Samburu Mara Contrast
The journey, one day at a time
North to the Ewaso Nyiro
Drive from Nairobi into Samburu's arid north and drive the river line for the special species found only up here.
The northern specials
Full days tracking Samburu's dry-country specials along the doum-palmed river, with strong odds on leopard.
The northern specials
Full days tracking Samburu's dry-country specials along the doum-palmed river, with strong odds on leopard.
Into the Mara
Continue by road into the Maasai Mara and head out on a first game drive as the light softens — plains game, elephant and the first cats on the way to camp.
Full day on the plains
Morning and afternoon drives with a Maasai guide, routed by where the predators are moving, with the long midday hours to rest at camp.
Deeper into the reserve
A full day further afield — river lines, kopjes and open grassland — with a picnic lunch out in the bush.
Dawn from the air
Lift off over the waking plains and land to a bush breakfast, then an afternoon drive once the heat eases.
Fly out
Drive back to Nairobi for your onward flight — or add the coast if you're not ready to leave.
The season changes what you see.
The migration window
The wildebeest are in the Mara and the river crossings are on — the headline months, and the busiest. Book well ahead.
Resident game, green plains
The Big Five never leave. Fewer vehicles, lower rates, newborns in the grass and clean light for photography.
Hand-picked camps & lodges
Ilora Retreats
An intimate, design-led tented retreat in the heart of the Mara, built around quiet luxury and private guiding.
Angama Mara
Glass-fronted suites suspended on the Oloololo Escarpment, with one of the most cinematic views in Africa.
Mara Plains Camp
A tiny, conservation-driven Great Plains camp in the Olare Motorogi Conservancy — copper, canvas and real exclusivity.
Mahali Mzuri
Richard Branson's striking twelve-tent camp in Olare Motorogi, with low vehicle numbers and big-cat country at the door.
Cottar’s 1920s
Vintage safari romance on a private conservancy, run by one of Kenya's oldest safari families.
Giraffe Manor
The famous 1930s manor where resident Rothschild's giraffes lean through the windows at breakfast.
Make it yours.
Add nights, swap a park, extend to the coast — this route is a starting point, not a fixed menu. Tell us how you travel and we'll route the rest.