Kenya

Kenya, in a few days

From the Masai Mara and the great migration to the flamingos of Lake Nakuru, then down to the beaches of Diani: the map, what is worth booking, everything that costs nothing, and where to sleep at three budgets.

Day by day

1

Nairobi

Day 1

A capital with a national park on its southern edge, where lions and rhinos live with office towers on the horizon. The elephant orphanage and the giraffe centre are on the same side of town.

🎟️ Worth booking

• Nairobi National Park (a city safari)Half day · from €40
  Kenya's first national park, opened in 1946, where you can watch a giraffe with the city skyline behind it.
• The elephant orphanage and the Giraffe CentreMorning · from €25
  Orphaned baby elephants at their late-morning feed with the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, then feeding Rothschild's giraffes eye to eye from a raised platform.

✦ Free to visit

• The Maasai Market
• Karen Blixen's house (from outside)
• Westlands

📲 Book things to do in Nairobi on GetYourGuide

2

Masai Mara

Days 2-4 · ✈️ Bush flight 45 min

The Kenyan end of the Serengeti plains, grassland dotted with acacias and rich in big cats. From July to October the wildebeest migration crosses the Mara river.

🎟️ Worth booking

• Full-day 4x4 safariFull day · from €120
  A whole day on the plains of the Mara, with a picnic in the bush and the best chance of seeing lions, leopards and cheetahs.
• Visit to a Maasai village1h30 · from €25
  An hour with a Maasai family: their houses, their cattle, the jumping dance, and plenty of beadwork for sale at the end.

✦ Free to visit

• The great migration (July to October)
• Lions and cheetahs
• Sunrise over the savannah
• The night sky

📲 Book things to do in Masai Mara on GetYourGuide

3

Lake Nakuru

Day 5 · 🚗 4×4 4h

A soda lake on the floor of the Rift Valley, fenced as a sanctuary for black and white rhinos. Flamingo numbers rise and fall with the water level.

🎟️ Worth booking

• Lake Nakuru National Park safariHalf day · from €60
  A game drive around the lake, with water birds on the shore and a good chance of rhinos in the grass.
• Rhino trackingHalf day · from €40
  Time spent looking for both black and white rhinos, two protected species the park was fenced to save.

✦ Free to visit

• The flamingos
• Baboon Cliff viewpoint
• Makalia Falls

📲 Book things to do in Lake Nakuru on GetYourGuide

4

Diani Beach

Days 6-7 · ✈️ Flight 1h

A long white beach south of Mombasa, protected by a coral reef. Dhows, the wooden sailing boats of the Swahili coast, still work the water offshore.

🎟️ Worth booking

• Snorkelling at Kisite reefFull day · from €55
  A day in the Kisite-Mpunguti marine park south of Diani, with clear water, coral, and often dolphins and turtles.
• Dhow trip and dolphinsHalf day · from €40
  Out under sail on a traditional dhow, looking for the dolphins that feed off this coast.

✦ Free to visit

• The white sand beach
• Kaya Kinondo sacred forest
• Sunsets over the ocean
• The turquoise lagoon

📲 Book things to do in Diani Beach on GetYourGuide

Worth sorting before you go

Light aircraft and a 4x4 · Small planes from Nairobi's Wilson Airport save a long day on the road to the reserves. Once there, you game-drive in a 4x4 with a guide who knows where the animals were yesterday.

📶 eSIM data
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly

🛡️ Travel insurance
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta

🚗 Car hire
Compare the agencies before you land.
Compare · Booking

💳 Fee-free card
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut

🚐 Airport transfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer

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Flavours & local habits

🍽️ Worth tasting

• Nyama choma: goat or beef grilled over charcoal, shared at the table and eaten with your hands.
• Ugali: a firm maize porridge, the base of most meals, used to scoop up everything else.
• Sukuma wiki: collard greens fried with onion and tomato; the name means stretch the week.
• Pilau and biryani: spiced rice dishes of the Swahili coast, shaped by centuries of trade with Arabia and India.
• Chai: black tea boiled with milk, sugar and spices, drunk all day.

⚠️ Best avoided

• Choose a licensed safari operator and follow the ranger's instructions: stay in the vehicle unless told otherwise.
• Take malaria tablets for the Mara and the coast, and drink bottled water.
• In Nairobi, do not walk after dark: use a taxi or a ride-hailing app.
• Agree prices before you set off, and bargain at the markets.

Words that help

English ↔ Swahili

✈️ Flight delayed by 3 hours or more, or cancelled? You may be owed up to €600. Check your flight on AirHelp.

The practical page

Scan to open this guide online, always up to date.
https://offwegooo.com/en/guides/kenya

Packing checklist

Have a good trip.
Guide made on offwegooo.com · Photos via Pexels · Details are indicative, check before you leave.