Governors’ Camp Collection was started over 50 years ago by Aris and Romi Grammaticas. Governors’ Camp was Africa’s first permanent luxury tented camp and has been a pioneer in classic safaris enabling guests to live the full safari experience – sleeping under canvas while being fully immersed in the wild. From kayaking amongst the hippos along the Mara river in the early days to opening seven lodges in Kenya and Rwanda it’s been an incredible journey…
Aris’ father arrived in East Africa in the pioneering days of 1912 as an engineer to build the railway inland from the coast of Tanganyika. Sepia photographs of these adventuring days show him in an immaculate pale linen suit, with high collar, pith helmet and a labrador at his feet. These were exciting times and Aris, the youngest in a large family, was born into the spirit of Africa.
Throughout his childhood, Aris explored the wild untamed areas of East Africa with young friends on foot and in the old family ‘jalopy’. This brought him face to face with the extraordinary spectacle of wildlife in a vista of huge horizons, and the day to day dramas of the African bush. Aris met Romi in the mid-1960s when they were both in their 20s. They would borrow a VW beetle, pack up a tent, some bedding and a frying pan and go off to explore. They loved to go to the untamed Masai Mara.
The idea grew of offering to others the magical experience of staying in the bush, under canvas, which had until then only been available to the very rich and the likes of Ernest Hemingway, with tailor made mobile camps transported from site to site by innumerable porters and staff.
In the 1970’s Aris saw the opportunity to open this prolific game region to a wider audience. A small lodge had been opened in the distant eastern part of the Mara but the remainder was untouched. They explored the northern part of the Masai Mara and found that there was a prime camping area on the edge of the Musiara marsh. With the help of Bill Ntimama, a Narok Masai farmer and with Nick Stobbs as a partner, a lease was obtained for this part of the Mara, with exclusive rights over a large surrounding area. With no prior experience in the hotel business or preconceived ideas, the concept was created of a camp with all the atmosphere of a traditional tented camp, bringing the sensations of the bush into close focus. This was an entirely new concept and Governors’ Camp was the first permanent luxury tented camp in Africa.
Trips to the area to start the building were made each weekend in a saloon car over long stretches of dusty corrugated roads, setting up a primitive camp and directing a team to clear a small area for the first tent.
Governors’ Camp opened in January 1972, but not until Aris had attracted a lot of attention in his typically innovative way. Everyone knew that they were opening a permanent tented camp and this had caused some excitement. Anyone who called for a booking was told that the new camp was ‘full’. The buzz went around that this must be something very special. Eventually the floodgates were opened and the camp was instantly fully booked. Aris believed that all should experience the thrill of a camp integrated in the untamed wilds of the Masai Mara.
Aris met Robin and Nancy Camm and there was an instant connection and a great relationship formed. Robin was fun with his dry humour and his wealth of stories and Nancy was the workhorse behind him. Robin initiated the crazy escapades of trips floating down the river with just a paddle to scare off marauding hippos and Robin had daily battles with the dreaded ‘Borealis’ who would charge at them, open-mouthed – and usually dived under the boat at the very last moment. Clients loved the magic of silently floating down the river with surprised animals on the banks and the adrenaline rush of the hippo charges. Legal advisors eventually put an end to the madness, but it was fun while it lasted.
The business grew and more camps were added; first Little Governors’ Camp across the river, then Paradise Camp which morphed into Il Moran. In the years to come, Governors’ took over the management of Loldia House on the shores of Lake Naivasha. In 2006 we developed the idea for a community owned lodge in Rwanda and Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge was born – a lodge that has pioneered the concept of community owned tourism and has delivered real and lasting benefits to its community neighbours, whilst at the same time offering a gateway for guests to see the mountain gorillas. Governors’ Mugie opened up in Laikipia in early 2020, adding to an already diverse array of wildlife experiences.
Aris was an ideas man, who loved a challenge and the thrill of something new. He developed vital close relationships and understanding with the local people. In late 1999, his son, Dominic, returned to Kenya and become part of the business, bringing his much-needed business acumen into a rather chaotic but passionate company. Reason and sanity prevailed and the combination of a deep love of the company and all that it stood for, brought the business into line.
In 2010 Aris decided to take a back seat – which was for him a major decision – and Dominic took over the reins as Managing Director. In October 2011, Aris died of leukaemia after a year of ill-health and treatment.
With Dominic and his brother Justin at the helm, as well as a slew of characters who are steadfastly a part of the family, Governors’ is still providing immersive and transformational safaris in pristine wildlife areas of Kenya.
Tented camps have now become the most popular way in which to experience the excitement of staying in the African bush and Aris was very proud to have pioneered this type of safari experience. It has been much copied over the the years but the family take pride in the fact that Governors’ Camp Collection continues (fifty years later), to feature amongst the top hotels of the world.
In 2016 Governors Camp Collection entered into a strategic partnership with one of Southern Africa’s premier Safari Operators, Wilderness. Today, Governors’ is a valued member of the Wilderness family, committed to driving conservation and hospitality in the region and ensuring life-changing experiences for both our valued guests and partners.
Welcome to the Governors’ family experience!
