10 Day Bush and Beach Safari in Nairobi

Kenya packs a lot into ten days. This private safari links Samburu’s rare northern species with the Maasai Mara, Amboseli, Tsavo, and a final transfer to Diani Beach. I like the strong variety: you get rhinos, elephants, big cats, birds, conservation work, a boat ride, and time beside the Indian Ocean rather than spending the whole trip in one park.

I also like the personal format. Your group travels in a private, air-conditioned vehicle with a guide, onboard WiFi, park fees, and three meals on most days covered. The main caution is the pace. Long road journeys connect several distant parks, and the Diani portion is a transfer at the end rather than a clearly stated beach stay.

Key points before you book

• Samburu brings Kenya’s Special Five: Grevy’s zebra, Somali ostrich, reticulated giraffe, gerenuk, and Beisa oryx give the opening days a distinctive focus.
• Ol Pejeta adds purpose to the safari: You visit Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary and see the conservancy’s major rhino protection work.
• The Maasai Mara gets two substantial wildlife days: You have a better chance of finding lions, leopards, cheetahs, elephants, buffalo, rhinos, and other plains animals.
• Lake Naivasha changes the pace: A boat trip offers close views of hippos and waterbirds after several days of road travel and game drives.
• Amboseli is the elephant highlight: Big-tusked elephants and views toward Mount Kilimanjaro give this park a memorable setting.
• The $5,011 price buys a private, multi-park trip: It is a useful value for a fully arranged route, but you should confirm accommodation details and what happens after arrival at Diani Beach.

Starting in Samburu with Kenya’s Special Five

Your safari begins with airport or Nairobi hotel pickup by an Antonio Safaris representative. From there, you travel north to Samburu National Reserve, arriving in time for check-in, lunch, and an afternoon game drive.

Samburu is a smart first stop because it feels different from Kenya’s better-known southern parks. The reserve is known for its dry, open setting and its Special Five: the Grevy’s zebra, Somali ostrich, reticulated giraffe, gerenuk, and Beisa oryx. These animals give you something specific to look for, rather than treating every game drive as a general search for wildlife.

The gerenuk is especially unusual. This long-necked antelope can rise on its hind legs to feed, a behavior that makes it easy to recognize if your guide finds one. The reticulated giraffe has sharply marked patterns, while the Grevy’s zebra has narrower stripes than the common zebra seen elsewhere in Kenya.

Your first afternoon is only an introduction. Day two gives you a full-day guided game drive, with the option of searching for the Special Five and members of the Big Five. An early start may give you a chance to look for leopard, which is often difficult to spot because it is solitary and spends time in trees.

Samburu is also a good place to settle into the rhythm of a safari. You will spend long periods watching, waiting, and scanning the open ground. That can be thrilling when an animal appears, but it also means you should not expect constant action every minute.

Ol Pejeta pairs wildlife with conservation

After breakfast on day three, you travel to Ol Pejeta Conservancy, arriving for lunch and an afternoon game drive. The conservancy is one of the most meaningful stops on the route because wildlife viewing is closely tied to protection work.

Rhinos are central here. Ol Pejeta protects large populations of black and white rhinos and is home to the world’s last two Northern white rhinos. That fact gives the visit a serious edge. You are not simply looking at animals in a scenic setting. You are seeing the result of long-term conservation efforts aimed at species under intense pressure.

The afternoon also includes Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary, which cares for rescued chimpanzees. This adds variety after the open plains of Samburu and gives families a useful conservation subject to discuss with children.

Ol Pejeta has free-roaming wildlife as well, including lion, cheetah, hyena, elephant, giraffe, buffalo, and zebra. More than 500 bird species have been recorded in the conservancy, so you will have plenty to watch even when large mammals are quiet.

I would give this stop proper attention rather than treating it as a simple overnight break. It offers a different kind of safari value, with wildlife, mountain views, and direct insight into the work required to protect rhinos and rescued animals.

Lake Nakuru delivers rhinos and birdlife

Day four takes you to Lake Nakuru National Park. After lunch and some rest at the lodge, you head out for an afternoon game drive.

Lake Nakuru is known for its birdlife, including greater and lesser flamingos. The number of flamingos can vary, so you should enjoy the lake as a bird habitat rather than expect an endless pink shoreline. The park also has a strong reputation for black and white rhino sightings.

