10-Day Kenya Bush & Beach Safari | Mara, Amboseli & Diani

6:00 AM — Your C.A.T.S driver-guide collects you from your Nairobi hotel and you head west towards the Masai Mara. Stop for breakfast en route at a café in the highlands. The drive takes roughly five to six hours, climbing through the fertile central highlands before the earth drops away at the Great Rift Valley escarpment — pause here for sweeping views of the valley floor shimmering far below. Descend through Narok town and continue across the wheat fields of the Loita Plains, entering Maasai country where herdsmen in red shukas walk alongside their cattle across the golden rangeland. By late morning the landscape opens into the Mara's endless grasslands dotted with flat-topped acacia trees and termite mounds. Enter the reserve for an extended afternoon game drive. The Mara delivers immediately — herds of wildebeest, zebra, and Thomson's gazelle blanket the plains in astonishing numbers. Watch for cheetahs scanning from elevated termite mounds, lion prides resting in the shade, and elephants browsing through the riverine forest. Check into your safari lodge as the sun sinks over the savannah, painting the sky in bands of amber and violet.

A full day exploring the Masai Mara — the finest wildlife reserve in Africa. 6:00 AM — Rise for an early game drive when predators are most active, the air still cool and the light soft gold across the dew-soaked grass. Your guide follows fresh tracks through the bush, reading the landscape for signs of a hunt about to unfold. Drive to the Mara River where massive Nile crocodiles bask on sandy banks and pods of hippos crowd the muddy pools — during migration season (July–October), this is where the explosive wildebeest river crossings take place in heart-stopping chaos. The Mara Triangle on the western side offers exceptional game viewing with rolling hills and fewer vehicles. Spot elephants in the riverine forest, topi standing sentinel on ridgelines, and hyena dens where playful cubs tumble outside their burrows. Return for lunch, then explore different sectors in the afternoon — each revealing new encounters as the golden light deepens and giraffes are silhouetted against the vast darkening sky.

Another day in the Mara, and the reserve reveals new wonders at every turn. An optional early morning hot air balloon safari lifts you above the savannah at dawn — floating silently over herds of wildlife as the Mara stretches to the horizon in every direction, followed by a champagne breakfast in the bush. If you prefer, a morning game drive takes you to areas not yet explored — perhaps the Mara North Conservancy or along the Talek River where leopards drape themselves in the branches of sausage trees. Each sector of the Mara has a different character: open plains for cheetah hunts, wooded valleys where elephants browse, and marshlands teeming with birdlife — martial eagles, secretary birds stalking through the grass, and lilac-breasted rollers flashing iridescent wings. By afternoon, your guide may track a leopard through the croton thickets or find a pride of lions teaching their cubs to stalk through the tall swaying grass. The Mara never repeats itself — every game drive brings fresh encounters and unforgettable moments.

7:00 AM — After an early breakfast, depart the Masai Mara heading east towards Lake Nakuru — approximately four to five hours' drive through the Rift Valley. The route passes through Narok and climbs back up the escarpment, with the valley dropping away spectacularly below. Arrive at Lake Nakuru National Park by early afternoon. This compact but remarkably rich park is a rhino sanctuary — home to both black and white rhinos — and its alkaline lake draws hundreds of flamingos that paint the shoreline in shimmering bands of pink. Your afternoon game drive takes you along the lakeshore where pelicans and cormorants fish in the shallows, and through the yellow-barked fever tree forest watching for Rothschild's giraffes, waterbuck, and the park's elusive leopards lounging in the canopy. Drive up to Baboon Cliff viewpoint for a panoramic vista of the entire lake, the flamingo flocks below, and the surrounding Rift Valley escarpment stretching into the blue distance.

7:00 AM — Depart Lake Nakuru after breakfast and drive south towards Amboseli National Park — a full day's journey of roughly six to seven hours via Nairobi. The route takes you through the highland farms and bustling towns of central Kenya before heading south along the Namanga Road towards the Tanzanian border. The scenery shifts from green highlands to the dry, rust-coloured Athi Plains. As you approach Amboseli, Mount Kilimanjaro begins to dominate the entire southern horizon — Africa's highest peak rising 5,895 metres above sea level, its glaciers catching the afternoon light like a beacon. Arrive at your safari lodge by late afternoon and settle in with views that take your breath away. An evening game drive introduces you to Amboseli's legendary elephant herds — some of the largest-tusked elephants remaining in Africa. Family groups of twenty or more gather at the swamps fed by Kilimanjaro's underground meltwater, their enormous silhouettes framed against the mountain's purple evening profile. The open plains glow warm amber as the sun sets behind you and the first stars appear.

