8-Day Masai Mara, Lake Naivasha, Lake Nakuru, Amboseli & Tsavo East Safari

Day-by-day itinerary

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

1. Day 1

   Nairobi to Masai Mara

   The morning starts in Nairobi, from where you continue overland 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. Your guide works the area for lion, cheetah, elephant, giraffe, buffalo and large herds of plains game, with sightings varying by season and conditions. 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. The evening is spent at your Masai Mara accommodation, with dinner and overnight there.

2. Day 2

   Full-Day Masai Mara Safari

   You spend the day in Masai Mara, heading out early and returning as the light goes. You travel through open savanna grassland, acacia stands and the rolling country of the greater Mara ecosystem, working the areas your guide judges most productive on the day. Keep watch for lion, cheetah, elephant, giraffe, buffalo and large herds of plains game as you move between the different habitats. 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. You return to your camp or lodge for dinner and a second night at Masai Mara.

3. Day 3

   Masai Mara to Lake Naivasha

   You leave Masai Mara after breakfast and head for Lake Naivasha, following the Rift Valley escarpment road with its long views over the valley floor. Lunch and check-in come first, then an afternoon drive through a freshwater Rift Valley lake fringed by papyrus, fever trees and flower-farming country. Wildlife commonly associated with this area includes hippo, waterbuck, colobus and an exceptional range of resident and migratory waterbirds. 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 evening is spent at your Lake Naivasha accommodation, with dinner and overnight there.

4. Day 4

   Lake Naivasha to Lake Nakuru

   Breakfast is taken before you set out from Lake Naivasha for the drive to 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. 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. Dinner and overnight are at your camp or lodge in Lake Nakuru.

5. Day 5

   Lake Nakuru to Amboseli

   The morning starts in Lake Nakuru, from where you continue overland to 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. Look for large elephant herds, buffalo, zebra, wildebeest, and abundant water birds around the swamps as the light softens through the afternoon. 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 is served at your Amboseli camp or lodge, where you spend the night.

6. Day 6

   Full-Day Amboseli Safari

   An unhurried full day in Amboseli gives your guide room to follow whatever the morning turns up. The drives cover open plains, dust flats and spring-fed swamps beneath the bulk of Kilimanjaro, moving between habitats as conditions change. Species commonly associated with the area include large elephant herds, buffalo, zebra, wildebeest, and abundant water birds around the swamps. 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. The evening returns you to your Amboseli accommodation for dinner and overnight.

7. Day 7

   Amboseli to Tsavo East

   The morning starts in Amboseli, from where you continue overland to Tsavo East, travelling the Nairobi–Mombasa corridor into Kenya's largest protected wilderness. You arrive in time to settle in, and the day continues with a game drive across vast semi-arid plains, the Galana River and the long red-earth horizon of southern Kenya. Wildlife commonly associated with this area includes elephant, lion, buffalo, lesser kudu and dry-country plains game. Tsavo's elephants often appear reddish because they dust themselves with the park's distinctive red soil. Dinner is served at your Tsavo East camp or lodge, where you spend the night.

8. Day 8

   Tsavo East to Nairobi

   Breakfast is taken before you set out from Tsavo East for the drive 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. You are dropped at your Nairobi hotel or the airport in the late afternoon.