This 6-day safari trip in Kenya combines Amboseli National Park and the Masai Mara National Reserve, two of Kenya’s best places to see animals and enjoy the African bush.

The Masai Mara, famous for the wildebeest migration (June – Oct), has vast plains that have lots of animals including all the famous Big Five (lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and elephant). The mara offers the best sightings of lions in Kenya plus a good chance of seeing other cats like leopard, hyena, and cheetah.

Amboseli National Park is famous for the epic shot of the Kilimanjaro Mountain, a must see if you visit Kenya. The park is located at the base of the Kilimanjaro, on the leeward (rain shadow) of the mountain which created desert conditions of the Amboseli turning it into a dry dusty plain. The plain has numerous swamps and shallow lakes fed by underground rivers from Kilimanjaro and these attract huge concentration of animals and birds which make sighting of many animals even easier than in Mara.

On this 6 day Masai Mara and Amboseli safari you will visit Amboseli first and do two game drives and thereafter travel to Masai Mara where you shall do three safari drives and a Maasai village tour. The travel time between Masai Mara and Amboseli is about 8 hours, by road. You may break this up with an overnight in Nairobi, or take a flight from Amboseli to Mara

The 6 day Masai Mara and Amboseli safari trip itinerary

Day 1 – travel to Amboseli national park and afternoon safari

Your tour guide shall pick you up at 7am (or earlier) for the trip to Amboseli National Park. This is a 4 – 5 hours journey.

You will arrive at the lodge, have lunch and set off into Amboseli to start your safari in this wonderful wilderness. Amboseli is a small park and the drives are around marshes and wetlands where most of the animals concentrate. Among your sightings shall include yellow baboons, zebras, Thompsons and Grants gazelles, ostrich, elephants, and buffaloes among others.

At sunset you shall drive back to the lodge for dinner and overnight.

Day 2 – full day safari drive in Amboseli National park

You shall be up by 6.30am for breakfast, pick your lunchbox and drive to the park for the full day safari. You will explore more tracks and discover more wildlife. Today you will been on cats and shall check renown territories of lions and hyenas. Hyenas are common sightings while lions can sometimes be missed when they do not come out of the bushes or thickets near the marshlands. Leopards are difficult to see in Amboseli.

At lunch time you shall walk to the top of the observation hill which offers sweeping views of the dusty plains and marshlands below with the rugged hills and Kilimanjaro in the distance. You will enjoy your meal while watching elephants in the marshes and other game in the plains.

At the end of a great safari adventure in Amboseli you shall retire to your lodge for dinner and overnight.

Optional: Balloon Safari

You can spice up your safari experience by starting with an early morning balloon safari. The balloon safari allows access areas that cannot be accessed by car hence increasing your chances of seeing more wildlife. The balloon safari also offers incredible views of the Kilimanjaro. The balloon safaris start at about 5.30am and the flight is about 1 hour. After the balloon safari you would continue to do the full day drive.

Day 3 – early morning departure to Masai Mara via Nairobi (optional overnight in Nairobi, or fly to Masai Mara)

Today you shall have early breakfast and check out by 6am/6.30am to start your long drive to the Masai Mara via Nairobi. You will stop over at the escarpment view point to enjoy the wonderful views of the western rift valley. You will also stop for lunchbreak at a local restaurant.

You will arrive in Masai Mara in the late afternoon and check into your lodge to rest as you look forward to the beautiful safaris in the Mara the following days

Day 4 – full day safari in Masai Mara

Today you shall start your dream safari in the Masai Mara. You will heave breakfast by 6.30am and with your lunchbox on board, set off into the Mara for a full day bush adventure. You will explore the plains to watch many animals including elephants, zebras, Masai giraffes, antelopes, buffaloes, and wildebeests. Top on the list of course will be lions, hyenas, cheetahs, leopards, and jackals. Another prized sighting is the rhino which is not easy to see in the Mara.

You will take time off the drive to enjoy picnic lunch in the plains.

Optional: balloon safari

You can start your day with the Balloon safari which will improve your bush experience in the Mara as you get to reach areas that you cannot reach by car. The balloon rides are one hour long and start as early as 5am. After the balloon safari you would then continue with the safari drive in the plains.

Day 5 – Another day in the Mara and Masai Village tour

You cannot get enough of the Mara and so today you shall return for another safari drive, this time exploring more of the fringes of the Mara and Talek rivers spotting hippos and crocodiles and other wildlife coming to drink water. You will also search for any wildlife you missed the previous day.

Before end of the day you shall drive out to visit a Masai Village at the edge of the Mara. A well organized village, you will learn more about the Masai people who share the eco system of the Mara and have been its custodian. The young Masai men shall welcome you to the village with their iconic masai worrier day, and thereafter the masai guide shall take you through the village to explain the way of life of the masai people including their cultures and traditions.

Day 6 – safari and drive back to Nairobi

Today you shall check out of the lodge and have a quick drive through the Mara to pick any possible new sightings as you head back to Nairobi to end the 6 day safari