Elephants are the main Big Five exception here. You may still see lion, leopard, buffalo, and rhino, along with many other species. That makes Lake Nakuru a useful middle stop, especially after Ol Pejeta has already introduced you to rhino conservation.

The schedule is relatively gentle on paper, with lunch, leisure time, and an afternoon drive. Still, this is another road-transfer day in a trip with many park changes. The reward is variety, but the cost is less time in each individual region.

Two days in the Maasai Mara are the safari centerpiece

On day five, you travel to the Maasai Mara National Reserve for lunch, check-in, and an afternoon game drive. This is the section most people picture when they think of a classic Kenya safari: broad grasslands, dramatic skies, predators, herbivore herds, and the possibility of the Big Five.

Two days here are important. A single game drive can be affected by weather, animal movement, or plain luck. The second full day gives you more chances to find lion, leopard, buffalo, rhino, elephant, cheetah, giraffe, zebra, hippo, and other species.

You can choose between a full-day outing with a picnic lunch or separate early morning and late afternoon drives. The full-day option gives you more time away from camp and can make sense if wildlife sightings are your main reason for coming. The split schedule gives you a rest period in the middle of the day and two cooler viewing periods.

The Great Wildebeest Migration usually takes place from July through October, including river crossings that may draw predators. Timing matters, but the Mara is not only a migration destination. Outside those months, the sweeping grasslands and resident wildlife still make it one of the strongest stops on this route.

The Mara also includes cultural possibilities connected with the Maa people, although the schedule does not specify a separate village visit or cultural activity. If that matters to you, ask Antonio Safaris exactly what is included rather than assuming it is part of the standard program.

Lake Naivasha gives you a break from the vehicle

Day seven begins with an early breakfast and a long transfer from the Maasai Mara to Lake Naivasha. After lunch and time to rest, you take a boat trip on the freshwater lake in the Great Rift Valley.

This is a welcome change of viewpoint. Instead of sitting in a safari vehicle, you watch for pods of hippos, waterbucks, zebras along the shore, and many bird species from the water. The boat ride can bring you close to hippos, though you should follow the guide’s instructions carefully and keep your attention on the animals rather than trying to get too close.

The Animal Sanctuary Farm is located on an island in Lake Naivasha and is associated with wildlife on and around the lake. The supplied schedule does not clearly state whether an island visit is part of the boat trip, so confirm that detail before booking if it is important to you.

Naivasha is not the biggest wildlife stop on the trip, but it helps the ten-day plan breathe. After several long drives and game-viewing sessions, a shorter activity based on birds and water gives you a different kind of afternoon.

Amboseli puts elephants beneath Mount Kilimanjaro

Day eight takes you from Naivasha to Amboseli National Park, with a stop for views of the Great Rift Valley. After lunch and a period of rest, you head out for an evening game drive.

Amboseli is best known here for its free-ranging elephants. The park is also famous for views toward Mount Kilimanjaro, so the setting can be as memorable as the animals. Clear conditions matter for mountain views, and the schedule does not promise that Kilimanjaro will be visible, but the chance adds real appeal.

Four of the Big Five are present in the park, according to the tour description. The elephants are the main reason to come, especially if you want to compare Amboseli’s herds with the elephants seen at Ol Pejeta or Samburu.

The evening drive is well placed. It gives you a first look after arrival without asking you to spend the entire afternoon in the vehicle. You will still have only one night and one main game-viewing period here, so this is more of a focused highlight than a full Amboseli exploration.

Tsavo West closes the safari with red soil and broad wildlife

On day nine, you leave Amboseli after breakfast for Tsavo West National Park. The park’s red soil creates a strong visual change from the other reserves, and you arrive for lunch, rest, and an afternoon game drive.

Tsavo West offers a long list of possible sightings: leopard, cheetah, buffalo, rhino, elephant, giraffe, zebra, lion, crocodile, mongoose, hyrax, oryx, dik-dik, lesser kudu, klipspringer, and other plains animals. You may not see all of them, but the range shows why this park is worth including.

This final game drive also gives you one last chance to watch for less obvious species. A dik-dik or klipspringer can be just as rewarding as a lion if your guide spots it at the right moment. The park rewards patience and careful observation.

