A Taste of Kenya: 5-Day Rift Valley & Masai Mara Safari

A short, classic Kenya safari: a night on the Rift Valley lakes, then three nights in the Masai Mara, famous for its lions, leopards and cheetahs and, from July to October, the Great Migration.

Day 1: Nairobi to Lake Naivasha or Lake Nakuru

Lake Naivasha: This morning we drive west to Lake Naivasha, stopping at the Great Rift Valley viewpoint, and arrive in time for lunch. Spend the afternoon at leisure on the lake, take a boat ride on this freshwater lake or, if you are feeling energetic, cycle through the scenic Hell's Gate National Park. At over 1,910 metres above sea level, Naivasha is the highest lake in the Rift Valley.

Overnight: Lake Naivasha Sopa Resort, Lake Naivasha Simba Resort or similar.

Or Lake Nakuru National Park: After breakfast we drive west to Lake Nakuru National Park, stopping at the Great Rift Valley viewpoint. Arrive in time for lunch, followed by an afternoon game drive. Nakuru is recognised as one of the most successful rhino breeding parks in Kenya. The rhinos live alongside buffalo, zebra, Rothschild giraffe and plains game such as eland, impala, waterbuck, Thomson's gazelle and warthog.

Overnight: Flamingo Hill Camp, Lake Nakuru Lodge or Lake Nakuru Sopa Lodge.

Day 2: Lake Naivasha or Nakuru to the Masai Mara

After an early breakfast we head to the Masai Mara in south-west Kenya, driving along the Rift Valley floor past rich, fertile farmland, with a few stops along the way. We arrive in good time for a late lunch and an afternoon game drive. The Masai Mara is famous for its lions, leopards and cheetahs, and for the annual migration of zebra, Thomson's gazelle and wildebeest to and from the Serengeti between July and October, known as the Great Migration.

Overnight: Mara Enkorok Camp, Sentrim Mara Camp, Mara Leisure, Mara Sopa Lodge or similar.

Days 3 and 4: Masai Mara National Reserve

Two full days of morning and afternoon game drives in a specially adapted safari vehicle. We head to the strategic points of the vast Mara where, in season, more than one and a half million wildebeest arrive from the Serengeti and cross the Sand and Mara rivers. Middays are for resting, or for waiting in anticipation of the herds' great movements and the chance to see predators in action. The wildebeest migration is often called one of the "Seven New Wonders of the World" and "the World Cup of Wildlife"; together, the Masai Mara and the Serengeti form an ecosystem no other park in Africa can match.

Overnight: Mara Enkorok Camp, Sentrim Mara Camp, Mara Leisure, Mara Sopa Lodge or similar.

Day 5: Masai Mara to Nairobi

After breakfast we drive back to Nairobi. Lunch is on your own account. We drop you at the airport for your flight home, timed to your flight schedule.