My wife and I are planning our first safari in Sept 2011, and we will be concentrating on Kenya. We made initial contact with a tour operator, and discussed our budget and preference:

* Want to see a lot of wildlife (of course), varied terrain, and tribal culture
* Less movement, stay longer in less parks
* Mix of lodge/camp, location/guiding more important than facility
* Not interested in beach

He came back and proposed 2 itineraries:

1) All fly itinerary (stay mostly in smaller camps, use camp vehicle/guide on shared basis):
Day 1: arrive NBO, o/n
Day 2: fly to Samburu, 3 nights
Day 5: fly to Mara, 5 nights (3/2 split in 2 camps, reserve / conservancy)
Day 10: fly back to Wilson, o/n
Day 11: fly out of NBO

2) Fly-drive combo itinerary (stay mostly in large lodges, use private vehicle/driver):
Day 1: arrive NBO, o/n
Day 2: fly to Samburu, 3 nights
Day 5: drive 3hr to Sweetwaters, o/n
Day 6: drive 3hr to L. Nakuru, o/n
Day 7: drive 6hr to Mara, 3 nights
Day 10: fly back to Wilson, o/n
Day 11: fly out of NBO

Can you comment the two proposals? I do like the fly-drive combo, as it gives us first-time visitors a chance to see more of the country, and a little more variety. But I have a few questions:

• From the map, it seems closer to drive one-way from Nairobi to Samburu. We can then fly from Samburu to Mara. Will that work?
• It is generally not desired for 1-night stop. But I view it as logistically necessary to break long drive. Is it really bad? Any suggestion for alternative stop(s)?
• The fly-drive combo comes out slightly more expensive than all-fly because of private use of guide/vehicle, is it about right?

Appreciate your advice.

I think both itineraries make sense and it's a matter of personal taste; I would prefer the smaller camps where you stay longer (option 1), but the drive times are not bad at all in your 2nd
itinerary.
Please realize that the big difference is that in option 1 you have to share your vehicle (and guide) possibly with other camp members, where in option 2 you have a vehicle for your own...

Keep in mind that a drive from 1 camp to another is basically a game drive at the start and in the end as well ..

On Opt.#2, though you fly up, will your guide/vehicle be meeting you here for game drives and then continue south to Sweetwater's and Nakuru before onto the Mara? If so, as mentioned above you have exclusive use of your vehicle. Where with Opt. #1, it's shared game drives.

It's a 6/hr drive Nairobi/Samburu; not at all recommended drive Samburu/Mara which takes more than 1/day. There are flights Nairobi/Samburu, Samburu/Mara, but not Samburu/Nakuru; some flights from Samburu "might" stop at Nanyuki for stay at Sweetwaters. The routings shown whether fly only or fly/drive both make sense and the pricing for the latter would be a bit more expensive.

What camps at Samburu and Masai Mara are being offered?

September is " the time" to be in the Mara. Maybe some crowds at crossing points but the migration will be there so , first itinerary with 5 days in the Mara is the better one in my opinion.

Last year i did 2/3 split Mara and Olare Orock and it was fantastic.

Good luck.

Sandi: For itinerary 2, the private guide/vehicle starts at aircraft landing in Samburu , and ends at aircraft takeoff in Mara. It is exclusive use, which is attractive. I just realized that driving Nairobi -> Samburu and flying Samburu -> Mara means a change of driver/guide, which adds cost. I will ask anyway to see the price difference. 6hr drive means that we will arrive in the late afternoon, giving us only 2 full days in Mara.

The proposed lodge for itinerary 1 is Elephant Bedroom in Samburu, Serena and Kicheche in Mara. The proposed lodge for itinerary 2 is Serena in both Samburu and Mara.

If we stay with itinerary 2 to drive Samburu -> Mara, we will consider adding 2 Kicheche days at the end, with the private guide droppin us off at Kicheche instead of airstrip. We do have some flexibility for more days in Kenya, it's the budget that is limiting factor.

Itinerary two would work for me and i would prefer going on road to samburu with a guided safari vehicle but not privater so that you can have different stop overs,for a first safari i would prefer you spend much time on the ground rather than flying.

* Want to see a lot of wildlife (of course), varied terrain, and tribal culture
#2 gives you more terrain and better chance to see rhino. Also it's the only one that offers flamingos--in Nakuru. The private vehicle means you can spend time with your wildlife of choice and do the culture trips you prefer.

* Less movement, stay longer in less parks
#1 is ideal and has the 2 most wildlife rich parks in Kenya. In Sept 5 nts in the Mara is ideal.

* Mix of lodge/camp, location/guiding more important than facility
Resident guides have a slight advantage, I think, in locating animals and you'll have those in #1. Ele Bedroom is very expensive. Samburu Serena would be my choice to optimize location and cost in Samburu or Samburu Lodge. But Ele Bedroom would be a more exclusive, private experience.

* Not interested in beach
Both are fine.

Your #2 if you add Kicheche would be my choice.

Drive from Nakuru should only be 5/hrs, admittedly a lousy road, but it gets you there. Then you enter the private lands and reserve and from this point on, however long it takes to get to your lodging (usually in time for lunch) is a game drive... so you're not really loosing time in the Mara.

As to Serena Samburu, we're still waiting for an "official" open date, since the floods last year and it being completely rebuilt... just so you know and do ask if it'll be a go by Sept; sure hope it will be.

If with Opt. #1, flying both to Samburu and Mara, yes you will have different guides, and in both instances pay for the segment he drives empty. If with Opt. #2, you fly to Samburu with guide meeting you here, again you do pay for his driving segment NBO/SAM empty.

My choice would be to go with camps, and while Elephent Bedroom will be a bit higher than Serena, it's a great option. And, if spending sufficient time in the Mara to split stay with two properties, the combination of Serena Lodge which is ideally situated and Kicheche are excellent.

Good luck!

Thanks about the status on Serena Samburu. I will keep it in mind.

The 2nd itinerary is just superb,it has diverse attractions ,it will meet all your needs:the varied terrain,tribal culture,and lots of wildlife.Remember at lake Nakuru -Flamingoes and other bird species-,Masai and Samburu pe culture in Mara and Samburu,the great riftvalley,unique animals in samburu that are not sported in any other parks in kenya.It is awesome than the first itinerary.
All the best
anberry

Serena Samburu was supposed to open in June 2011.

Foggy,
What were the quotes for the two itineraries?