Inspiration for your own tailor-made trip
The Ultimate Kenya Fly-In Adventure Lavish Lodges & Wild Safaris
Kenya – Samburu – Laikipia – The Maasai Mara
After a whirlwind stop in Nairobi, jet straight to Samburu National Reserve. Here, the safari fun kicks off in style with sunrise game drives, camp-side R&R and after-dark adventures in search of nocturnal wildlife. Naturally, a quintessential sundowner awaits back at camp too...
Next, it’s time to experience the high life (literally) aboard your very own private light aircraft, bound for Laikipia. In true exclusive fashion, Laikipia’s game drives come without the crowds – no traffic jams of 4x4s or a frenzy of clicking cameras every time a lion prowls into view.
Boarding passes at the ready – another flight awaits, this time to the Maasai Mara. Famous for the annual Great Migration, the reserve sees millions of wildebeest and zebras thunder across its plains. And with elephants, buffalo, rhinos, lions and leopards to also spot on safari, you might just score a full house of the Big Five.
Finally, with your wildlife wish list sporting plenty of ticks, it’s back to Nairobi for a whistle-stop tour of the capital's highlights with a private guide. Just don’t be surprised if conversation keeps drifting back to all those safari sightings...
Itinerary
100% customisable for you
After plenty of daydreaming, excited chatter and eagerly counted-down sleeps, your adventure to Kenya starts today. Head to the airport, breeze through security, then celebrate accordingly with a spritzy tipple in the lounge before boarding.
It’s a nine-hour direct flight to Nairobi, so cosy up in your seat and stick on a good film (or a wildlife documentary, perhaps?)
When you touch down in the capital, you’ll be met and privately transferred to your nearby airport hotel. It’ll be evening by the time you arrive, so grab a quick bite to eat before retreating to your room for an early night. The real adventure begins tomorrow...
Excitement levels are bound to be (literally) sky-high this morning as you’re privately transferred to Nairobi’s Wilson Airport for the one-and-a-half-hour flight to Samburu National Reserve.
After touching down, meet your driver-guide and bundle into the back of their 4x4 for the 30-minute drive to your safari-chic campsite – your wild hideaway for the next two nights. Spend some time settling into your new digs before making a beeline for the pool. Your only exertion this afternoon? Scrambling for your camera when a herd of elephants appears on the horizon.
As dusk settles, gather around the crackling fire for a traditional bush braai, complete with sundowners and flame-grilled fare. Between bites, your rangers will also fill you in on what tomorrow’s safari has in store...
Forget the alarm clock this morning – as dawn breaks, the bush erupts with a chorus of birdsong, distant hoots and the rustle of waking wildlife.
After a hearty breakfast at camp, don your khaki clothes, then bundle into a 4x4 for your game drive. Samburu National Reserve is home to (deep breath) giraffes, gazelles, elephants, buffalo, lions, rhinoceroses and an abundance of bird species, so keep score of how many sightings you can tick off before lunch.
Bounce along to Ewaso Ng'iro River, where crocodiles laze along the banks and flash their 60-plus razor-sharp teeth (gulp). If you can tear your eyes away, scan the channels for a tell-tale pair of ears poking above – often the only giveaway that a humungous hippo is wallowing below.
As darkness descends, embark on a nighttime game drive to experience the bush in a whole new light; or, rather, hardly any light at all...
Best straighten your safari hat and pop on your most glamorous sunglasses, because today’s travel arrangements are rather swish. A local driver will whisk you back to Samburu Kalama Airport, where your privately chartered light aircraft awaits on the runway.
It’s a 30-minute flight west to Laikipia: plenty of time to pop open the bubbly and admire the views.
After touching down, you’ll be privately transferred to your lodge in the heart of Mugie’s Wildlife Conservancy – home for the next two nights.
Suitcases dropped, the rest of the day is yours for the taking. If you’re raring to go, perhaps grab a paddle for a kayaking adventure across the reserve’s dam. Your guide is something of an elephant expert and knows all their favourite spots, so keep your fingers crossed for a herd as you sail across the water. If luck’s really on your side, you might spot a baby elephant testing out its trunk – hearts are sure to melt.
Hold onto your hats this morning for a game drive across Laikipia’s sun-scorched plains, where you might spot strutting ostriches, African wild dogs or a dazzle of zebras (one of our favourite collective nouns).
Back at camp, refuel over lunch before enjoying some poolside R&R. Or, if you’d rather keep your wildlife-spotting streak going, swing your binoculars into position and scan the acacia treetops for a glimpse of the lilac-breasted roller – no prizes for guessing its chest colour.
