Maasai man in traditional red clothing on savanna
White colonial manor with swimming pool and manicured grounds, Karen Gables, Nairobi, Kenya
Illuminated safari lodge reflected in still waterhole at night, Sarara Camp, Northern Kenya, Kenya
Thatched-roof lodge buildings surrounded by green vegetation and red flowers, Ndutu Safari Lodge, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania
Evening gathering under canvas tent with lantern lighting, Speke’s Camp, Maasai Mara, Kenya
Whitewashed colonial lodge exterior illuminated at dusk with courtyard approach, Karen Gables, Nairobi, Kenya
Person standing by infinity pool overlooking mountain landscape, Sarara Camp, Northern Kenya, Kenya
Aerial view of safari camp with yellow tent structures at dusk, Speke’s Camp, Maasai Mara, Kenya
Thatched-roof lodge buildings beneath sprawling acacia tree, Ndutu Safari Lodge, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania
Swimming pool with lounge seating and illuminated house at dusk, Karen Gables, Nairobi, Kenya
Natural waterhole surrounded by savanna and distant mountains, Sarara Camp, Northern Kenya, Kenya
Luxury tent interior with multiple beds and white linens
Stone bungalow with thatched roof at sunrise, Ndutu Safari Lodge, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania

inspiration

kenya & tanzania: sarara, the mara and ndutu

Private Safari
From $12,220 pp
2 guests
12 nights

trip highlights

  • At Sarara Camp in the 850,000-acre Namunyak Conservancy, elephants, kudu and warthog file down to the waterhole below the tents through the day.
  • Because Namunyak is Samburu community land, guiding extends to night drives, walks into montane forest for colobus monkeys and cycads, horseback rides and fly camping in a dry riverbed.
  • From Speke's Camp on the Olare Orok, your own vehicle, guide and Maasai spotter run drives into Musiara Swamp, Rhino Ridge and Paradise Plains, with the July to October crossing points within a full day out.
  • At Ndutu, from December to April the wildebeest settle on the short-grass plains to calve, and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area allows off-road driving and walking with an armed ranger.
Scroll for the full itinerary
Leopard face close-up surrounded by dry vegetation

From the Mathews Range to Lake Ndutu

This route runs for twelve nights across Kenya and into Tanzania. It opens with a night in Nairobi, then climbs to the Namunyak Conservancy on the southern slopes of the Mathews Range, crosses to the Maasai Mara, and ends on the Ndutu plains within the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Namunyak is Samburu community land, the Mara an ecosystem of reserve and conservancies under two sets of rules, and Ndutu the short-grass calving ground.

The days go to game drives and walks, with night drives, horseback riding and fly camping possible on the community land at Namunyak. The accommodation runs from a Cape Dutch guesthouse in Karen to canvas camps and a rough-stone lodge above Lake Ndutu, each a base chosen for the ground around it.

plan your safari

Daily Itinerary Breakdown

Nairobi and the Karen Suburb

The trip opens in Karen, the green suburb southwest of Nairobi, on a highland plateau at around 1,795 metres where days sit between 18 and 26 degrees and nights stay cool. The Giraffe Centre and the David Sheldrick elephant orphanage are fifteen minutes away, the Karen Blixen Museum a few minutes' drive, and Nairobi National Park is close enough for a morning drive among zebra and giraffe before you head on. A privately owned Cape Dutch guesthouse set back off Mbagathi Ridge, Karen Gables has seven rooms in a family house, gardens falling to a stream and a solar-heated pool.

Namunyak Conservancy and the Singing Wells

On the southern slopes of the Mathews Range, inside the Namunyak Conservancy, the afternoons run to the waterhole below camp, where elephants, kudu and warthog come down to drink. This is Samburu community land rather than a national park, so guiding goes past the standard drive: night drives, walks into montane forest for colobus monkeys and cycads, horseback rides and fly camping under the stars. In the dry riverbeds nearby, Samburu warriors dig wells deep into the sand to water their cattle. Sarara Camp is Samburu-owned, six high-ceilinged tents spaced along the hillside under thatch, each looking out over the range and the water.

Maasai Mara Big Cats and the Herds

You are on the northern edge of the Maasai Mara now, ten minutes by game drive from the Reserve boundary. Guides leave at first light, coffee already delivered to the tent, for Musiara Swamp, Rhino Ridge and Paradise Plains, with the Talek River deeper in as leopard country. Between July and October the wildebeest herds pour through the same ground, and the Mara River crossing points sit within reach of a full day out. Your booking comes with its own vehicle, guide and Maasai spotter, so drives run to your time. Speke's Camp is eight canvas tents under riverine trees on the Olare Orok, with campaign furniture, solar lamps and hot water carried to the shower in buckets.

  • Accommodation at Speke's Camp

Ndutu, Calving and the Open Plains

In acacia woodland above Lake Ndutu, within the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, the days follow the herds across open grass. From December to April the wildebeest settle on the short-grass plains to calve, drawn by volcanic soils, and the predators follow. Because this is the Conservation Area rather than the national park next door, guides can drive off-road and walking is permitted with an armed ranger, so a cheetah hunt can be followed across the plains or a leopard tracked into scrub. Ndutu Safari Lodge, built in 1967 and rebuilt in the 1980s, has rough local-stone cottages with lake-facing verandas, and resident genets appear along the dining-room beams at dinner.

Ed Charles photographing wildlife

Ed Charles, BBC Producer

Fitzroy are true specialists in accessing the wilderness. They know where to go and importantly, when to go there. Highly recommended.

Ed Charles

Bafta & Emmy award winning film producer of BBC’s Planet Earth 2 and A Perfect Planet

looking for inspiration?

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kenya

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Twelve nights across Kenya by helicopter, from the Borana rhino conservancy over the Suguta Valley to Turkana, then Laikipia and the Kilifi coast.

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  • From $37,100 pp
  • 4 guests
  • 12 nights
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kenya

active safari

Thirteen nights across Kenya, from Laikipia rhino country and the Mathews Range forest to Naboisho and the Loita Hills.

  • Private Safari
  • From $15,885 pp
  • 2 guests
  • 13 nights
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kenya

giraffes, naivasha and the mara

Nine nights in Kenya linking Giraffe Manor, Lake Naivasha's Loldia House and Governors' Camp on the Mara River.

  • Private Safari
  • From $7,900 pp
  • 2 guests
  • 9 nights
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rated five stars by our clients

Planning a journey together

our approach

remote, exclusive
& personal

Every journey starts with a conversation. We take the time to understand your vision before we start planning.

Whether by phone or in person, we work with you directly to shape something that is considered, personal, and expertly delivered.

Every journey starts with a conversation. We favour a direct, personal approach: understanding your vision before anything else.

Whether by phone or in person, we work with you directly to shape a journey that is both thoughtfully considered and expertly delivered.

Get in touch to start planning yours.

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