7 Days Masai Mara, Lake Nakuru, Samburu & Aberdare Safari

A week is enough time to see a genuinely wide slice of Kenya without it turning into a marathon of driving, and this itinerary is built around that balance. You will spend two nights in the Masai Mara for the Big Five and the reserve's famous plains game, move north to Lake Nakuru for its flamingo-lined shores and dependable rhino sightings, continue further north into Samburu for a different landscape and a different set of wildlife entirely, and finish at Aberdare, where a night at a floodlit waterhole lodge rounds out the trip with something none of the earlier stops offer.

This is a private departure, so timings and the day-to-day pace are flexible around your group rather than fixed to a shared schedule. It is a genuinely popular structure for first-time visitors who want more than just the Mara, without committing to the longer 8 or 9-day circuits.

Day 1: Nairobi to Masai Mara Game Reserve

Pickup from your Nairobi hotel at around 7:30 AM, with the drive to the Mara taking you past the Great Rift Valley viewpoint along the way. The Mara forms the northern edge of the Serengeti ecosystem and holds all of the Big Five, alongside dense numbers of zebra, gazelle, and other plains game. Lunch at camp, then an afternoon game drive. Dinner and overnight at Enchoro Wildlife Camp.

Day 2: Full Day in the Masai Mara

A full day spent tracking the Mara's predators and its wider wildlife, with an optional visit to a Maasai village for anyone interested in the culture behind the region. Dinner and overnight again at Enchoro Wildlife Camp.

Day 3: Masai Mara to Lake Nakuru National Park

After breakfast, you will head to Lake Nakuru, arriving in time for lunch before an afternoon game drive that runs until early evening. Nakuru is known for its lesser and greater flamingo populations, over 400 recorded bird species, and being one of the few places in Africa to reliably see both black and white rhino alongside the rarer Rothschild's giraffe. Dinner and overnight at Buraha Zenoni Hotel, Nakuru.

Day 4: Lake Nakuru to Samburu Game Reserve

An early departure takes you north into Kenya's Northern Frontier District, a noticeably different landscape - arid, rugged, and watered by the Uaso Nyiro River. Samburu is home to species found almost nowhere else in the country, sometimes called the Samburu Special Five: the reticulated giraffe, Grevy's zebra, Beisa oryx, gerenuk, and greater and lesser kudu. Dinner and overnight at Umoja Tented Camp.

Day 5: Full Day in Samburu National Reserve

A full day exploring Samburu's grasslands and acacia woodland, with good chances of elephant, lion, leopard, and cheetah alongside the reserve's signature species. Dinner and overnight again at Umoja Tented Camp.

Day 6: Samburu to Aberdare National Park

An early game drive and breakfast at camp, then the drive south to Aberdare, with lunch en route. Aberdare is an isolated volcanic range forming the eastern wall of the Rift Valley, with deep ravines, waterfalls, and moorland rising above 3,000 meters. Your afternoon is spent at a floodlit waterhole below your lodge, watching elephant, rhino, and buffalo come to drink after dark. Dinner and overnight at The Ark or Treetops Lodge.

Day 7: Aberdare to Nairobi

After breakfast, you will drive back to Nairobi, arriving in the mid-afternoon, where the safari ends.

From $1,630 USD per person

Best Time to Visit

June to October covers the dry season across all four stops on this route and is the strongest overall window. April to early June is quieter and less expensive if you don't mind a chance of rain, particularly in the Mara and Aberdare sections.

Good to Know

This route covers four genuinely different landscapes - grassland, lake, semi-desert, and highland forest - so pack for a range of temperatures, especially cooler evenings at Aberdare.

Groups of 3 or more should confirm final per-person pricing with us directly before payment, since rates scale with group size.
Can be shortened to 5 or 6 days by dropping either the Samburu or Aberdare leg if time is limited.