Seremara Safaris
7 Days Best Of Kenya Safari to Masai Mara – Nakuru – Samburu
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7 Days Best of Kenya Safari to Masai Mara, Nakuru and Samburu
There is no better way to sample the full breadth of Kenya's wilderness than this 7-day Masai Mara Nakuru Samburu Safari, a single itinerary that carries you from the rolling savannah of the south-west to the flamingo-fringed shores of the Rift Valley and on to the sun-baked plains of the north. In just one week you cross three entirely different ecosystems, each with its own signature wildlife, without ever leaving Kenyan soil.
This Best of Kenya Safari Package is built for travelers who want depth rather than a single-park snapshot — couples, friends, and first-time visitors who want to see the Big Five, the pink-flamingo spectacle of Lake Nakuru, and the rare desert-adapted species of Samburu all on one trip. It is equally suited to keen photographers chasing varied light and landscapes as it is to families wanting a well-paced, comfortable introduction to East African wildlife.
Highlights along the way include two full days of game drives in the world-famous Masai Mara, a boat excursion on Lake Naivasha among hippos and fish eagles, and a scenic descent into the Rift Valley en route to Lake Nakuru, sanctuary to both white rhino and the rare Rothschild's giraffe. In the far north, Samburu National Reserve rewards travelers with the so-called Samburu Special Five — the reticulated giraffe, Grevy's zebra, gerenuk, Beisa oryx and Somali ostrich — species found almost nowhere else in Kenya.
This 7 Days Kenya Wildlife Safari runs in a comfortable safari minivan with a pop-up roof and an English-speaking driver-guide throughout, with full-board lodge or tented-camp accommodation each night. From $2,000 per person sharing, with full-board accommodation, park fees, transport and a driver-guide included throughout.
Day-by-Day Itinerary
Nairobi to the Masai Mara
Your driver-guide collects you at 07:30 hrs after an early breakfast for the drive out to the Masai Mara in a comfortable safari minivan fitted with a pop-up roof for unobstructed game viewing and photography en route. The road descends through the dramatic escarpments of Kenya's Great Rift Valley, offering sweeping views over the valley floor, before skirting the freshwater shores of Lake Naivasha. It is a journey of constantly changing scenery — farmland giving way to acacia woodland and finally the open grass plains that announce the Mara ecosystem. You arrive in time for a leisurely lunch at your camp or lodge, with a short break to settle into your room and freshen up. By mid-afternoon you head out for your first game drive in the Masai Mara National Reserve, one of Africa's most celebrated wildlife areas, where resident lion prides, elephant herds and towering giraffe are encountered almost immediately. As the light softens toward evening, keep watch for cheetah scanning the plains from a termite mound. Return to camp as dusk falls for dinner and your first overnight in the Mara, with the calls of hyena and nightjar drifting across camp after dark.
Full Day of Game Drives in the Masai Mara
Rise before sunrise for coffee and biscuits before setting out on a morning game drive while the Mara's predators are still active and the light is at its most flattering. This is prime time to encounter the big cats: lion prides waking on a kopje, a cheetah stretching after a cool night, or if you are fortunate, playful lion cubs tumbling under the watchful eye of their mothers. Return to camp for a full breakfast, then join your guide for a visit to a nearby Maasai village, where local elders and morans share insights into traditional homestead life, cattle culture, and age-old customs that have endured alongside the wildlife for generations. After lunch back at camp, head out again for an afternoon game drive across the rolling, acacia-dotted grassland, where large herds of elephant, zebra, topi, hartebeest, impala and the ever-present wildebeest graze against a backdrop of endless horizon. Watch for Africa's iconic sunset silhouettes as you make your way back to camp. Dinner is followed by a Maasai storyteller sharing tales of culture and the bush around the campfire, a fitting close to a full day in this Best of Kenya Safari Package.
Second Full Day Exploring the Masai Mara
A second full day allows you to explore different corners of the reserve, following the movements of wildlife along the Mara River and across the Oloololo Escarpment. Depart at first light for a game drive focused on predator activity — the Mara supports one of Africa's densest lion populations, and leopard sightings along riverine thickets are a real possibility for the patient observer. Return for breakfast, then use the late morning to relax at camp, enjoy the pool if available, or opt for an optional add-on such as a hot air balloon safari over the plains at dawn. After lunch, set out for an afternoon game drive toward the river crossings and open plains where wildebeest, zebra, and gazelle congregate in their thousands, especially spectacular during the July-to-October migration season when the Serengeti's herds surge across the Mara River. Your guide will track recent sightings shared by the network of Mara guides to maximize your chances of a close encounter with the Big Five. As the sun drops toward the escarpment, head back to camp for a hot shower, dinner, and another evening under some of the clearest night skies in East Africa — a fitting midpoint to this Samburu National Reserve Tour before the journey turns north.
