7 Day Kenya Safari Amboseli Aberdare Nakuru & Masai Mara

Combining some of Kenya’s biggest safari experiences onto a week-long itinerary, this road tour visits four of Kenya’s most incredible game parks – Amboseli National Park, Aberdare National Park, Lake Nakuru National Park & Masai Mara Game Reserve.

After meeting your guide in Nairobi, you begin with a road trip to Amboseli National Park – one of the most popular game parks in Kenya. Amboseli Park covers sprawling grasslands and the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest peak. Standing at 5896m above sea level, the snow-topped mountain forms the backdrop to game viewing in Amboseli.

Amboseli National Park hosts some of Kenya’s largest elephant herds and also has large populations of buffalo, zebras, wildebeest, giraffes, hippos, and various antelope species, such as impala. Amboseli National Park is also home to lions, leopards, cheetahs, and many other species of plains game.

From Amboseli, we head to the important Aberdare National Park in Kenya’s Central Highlands. One of the more scenic and tropical parks, it is home to the Big 5, as well as rare forest-dwelling game such as the shy bongo antelope. 

Here we stay at the Tree Tops Hotel or the Ark lodge. We watch the animals that frequently visit the lively waterhole beside the lodge from a series of viewing decks and areas at different levels. Spotting animals at the floodlit saltlick and watering hole into the night, with common visitors including elephants, buffalo, rhinos, and even leopards.

Continue the safari by road to Lake Nakuru National Park, originally established as a bird sanctuary. Nakuru is a Ramsar Wetland Area, known for its spectacular birdlife. When water levels are high enough, massive flocks of flamingoes have been known to gather at Lake Nakuru.

Highlights in Lake Nakuru may include sightings of tree-climbing lions and both black and white rhinos, for which the reserve is better known today. Commonly sighted animals include giraffes, baboons, zebras, buffalo, antelopes, and hippos, with rare finds including leopards.

Then the time has come to explore the Masai Mara Game Reserve – one of the most famous game parks on the planet, considered by many to be the finest wildlife safari destination in all of Africa.

We embark on early morning and afternoon 4×4 adventures in this Big Five Mecca. We may come across herds of wildebeest, elephants, zebras, and antelopes, along with prides of lions, coalitions of cheetahs, a crash of rhinos, and lone leopards.

If the timing is right, we witness the Great Migration – the unparalleled wildlife spectacle that sees over a million wildebeest, gazelles, zebras, and other herbivores stampeding across the plains and crocodile-infested rivers every year.

After 2 nights in the Mara, we journey back to the bustling city of Nairobi in the 4×4 safari vehicle with a pop-up roof. By mid-afternoon, we arrive in Nairobi, where you can be dropped off at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport or your hotel.

Route & Transit Summary

7 Day Kenya Safari Amboseli, Aberdare, Nakuru & Masai Mara Day-by-Day Itinerary 

Day 1: Nairobi to Amboseli National Park

0730 Hours  – 0800 Hours: Morning departure from Nairobi to beat the Mombasa Road outbound traffic

0800 Hours  – 1215 Hours: Drive south across the Athi Kapiti plains, transitioning from smooth tarmac onto the C102 dirt road near Emali

1215 Hours  – 1300 Hours: Check-in at your chosen lodge (e.g., Ol Tukai Lodge or Amboseli Serena Safari Lodge) and park entry clearance

1300 Hours  – 1430 Hours: Buffet lunch followed by a brief rest period during the midday heat

1400 Hours  – 1830 Hours: Evening game drive. This is peak viewing time for large elephant herds framed against the clear sunset backdrop of Mount Kilimanjaro

1830 Hours: Return to lodge before park gates close at dusk

Day 2: Full Day in Amboseli National Park

0600 Hours  – 0830 Hours: Early morning game drive. Crucial for the clearest, cloud-free views of Mount Kilimanjaro’s summit

0830 Hours  – 0930 Hours: Late breakfast back at your camp or lodge

1000 Hours  – 1330 Hours: Midday rest, pool time, or an optional cultural visit to a local Maasai Manyatta (village)

0400 Hours  – 1630 Hours : Late afternoon game drive around the Enkongo Narok swamps to spot hippos, pelicans, and hunting predators

Day 3: Amboseli to Aberdare National Park 

0630 Hours – 0730 Hours: Early breakfast and checkout.

0730 Hours  – 1445 Hours : The Long Transit Day. Drive north past Nairobi via the Southern and Eastern Bypasses to avoid downtown gridlock. Push up into the central highlands past Thika

1445 Hours  – 1530 Hours: Arrival, check-in, and late lunch at your base hotel (e.g., Outspan Hotel or Aberdare Country Club) before transfer to your tree lodge inside the park 

0400 Hours onwards: Drop off at iconic forest lodges like The Ark or Treetops. Enjoy nighttime game viewing from the comfort of the lodge’s floodlit waterholes and salt licks (frequent visits by black rhinos, elephants, and leopards). 