Later, it’s back into the bush for a nighttime game drive, where glowing eyes might catch your guide’s spotlight. Who could they belong to? Perhaps a wide-eyed bushbaby, a bat-eared fox or a genet slinking through the shadows.
After lots of whispered wows, polish off dinner at camp before turning all eyes to the skies, where minimal light pollution makes for stellar views of the cosmos. Spot a shooting star? Best save that wish for a sighting of that animal who’s playing hard to spot.
Rise and shine bright and early this morning, then wolf down a hearty campsite breakfast and steaming cup of Kenya’s famous Arabica coffee.
Then, it’s a speedy private transfer to Laikipia’s Loisaba Airstrip, where you’ll board a two-and-a-half-hour flight to the Maasai Mara. Best nab a window seat for the journey; with rolling valleys and golden plains unfolding below, a running commentary of oohs and aahs is inevitable.
After landing, you’ll be whisked away to your lodge, your base for the next two nights. And, with your new digs slap bang in the middle of the Maasai Mara National Reserve, that can only mean one thing – ticking even more wildlife off your Kenyan bingo card.
As evening rolls around, cosy up around the fire for dinner, where your ranger might just pause the conversation to point out a rumbling lion’s roar. Fear not, there’s not one necessarily poised to pounce – those mighty calls can carry up to five miles across the plains...
Another day, another safari.
This morning, head out on a game drive across the Maasai Mara Reserve – prime Big Five viewing territory. Keep your eyes peeled (and camera poised) for elephants, buffalo, rhinos and lions. Missing one? You might have to wait until tonight to spot the elusive leopard, which uses the cover of darkness to stalk and ambush its prey.
After a hearty lunch and an afternoon siesta back at the lodge (you know the drill by now), it’s back into the bush for another nighttime game drive. Jackals prowl, hyenas cackle and creepy crawlies emerge, stretching their many, many legs...
For your final night on safari, compare stories of sightings back at camp and enjoy another round of sundowners to (hopefully) celebrate ticking off all of the Big Five. Cheers to that.
After a wildlife whirl of a time in the Maasai Mara, it’s sadly time to bid a warm farewell to the bush. Say your goodbyes to the rangers who’ve made your safari oh-so-special before your private transfer to Maasai Mara Airport. From here, it’s just a one-hour flight back to Nairobi.
When you touch down in the big city, you’ll be whisked away to your centrally located hotel, where you’ll stay for the night.
Drop your bags, brush off the safari dust and meet your local driver-guide for a spin around the capital, taking in Nairobi’s must-see sights along the way. Where you stop is entirely up to you – perhaps an art gallery or museum will take your fancy, or a dizzyingly busy market selling handwoven baskets and embellished textiles (tempting souvenir alert).
Tonight, leave dinner plans in the hands of our local Concierge, who’ll know just the spot for a celebratory final meal.
Time flies when you’re having fun and, sadly, your Kenyan adventure has come to an end.
After one last traditional breakfast, you’ll be privately transferred to Nairobi Airport for your direct flight back to the UK. You’ll spend around nine and a half hours in the air – plenty of time to flick through your wildlife snaps and relive all those pinch-me moments.
Already feel a bad case of the post-holiday blues coming on? There’s always another corner of the world – and more wild encounters – to start dreaming about...
Suggestions
Everything in this itinerary is entirely customisable, down to the smallest details. Here are some more suggestions of what could be included
WITH A FEW MORE DAYS... RETREAT TO THE LAMU ARCHIPELAGO
Embarking on wild safaris, tracking animal prints in the dust, learning how to identify a rhino by the age of its dung... you've done it all. So why not turn this trip into a bush and beach escape? Just off Kenya’s northern coast lies the oh-so dreamy Lamu Archipelago, home to tropical beaches and lush mangroves. When you’re not soaking up the sunshine from your sunlounger, spend some time learning about Lamu’s Swahili culture, a rich tapesty of African, Arab and Indian influences. And don’t miss charming little Lamu Town, one of East Africa’s oldest Swahili settlements. Once a thriving trade port that later became part of British colonial Kenya, there’s plenty of architecture to admire and history to uncover...
Why visit Kenya with Original Travel ?
Each of our trips is entirely tailor-made with originality, quality and cultural immersion in mind. Our team of destination specialists will craft itineraries based on your tastes, using their first-hand knowledge and the help of our in-country team of Concierges and guides. All trips are accompanied by a wide range of additional services, including a 24-hour helpline, the Original Travel app, fast-track airport services and much more.
Enquire nowA few of the benefits of travelling with us to Kenya
- Our local Concierges
- The Original Travel app
- Wi-Fi router and e-Sim
- Destination Dossier
- 24-hour helpline
- Expert guides
- 100% carbon absorption
