8-Day Lake Nakuru, Masai Mara, Serengeti & Ngorongoro Safari

Day-by-day itinerary

Route: Nairobi → Lake Nakuru → Masai Mara → Serengeti → Ngorongoro → Arusha

1. Day 1

   Nairobi to Lake Nakuru

   You leave Nairobi after breakfast and head for Lake Nakuru, travelling through the Rift Valley floor and the farming towns of the Nakuru region. Once you reach Lake Nakuru there is time to check in before heading out among a Rift Valley soda lake ringed by yellow-barked acacia woodland and steep escarpment viewpoints. Look for black and white rhino, Rothschild's giraffe, buffalo, waterbuck and dense birdlife as the light softens through the afternoon. The park operates as a sanctuary and is one of Kenya's more reliable places to look for rhino; flamingo numbers on the lake rise and fall with water levels. Transport and game drives are shared with other travellers on this joining departure. Dinner is served at your Lake Nakuru camp or lodge, where you spend the night.

2. Day 2

   Lake Nakuru to Masai Mara

   Breakfast is taken before you set out from Lake Nakuru for the drive to Masai Mara, descending the wall of the Great Rift Valley and passing through Narok and Maasai farming country. Lunch and check-in come first, then an afternoon drive through open savanna grassland, acacia stands and the rolling country of the greater Mara ecosystem. Look for lion, cheetah, elephant, giraffe, buffalo and large herds of plains game as the light softens through the afternoon. The reserve is best known for its big cat densities, and between roughly July and October the wildebeest migration commonly moves through the ecosystem. Dinner is served at your Masai Mara camp or lodge, where you spend the night.

3. Day 3

   Full-Day Masai Mara Safari

   You spend the day in Masai Mara, heading out early and returning as the light goes. Your route takes in open savanna grassland, acacia stands and the rolling country of the greater Mara ecosystem, with your guide reading recent movement to decide where to spend time. Species commonly associated with the area include lion, cheetah, elephant, giraffe, buffalo and large herds of plains game. A full day allows morning and late-afternoon drives when animals are most active, with the option of a picnic lunch out in the reserve. The reserve is best known for its big cat densities, and between roughly July and October the wildebeest migration commonly moves through the ecosystem. Dinner and overnight are again at your Masai Mara camp or lodge.

4. Day 4

   Serengeti to Ngorongoro

   You leave Serengeti after breakfast and head for Ngorongoro, climbing the forested crater highlands to the rim viewpoint. Lunch and check-in come first, then an afternoon drive through a collapsed volcanic caldera roughly six hundred metres deep, with grassland, soda lake and fever-tree forest on its floor. Look for lion, elephant, buffalo, flamingo and one of the few remaining populations where black rhino may be seen as the light softens through the afternoon. The crater floor holds a resident concentration of wildlife year-round because the caldera walls create a largely self-contained ecosystem. You return for dinner and an overnight stay at Ngorongoro.

5. Day 5

   Masai Mara to Serengeti

   You leave Masai Mara after breakfast and head for Serengeti, crossing the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and descending onto the open plains. Lunch and check-in come first, then an afternoon drive through vast short-grass plains broken by granite kopjes and seasonal watercourses. There is the possibility of seeing lion, cheetah, elephant, giraffe and immense herds of wildebeest and zebra, depending on movement and conditions on the day. The Serengeti's wildlife moves with the seasons, so the sector visited is chosen to match where the herds and predators are likely to be at that time of year. You return for dinner and an overnight stay at Serengeti.

6. Day 6

   Full-Day Serengeti Safari

   The day is set aside for Serengeti, with drives timed around the first and last hours of light. The drives cover vast short-grass plains broken by granite kopjes and seasonal watercourses, moving between habitats as conditions change. Sightings may include lion, cheetah, elephant, giraffe and immense herds of wildebeest and zebra, depending on season and conditions. The scale of the plains rewards a full day, with time to work several areas rather than rushing between them. The Serengeti's wildlife moves with the seasons, so the sector visited is chosen to match where the herds and predators are likely to be at that time of year. You return to your camp or lodge for dinner and a second night at Serengeti.

7. Day 7

   Serengeti to Ngorongoro

   The morning starts in Serengeti, from where you continue overland to Ngorongoro, climbing the forested crater highlands to the rim viewpoint. After check-in and a chance to freshen up, you head out into a collapsed volcanic caldera roughly six hundred metres deep, with grassland, soda lake and fever-tree forest on its floor. Your guide works the area for lion, elephant, buffalo, flamingo and one of the few remaining populations where black rhino may be seen, with sightings varying by season and conditions. The crater floor holds a resident concentration of wildlife year-round because the caldera walls create a largely self-contained ecosystem. Dinner is served at your Ngorongoro camp or lodge, where you spend the night.

8. Day 8

   Ngorongoro Crater to Arusha

   You leave Ngorongoro Crater after breakfast and head for Arusha, continuing through the farmland and Maasai country below Mount Meru. You arrive in time to settle in, and the day continues with a game drive across northern Tanzania's safari gateway town below the slopes of Mount Meru. Arusha is the staging point for the northern Tanzania circuit and where most safari briefings take place. The day ends with a drop-off in Nairobi at your hotel or the airport.