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Grand Tour of Kenya route map

Arrive in Nairobi

Lake Naivasha & Crescent Island game sanctuary – This morning, we journey from Nairobi to Lake Naivasha.

Enjoy an afternoon boat ride on Lake Naivasha with a guided nature walk at Crescent Island. You’re likely to spot interesting species on your nature walk through Crescent Island, this privately owned game sanctuary boasts more animals per acre than any other Kenyan Park and the shores host abundant birdlife, including pelicans, cormorants and fish-eagles.

Meals: Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner

Journey to Maasai Mara – Leaving Lake Naivasha behind, we’ll journey to Maasai Mara Game Reserve, where you’ll have the opportunity to see more of Kenya’s stunning countryside.

We arrive at the award-winning Maasai Mara Game Reserve, where we’ll stay for three nights, in time for lunch. 

In the afternoon, we commence our game drive of Maasai Mara, home to the ‘Big Five’: African elephant, lion, leopard, rhinoceros and African buffalo. You may also spot African wild dog and cheetah, completing Africa’s super seven. 

Maasai Mara is one of Africa’s best wildlife reserves and one of the most well-known. The Maasai Mara and the Serengeti National Park in Tanzania form Africa’s most diverse ecosystem hosting over 95 animal species. On our game drive, we’ll look out for herds of elephant, giraffe, gazelle and buffalo meandering through the savannah plains, hippos and crocodiles cooling off in the brown rivers of the Mara and blue and red-tail monkeys playing in the forest. An abundance of herbivores makes the Maasai Mara an ideal hunting ground for predators, so look out for lions, leopards, cheetahs, spotted hyenas and jackals on our game drive.  

If you visit from late July to October, you may witness The Great Wildebeest Migration sighting in which more than 1.5 million wildebeest migrate to Masia Mara in search of water and pasture.

Meals: Lunch

Maasai Mara – Enjoy your choice of activities with a free day in Maasai Mara. 

Explore this vast reserve at your own pace with full-day, morning or afternoon game drives. Or relax in the lounge and bar or take a dip in the pool. Situated in the heart of Maasai Mara, there’s plenty of wildlife to see at the lodge so look out for the monkeys that wander the grounds or the hippos bathing in the river nearby. At the end of the afternoon game drive, we park in a poignant location within the reserve and enjoy drinks and nibbles as the sun sets. 

There will also be an included optional visit to the village of the Maasai, a nomadic tribe that populates vast areas of Southern Kenya. They live largely untouched by modern civilisation, and this is a chance to interact with the Maasai. get a glimpse into their culture and see some of their customs and traditions first-hand. 

Upgrade your holiday: Consider personalising your holiday with one night stay in a luxury tented safari camp as well as taking a game drive. See the ‘Personalise your Holiday’ section, and speak to a team member for more information. 

Meals: Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner

Maasai Mara – Today is your second day spent at leisure on the stunning Maasai Mara reserve. Explore this vast reserve at your own pace with full-day, morning or afternoon game drives. Or relax in the lounge and bar or take a dip in the pool.  

There will also be an included optional visit to the village of the Maasai, a nomadic tribe that populates vast areas of Southern Kenya. They live largely untouched by modern civilisation, and this is a chance to interact with the Maasai. get a glimpse into their culture and see some of their customs and traditions first-hand. 

Meals: Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner

Journey to Lake Nakuru – After breakfast this morning, we’ll journey north to the National Park and a UNESCO World heritage site, Lake Nakuru.

We’ll arrive at our lodge in Lake Nakuru National Park in time for lunch and this afternoon, we’ll enjoy our first game drive. Lake Nakuru National Park is home to a shallow lake. The lake is located within the Great Rift Valley of Kenya and was created by volcanic activity from nearby Mount Longonot. You may spot a flamboyance of flamingos grazing on the algae that grow here. 

Designated a national park in 1972, we’ll have a chance to spot different species in their natural habitat, including zebra, gazelle, buffalo, waterbuck, Rothchild giraffe, rhinoceros, flamingo and a wealth of other birdlife.

In the evening, you’ll be free to relax in the lodge, enjoy dinner and find out what’s on the agenda tomorrow with a debrief from your tour manager and local guide.

