9 Day Kenya Birding Safari: Lake Magadi, Naivasha, Nakuru, Baringo, Samburu & Mount Kenya
Kenya has recorded more than 1,100 bird species, and this nine-day Kenya birding safari visits a wide range of habitats to see as many of them as possible. Start with a day trip to the soda flats of Lake Magadi, continue through the Rift Valley lakes of Naivasha, Nakuru and Baringo, then head north to the dry bush of Samburu and finish in the montane forest of Mount Kenya.
Your driver-guide is an experienced birder who knows the calls, habitats and best sites for each region, making this ideal for keen birders and for wildlife lovers who want to learn more.
Accommodation
| Nights 1–2 · Nairobi | Sarova Panafric Hotel |
|---|---|
| Night 3 · Lake Naivasha | Lake Naivasha Sawela Lodge |
| Night 4 · Lake Nakuru | Lake Nakuru Lodge |
| Night 5 · Lake Baringo | Tumbili Cliff Lodge |
| Nights 6–7 · Samburu | Samburu Simba Lodge |
| Night 8 · Mount Kenya | Naro Moru River Lodge |
Itinerary
- 1Nairobi Start · 1 night
- 2Lake Magadi
- 1Nairobi 1 night
- 3Lake Naivasha 1 night
- 4Lake Nakuru 1 night
- 5Lake Baringo 1 night
- 6Samburu 2 nights
- 7Mount Kenya 1 night
- 1Nairobi Finish
By road
Day 1: Arrival in Nairobi
On arrival, we transfer you to the Sarova Panafric Hotel. Time permitting, you can take an orientation tour of the city and visit the bird gallery at the Nairobi National Museum. Overnight at the Sarova Panafric Hotel.
Overnight
Day 2: Day Trip to Lake Magadi (FB)
After breakfast, drive south for about two hours through Maasai country to Lake Magadi, a soda lake covering about 100 square kilometres and surrounded by salt flats. Lesser and greater flamingos often feed in the shallows, and the freshwater springs along the shore attract the lake’s speciality, the chestnut-banded plover, along with common and wood sandpipers, common greenshanks and other waders. Enjoy a picnic lunch, then return to Nairobi in the late afternoon. Dinner and overnight at the Sarova Panafric Hotel.
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 3: Nairobi – Lake Naivasha (FB)
After breakfast, drive north-west, stopping at a viewpoint over the Great Rift Valley, and reach Lake Naivasha by mid-morning for a bird walk before lunch at Lake Naivasha Sawela Lodge. This freshwater lake on the Rift Valley floor has more than 400 recorded bird species. In the afternoon, choose between a boat ride on the lake and a visit to Hell’s Gate National Park. Dinner and overnight at Lake Naivasha Sawela Lodge.
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 4: Lake Naivasha – Lake Nakuru National Park (FB)
After breakfast, explore the lodge gardens, then drive to Lake Nakuru National Park, arriving at Lake Nakuru Lodge for lunch. The park mixes sedge, marsh and grassland with rocky cliffs, yellow-barked acacia woodland and euphorbia forest. Depending on water levels, lesser and greater flamingos gather on the lake, along with Cape teal, maccoa duck, blacksmith and spur-winged lapwings and Kittlitz’s plover. Look also for long-crested eagles, augur buzzards, lilac-breasted rollers, grey-headed kingfishers and sunbirds. Dinner and overnight at Lake Nakuru Lodge.
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 5: Lake Nakuru – Lake Baringo (FB)
After breakfast, drive north to Lake Baringo, one of the Rift Valley’s few freshwater lakes, arriving for a bird walk around Tumbili Cliff Lodge before lunch. Baringo is one of Kenya’s best birding sites, with specials such as the northern white-faced scops owl, brimstone canary, bristle-crowned starling, Goliath heron, little weaver and Jackson’s and Hemprich’s hornbills. In the afternoon, walk along the cliffs to look for the scops owl, black-throated barbet and mouse-coloured penduline tit. Dinner and overnight at Tumbili Cliff Lodge.
