kenya: giraffes, naivasha and the mara

Very probably, but it is their choice.

The herd lives freely in about 150 acres of forest around the house and visits only if and when it wishes. What draws the giraffes in is a ration of pellets, offered morning and evening as a supplement to the leaves they browse.

The pellets are on offer for only 12 hours in every 24 and the amount is strictly controlled, so a giraffe that has had enough simply wanders off.

This route gives you two nights, which is what we recommend, and that means two breakfasts and two afternoon teas, so one quiet morning matters much less.

The giraffes come to both buildings, the 1930s house and the newer Garden Manor. Breakfast tables are allocated by the staff and cannot be reserved, and only overnight guests may take part.

As early as you can, because only half the house is open to this route.

Giraffe Manor has 12 rooms. The six in the original 1930s building are held for guests who are also staying at the Manor's sister camps elsewhere in Kenya, and this trip uses different places on Lake Naivasha and in the Mara.

That leaves the six rooms of the Garden Manor, which anyone may book, and the giraffes visit both buildings alike. If the Garden Manor is full on your dates there is a waiting list, and unsold rooms in either building are released within four weeks of travel, which is too late to plan a holiday around.

So the Manor is the first thing we secure, and Loldia House and Governors' Camp are fitted around its dates. If you would rather sleep in the original house, ask us about moving the Mara nights to one of its sister camps.

It puts you on the river, at the cost of some freedoms.

Governors' Camp stands on the bank of the Mara River beside the Musiara Marsh, inside the national reserve, close to crossing points the herds use between July and October and in country that holds lion, leopard and cheetah all year.

The trade is that the reserve's rules are tighter than those of the private conservancies around it. Night drives, walking safaris and off-road driving are not permitted in the reserve, and a good sighting draws more vehicles than it would in a conservancy, above all at the river in the migration months.

On this route the drives after dark and the walking happen at Loldia House instead, where the land is private. If you would like them in the Mara too, ask us about dividing the three nights between Governors' Camp and a conservancy camp.

Only between about late July and October, and even then it takes patience and some luck.

We put the peak in August and September, with the timing set by that year's rain and not by the calendar. Nobody publishes a success rate, and any figure you are quoted is a guess.

What can be said is that you are well placed. The camp is near key crossing points on the Mara River, so your guide can check the banks on morning and afternoon drives without a long journey first.

A crossing cannot be scheduled: a herd may plunge in soon after it arrives, stand on the bank for hours or days, or turn away. Three nights gives you up to six drives in which to try.

Outside those months the reasons to come are the marsh, the riverine forest and the resident cats, with far fewer vehicles about.

Yes. It is an optional activity, so tell us when you enquire and we will reserve places for the morning you want.

The balloon company launches at first light from its site behind Little Governors' Camp, a sister camp, and arranges the transfer there for guests of Governors' Camp. The flight lasts about an hour on average and ends with a cooked breakfast out on the grass.

Where you drift is decided by the wind on the day, and balloons fly only when the weather allows, so it is sensible to book your first morning in the Mara and keep a later one in reserve.

The balloon company's own rule is that children must be eight or older and taller than 1.2 metres, so tell us the ages and heights of any young travellers before we book.

For the wildebeest, July to October, which our Mara pages rate highest, and July to September suit Nairobi and Lake Naivasha just as well. Those are also the busiest months in the reserve, with more vehicles at the river.

January and February are the other months we rate highest at every stop, dry and clear and without the migration traffic.

The giraffes at the Manor and the resident cats around the Musiara Marsh are there all year, so neither depends on the season.

The long rains of April and May are when we would not plan it: tracks are muddy and the grass in the reserve grows long. March, too, we rate as challenging in the Mara.

June, November and December fall in between, with showers but also emptier plains, gentler prices and newborn animals, and from November to April the migrant birds add to Lake Naivasha's list of over 400 species.