Day 01: Nairobi
Jambo! Welcome to Kenya, your Lonely Planet Experience begins with a welcome meeting at 6 pm. If you arrive with time to spare before the meeting, consider getting to know the city on an Urban Adventure like the ‘Nairobi Experience’. This optional 4-hour tour is a great way to get a feel for Nairobi, After the welcome meeting, perhaps join your new travel companions for an optional group dinner.

Day 02: Lake Nakuru National Park
Drive north-west past splendid views of the Great Rift Valley, Lake Naivasha and Elementaita to Lake Nakuru National Park (approximately 3–4 hours). Situated in the heart of the Great Rift Valley, Lake Nakuru National Park is a great location for spotting wildlife, which you will do in an early morning game drive tomorrow. For now, head to a nearby village with your leader. This is a fantastic opportunity to interact with the local folk and get a feel for everyday life here. Enjoy a cooking class and return later in the evening to share the results for dinner.

Day 03: Lake Naivasha
Wake early for breakfast and head into the Lake Nakuru National Park for a game drive in the overland vehicle. Along with the other members of the Big Five, Lake Nakuru is home to rhinos, and there will be a good chance of spotting and photographing one of these magnificent beasts. Driving to your camp near Lake Naivasha (approximately 3 hours). One of the few freshwater lakes in the Great Rift Valley, Lake Naivasha has floating islands of papyrus reeds and a border of flat-topped acacias. It’s also home to a healthy population of hippos and a tremendous variety of birds.

Day 04: Lake Naivasha
Enjoy a free day to choose from a variety of optional activities available around Lake Naivasha. Perhaps venture to Hell’s Gate National Park, which boasts beautiful cliffs, gorges, rock towers, volcanoes and a range of geothermal phenomena. Another great choice is to take a boat trip across Lake Naivasha – perhaps the best way to take in the atmosphere of this lush area. If you’re looking for something active, why not hire a bike for the day and make some of your own discoveries, venturing beyond the cacti and olive trees.

Day 05: Loita Hills Maasai Village
Depart Lake Naivasha, making a short stop in Narok to do a spot of food shopping. Continue to Loita Hills (approximately 5–6 hours), home of the Maasai people, We’ll be camping at Tepesua Village, which is known for championing Maasai women’s health and education. Arrive and be welcomed by traditional Maasai warrior song and dance, then your host will explain the details of Maasai warrior training. Take a walk to the community village which was founded to alleviate the poverty of Maasai widows, who traditionally are not allowed to inherit property. The village offers support, safety and economic growth through the ‘Tepesua Widows Income Project’. Spend the evening around a campfire and learn more about their age-old culture and traditions as you share stories with Maasai warriors into the night.

Day 06: Masai Mara National Reserve
Today you’ll travel from Loita Hills to Masai Mara (approximately 1–2 hours). The road is dusty when dry, and could be slippery and muddy when wet, so the going may be slow. The Masai Mara is the quintessential African experience, with sparse open plains, dramatic skies and some of the world’s most tremendous animals. Then it’s time to jump in 4WDs and go for a game drive through the wilderness of the Mara.

Day 07: Masai Mara National Reserve
Venture into the Masai Mara National Reserve for a full day’s game drive in 4WDs. You’ll explore this diverse environment and most likely see a multitude of wildlife. An optional balloon ride over the Mara at sunrise is available today. If you have pre-booked this activity you will be picked up before dawn and driven to the launch site for a safety briefing from your pilot. Then you will glide through the dawn, sometimes at tree height, to get some amazing photo opportunities. Sometimes you will ascend, getting an overview of the enormity of the plains and of the early morning movements of the teeming herds. After landing, you’ll be treated to a bush breakfast, then be returned to your campsite.

Day 8: Nairobi
Say goodbye to the open expanses of the African bush and return to the bustling metropolis of Nairobi (approximately 5–6 hours). End of the tour.