Wake before dawn to catch Kilimanjaro at its most spectacular — the mountain reveals its full snowcapped summit only in the early morning before equatorial clouds wrap around it by mid-morning. 6:30 AM — A sunrise game drive takes you across Amboseli's varied landscapes: the dried-up Lake Amboseli where dust devils spin across the pale cracked earth, the lush Enkongo Narok swamp where elephants wade through papyrus and egrets perch on their backs, and acacia woodland alive with superb starlings, weaverbirds building intricate nests, and martial eagles scanning from bare branches. Climb Observation Hill mid-morning for a 360-degree panorama of the park — elephant herds moving below, swamplands glistening like emeralds, and Kilimanjaro towering above everything in silent majesty. After lunch, the afternoon drive explores the southern marshes where buffalo herds gather in the hundreds, bat-eared foxes peer from their burrows, and crowned cranes strut through the wetlands. As the golden hour arrives, position yourself for Amboseli's most iconic photograph — elephants walking in single file with Kilimanjaro's snowcap glowing pink behind them.

5:30 AM — Rise for a final sunrise game drive in Amboseli, catching Kilimanjaro's peak glowing pink in the early light as elephants drink at the swamps below. After breakfast, depart for the Kenyan coast.

**Your Coastal Transfer — Two Great Options:**

**Option A: First Class SGR Madaraka Express** — Drive to Emali Station (~1.5 hours from Amboseli) and board Kenya's modern high-speed train. Settle into air-conditioned first-class comfort with large picture windows as the Madaraka Express glides south through the vast Tsavo wilderness. Spot elephants, giraffes, and perhaps even big cats from your reclining seat as the train winds through Kenya's largest national parks. Arrive at Mombasa Terminus by 2:00 PM, where your C.A.T.S representative meets you for the scenic ~1.5-hour drive to your Diani Beach hotel.

**Option B: Continue in Your 4×4** — Prefer the open road? Your guide drives you directly to the coast via the Mombasa Highway, arriving at your beach resort by approximately 3:00 PM.

The transition is instant — warm salt air, swaying coconut palms, turquoise water, and powder-white coral sand replace the dusty red savannah. Kick off your safari boots, walk barefoot along Diani's endless beach, and let the Indian Ocean wash away the dust of the bush. Sundowners on the sand as the sky turns gold over the ocean.

Your first full day on Diani Beach — and the change of pace is blissful. Wake to the sound of waves and tropical birdsong filtering through the palm canopy above your room. The morning is yours to spend however you choose: swim in the bathwater-warm Indian Ocean, float over the coral reef on a glass-bottom boat, or try your hand at kitesurfing along this famously windy stretch of coast. For snorkelling enthusiasts, the reef just offshore is home to parrotfish, angelfish, moray eels, and green sea turtles gliding through crystal-clear visibility. After a seafood lunch, the afternoon invites pure relaxation — a poolside book, a beach walk along the endless white sand, or a visit to the Colobus Conservation Centre to see endangered black-and-white colobus monkeys swinging through the coastal forest canopy. As evening falls, enjoy fresh ocean breezes and a spectacular sunset painting the palm-lined shore in shades of amber and rose.

An optional full-day excursion to Wasini Island and Kisite-Mpunguti Marine Park — one of Kenya's finest marine experiences. Depart by mid-morning for the short drive south to Shimoni, a sleepy fishing village on the coast where traditional dhows line the old coral jetty. Board a wooden dhow and sail across the turquoise channel, watching for pods of bottlenose and spinner dolphins that frequent these waters year-round — surfacing just metres from the boat. At Kisite Marine Park, snorkel among pristine coral gardens teeming with tropical fish — butterflyfish, lionfish, blue-spotted rays, and sea urchins in stunning clarity. A Swahili seafood feast on Wasini Island — fresh crab, grilled fish, coconut rice, and samosas — is served under the shade of ancient mangrove trees. Return to Diani by late afternoon. Alternatively, spend the day relaxing at your resort — Diani's white sand and warm turquoise waters never disappoint. A sunset dhow cruise along the coast is the perfect way to close this penultimate day.

Your final morning on the Kenyan coast. Enjoy a leisurely breakfast with ocean views and a last barefoot stroll along Diani's white sand beach, perhaps collecting shells or watching the local fishermen launch their dhows into the morning tide. Depending on your departure schedule, browse the beach vendors for last-minute souvenirs — Swahili spices, hand-carved soapstone, or colourful kikoy fabrics. Transfer to Ukunda airstrip for your flight to Nairobi, or to Moi International Airport in Mombasa for your onward journey. As you leave, reflect on ten extraordinary days — from the lion-filled grasslands of the Mara and flamingo-fringed Lake Nakuru, to the elephant kingdom beneath Kilimanjaro, to the turquoise paradise of the Indian Ocean. Kenya at its absolute finest.