6-Day Kenya Family Safari — Ol Pejeta, Lake Nakuru, Lake Naivasha & Masai Mara

Day-by-day itinerary

Route: Nairobi → Ol Pejeta / Sweetwaters → Lake Nakuru → Lake Naivasha → Masai Mara → Nairobi

1. Day 1

   Nairobi to Ol Pejeta / Sweetwaters

   The day opens in Nairobi with a morning departure for Ol Pejeta / Sweetwaters, climbing through the central highlands past Nyeri and Nanyuki on the shoulder of Mount Kenya. Arrival is followed by check-in and a first drive into open Laikipia plains and whistling-thorn country with Mount Kenya on the eastern skyline. Your guide works the area for black and white rhino, elephant, lion, buffalo and Jackson's hartebeest, with sightings varying by season and conditions. Ol Pejeta is a working conservancy with a significant rhino conservation programme, and it also runs a chimpanzee sanctuary that takes in rescued animals. Your safari vehicle and guide are used by your party alone. Dinner is served at your Ol Pejeta / Sweetwaters camp or lodge, where you spend the night.

2. Day 2

   Ol Pejeta to Lake Nakuru

   Bags are loaded after breakfast and you depart Ol Pejeta bound 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. There is the possibility of seeing black and white rhino, Rothschild's giraffe, buffalo, waterbuck and dense birdlife, depending on movement and conditions on the day. 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 Naivasha

   Breakfast is taken before you set out from Lake Nakuru for the drive to 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.

4. Day 4

   Lake Naivasha to Masai Mara

   Following an early breakfast, the day begins with the road transfer from Lake Naivasha to 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. This is good country in which to look for 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. Dinner and overnight are at your camp or lodge in Masai Mara.

5. Day 5

   Full-Day Masai Mara Safari

   The whole day is given to Masai Mara, with an early start to make the most of the cooler morning hours. The drives cover open savanna grassland, acacia stands and the rolling country of the greater Mara ecosystem, moving between habitats as conditions change. 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. You return to your camp or lodge for dinner and a second night at Masai Mara.

6. Day 6

   Masai Mara to Nairobi

   The morning starts in Masai Mara, from where you continue overland to Nairobi, returning through the highland approaches to the city. Once you reach Nairobi there is time to check in before heading out among 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.