Nairobi: 5 Days Plus Amboseli
Heads up: some links here are affiliate links. Book or buy through them and we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. We only point you to things we would actually use.
Safety note: Nairobi has real street crime, mugging, carjacking, and smash-and-grab at traffic lights, plus a background terrorism risk, alongside millions of trouble-free visits a year. Use Uber, Bolt, or Little rather than walking, stay in Westlands, Karen, Gigiri, Kilimani, or Lavington rather than the CBD after dark, and check your government’s current travel advisory before you go.
Five days gives you a real choice: stretch the Mara out to three nights, or split the extra time between Amboseli’s Kilimanjaro views and a Nairobi day you’d otherwise rush. This version leans on Amboseli. Apply for Kenya’s eTA at etakenya.go.ke well ahead, around $30 and roughly 72-hour processing.
Day 1: Nairobi National Park and the elephant nursery
Book the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust’s 11am-noon window before you travel, around $20/person, and follow with an afternoon game drive at Nairobi National Park, around $80/adult non-resident (verify current KWS rate). No elephants live in the park itself, its wildlife corridor runs south into Kitengela, but lions, black rhino, buffalo, and zebra are reliable sightings. Tip for the day: arrange a driver-guide rather than self-driving, the terrain rewards local knowledge of where animals are that day.
Day 2: The Karen loop
Hand-feed giraffes at the Giraffe Centre, around KES 1,500, tour the Karen Blixen Museum, and add Kazuri Beads next door if time allows, a free tour of a women’s ceramic-bead cooperative. Tip for the day: these three sights are a short drive apart but not walkable between each other, keep Uber or Bolt on hand.
Day 3: Travel to Amboseli
Drive roughly 4-5 hours southeast or take a shorter flight to Amboseli National Park, arriving in time for an afternoon game drive. Amboseli trades the Mara’s wildlife density for dawn views of Mount Kilimanjaro over large elephant herds, best seen in the early morning before cloud typically builds over the peak. Tip for the day: leave Nairobi as early as road conditions allow, afternoon dust and cloud often obscure Kilimanjaro entirely.
Day 4: A full day in Amboseli
Spend the day on game drives, with an early wake-up for the clearest Kilimanjaro views. Tip for the day: pack a fleece, mornings and evenings here can be cool despite the equatorial latitude.
Day 5: Return to Nairobi and departure
Head back to Nairobi in the morning, budgeting real time for the drive, then use any remaining hours for souvenir shopping before your flight. Tip for the day: leave for Jomo Kenyatta International Airport at least three hours before an international flight given Nairobi’s traffic.
Read more: our Nairobi day trips guide covers Amboseli, the Mara, and Lake Nakuru side by side, and the 6-day itinerary swaps in a Lake Nakuru detour instead.