7-Day Masai Mara, Lake Nakuru, Lake Naivasha & Amboseli Safari

Day-by-day itinerary

Route: Nairobi → Masai Mara → Lake Nakuru → Lake Naivasha → Amboseli → Nairobi

1. Day 1

   Nairobi to Masai Mara

   You leave Nairobi after breakfast and head for Masai Mara, descending the wall of the Great Rift Valley and passing through Narok and Maasai farming country. Arrival is followed by check-in and a first drive into open savanna grassland, acacia stands and the rolling country of the greater Mara ecosystem. Wildlife commonly associated with this area includes lion, cheetah, elephant, giraffe, buffalo and large herds of plains game. The reserve is best known for its big cat densities, and between roughly July and October the wildebeest migration commonly moves through the ecosystem. Transport and game drives are shared with other travellers on this joining departure. Dinner and overnight are at your camp or lodge in Masai Mara.

2. Day 2

   Full-Day Masai Mara Safari

   Today is spent entirely in Masai Mara, beginning with a game drive shortly after first light. 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. Sightings may include lion, cheetah, elephant, giraffe, buffalo and large herds of plains game, depending on season and conditions. 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. Transport and game drives are shared with other travellers on this joining departure. Dinner and overnight are again at your Masai Mara camp or lodge.

3. Day 3

   Masai Mara to Lake Nakuru

   Breakfast is taken before you set out from Masai Mara for the drive to Lake Nakuru, travelling through the Rift Valley floor and the farming towns of the Nakuru region. Lunch and check-in come first, then an afternoon drive through a Rift Valley soda lake ringed by yellow-barked acacia woodland and steep escarpment viewpoints. Your guide works the area for black and white rhino, Rothschild's giraffe, buffalo, waterbuck and dense birdlife, with sightings varying by season and conditions. 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.

4. Day 4

   Lake Nakuru to Lake Naivasha

   The day opens in Lake Nakuru with a morning departure for Lake Naivasha, following the Rift Valley escarpment road with its long views over the valley floor. Arrival is followed by check-in and a first drive into a freshwater Rift Valley lake fringed by papyrus, fever trees and flower-farming country. There is the possibility of seeing hippo, waterbuck, colobus and an exceptional range of resident and migratory waterbirds, depending on movement and conditions on the day. 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. You return for dinner and an overnight stay at Lake Naivasha.

5. Day 5

   Lake Naivasha to Amboseli

   You leave Lake Naivasha after breakfast and head for Amboseli, travelling south past Kajiado and through Maasai rangeland toward the Tanzanian border country. Arrival is followed by check-in and a first drive into open plains, dust flats and spring-fed swamps beneath the bulk of Kilimanjaro. Wildlife commonly associated with this area includes large elephant herds, buffalo, zebra, wildebeest, and abundant water birds around the swamps. Amboseli is known for its free-ranging elephant families, and on clear mornings Mount Kilimanjaro often rises above the plains, though cloud can hide it. The evening is spent at your Amboseli accommodation, with dinner and overnight there.

6. Day 6

   Full-Day Amboseli Safari

   An unhurried full day in Amboseli gives your guide room to follow whatever the morning turns up. Your route takes in open plains, dust flats and spring-fed swamps beneath the bulk of Kilimanjaro, with your guide reading recent movement to decide where to spend time. There is the possibility of seeing large elephant herds, buffalo, zebra, wildebeest, and abundant water birds around the swamps, though wild sightings are never guaranteed. The swamps stay green through dry months, drawing elephants and plains game into concentrated, highly photographable groups. Amboseli is known for its free-ranging elephant families, and on clear mornings Mount Kilimanjaro often rises above the plains, though cloud can hide it. Dinner and overnight are again at your Amboseli camp or lodge.

7. Day 7

   Amboseli to Nairobi

   After breakfast you leave Amboseli and travel on toward Nairobi, returning through the highland approaches to the city. Lunch and check-in come first, then an afternoon drive through 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. The day ends with a drop-off in Nairobi at your hotel or the airport.