Meals: Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner

Free day at Lake Nakuru – Today is yours to enjoy at leisure in the beautiful surroundings of Lake Nakuru National Park. You may choose to join a morning game drive, an afternoon game drive, or simply relax and take in the views from your lodge. Set around a lake famous for its birdlife and rich wildlife, Lake Nakuru offers the chance to spot flamingos, rhinos, buffalo and other plains animals, all against a backdrop of wooded grassland and acacia forest. Whether you head out in search of wildlife or savour a slower pace, this is a wonderfully unhurried day immersed in Kenya’s natural beauty.

Meals: Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner

Journey to Buffalo Springs Reserve – This morning will be an early start as we begin our journey north to Buffalo Springs Reserve.

Arriving in time for lunch, we start exploring Buffalo Springs Reserve in the afternoon. The reserve is located between the lush highlands of southern Kenya and the arid deserts in the north. Buffalo Springs Reserve and Samburu Reserve are divided by the Ewaso Ngiri river, fringed with trees such as giant acacias, figs, and doum palms that slice across the scorched land, creating a dramatic contrast with rare wildlife, diverse birdlife and stunning natural landscapes.

On your drive through the reserve, your driver guide is on hand with specialist knowledge of the wildlife that makes up the vast ecosystem here. You might see the maneless lion (native to this region), leopard, cheetah and elephants that all inhabit the reserve and there are over 350 species of birds to spot, including grey-headed kingfisher, cobalt blue breasted vulturine guineafowl, lilac-breasted roller, red-billed hornbill, secretary bird, Verreaux’s eagle, Egyptian vulture and the endangered Abyssinian ground hornbill. 

Ask your driver guide for the story of the famous lioness Kamunyak, who became renowned for adopting oryx calves! 

Meals: Lunch

Buffalo Springs Reserve – Enjoy a full-day game drive with a picnic lunch or half-days with lunch at the lodge and time to relax or swim in the lodge pool with a day at leisure on the reserve.  

There will also be the included option to learn more about Africa’s first community-owned elephant sanctuary with a visit to the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary, followed by a picnic bush breakfast experience in the Namunyak wildlife conservancy, which we also drive through. 

Visit the Samburu reserve, home to the Samburu people, cousins of the nomadic Maasai. A visit to the village, near the reserve, offers a fascinating insight into their cultures and traditions. Samburu society is traditionally organised around cattle, used not only for food but also for dowries, fines and ceremonies. The communities also keep camels, using camel milk as a nutritional source as well as a source of living.

Meals: Breakfast,Lunch

Buffalo Springs Reserve – Enjoy another day at leisure in this stunning reserve. Today you may choose a full-day game drive with a picnic lunch or a half-day with lunch at the lodge and time to relax or swim in the lodge pool.  

 Visit the Samburu reserve, home to the Samburu people, cousins of the nomadic Maasai. A visit to the village, near the reserve, offers a fascinating insight into their cultures and traditions. Samburu society is traditionally organised around cattle, used not only for food but also for dowries, fines and ceremonies. The communities also keep camels, using camel milk as a nutritional source as well as a source of living. This included optional visit may be available on days 8, 9 or 10. 

Meals: Lunch

Journey home

Meals: Lunch,Dinner

Arrive home

What’s included

Daily breakfast, 9 lunches and 9 dinners included; on Day 11, lunch or dinner is provided depending on flight times.
10 nights’ accommodation in twin-share rooms.
Return flights included.
Afternoon boat ride on Lake Naivasha with a guided nature walk at Crescent Island, and sundowner drinks and nibbles in the Maasai Mara.
Services of a Riviera Travel tour manager and driver guides.
Hotel porterage of one item of luggage per person.
All local accommodation taxes and all airport/flight taxes included.
Small-group experience with an average of 22 guests.
Up to 13 game drives and guided wildlife viewing, with included visits to Lake Nakuru National Park, Lake Naivasha, Crescent Island Game Sanctuary, Maasai Mara Game Reserve, Buffalo Springs Reserve, Samburu Reserve, Reteti Elephant Sanctuary/Namunyak Wildlife Sanctuary, plus visits to a Maasai village and a Samburu village.

