs
PSVs (6 to 12 seats) 2-5 tonnes 10000 kshs
Commercial vehicle (6-12 seats) 2-5 tonnes 10000 kshs
PSVs (not stationed) 6 to 13 seats 60000 kshs
Commercial vehicles (not stationed) 6 to 13 seats 60000 kshs
PSVs (13 seats and more) 5 tonnes 100,000 kshs
Commercial vehicles (13 seats and more) 5 tonnes 100,000 kshs
Delivery vehicles and trucks
Delivery vehicles and trucks entering Amboseli National Park are charged according to the weight that they carry.
1 to 3 tonnes 515 kshs
4 to 7 tonnes 2155 kshs
7 tonnes and above 3015 kshs
Single aircraft landing fees
Capacity fees
3 seats 300 kshs
4 to 6 seats 500 kshs
7 to 14 seats 1000 kshs
15 to 20 seats 2155 kshs
Special services
Recovery of vehicles inside the park 7500 kshs
Security (rangers) 75,000 kshs
What you need to know about park fees
- All the fees that are paid in Amboseli are valid for only 24 hours
- Entry fees also include a game drive around the National Park
- The mode of payment in Amboseli is through Electronic Funds transfer, visa card, and Mpesa.