Masai Mara to Lake Nakuru via Lake Naivasha
Begin with a very early game drive while the bush is at its most active, warmed by a cup of coffee and light snacks before setting out. Cooler morning temperatures bring predators and grazers alike out into the open, making this one of the best windows for photography. Return to camp for a full breakfast, then pack up and check out for the road journey to Lake Naivasha. On arrival, board a boat for a relaxed one-hour excursion across the lake, spotting pods of hippo wallowing near the shallows and scanning the reeds for African fish eagle, lesser flamingo, African spoonbill and little grebe. Enjoy lunch at a lakeside lodge before continuing to Lake Nakuru National Park, arriving in time for an afternoon game drive. Lake Nakuru is famed for its dense flocks of lesser and greater flamingos that can turn the shoreline a shimmering pink, alongside more than 400 recorded bird species including white pelican, plover, egret and marabou stork. The park also protects a significant population of white rhino and the rare Rothschild's giraffe, both easily spotted around the acacia woodland fringing the lake. Check in for dinner and overnight at Lake Nakuru Sopa Lodge or Sarova Lion Hill Game Lodge.
Into the Northern Wilderness of Samburu
After an early breakfast, depart for Samburu National Reserve on one of the most scenically dramatic drives of the entire safari, descending from the cool highlands through the Rift Valley and into the semi-arid plains of Northern Kenya. Break the journey at Thomson's Falls, where the Ewaso Ng'iro river tumbles over a rocky escarpment amid a cooling mist — a popular photo stop and leg-stretch before the final push north. Arrive in Samburu by late afternoon, entering a reserve renowned for species found almost nowhere else in the country: the long-necked gerenuk browsing on its hind legs, the striped Grevy's zebra, the elegant reticulated giraffe and the desert-adapted Beisa oryx. Samburu's elusive leopards are often active around dusk, and lion and cheetah are regularly encountered along the Uaso Nyiro River, which also supports healthy numbers of elephant, buffalo and hippo. Birdlife is exceptional, with over 350 species recorded, from vultures and kingfishers to Somali ostrich. Depending on arrival time, enjoy an optional short game drive before checking in, or head straight to the lodge to relax. Dinner and overnight at your camp or lodge.
Full Day in Samburu's Rugged Wilderness
Start the day with an early cup of coffee before heading out into the fiercely beautiful, arid landscape of Samburu, watered by the life-giving Uaso Nyiro River. As one of Kenya's most tightly protected northern reserves, it shelters species found only north of the equator alongside more familiar favorites. In the southern sections of the park you have excellent chances of spotting cheetah, lion, leopard, impala, buffalo, hippo and dik-dik, together with the northern specialists — gerenuk, Grevy's zebra, reticulated giraffe and Beisa oryx. During the dry season, animals converge in impressive numbers along the riverbanks, their primary water source, making for outstanding sightings of elephant herds wading through the shallows while Nile crocodiles bask nearby. Depending on your preference, breakfast and lunch can be enjoyed back at camp or packed as a picnic to eat out in the bush, adding an extra sense of adventure to the day. Use the quieter midday hours to relax at your lodge, many of which overlook the river, before a final evening game drive as the light turns gold over the doum palms. Dinner and overnight at your camp, capping off the wildest leg of this Masai Mara Nakuru Samburu Safari.
Samburu to Nairobi via Mount Kenya
Enjoy one last early morning game drive in Samburu before returning to camp for a hearty breakfast. Afterwards, pack up and check out for the long but scenic drive back to Nairobi, retracing the route south through the arid plains and highlands toward Mount Kenya. Stop for lunch at the base of Africa's second-highest peak, admiring its forested lower slopes and, on a clear day, its glacier-capped summit. Continuing south, the drive passes through a patchwork of tea, coffee and pineapple plantations that supply much of Kenya's agricultural export trade, a striking contrast to the wilderness left behind. You arrive back in Nairobi in the afternoon, where your driver-guide will drop you at your hotel or transfer you directly to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport for your onward flight home. This final leg brings a fitting close to a week that took you across three of Kenya's most iconic ecosystems — savannah, rift lake and northern desert — marking the end of your Best of Kenya Safari Package with Seremara Safaris.
Photo Gallery
Explore the Destinations on This Safari
The Masai Mara is Kenya's most celebrated wildlife reserve, an extension of Tanzania's Serengeti ecosystem renowned for its resident Big Five and its role as the stage for the Great Migration. Rolling grassland dotted with acacia trees supports dense populations of lion, elephant, buffalo, giraffe and plains game year-round, while the Mara River crossings from July to October draw wildebeest and zebra herds in their hundreds of thousands. Beyond game drives, visits to a Maasai village offer insight into the pastoralist culture that has coexisted with this wildlife for centuries. Sunrise and sunset here are especially dramatic, painting the plains in warm gold light that photographers travel across the world to capture. Two full days in the Mara on this itinerary allow time to explore multiple habitats within the reserve, from riverine forest to open savannah, maximizing the chance of exceptional sightings.
A freshwater lake nestled in the floor of the Great Rift Valley, Lake Naivasha is a welcome stopover between the Mara and Lake Nakuru. A relaxed boat excursion here reveals pods of hippo resting in the shallows and a wealth of birdlife, including African fish eagle, pelican, cormorant and the diminutive little grebe. The lake's fertile shoreline supports flower and vegetable farms that supply much of Europe, giving the area an unusual blend of wilderness and agriculture. It is a gentle, scenic interlude that breaks up the road journey north while adding a distinctly different wildlife-viewing experience to the safari.
