The Great Migration is not an event - it is a year-round circuit of some two million wildebeest, zebra and gazelle looping between the Serengeti and the Maasai Mara. What everyone wants to see is the river crossings, and those have a season.
The 2026 calendar
- July - the herds mass on the Tanzanian side; first crossings into the Mara, usually late month.
- August-September - peak crossing season on the Mara and Talek rivers. This is the window to book.
- October - herds begin drifting south; crossings still happen, crowds thin.
- November-June - the Mara is quieter but never empty: the big cats, elephants and resident game stay all year, at lower lodge rates.
How a crossing actually happens
Herds build up at the bank for hours - sometimes days - until one animal commits and thousands follow in a plunging, dust-and-spray chaos of five to twenty minutes. Crocodiles know the calendar too. Patience is the whole game: your guide reads the build-up, positions early and waits. The guests who see crossings are the ones who gave the river a full day.
Booking it right
- Book early. August lodges inside the reserve sell out months ahead.
- Three nights minimum in the Mara during crossing season - one-night visits watch empty banks. Our 4-day migration-season lodge tour ($1,600) is built exactly for this.
- Photographers: the 5-day photography safari guarantees window seats and stays out longest at the river.
Dates for August 2026 are filling now - check availability for your week →
Photo: Kidoleeee, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
