JaneB

We will visit Kenya in September. I have already booked 3 nights at Serena Mara (flying) and 2 nights at Ol Tukai in Amboseli (road). We still have 5 nights to plan and would like some suggestions.
Thank you,
Jane

spassvogel

If flying is not too much an effort what about MERU or by car from Amboseli to Tsavo and then vuia Mombasa back to NBO.

SV

Patty

Where do the 5 nights fit in? After Mara and Amboseli? Tsavo would be fairly easy to add on to Amboseli by road.

Or you could head north (Samburu, Shaba, Meru, Laikipia) where there are different species variations such as reticulated giraffe, grevys zebra. You could do it as a flying or driving safari. If driving, you could break it up with stops in Mt Kenya and/or Aberdares on the way up/down.

Is Madagascar still in your plans?

atravelynn

Please tell us the order so far.

How about:

Fly to Meru for 3 and Samburu for 2, then fly to Mara. I personally chose these locations in upcoming Sept.

Meru is more remote and Samburu has some unique species in a desert-like environment. There are different levels of accommodations in Meru. In Samburu the floods destroyed several tented camps, but Simba and Sopa are options. The flood would not negatively impact a Sept visit and I have not changed my Sept Samburu plans.

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Check out including Lewa Downs near Mt. Kenya for a few nights. You can drive or fly there and on to Mara.

Best chance of rhino would be at Lewa as it is a rhino sanctuary. No crowds, beautiful private reserve, walking, cultural interactions possible.
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Depending on what your goals are, I might add another day in the Mara. I'm spending more than 3 nts there in Sept. I spent 6 nts at 2 places in the Mara on my first safari and wished I had more time. Your most prolific wildlife action will probably be there.

If you wanted to visit a forested region with a chance to see species like the colobus monkey, include Aberdare or Serena Mountain Lodge in Mount Kenya. The floodlit waterholes at night are big here and you can see all sorts of animals that come to drink.

Excellent problem to have.

JaneB

Schedule is as follows:

1 night in Nairobi (Riverview)
2 nights in Amboseli (Ol Tukai)
1 night in Nairobi (Riverview)
3 nights in Mara (Serena)
1 night in Nairobi (Riverview)

All of this has been booked directly with hotels

Then fying to Madagascar for a week (Wednesday to Wednesday)**

Return to Nairobi for 1 night with 5 additional nghts to plan

I am interested in places in the northern area and I would prefer traveling by road to see the country.

**The Madagascar trip is uncertain at this point.

Thanks!

atravelynn

Did you know you can fly from Amboseli to the Mara? That could provide your extra Mara night that I referred to. You can still drive to Amboseli and do your safari, but just don't drive back to NBO. Instead take the scheduled flt to the Mara.

To be sure you are getting the best pricing and the best logistics, you may want to seek out an Africa travel specialist and tell them everything you wish to do pre- and post-Madagascar. See what they come up with and compare it to your own pricing. Surprisingly, for Africa, using an agent or a safari provider usually results in savings unless you wait and book everything upon arrival. And I am not an agent nor am I married to one.

But hang on to your own bookings in the meantime so you don't lose your space. Also don't know if you've already put money down on them.

If you want the north and you want to drive, then I'd do 3 Meru and 2 Samburu. Or 2 Samburu and 3 Lewa Downs.

From NBO to Samburu is about a 6 hour drive. Maybe a little less to Meru.

You'll have a fabulous trip with great variety in Africa.

Patty

Approx drive times:

Nairobi to Meru or Samburu 6 hours
Nairobi to Lewa 4.5 hours
Lewa to Samburu 1.5 hours
Meru to Samburu took us 4 hours in rainy season, there might be a shorter route if it's dry

Depending on where you stay within the parks, it could take a little longer to get to your accommodations.

Note that Lewa is a private conservancy and I don't believe they allow outside vehicles for game drives so that's something to look into (someone correct if I'm wrong). Accommodations on Lewa are also on the expensive side. Not trying to talk you out of Lewa but another Laikipia property you can look at is El Karama Ranch. I've stayed here twice and you can bring your own vehicle. Being a private ranch you can also go on night drives, walks, etc. They have the "northern" species but no rhinos.

