5-Day Naivasha, Lake Nakuru and Maasai Mara Safari

The safari begins with the road journey from Nairobi to Lake Naivasha in the Great Rift Valley. The included boat ride explores the lake environment, with views of the shoreline, papyrus margins and the birds and hippos encountered along the water. The programme also includes the guided walk at Crescent Island Game Sanctuary. Walking through the sanctuary’s grassland provides a ground-level view of its free-ranging wildlife, with the guide following the sanctuary’s visitor instructions. These two activities form the Naivasha stage before the journey continues north the following day.

The journey continues from Lake Naivasha to Lake Nakuru National Park. An afternoon game drive explores the park’s lake-basin landscape, woodland and grassland along permitted vehicle routes. Your guide searches for wildlife in the habitats visited and explains how the lake and surrounding vegetation shape this Rift Valley ecosystem. Rhino, other mammals and waterbirds may be encountered, while their locations and the numbers of birds on the lake vary. This day introduces a second Rift Valley lake and a vehicle-based wildlife programme before the safari turns towards the Maasai Mara.

The safari leaves the Nakuru area and continues by road to the Maasai Mara. On arrival, the programme includes an afternoon game drive through the reserve’s savannah and woodland habitats. Your private guide follows permitted routes and uses the wildlife encountered to shape the viewing stops, allowing time to watch animal behaviour in its surroundings. The drive introduces the Mara landscape and begins the two-night wildlife stage of the journey.

Morning and afternoon game drives explore the Maasai Mara with your private guide. The programme follows the habitats and permitted routes practical for the safari base, with time to observe the mammals and birds encountered rather than a fixed checklist of sightings. The separate drives show how wildlife activity changes through the day, from movement across open grassland to animals resting or feeding around woodland and water. An optional balloon safari or Maasai village visit can be arranged separately; these experiences are additional to the included game-drive programme and are not included in the package price.

The final day includes a morning game drive in the Maasai Mara before the road journey back to Nairobi. This last wildlife outing provides another opportunity to observe the reserve’s grassland and woodland habitats with your guide, following the animals encountered along the permitted route. After leaving the Mara, the journey returns to Nairobi, where the five-day safari ends.