Kenya 15-Day Luxury Private Tour

Welcome to Kenya. Your driver meets you at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and takes you to your hotel, where you can settle in and rest after the long flight. Nairobi traffic can be slow, so we keep the first day free of plans. If you arrive early and feel like going out, a garden lunch in Karen or a drink on the hotel terrace is an easy way to begin. Your local team will go over the days ahead with you and answer any questions about the safari, the two light-aircraft flights and the coast. Tonight’s welcome dinner is included, timed around your arrival.

A gentle first full day. In the morning, visit the Giraffe Centre in Karen, where the endangered Rothschild giraffes come up to the raised platform at eye level. Later in the morning, the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust opens its elephant nursery for one hour, when the orphaned calves come in for their milk feed and a mud bath while the keepers explain their rescue and return to the wild. After lunch in Karen, perhaps near the Karen Blixen Museum, the afternoon is free to rest before tomorrow’s drive north.

After breakfast you meet your driver-guide and the Land Cruiser that is yours for the safari. The road leaves Nairobi on the highway to Thika, then climbs through green farmland, coffee and tea country toward Mount Kenya. At Nanyuki you cross the Equator, a good place to stop for coffee and a stretch. On clear days the jagged peaks of the mountain fill the horizon. The drive takes about three and a half to four hours, and the last stretch into the conservancy is already a game drive. Lunch at camp, a rest, then a first drive as the light softens.

Laikipia is one of the best places in Kenya to see rhinos, both black and white, protected by dedicated ranger teams. Set out in the early morning with your guide in search of them, along with elephants, reticulated giraffes, Grevy’s zebras and, with luck, wild dogs or a leopard. Back at camp, enjoy a long lunch and a rest. In the late afternoon, go out again and finish with a drink as the sun sets behind the plateau. Wildlife is never guaranteed, but the conservancies here are rich and quiet.

Enjoy a last early drive or a slow breakfast, then head west across the Laikipia plateau to Nyahururu, where Thomson’s Falls drop about seventy meters into a forested gorge. Stretch your legs on the short path to the viewpoint. From there the road runs south through farmland and down into the Great Rift Valley, past the town of Gilgil, to Lake Naivasha. In all the drive takes about four to four and a half hours with stops. Settle into your lakeside lodge with a late lunch, and spend a quiet evening by the water as hippos come ashore at dusk.

Leave the lake after breakfast and head west across the valley floor, past Mount Longonot and the volcanic country around Suswa. Narok, the last busy town before the reserve, is a good stop for coffee and a stretch. From there the road crosses rolling Maasai farmland and open grassland, and in all the drive takes about four and a half to five hours. Once you enter the Mara, lift the roof: the last part of the journey is a game drive, and elephants and lions are often seen on the way to camp. Lunch, a rest, then dinner at camp.

The best wildlife viewing comes early, so set out with a coffee as the sun rises over the plains. Your guide reads the land and follows the animals, from elephant families and giraffes to lions resting in the shade of a lone tree. You can stay out with a picnic breakfast or come back to camp for a late brunch and a quiet midday on your veranda. In the late afternoon, go out again until sunset. Wildlife is never guaranteed, which is part of what makes every sighting feel special.

Early risers can book a hot-air balloon flight at dawn, drifting over the plains as the herds wake below, followed by breakfast in the bush. It is an optional extra and depends on weather and availability. Otherwise, enjoy another morning drive with your guide, perhaps to a corner of the reserve you have not yet explored. Rest at camp through the heat of the day, then go out again in the late afternoon, when the cats begin to stir and the light softens over the grass.

Take a morning drive toward the Mara River, where hippos and crocodiles gather in the brown water. Between about July and October the great migration is often in the Mara and herds may cross the river, though the timing changes every year and crossings are never certain. Outside those months the resident wildlife is still superb. Spend the afternoon at camp with a book or by the pool. If you like, your camp can arrange an optional visit to a nearby Maasai village at extra cost, or a guided walk in some conservancies.

Enjoy a final early drive or a slow breakfast at camp before your guide takes you to the airstrip. By road Amboseli is a full day away, so this crossing is made by light aircraft, either on a direct scheduled flight of about an hour or with a connection at Wilson Airport in Nairobi. We confirm the exact flights before you book. A Land Cruiser and guide meet you at the Amboseli airstrip, and the drive to camp is already a game drive. After lunch and a rest, head out in the late afternoon as Kilimanjaro, if the clouds allow, appears above the plains.

The mountain is usually clearest at dawn, so set out early with a hot drink as the snows of Kilimanjaro catch the first light. Amboseli is known for its large elephant families, which walk each day from the woodland to the green swamps fed by the mountain’s snowmelt, and your guide knows where to wait for them. Buffalo, zebras, hippos and many water birds share the swamps. Return to camp for a late breakfast and a quiet midday, then head out again in the late afternoon, perhaps up Observation Hill for a wide view.

Take a last early drive under Kilimanjaro or enjoy a slow breakfast, then drive to the airstrip. A scheduled light aircraft links Amboseli with Ukunda, the small airstrip at Diani, in about an hour on the direct flight, or a little longer with a connection in Nairobi. We confirm the exact flights before you book. Your driver meets you at Ukunda for the 15-minute transfer to your beach resort. After days of early starts on safari, the afternoon is all yours, with a swim, a walk on the sand and a long, easy dinner by the sea.

Wake up to the light over the Indian Ocean and let the day unfold on its own. Diani’s beach runs for miles of fine white sand, sheltered by a coral reef that keeps the water calm at low tide. Walk along the shore in the cool of the morning, swim, read in the shade of the palms or book a massage at your resort spa. In the forest patches around Diani, look out for the rare Angolan colobus monkeys. Dinner can be as simple or as special as you like.

If you would like a day on the water, we can arrange an optional dhow trip from Shimoni to Kisite-Mpunguti Marine Park, about an hour south of Diani. Dolphins are often seen in these waters, though never promised, and the coral gardens are good for snorkeling. Lunch is usually on Wasini Island, a quiet place with no cars. Outings run with licensed operators and depend on tides and sea conditions. If you prefer to stay put, the beach and pool are only a few steps away. Your farewell dinner tonight is included.

Enjoy a final breakfast and a last walk on the beach if your flight allows. If your flight home leaves from Nairobi, your driver takes you to Ukunda for the included domestic flight, timed with plenty of room before your international connection. If you fly out of Mombasa International Airport instead, it is about 1.5 to 2 hours away by road. Your local team stays in touch until you leave. Extra nights on the coast can easily be added if you would like a little longer by the sea.