7-Day Naivasha, Nakuru, Baringo/Bogoria, The Ark & Samburu Safari

Day-by-day itinerary

Route: Nairobi → Lake Naivasha → Lake Nakuru → Lake Baringo / Lake Bogoria → The Ark / Aberdare → Samburu → Nairobi

1. Day 1

   Nairobi to Lake Naivasha

   You leave Nairobi after breakfast and head for Lake Naivasha, following the Rift Valley escarpment road with its long views over the valley floor. You arrive in time to settle in, and the day continues with a game drive across a freshwater Rift Valley lake fringed by papyrus, fever trees and flower-farming country. Look for hippo, waterbuck, colobus and an exceptional range of resident and migratory waterbirds as the light softens through the afternoon. Naivasha is one of the few freshwater lakes in the Rift Valley, which is why boat trips and walking safaris are possible here rather than vehicle drives alone. The vehicle and driver-guide are private to your party throughout. You return for dinner and an overnight stay at Lake Naivasha.

2. Day 2

   Lake Naivasha to Lake Nakuru

   The morning starts in Lake Naivasha, from where you continue overland to Lake Nakuru, travelling through the Rift Valley floor and the farming towns of the Nakuru region. After check-in and a chance to freshen up, you head out into a Rift Valley soda lake ringed by yellow-barked acacia woodland and steep escarpment viewpoints. This is good country in which to look for black and white rhino, Rothschild's giraffe, buffalo, waterbuck and dense birdlife. 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. You return for dinner and an overnight stay at Lake Nakuru.

3. Day 3

   Lake Nakuru to Lake Baringo / Lake Bogoria

   The day opens in Lake Nakuru with a morning departure for Lake Baringo / Lake Bogoria. On arrival at Lake Baringo / Lake Bogoria you check in and the remainder of the day is at a relaxed pace. Your guide sets the pace, allowing time for photographs where the country opens up. Dinner and overnight are at your camp or lodge in Lake Baringo / Lake Bogoria.

4. Day 4

   Baringo/Bogoria to The Ark / Aberdare Region

   The day opens in Baringo/Bogoria with a morning departure for The Ark / Aberdare Region, climbing into the central highlands through Nyeri and the tea and coffee country. Arrival is followed by check-in and a first drive into high montane forest, bamboo belt and moorland cut by streams and waterfalls. There is the possibility of seeing elephant, buffalo, giant forest hog, bushbuck and, with patience, rarely seen forest species, depending on movement and conditions on the day. The Aberdare lodges are built overlooking floodlit waterholes, so wildlife is watched from the building itself rather than from a vehicle. You return for dinner and an overnight stay at The Ark / Aberdare Region.

5. Day 5

   The Ark / Aberdare to Samburu

   Following an early breakfast, the day begins with the road transfer from The Ark / Aberdare to Samburu, travelling north past Mount Kenya and through Nanyuki and Isiolo into the drier northern country. Once you reach Samburu there is time to check in before heading out among semi-arid northern rangeland of doum palms and riverine forest along the Ewaso Ng'iro river. Your guide works the area for elephant, lion, leopard and the dry-country species often called the Samburu Special Five, with sightings varying by season and conditions. Northern Kenya holds species rarely seen further south, including Grevy's zebra, reticulated giraffe, Beisa oryx, gerenuk and Somali ostrich. Dinner is served at your Samburu camp or lodge, where you spend the night.

6. Day 6

   Full-Day Samburu Safari

   Today is spent entirely in Samburu, beginning with a game drive shortly after first light. Much of the day is spent among semi-arid northern rangeland of doum palms and riverine forest along the Ewaso Ng'iro river. Species commonly associated with the area include elephant, lion, leopard and the dry-country species often called the Samburu Special Five. The river is the reserve's lifeline, and game commonly concentrates along it through the heat of the day. Northern Kenya holds species rarely seen further south, including Grevy's zebra, reticulated giraffe, Beisa oryx, gerenuk and Somali ostrich. The evening returns you to your Samburu accommodation for dinner and overnight.

7. Day 7

   Samburu to Nairobi

   Following an early breakfast, the day begins with the road transfer from Samburu to Nairobi, returning through the highland approaches to the city. You arrive in time to settle in, and the day continues with a game drive across Kenya's highland capital and the usual start and end point for road safaris. Nairobi is the arrival and departure hub for most Kenyan safari itineraries. Arrival back is normally in the afternoon, with a drop-off at your hotel or the airport.