What’s not included

Kenya visa is not included; apply online via the official eVisa portal and allow 2–3 working days for processing.
Travel insurance is not included and should be arranged by the traveller.
Single room supplement applies if choosing your own room; base price is for twin-share.
Meals and drinks not mentioned in the inclusions (beyond daily breakfast, 9 lunches and 9 dinners; Day 11 dependent meal) are at your own expense.
Optional experiences and upgrades, such as a one-night stay in a luxury tented safari camp, are not included.

Additional information

Venture across doum-palm oases and lava-strewn plains on drives through Buffalo Springs and Samburu, focusing on the Samburu Special Five: reticulated giraffe, Grevy’s zebra, Somali ostrich, gerenuk, and beisa oryx.

The life-giving Ewaso Ng’iro River draws elephants, lions—often maneless lions in this region—and prolific birdlife from vulturine guineafowl to secretary birds. Guides share the story of Kamunyak, the lioness who adopted oryx calves, illuminating Samburu’s distinctive ecology.

Visit Reteti Elephant Sanctuary, Africa’s first community-owned elephant rescue, to learn how keepers rehabilitate orphaned elephant calves for release. View husbandry routines from designated platforms with an emphasis on ethical wildlife care and local stewardship.

In the surrounding Namunyak Wildlife Conservancy, a picnic bush breakfast is set beneath acacias with vistas to the Matthews Range. Guides discuss coexistence, conservancies, and how community initiatives safeguard northern Kenya’s migration corridors.

Visit a Maasai village with a local host, greet elders, and step inside a manyatta homestead. Hear the cadence of song as warriors perform the adumu jumping dance and explain attire, beadwork, and spears used in ceremony and daily life.

Conversations explore pastoral cattle culture, age-set traditions, and how communities balance heritage with schooling and conservation partnerships. Handcrafted beadwork, if you choose to purchase, supports artisans and households.

Meet residents during a visit to a Samburu village near the reserve, learning about age-set warrior traditions, semi-nomadic herding, and distinctive beaded adornments. Hosts may demonstrate fire-making, songs, or dances rooted in a resilient camel culture.

Dialogue touches on water stewardship, seasonal movements along the Ewaso Ng’iro, and women’s roles in craft economies. This respectful encounter offers nuanced insight into northern Kenya’s lifeways and identity.

Pause in a secluded spot to enjoy a sundowner—drinks and light bites—as the sunset over the savannah washes the Mara in amber and rose. Guides position the vehicle for wide horizons and silhouettes of acacias against the evening sky.

Echoing a classic safari tradition, this gathering invites reflection on the day’s sightings. Expect golden light, expansive skies, and a gentle hush as day birds yield to nocturnal sounds across the plains.

Explore Lake Nakuru National Park on expertly led drives, seeking both black and white rhino, Rothschild’s giraffe, buffalo, and waterbuck amid fever-tree forests and rocky escarpments. Scan reedbeds and shoreline for pelicans and storks.

The park’s alkaline soda lake can host a flamboyance of flamingos, their pink hues fed by algae blooms. Set within the Rift Valley below Mount Longonot, Nakuru is noted for rhino conservation and habitats ranging from acacia woodland to open grassland.

Join guided game drives in the legendary Maasai Mara Game Reserve, scanning golden savannah for the Big Five and cheetah on the hunt. Follow elephant paths to the Mara River and watch for giraffe, zebra, and topi beneath umbrella-thorn acacias.

Your driver-guides decode tracks, behavior, and territories, with seasonal chances to witness the Great Migration (July–October) at river crossing points. Predators, raptors, and vast herds reveal an intact East African ecosystem shaped by grass, rain, and movement.

Cruise the tranquil waters of Lake Naivasha on a small boat, watching hippos surface and cormorants dry their wings as the African fish eagle calls overhead. Land for a guided nature walk on Crescent Island Game Sanctuary, where plains game graze freely among acacias.

Set within the Great Rift Valley, this freshwater lake draws prolific birdlife and enables close, low-impact encounters. Guides explain why Crescent Island holds “more animals per acre” than many parks and how Naivasha’s ecology supports everything from grazers to raptors.

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