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 6: Lake Baringo – Samburu National Reserve (FB)
After breakfast, drive north-east to Samburu, arriving at Samburu Simba Lodge for lunch. Birdlife here is plentiful and colourful, and it is easy to see more than 100 species in a day. One of the best sights is the flocks of helmeted and vulturine guineafowl coming to the river to drink in the afternoon, the vulturine with its white-streaked neck and brilliant blue breast. Dinner and overnight at Samburu Simba Lodge.
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 7: Samburu Full Day (FB)
Go out before breakfast for birding and game viewing, and spend the day in Samburu and neighbouring Buffalo Springs, whose springs draw thousands of sandgrouse and doves in the dry season. Look for the tiny pygmy falcon, which perches high in acacias like a shrike, the martial eagle watching for dik-diks and guineafowl, and the Somali ostrich. Dinner and overnight at Samburu Simba Lodge.
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 8: Samburu – Mount Kenya (FB)
After an early breakfast, drive south to the Naro Moru side of Mount Kenya, arriving at Naro Moru River Lodge for lunch. Spend the afternoon birding in the montane forest, where species include the African harrier-hawk, Ayres’s hawk-eagle, mountain buzzard, red-fronted parrot, bronze-naped pigeon, montane white-eye, Abbott’s and Sharpe’s starlings, montane oriole and thick-billed seedeater. Dinner and overnight at Naro Moru River Lodge.
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 9: Mount Kenya – Nairobi (B)
After an early bird walk and breakfast, drive back to Nairobi for drop-off at your hotel or at the airport in time for your flight home.
Breakfast
9 Day Kenya Birding Safari Prices – 2027 Rates
Prices depend on the time of year and how many people are travelling together. The more people sharing the vehicle, the lower the price per person.
9 Day Kenya Birding Safari
Lodges and camps as described in the itinerary
From $1,989 per person
| Dates | 2 people | 3 people | 4 people | 5 people | 6 people | Single suppl. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 03 Jan – 31 Mar | $2,895 | $2,529 | $2,345 | $2,235 | $2,165 | $625 |
| 01 Apr – 31 May | $2,719 | $2,355 | $2,175 | $2,065 | $1,989 | $330 |
| 01 Jun – 30 Jun | $2,849 | $2,455 | $2,259 | $2,139 | $2,065 | $355 |
| 01 Jul – 31 Aug | $3,039 | $2,645 | $2,449 | $2,329 | $2,255 | $665 |
| 01 Sep – 31 Oct | $3,005 | $2,625 | $2,415 | $2,299 | $2,219 | $640 |
| 01 Nov – 15 Dec | $2,849 | $2,485 | $2,300 | $2,190 | $2,119 | $580 |
| 16 Dec – 02 Jan | $2,945 | $2,579 | $2,395 | $2,285 | $2,215 | $640 |
Prices are in US dollars per person sharing for the full 9-day safari, with exclusive use of the safari vehicle and everything listed under Package Includes. The single supplement is per person, added for a single room. Scroll the table sideways on a phone to see all group sizes. Child rates on request.
Optional Activities
- Boat ride to Crescent Island on Lake Naivasha – on request
Package Includes
- All park entrance fees
- Accommodation and meals as per the itinerary
- 1.5 litres of bottled water per person per day in the vehicle
- Services of an English-speaking, experienced driver-guide
- Transport in a 4×4 safari Land Cruiser with a pop-up roof, for your exclusive use throughout the trip
- Airport transfers in Nairobi
- All government taxes and levies
- Safari accessories (first aid kit, cooler box and fire extinguisher), a 24-hour emergency number and RF radio in all safari vehicles
- Specialist birding driver-guide
Package Excludes
- Flying Doctors (AMREF) air ambulance evacuation cover – US$ 10 per person
- Driver tips
- Drinks, international flights, visas, travel insurance and personal expenses
