Overview
If you are coming a long way and want to see the range of what Kenya holds rather than one corner of it, this is the itinerary. It runs south to north to west: Amboseli under Kilimanjaro, a forest night in the Aberdares, Samburu's dry country, Nakuru's rhino, and two days in the Masai Mara.
Nine days also means the driving is spread out. No day is brutal, most days end with a game drive rather than a late arrival, and you sleep two nights in the places that deserve two nights.
- Elephant herds below Kilimanjaro at first light
- A floodlit waterhole from a forest tree lodge
- Samburu's Special Five, found nowhere in southern Kenya
- Two full days in the Masai Mara at the end
Day by day
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Day 1 Nairobi to Amboseli
An early start south across the Athi plains, reaching Amboseli in time for lunch and an afternoon game drive among the elephant herds.
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Day 2 A full day in Amboseli
Out at first light for Kilimanjaro before the cloud builds over the summit. Amboseli's swamps keep game close through the day, and the afternoon drive finishes with the mountain again at dusk.
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Day 3 Amboseli to the Aberdares
North past Nairobi, where we stop for lunch, and up into the Aberdare range. The afternoon transfer takes you to the tree lodge, with the waterhole lit below your balcony after dark.
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Day 4 Aberdares to Samburu
Down from the forest and north into the semi-desert, crossing the equator on the way. Afternoon game drive along the Ewaso Ng'iro river.
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Day 5 A full day in Samburu
Morning and afternoon drives for elephant, cheetah, leopard, oryx, gerenuk and dik-dik, with the river as the focus of everything in this country.
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Day 6 Samburu to Lake Nakuru
South to the floor of the Rift Valley, with a stop at Thomson's Falls at Nyahururu. Afternoon game drive at Nakuru for rhino and Rothschild's giraffe.
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Day 7 Nakuru to the Masai Mara
Early breakfast, then a game drive on the way out of Nakuru before the long, pleasant drive across the valley to the Mara.
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Day 8 A full day in the Mara
A whole day in one of the great wildernesses, on morning and afternoon drives. Large prides, cheetah on the termite mounds, and hippo in the Mara river.
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Day 9 Masai Mara to Nairobi
An early game drive, a long breakfast, then the road back to Nairobi, arriving in the early afternoon.
Want to change something? Add a night, swap a lodge or combine parks. We’ll tailor it for you.
Customise this safariWhat’s included
Included
- Ground transport in a comfortable safari vehicle
- Full-board accommodation as listed in the itinerary
- Professional English-speaking driver-guide
- All game drives listed in the itinerary
- Bottled drinking water while on safari
- Airport transfers
Not included
- Park entrance fees and conservation levies (quoted separately at current rates)
- International flights
- Tips and gratuities
- Soft drinks and alcoholic drinks
- Optional village visits and activities marked as optional
- Hot-air balloon flight over the Mara (optional)