Day 4: Aberdare to Lake Nakuru National Park

0730 Hours  – 0830 Hours: Morning breakfast overlooking the forest canopies. 

0830 Hours  – 1045 Hours: Drive west down the eastern wall of the Great Rift Valley, passing through Nyahururu (with a quick 15-minute photo stop at Thomson’s Falls).

1100 Hours – 1200 Hours: Enter Nakuru city and check into your park lodge (e.g., Sarova Lion Hill Game Lodge or Lake Nakuru Lodge). 

0100 Hours  – 0230 Hours: Lunch and relaxation

0330 Hours  – 0630 Hours: Afternoon game drive along the lake shoreline. Excellent for sighting endangered white and black rhinos, Rothschild’s giraffes, and thousands of flamingos/pelicans. 

Day 5: Lake Nakuru to Maasai Mara National Reserve 

0700 Hours – 0745 Hours: Quick breakfast and checkout.

0745 Hours – 1145 Hours: Transit southwest through Narok County. The final 60km section approaching the Mara gates consists of rough, bumpy, corrugated roads that require a slow pace.

1200 Hours  – 1300 Hours: Enter through Sekenani or Talek gate and arrive at your Mara camp (e.g., Ashnil Mara Camp or Muthu Keekorok Lodge).

1300 Hours – 1430 Hours: Lunch and unpack.

1600 Hours – 1830 Hours: Introductory evening game drive across the vast savannah plains

Day 6: Full Day in Maasai Mara National Reserve 

0600 Hours– 1600 Hours: Full-day exploratory game drive. Pack a picnic lunch box from the lodge. Head deep toward the Mara River to view resident hippos, massive crocodiles, and potential Great Migration crossings (if traveling between July and October).

Alternative Timing: 0600 Hours – 0900 Hours: morning drive, return for lunch, and head out again from 1530 Hours – 1830 Hours

1630 Hours – 1800 Hours: Optional sundowner experience on the ridges

Day 7: Maasai Mara to Nairobi 

0600 Hours – 0800 Hours: Optional final sunrise game drive to catch predators feeding before the day heats up

0830 Hours  – 0930 Hours: Farewell breakfast and final packing

0930 Hours – 1415 Hours: Journey back towards Nairobi

1130 Hours: Brief 20-minute rest and souvenir stop in Narok town

1330 Hours: Stop at the Great Rift Valley View point along the highway for panoramic photos

1415 Hours: Drop-off back at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO) or your Nairobi hotel

7 Day Kenya Safari Amboseli, Aberdare, Nakuru & Masai Mara Prices Include

✓ 8 Extensive Game drives
✓ Tree Lodge High Altitude Game viewing
✓ All meals included while on safari
✓ All applicable Game Park entrance fees
✓ Guaranteed window seating with open top
✓ Safari vehicles carry cold drinks & mineral water
✓ Guaranteed departures for two or more passengers booking this safari
✓ Finest accommodations in Amboseli, Aberdare, Lake Nakuru, and Masai Mara
✓ Round-trip transport from Nairobi to Amboseli, Aberdare, Lake Nakuru & Masai Mara & Professional Safari Driver Guide

Notes

* Children of all ages, traveling with accompanying parents or guardians, are accepted on this safari

7 Day Kenya Safari Amboseli, Aberdare, Nakuru & Masai Mara Prices Exclude

✗ International Airfare
✗ A visit to a Masai Village
✗ Accommodations in Nairobi
✗  Optional Hot Air Ballooning 
✗  Cost of obtaining a passport and visas
✗ Gratuity for your professional driver-guide
✗ Sundowner bush cocktails and bush dinner
✗ Christmas, New Year, and Easter Supplement
✗ Gratuity for porters/ waiters at hotels, camps, and airports
✗ Membership in the Flying Doctors Society – Emergency air rescue
✗ Personal expenses such as traveling insurance, excess baggage fee, communication charges that include laundry, emails, faxes, and phone calls, beverages including luxury champagne, luxury spirits, beer, and wines during meals or meals not indicated in the itinerary

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