6-Day Signature Kenya Safari: Majesty of the Mane

Welcome to Kenya. After clearing immigration at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, you are met by your Gip Adventure driver-guide and transferred to your hotel in Nairobi, the lively capital that serves as the gateway to East Africa's great safaris.

If you land early, ask us about a short afternoon visit to the Giraffe Centre or the Karen Blixen Museum at the foot of the Ngong Hills. Otherwise, settle in, enjoy dinner and a full safari briefing, and rest well before your journey into the wild begins. Overnight in Nairobi.

After breakfast, leave Nairobi and drive to the Great Rift Valley viewpoint for a breathtaking first look over the valley floor and the volcanic cones of Mount Longonot and Suswa. Continue across the valley and through the market town of Narok to the Masai Mara National Reserve, a journey of around 5–6 hours.

Arrive at your camp in time for lunch, then set out on an afternoon game drive. The Mara's rolling grasslands are home to some of Africa's densest populations of lions, along with cheetahs, leopards, elephants, buffalo and vast herds of plains game. Dinner and overnight in the Masai Mara.

Lions are often found close to the reserve's main roads in the afternoon, resting in the shade before the evening hunt, so keep your camera ready from the moment you enter the gate.

Today belongs to the lions. The Masai Mara has one of the highest densities of lions in Africa, and its prides and coalitions of males are among the most closely watched anywhere. Set out at first light to find them while they are still active, perhaps feeding on a kill, calling across the plains or leading cubs to water.

With a picnic lunch on board, you can follow a pride through the day at your own pace, learning from your guide how lionesses cooperate in a hunt and how males defend their territory. In the late afternoon, as the heat eases, the cats begin to stir again, often the best time for action. Dinner and overnight in the Masai Mara.

Enjoy another full day in the reserve, this time exploring towards the Mara River with a picnic lunch. Hippos crowd the river pools, giant Nile crocodiles bask on the banks, and the riverine forest is a favourite haunt of leopards. During the migration months, this is where the famous crossings take place.

On the open plains, look for cheetahs, which favour the Mara's short grass for hunting, and for the elephants, buffalo, giraffes, topis and elands that make every drive different. With over 400 bird species recorded, the birdlife is superb too, from secretary birds to martial eagles. Return to camp at sunset for dinner and overnight in the Masai Mara.

Enjoy a last early-morning game drive in the Masai Mara, when the lions are most active, then return to camp for breakfast. Afterwards, drive north through Narok and across the Mau to Lake Nakuru National Park in the Great Rift Valley, around 5–6 hours.

Arrive in time for a late-afternoon game drive. Lions are found here too, and occasionally climb into the acacias, while the park's rhinos, buffalo and Rothschild's giraffes make it a fine contrast to the open plains of the Mara. Drive up to Baboon Cliff for sunset over the lake. Dinner and overnight at Lake Nakuru.

Set out early for a final game drive in Lake Nakuru National Park, a last chance to see lions, rhinos and the flamingo-fringed shore in the soft morning light. Return to your lodge for breakfast and check out.

Drive back to Nairobi, around 3–4 hours, stopping at the Great Rift Valley viewpoint for a final look over the valley. After lunch in Nairobi, you are transferred to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport for your onward flight. Kwaheri, and safe travels.