You should also expect another change of accommodation and another road segment. That is the tradeoff of linking northern Kenya, the Rift Valley, southern parks, and the coast in one trip.

Diani Beach is the final handoff, not a full beach holiday

On day ten, you have breakfast and a game drive en route to your beach resort in Mombasa or Diani Beach. The safari ends after this transfer.

That final handoff is useful if you already plan to add a coastal stay. Diani is known for sandy beaches, and the route lets you finish a wildlife trip near the coast instead of returning to Nairobi. But read the wording carefully: this program concludes at the beach resort. It does not clearly include several nights of beach accommodation, meals there, or organized coastal activities.

If your dream is a bush and beach holiday, plan the beach portion separately unless Antonio Safaris confirms an extension. The listed price should not be treated as the cost of a complete beach stay.

What the $5,011 price includes

At $5,011 per person, this is a substantial purchase. Its value comes from the amount of ground covered and the private setup, not from a low-cost group itinerary.

The package includes private transportation in an air-conditioned vehicle, a guide, WiFi onboard, park fees, taxes and listed fees, breakfast on nine days, lunch on nine days, and dinner on nine days. Those inclusions reduce the number of daily decisions you need to make, especially during long transfers between parks.

Private travel matters here. You are not sharing the schedule with a large coach group, so your party can use the flexible Maasai Mara game-drive format and ask the guide to spend more time on a sighting when conditions allow. The reviews of the service praise Antonio’s care from arrival through departure, including the Nairobi to Diani transfer. They also specifically highlight professionalism, availability, reliability, and a friendly manner.

One review refers to Anthony as a particularly capable driver-guide. If that is the guide assigned to your booking, you may want to request him by name. At minimum, ask who will guide you and how the private vehicle arrangement works.

Before paying, confirm the exact camp or lodge names, room arrangements, and whether accommodation inside the ten-day package is included in the quoted amount. The inclusions provided list meals and transport but do not spell out the lodging line by line. Also budget for international flights, visas, travel insurance, souvenirs, personal purchases, and any government increase in taxes or park fees.

Who will enjoy this route most

I would recommend this safari to families with older children, couples, and people who want a wide sample of Kenya rather than a slow stay in one reserve. Children aged 12 and below must be accompanied by an adult.

It suits you especially well if you value private transport, want both northern and southern Kenya, and enjoy mixing wildlife with conservation, birdlife, and a boat ride. The route also works for anyone who wants to finish near Diani Beach.

It is less suitable if you dislike long drives, frequent hotel changes, or early starts. The itinerary covers eight major areas in ten days, so the trip is active even when the schedule includes lunch and rest periods.

The free cancellation rule gives you some protection: you can cancel at least 24 hours before the start time for a full refund. Changes or cancellations within 24 hours are not accepted for a refund, and cutoff times use local time.

Should you book this safari?

Book it if you want a private Kenya sampler with serious wildlife range and you are comfortable trading a relaxed pace for broad coverage. Samburu’s Special Five, Ol Pejeta’s rhino and chimpanzee work, two days in the Maasai Mara, Amboseli elephants, and Tsavo’s red soil make this a thoughtfully varied route.

I would ask three questions before booking: exactly which accommodations are included, who your driver-guide will be, and how many nights you plan to add at Diani Beach. If the answers fit your budget, this is a strong choice for a first Kenyan safari that finishes with easy access to the coast.

FAQ

Where does the safari begin?

Pickup is offered at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport or at your Nairobi hotel. An Antonio Safaris representative meets you there before you travel to Samburu National Reserve.

Where does the safari end?

The safari ends with a transfer to a beach resort in Mombasa or Diani Beach after a game drive en route.

Is this a private tour?

Yes. Only your group participates in the private tour or activity.

Are meals included?

Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are included for nine days. The package specifies nine breakfasts, nine lunches, and nine dinners.

Are park fees included?

Yes. Park fees, all listed fees and taxes, and a guide are included. Any government increase in taxes or park fees is not included.

Are international flights included?

No. International flights, visa fees, travel insurance, souvenirs, personal items, and additional accommodation before or after the tour are not included.

Can children join the safari?

Yes. The safari is described as suitable for families and children, but children aged 12 and below must be accompanied by an adult.