About This Journey
Eleven days is what Kenya needs if you want the whole country rather than the highlights reel. Four distinct ecosystems, four nights in the Masai Mara, and enough time in each place to stop watching the clock.
It opens in the arid north at Samburu, which most itineraries skip and which holds a set of species found nowhere in the south. It drops through the Rift Valley lakes for rhino, boat safaris and a walk among plains game. It gives the Mara four nights — the point at which leopard stops being a lottery. And it closes at Amboseli with the elephants and the mountain.
This is the trip for a second visit to Africa, or a first visit with real time.
Trip Highlights
- The Samburu Special Five — Grevy's zebra, reticulated giraffe, gerenuk, oryx and Somali ostrich
- Four nights in the Masai Mara, which is where leopard odds genuinely improve
- Black and white rhino at Lake Nakuru
- A boat safari and a walk among giraffe at Naivasha
- Amboseli's big-tusked elephants beneath Kilimanjaro
- Four distinct ecosystems in one itinerary, none of them rushed
Day by Day
Met on arrival and transferred to your hotel, with a full briefing over dinner. It is a long itinerary and worth understanding before you start.
- LuxuryHemingways Nairobi · Giraffe Manor
- Mid-rangeEka Hotel Nairobi · Ole Sereni
- BudgetBoma Inn Nairobi
- Meals
- Dinner
Drive north past the shoulder of Mount Kenya and into genuinely arid country — red earth, doum palms and rock. Arrive for an afternoon game drive along the Ewaso Ng'iro.
- LuxuryElephant Bedroom Camp · Saruni Samburu
- Mid-rangeSamburu Sopa Lodge · Ashnil Samburu Camp
- BudgetSamburu Riverside Camp
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
A full day working the reserve for the northern specialists: Grevy's zebra, reticulated giraffe, gerenuk, beisa oryx and Somali ostrich, none of which occur in the southern parks.
Elephant come to the river through the day, and the riverine forest is good leopard country. An optional Samburu community visit can be arranged.
- LuxuryElephant Bedroom Camp · Saruni Samburu
- Mid-rangeSamburu Sopa Lodge · Ashnil Samburu Camp
- BudgetSamburu Riverside Camp
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
A long transfer south-west into the Rift Valley, arriving at Nakuru for an afternoon game drive among rhino, buffalo and Rothschild's giraffe.
- LuxurySarova Lion Hill Game Lodge
- Mid-rangeLake Nakuru Sopa Lodge · Flamingo Hill Camp
- BudgetLake Nakuru Lodge
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
A short hop to Naivasha for a boat safari among hippo and fish eagles, and the Crescent Island walk — on foot among giraffe and zebra, which is a welcome change after several days in a vehicle.
- LuxuryEnashipai Resort & Spa
- Mid-rangeLake Naivasha Sopa Resort · Lake Naivasha Simba Lodge
- BudgetCrayfish Camp
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
South-west to the Mara and out on an afternoon game drive. After Samburu's scrub and the lakes, the openness of the reserve lands hard.
- LuxuryGovernors' Camp · Sand River Masai Mara · Naboisho Camp
- Mid-rangeMara Intrepids Tented Camp · Mara Ngenche Safari Camp
- BudgetTalek Bush Camp · Oseki Maasai Mara Camp
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Three full days, which is the real luxury of this itinerary. Early starts with packed breakfasts, long afternoons, and time to sit with a sighting rather than move on to the next one.
Four nights is where leopard odds meaningfully improve, and where a river crossing becomes a reasonable hope rather than a long shot in season. Optional dawn balloon flight and a Maasai community visit.
- LuxuryGovernors' Camp · Sand River Masai Mara · Naboisho Camp
- Mid-rangeMara Intrepids Tented Camp · Mara Ngenche Safari Camp
- BudgetTalek Bush Camp · Oseki Maasai Mara Camp
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Fly or drive east and south to Amboseli — on an itinerary this long the flight is worth it. Arrive for the late-afternoon game drive and the best chance of the mountain.
- LuxuryTortilis Camp · Amboseli Serena Safari Lodge
- Mid-rangeOl Tukai Lodge
- BudgetAmboseli Sopa Lodge
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
A dawn game drive for the second shot at Kilimanjaro and the elephants beneath it, then breakfast and the transfer back to Nairobi for your international departure.
- Meals
- Breakfast
What's Included
Included
- 10 nights' accommodation at your chosen tier, with all meals as indicated
- Private or small-group 4×4 with a pop-up roof and a window seat each
- Professional Kenyan driver-guide throughout
- Lake Naivasha boat safari and Crescent Island walk
- All park, reserve and conservancy entry fees
- Airport transfers and bottled drinking water in the vehicle
Not Included
- International airfares
- Kenya eTA
- Travel and medical insurance
- Internal light-aircraft flights where you choose to fly rather than drive
- Balloon safari, community visits and other optional activities
- Alcoholic drinks, tips and items of a personal nature
Accommodation
Hemingways Nairobi
Elephant Bedroom Camp
Sarova Lion Hill Game Lodge
Enashipai Resort & Spa
Governors' Camp
Tortilis Camp
Ready to Plan This Safari?
Every trip we run is private and tailored around you — your dates, your pace, your budget. Tell us what you have in mind and one of our safari planners will craft it into a detailed, costed proposal.
Quoted per person sharing. On an eleven-day circuit the Samburu and Amboseli legs are the ones worth flying — ask us to price the difference before you decide.