Day 01: Nairobi / Amboseli 
Arrive Nairobi and travel to Amboseli (5 hours), a fantastic park that borders Tanzania where you’ll have fantastic views of the imposing Mount Kilimanjaro. The park has abundant wildlife including herds of elephants, big cats and many birds – it’s a park not to be missed! You’ll arrive in time for lunch at Sopa Lodge, situated in 200 acres of private conservancy just outside Amboseli National Park. Sopa Amboseli has 83 rooms, decorated with Masai themed murals and nicely spaced out in the mature gardens. Afternoon you will head out into Amboseli National Park for a game drive, after which you’ll return to camp for overnight.

Day 02: Amboseli
Game drives in Amboseli National Park, all meals at the lodge.

Day 03: Amboseli / Tsavo West
Wake up early to see the sunrise over the imposing Kilimanjaro, then after breakfast continue your safari onto Tsavo West, which is about a two-hour drive through wilderness. Afternoon game drive and a visit to the Mzima Springs where you may see hippos and Nile crocodiles and many different species of bird. You’ll then return to Kilaguni for dinner and spend your evening relaxing and watching the wildlife arrive at the watering hole overlooked by the lodge’s restaurant, lounge and bar.

Day 04: Tsavo West
Morning and afternoon game drives in Tsavo West National park, with all meals at the lodge.

Day 05: Tsavo West / Nairobi
After breakfast and a short game drive through Tsavo park, you’ll head back to Nairobi. Arrive in time for dinner & overnight in Camp.

Day 06: Nairobi
After a leisurely breakfast the next day, you’ll leave camp and spend the day sightseeing in Nairobi, starting with a visit to the David Sheldrick elephant orphanage in the morning, with lunch at the Karen Blixen Coffee House, followed by a trip to the Giraffe Centre and the Karen Blixen Museum. Alternatively, you could head over to the Nairobi National Park and take a nature walk before returning to camp for dinner & overnight.

Day 07: Nairobi / Lake Nakuru
After breakfast your guide will take you to the Premium Lake Nakuru (3 hours) where you could see over 400 different species of birds, large numbers of white rhinos, the rare Rothschild giraffe and other plains mammals such as lion, zebra and buffalo. On entering the park you will take a game drive on route to your accommodation at Sopa Lodge that has great views over the lake and park; all the rooms are very spacious and are located at the top of a ridge, all with views over the lake. After lunch you’ll head out into the park for a game drive before returning to the lodge for dinner.

Day 08: Lake Nakuru / Lake Naivasha
After a leisurely breakfast, your guide will take you out on a morning game drive through Nakuru National Park. You’ll leave the park late morning and head down the Rift Valley to Lake Naivasha and the Sopa Resort (1.5 hours), where you’ll arrive in time for lunch. The lodge is located close to the lake shore and has beautiful gardens and there is often wildlife wandering around such as bushbuck, zebra and giraffe – and in the evening you may also see hippos grazing on the lawns. The rooms are spacious, Swahili style chalets either with a balcony or a glass fronted lounge area for relaxing and wildlife viewing. After lunch you’ll take a boat safari across the lake where you may see hippos and many species of birds including fish eagles, pelicans and sometimes flamingoes, there will also be a stop along the way at Crescent Island for a short nature walk. After your boat safari, you’ll retire to the lodge for the evening, have dinner and watch the hippos come up from the Lake to graze in Sopa’s grounds.

Day 09: Lake Naivasha / Masai Mara 
After an early breakfast your driver will take you to the open grassland of the Masai Mara (4.5 hours), rich in biodiversity and home to a large variety of bird species and wildlife the Masai Mara offers great game viewing and bird-watching opportunities. Afternoon you’ll head out for a game drive and then spend the next two days exploring the Mara reserve and tracking down all the Big Five.

Day 10: Masai Mara 
Full day game drive in the Masai Mara National Reserve.

Day 11: Masai Mara
Early morning and late afternoon game drives in the reserve with all meals at the lodge.

Day 12: Masai Mara / Nairobi
After breakfast and an early morning game drive, you’ll head back to Nairobi. Arrive Nairobi & tranfser to airport for flight back to home.