11 Day itinerary in Kenya, Africa
Travel across Kenya from Nairobi to the Maasai Mara, Lake Nakuru, Lake Naivasha, Amboseli, Tsavo West, and Tsavo East, with Big Five game drives, a Hell's Gate visit, a Lake Naivasha boat ride and Crescent Island walk, Mzima Springs, Taita Hills, and a return to Nairobi on the Madaraka Express.


By Esther and Amos
Physical Difficulty
Recommended Age
Operated in
GUIDANCE
starting point
trip type
trip attributes
Sustainable Travel
Nature & Widlife
Boat Tours
Adventure
Jeep & 4WD
Culture & History
Start/End
Night
Track the Big Five in the Maasai Mara National Reserve
Spot flamingos and rhinos in Lake Nakuru National Park
Watch elephant herds below Mount Kilimanjaro in Amboseli
Explore Tsavo East's red-earth plains and open savannah
Track the Big Five in the Maasai Mara National Reserve
Spot flamingos and rhinos in Lake Nakuru National Park
Watch elephant herds below Mount Kilimanjaro in Amboseli
Explore Tsavo East's red-earth plains and open savannah
Accommodation Categories
Day 1: Arrival in Nairobi | Airport meet and leisure time
Arrive at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, where your professional safari driver-guide will meet and welcome you. Transfer to your city hotel for check-in and time to relax after your international flight. The remainder of the day is at leisure to unwind and enjoy the hotel facilities.
Nairobi serves as East Africa’s primary gateway and a dynamic introduction to Kenya.
Meals: Breakfast
Accommodation:
Day 2: Nairobi - Maasai Mara | Rift Valley drive and first safari
After breakfast, depart Nairobi and journey toward the world-renowned Maasai Mara National Reserve. Drive along the Great Rift Valley escarpment, stopping at scenic viewpoints overlooking one of Africa’s most dramatic geological features. Continue through rural landscapes and Maasai homelands before arriving at your lodge in time for lunch.
In the afternoon, set out on your first game drive across the Mara’s expansive savannah, known for its rich wildlife populations and Big Five sightings. The Maasai Mara is globally recognized for its exceptional predator density and annual wildebeest migration.
The Maasai Mara is globally recognized for its exceptional predator density and annual wildebeest migration.
Guide: Included for the day
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation:
Day 3: Maasai Mara Exploration | Big Five tracking and open plains
Spend a full day exploring the diverse ecosystems of the Maasai Mara National Reserve with game drives in the morning and afternoon.
Look for lions, elephants, buffalo, leopards, and rhinos, while also watching plains game such as zebras, giraffes, and antelope. The reserve’s open terrain creates excellent conditions for wildlife viewing and photography.
Return for time to relax between activities.
The Maasai Mara is globally recognized for its exceptional predator density and annual wildebeest migration.
Guide: Included for the day
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation:
Day 4; Maasai Mara – Lake Nakuru – Naivasha | Rift Valley lakes and wildlife
After breakfast, depart the Maasai Mara and travel toward Lake Nakuru National Park in the Great Rift Valley.
Arrive for a game drive around the alkaline lake, known for its birdlife, including flamingos, and for its populations of white and black rhinos. The park’s acacia woodlands and grasslands also support wildlife such as lions, buffalo, and Rothschild giraffes.
Enjoy lunch within the park before continuing to Lake Naivasha, arriving in the late afternoon.
Lake Nakuru is one of Kenya’s key rhino conservation areas.
Guide: Included for the day
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation:
Day 5; Lake Naivasha Exploration | Walking safari and freshwater ecosystems
After breakfast, you head to Hell's Gate National Park, one of the few parks in Kenya where you can explore on foot or by bicycle. You move through dramatic gorges, volcanic rock formations, and open plains, with chances to see zebras, giraffes, antelope, and buffalo at close range without the barrier of a safari vehicle.
In the afternoon, you take a boat ride on Lake Naivasha, passing hippos and a variety of birdlife before reaching Crescent Island. There, you continue with a guided walking safari among free-roaming animals.
Lake Naivasha is one of the few freshwater lakes in the Rift Valley and supports a rich bird ecosystem.
Guide: Included for the day
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation:
Day 6: Naivasha to Amboseli | Journey to Elephant Country
After breakfast, you leave the Rift Valley and travel toward Amboseli National Park, passing through changing landscapes from highlands to open plains.
You arrive in time for lunch, with views, weather permitting, of Mount Kilimanjaro rising beyond the park boundary.
In the afternoon, you head out on a game drive across Amboseli’s open terrain, an area known for its large elephant herds and striking scenery.
Amboseli is one of the best locations in Africa to observe elephants up close in their natural habitat.
Guide: Included for the day
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation:
Day 7: Amboseli Exploration | Elephants and Kilimanjaro views
You spend the day exploring Amboseli National Park on morning and afternoon game drives.
Photograph elephants crossing the plains with Mount Kilimanjaro in the background, and watch for a variety of wildlife and abundant birdlife around the park’s swamps.
Midday is reserved for relaxation, giving you time to take in the landscape and the changing light over the mountain.
Amboseli’s swamps are fed by underground rivers from Kilimanjaro’s glaciers.
Guide: Included for the day
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation:
Day 8: To Tsavo West | Volcanic terrain and natural springs
After breakfast, you leave Amboseli for Tsavo West National Park and enter a region shaped by volcanic terrain and dramatic scenery.
You continue with a game drive en route, stopping at key features including lava flows and the crystal-clear Mzima Springs, where hippos and crocodiles can often be seen beneath the surface.
This park offers a different safari experience from the open savannah ecosystems because of its rugged terrain.
Tsavo West is known for its diverse landscapes, from volcanic hills to natural springs.
Guide: Included for the day
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation:
Day 9: Tsavo West to Tsavo East | Open plains and red soil
After breakfast, you depart for Tsavo East National Park, crossing into one of Kenya’s largest and oldest national parks.
Enjoy a game drive en route as the landscape opens into vast plains marked by red soil, scattered acacia trees, and seasonal rivers.
Wildlife sightings may include large elephant herds, lions, giraffes, zebras, and a wide variety of plains game.
Tsavo East is famous for its “red elephants,” colored by the region’s iron-rich soil.
Guide: Included for the day
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation:
Day 10: Tsavo East and Taita Hills | Extended safari and wildlife corridors
You spend the day exploring Tsavo East National Park and the nearby Taita Hills Wildlife Sanctuary.
This region forms an important wildlife corridor and supports diverse species across savannah, woodland, and riverine habitats. During your game drives, you have opportunities to track predators, observe elephant herds, and experience less-traveled safari terrain.
You return in the late afternoon for relaxation and views over the surrounding landscape.
The Tsavo ecosystem is one of the largest protected wildlife areas in the world.
Guide: Included for the day
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation:
Day 11; Tsavo to Nairobi by Rail | Madaraka Express and departure transfer
After breakfast, you transfer to the train station for your journey aboard the Madaraka Express.
You travel through Tsavo landscapes toward Nairobi in comfort, with opportunities to spot wildlife along the route.
On arrival in Nairobi, you are met and transferred to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport for your departure flight, bringing your safari to an end.
The Madaraka Express is Kenya’s standard-gauge railway service linking Nairobi with the coast through Tsavo.
Meals: Breakfast
Accommodation
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