6 Days Cheetah Trail
Tsavo, Amboseli, Lake Naivasha, and the Maasai Mara, the open country where cheetah run.
Built around the fastest animal on the plains.
The cheetah is a creature of open ground, and this six-day route is shaped around the places it hunts. From the red plains of Tsavo East it climbs to the elephant country of Amboseli, drops to the calm water of Lake Naivasha, and finishes with two full days in the Maasai Mara, where the wide, treeless grassland gives the cheetah room to do what nothing else can.
Amboseli’s open swamps and the Mara’s rolling plains are two of the strongest cheetah grounds in Kenya. Along the way you also stand a good chance of lion, leopard, rhino, and the wider cast of the savanna. The trip ends with a scheduled flight from Nairobi back to the coast.
The itinerary.
A sample six-day route. Pick-up times, lodges, and pace can all be adjusted to suit your group.
Mombasa to Tsavo East National Park
You are met at Moi International Airport and driven to the famous Tsavo East, home of the red elephants, so coloured from wallowing in the park’s red soil, and one of the strongholds of the Big Five. A mid-morning game drive brings you to the lodge in time for lunch. The afternoon is at leisure, or you can take an optional nature or bird walk, before a late-afternoon game drive in search of more wildlife.
Tsavo East to Amboseli National Park
After an early breakfast you drive through the park, exit at Manyani Gate onto the Mombasa–Nairobi highway, and head for Amboseli National Park, which borders Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa. You arrive in time for lunch at the lodge, then head out on an afternoon game drive across the plains in the soft late light.
Amboseli to Lake Naivasha
After breakfast you depart for Lake Naivasha, arriving for lunch. The afternoon brings a boat ride on the freshwater lake, gliding past hippos and a wealth of birdlife along the reeded shore.
Lake Naivasha to the Maasai Mara
After breakfast you drive to the Maasai Mara National Reserve, with a game drive en route to the lodge, then an afternoon game drive in search of wildlife. The Mara is the most celebrated reserve in Kenya, an extension of the Serengeti plains across the border, and it offers the country’s finest game viewing. On these wide, rolling grasslands an extraordinary variety of animals is often in view at once.
A full day in the Maasai Mara
After an early breakfast you collect picnic lunch boxes and set out on a full day’s game drive across the reserve. At the Mara River you can watch hippos and crocodiles, with lunch by the water or under a tree. The day continues in search of lion, cheetah, rhino, and giraffe across the open plains.
Maasai Mara to Nairobi, and fly to Mombasa
An early morning game drive is followed by breakfast, then the drive to Nairobi for lunch at the Carnivore Restaurant. Afterwards you are dropped at the airport for your scheduled flight to Mombasa, and transferred to your beach hotel.
Inclusions & exclusions.
- Transport in a pop-up-roof 4×4 safari vehicle with guaranteed window seats
- Services of a professional English-speaking driver-guide throughout
- All park and reserve entrance fees
- Full-board accommodation at the lodges and camps shown, or similar
- A boat ride on Lake Naivasha
- Lunch at the Carnivore Restaurant, Nairobi
- Scheduled flight from Nairobi to Mombasa
- Bottled drinking water in the vehicle each day
- All game drives as detailed in the itinerary
- Flying Doctors emergency evacuation cover
- Pick-up and drop-off at your Mombasa beach hotel
- International flights and any domestic flights not specified
- Visa fees and travel insurance
- Alcoholic and soft drinks
- Tips and gratuities for guides and lodge staff
- Personal expenses including telephone calls, laundry, and similar
- Optional activities unless specified
- Any items not specified above
Lodges shown reflect our standard arrangement for this route. Where we hold a fixed relationship, the named property is used; otherwise a lodge of equivalent standard is substituted.
What you will see.
Book this safari, or shape your own version of it.
Tell us your dates and who is travelling. We will confirm availability and tailor the route, the pace, and the lodges to your group.