If rhinos are important, there's a sanctuary within Meru and you're likely to see some there. We saw white rhinos within the sanctuary but not black (they're there, we just didn't see them). For accommodations in/near Meru, budget - KWS Kinna Bandas, mid-range to higher end - Leopard Rock, Offbeat, Elsa's Kopje, Rhino River.

As atravelynn mentioned, Simba and Sopa lodges in Samburu/Buffalo Springs are open and inside the park.

Or you could consider visiting one of the northern parks plus a mountain/forest area on your way up or down. This would give you more diversity and break up the drive more evenly and/or possibly be less driving overall. There are a few night viewing lodges such as Serena Mountain Lodge in Mt Kenya or Treetops and the Ark in the Aberdares (you have to shuttle to/from the latter two). There are also KWS accommodations in the Aberdares (Fishing Lodge and Tusk Camp) that would allow you to explore more of this beautiful park that I'm a big fan of including the many waterfalls. And there are accommodations outside of the park (we've stayed at Sandai) that would allow you to base yourselves for a few days and take day trips to other nearby reserves in addition to the Aberdares such as Solio which is a rhino sanctuary (we saw both black and white here and I think you'd have to be very unlucky not to).

Drive time from Nairobi to Mt Kenya or the Aberdares is about 2-3 hours and onward to one of the northern parks would vary between 3-4 hours depending on which combination you chose.

Good luck with your plans!

sandi

Looking at what you've got arranged so far, you're stuck with overnights in Nairobi. And, if you wish to drive, it's always best to start early morning. Likewise, with the exception of flights to/from the Mara that have morning and afternoon schedules, the other locations are morning departures.

As atravellynn mentions, you can drive to Amboseli and then fly to the Mara (8:45am Amboseli/Nairobi; connnect to 10am to Mara) thus giving you an extra nt/dy here which is always excellent in Sept.

If driving to/from the Mara, and wishing to head up north, you can...
1) drive from Mara to Lake Naivasha (4-5/hrs) or Lake Nakuru (5-6/hrs)
2) from the Lakes, drive (3-4/hrs) to Samburu
3) from Samburu, drive (6/hrs) or fly (1.5/hrs) to Nairobi

Of course, from the Lakes you could, as Patty suggests, head to the Laikipia area.

Much depends on your interests and budget for these add-on days regardless the area you choose.

If you haven't put down hotel deposits, I'd strongly suggest you inquire of an in-country outfitter (there are many reputable ones to be found here on Fodor's) who can put together an itinerary to include Amboseli, the Mara and any of the possible alternatives, avoiding overnights in Nairobi with direct routing without zig-zagging.

Patty

<i>You can still drive to Amboseli and do your safari, but just don't drive back to NBO. Instead take the scheduled flt to the Mara.</i>

You could even drive back to Nairobi and still make the afternoon flight to the Mara which leaves at 3:00pm. Drive time from Amboseli back to Nairobi is about 4.5 hours. So either way, you don't necessarily need the night in Nairobi in between.

Also atravelynn touched on the subject of crowds. I don't know if this is a consideration for you but you'll probably find the highest number of other tourists in the Mara, Amboseli and Samburu (although Samburu may be somewhat self limiting right now given that many accommodations are closed). You won't find crowds in the other places mentioned. Even in the more popular parks, you can usually stay away from crowds if you have your own vehicle. You can also extend your game drive times (one of the other advantages of a private vehicle) as the hours in between early morning/late afternoon can be fairly quiet and not all of the animals go into hiding mid-day!

Patty

<i>2) from the Lakes, drive (3-4/hrs) to Samburu</i>

Lakes to Samburu would be more like 6 hours.

Yes do list if you have any special interests.

Might also be better to decide on whether to include Madagascar first. Otherwise you'd have another week to fill in and would possibly need to start over with your plans. Just a thought.

JaneB

You all are wonderful. You have given me lots of things to ponder. I'll report back!
Thank you soooo much.
Jane