Detailed itinerary
Day 1: Nairobi
On arrival, transfer to your comfortable hotel to relax ahead of your safari adventure.
Dinner and overnight at Southern Sun Mayfair or similar.
Day 2: Nairobi - Samburu National Park - Cheetah Kenya Safari
Drive to Samburu with lunch en route at the Trout Tree Restaurant – a unique dining venue set inside and around a giant fig tree. When you reach Samburu’s arid landscape, you’ll have an afternoon game drive to get to your accommodation – the Samburu Sopa Lodge, which perches on a hill inside the reserve with far-reaching views and rooms housed in traditional Samburu cottages. Tonight there’ll be a welcome dinner for you and your group. Approx. journey time: 6 hours.
Return to the lodge for breakfast, then spend the rest of the morning relaxing and enjoying the facilities at the safari lodge. After lunch, you will have adequate time for a siesta, followed later by an evening game drive in the national reserve.
Meals and accommodation at Samburu Sopa Lodge.
Day 3: Samburu National Park
Head out with your group into the Samburu reserve on morning and afternoon game drives. Lesser visited than its more southerly neighbors, this relatively small reserve’s arid landscape is home to ‘dry country’ animals rarely found outside the park. Its special five’ are the long-necked gerenuk, Somali ostrich, Grevy’s zebra, beisa oryx, and reticulated giraffe.
Early afternoon at leisure, then proceed for a cheetah Kenya safari drive inside the national park from around 4 PM till sunset.
Meals and accommodation at Samburu Sopa Lodge.
Day 4: Samburu - Aberdares National Park
Drive south to the Aberdare Mountain Ranges. The Aberdare National Park was created in 1950 to protect the forested slopes of the ancient Aberdare Range, with wildlife ranging from elephants and lions to the black and white Colobus monkey and beautiful but lesser-sighted bongo – a horned antelope with distinctive white stripes. Once you reach Aberdare you’ll check-in at the Aberdare Country Club in order to transfer to its unique sister property, The Ark, which will be your viewing perch for the night. In the heart of the Aberdare National Park, The Ark’s design is based on Noah’s Ark. It overlooks a floodlit waterhole and salt lick, attracting wildlife day and night. Four viewing decks with balconies allow up-close wildlife viewing without even leaving your accommodation. There’s also a ground-level photo hide and an on-call viewing service to ensure that you don’t miss a thing. Rooms are known as ‘cabins’, set over three ‘decks’. Approx. journey time: 3 hours.
Dinner and overnight at The Ark Lodge.
Day 5: Aberdares - Lake Nakuru - Lake Naivasha
Have breakfast before driving via Thomson’s Falls – a scenic waterfall on the Uaso Narok River – to Lake Nakuru National Park for lunch and a game drive. The park is a haven for bird lovers, with over 400 species of bird, and provides habitat for lion, leopard, and Rothschild giraffe. It also offers fantastic chances of spotting herds of white rhinos. Continue on to Lake Naivasha for the night at the Lake Naivasha Sopa Lodge, which has resident monkeys, giraffes,s, and hippo inhabiting its 150-acre grasslands. Approx. journey time: 3 hours.
All meals and accommodation at Lake Naivasha Sopa Resort.
Day 6: Lake Naivasha - Maasai Mara
After breakfast, set off for the Maasai Mara – home to the Big Five, big cats, and a whole host of other wildlife amongst its rolling plains and open savannah. Arrive for lunch at your lodge, then head out on an afternoon game drive before returning for dinner. With splendid views across the Mara plains, Sarova Mara Game Camp offers the classic safari experience with the comfort of a hotel-style residence. The camp has 73 premium canvas tents with canopied beds, and facilities here include a pool with poolside bar, a wellness tent for massages, and a buffet-style restaurant. In the evenings, relax around the roaring campfire with your fellow guests. Approx. journey time: 5 hours.
Dinner and overnight at Sarova Mara Game Camp.
Day 7: Masai Mara Game Reserve
This may be the last day of your safari, but it could be the most thrilling as today there’s the opportunity to take a hot-air balloon safari to gain a whole new perspective of the Maasai Mara. This is our most highly recommended optional experience in Kenya. Wake early and watch as the balloon is prepared, then take flight and drift upwards as the sun rises; the bright pink-orange haze visible for miles across the vast savannah and the wildlife roaming below you. This will be followed by an impressive Champagne breakfast that will be set up for your group wherever you land. Then head out on morning and afternoon game drives into the heart of this wildlife-rich reserve – a fitting end to an exciting safari.
Dinner and overnight at Sarova Mara Game Camp.
Day 8: Masai Mara - Nairobi
If you’re traveling on to Kenya’s coast, you’ll fly directly from the Mara to Mombasa in the afternoon. Otherwise, leave the Mara after breakfast, arriving in Nairobi in time for lunch. Approx. journey time: 5 hours. You’ll then be taken to a central hotel for the afternoon where you might like to pre-book a day room before your return flight to your country arriving the following day.
(End of tour).
Included in tour:
- Accommodation as per the above safari description
- Meals as specified on the itinerary above
- All transfers and transport, park fees, hotel accommodation
- Game viewing activities as stated in the above tour/safari description
- Service of an English speaking driver guide
Not included in tour:
- Extras at the lodges i.e. drinks, telephone, laundry etc.
- International flight
- Visa entry into Kenya or Tanzania
- Items of a personal nature
- Tips and gratitudes to safari staff