Lake Nakuru National Park is one of the Rift Valley's most photogenic destinations, historically famous for vast flocks of lesser and greater flamingos that turn its alkaline shoreline shades of pink. While flamingo numbers fluctuate with water levels, the park remains an outstanding sanctuary for both black and white rhino, protected within an electrified perimeter, along with the endangered Rothschild's giraffe found in few other Kenyan parks. Over 400 bird species have been recorded here, and the surrounding acacia woodland and rocky escarpments add scenic variety to game drives. A short but rewarding stop, it rounds out the safari's rift-valley chapter before the drive north to Samburu.
Samburu National Reserve lies in Kenya's semi-arid north, watered by the Uaso Nyiro River that sustains an extraordinary concentration of wildlife amid otherwise dry terrain. It is best known for the Samburu Special Five — the reticulated giraffe, Grevy's zebra, gerenuk, Beisa oryx and Somali ostrich — species adapted to arid conditions and rarely seen elsewhere in Kenya. Lion, leopard, cheetah, elephant and buffalo are also resident, drawn to the river especially during the dry months. The Samburu people, close cultural relatives of the Maasai, add a rich human dimension to the landscape. Two days here provide a fitting, wilder finale to a week that has already covered the Mara's grasslands and Nakuru's rift-valley lake.
What's Included
- Road transport from Nairobi throughout in a safari minivan with a pop-up roof for game viewing
- Full-board accommodation at camps and lodges for six nights
- Daily game drives in a safari minivan with pop-up roof and an English-speaking driver-guide
- All park entry and conservancy fees
- A visit to a Maasai cultural village
- Government taxes and levies
Trip Planning Guide
This safari covers three distinct Kenyan ecosystems in one trip, each with signature species you won't easily find together elsewhere.
- Masai Mara: Lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo, cheetah and, in season, the wildebeest migration.
- Lake Nakuru: White and black rhino, Rothschild's giraffe and dense flamingo flocks.
- Samburu: The Samburu Special Five — gerenuk, Grevy's zebra, reticulated giraffe, Beisa oryx and Somali ostrich.
- Lake Naivasha: Hippo pods and prolific birdlife on a relaxed boat ride.
- Visa & entry: Most nationalities require a Kenya eTA arranged online before arrival.
- Vaccinations: Yellow fever certificate required if arriving from an endemic country; malaria prophylaxis is recommended for all areas on this route.
- Road conditions: Some sections, particularly around Samburu, involve unpaved roads; a pop-up roof minivan is used throughout for comfort and visibility.
- Currency: Kenyan Shilling is used; US dollars are widely accepted at lodges for tips and incidentals.
- Neutral-toned safari clothing (khaki, olive, brown)
- A warm layer for early morning game drives, especially in Samburu and Nakuru
- Wide-brimmed hat, sunglasses and high-SPF sunscreen
- Binoculars and a camera with a zoom lens
- Comfortable closed shoes for village and nature walks
- Personal medications and basic first-aid items
This itinerary rewards visits during the dry seasons of June to October and January to February, when wildlife concentrates around rivers and waterholes across all three destinations, and roads are easiest to navigate. July to October additionally offers the chance of the Great Migration in the Masai Mara. The short rains of November and the long rains from March to May bring lush scenery and excellent birdlife, though some roads can be muddier, particularly the drive north to Samburu.
Tour Route Map
Frequently Asked Questions
This 7-day Masai Mara Nakuru Samburu Safari is priced from $2,000 per person sharing, inclusive of full-board accommodation, all park and conservancy fees, road transport in a safari minivan, and an English-speaking driver-guide throughout.
The itinerary covers the Masai Mara National Reserve, Lake Naivasha, Lake Nakuru National Park and Samburu National Reserve, giving you savannah, rift-valley lake and northern semi-arid ecosystems in a single week.
Yes, it is one of our most popular routes for first-timers because it samples three very different Kenyan landscapes and wildlife communities without requiring internal flights, all in a comfortable road-safari format.
Samburu is home to the Samburu Special Five — reticulated giraffe, Grevy's zebra, gerenuk, Beisa oryx and Somali ostrich — plus lion, leopard, cheetah, elephant and hippo along the Uaso Nyiro River.
If you travel between July and October, there is a good chance of encountering migration herds and river crossings in the Masai Mara, though sightings depend on the migration's exact movement each year.
You travel throughout in a safari minivan with a pop-up roof, ideal for photography and game viewing, driven by an experienced, English-speaking driver-guide.
Yes, the itinerary can be arranged as a private safari for couples, families or small groups, or joined as part of a shared group of up to 10 people.
International flights, Kenya eTA/visa fees, optional activities such as the hot air balloon safari, drinks, tips, laundry and other personal expenses are excluded.
Most travelers require a Kenya Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA), which should be arranged online prior to departure.
This is primarily a game-drive-based safari with minimal walking, aside from short strolls at the Maasai village and around your lodges, making it accessible to most fitness levels.
7 Days Best of Kenya Safari to Masai Mara, Nakuru and Samburu
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