13-Day Kenya Birds, wildlife & Beach Tour

Our Kenya birding safari begins immediately upon arrival at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. First, we’ll head to nearby Nairobi National Park, an extraordinary urban wildlife sanctuary just 10km from downtown. Despite its proximity to the city, this 117km² park boasts an impressive checklist of over 520 bird species.

Key species to look for include the near-endemic Nairobi Pipit, Common Ostrich, Saddle-billed Stork, African Spoonbill, Secretary Bird, and various raptors such as Black-shouldered Kite, Lappet-faced Vulture, and Martial Eagle. Additionally, the park hosts specialty birds like Shelley’s Francolin, Hartlaub’s Bustard, and Jackson’s Widowbird.

Beyond birdlife, the park offers excellent wildlife viewing opportunities, including the Big Five (lion, leopard, rhino, elephant, and buffalo) alongside plains game such as Masai giraffe, Burchell’s zebra, and various antelope species.

Overnight: Ole Sereni Hotel

After breakfast, we journey to Amboseli National Park, situated at the base of Africa’s highest peak, Mount Kilimanjaro. Despite the predominantly dry landscape, the park features lush wetlands fed by underground springs from the mountain. These swampy habitats, combined with acacia woodlands and Commiphora bushland, create diverse ecosystems supporting abundant birdlife.

During our afternoon game drive, we’ll search for distinctive species such as the Common Ostrich, Great White Pelican, Goliath Heron, Lesser Flamingo, Secretary Bird, and various raptors, including African Fish Eagle and Pygmy Falcon. Moreover, the park’s open vistas provide excellent opportunities for both bird photography and landscape images featuring Kilimanjaro’s snowy peak.

Overnight: Ol Tukai Lodge

Today, we dedicate a full day to exploring Amboseli’s varied habitats. In the morning, we’ll visit the wetland areas, where we may spot water-associated species, including Black-faced Sandgrouse, African Jacana, and various plovers and sandpipers.

After a midday rest at the lodge, our afternoon drive focuses on woodland and savanna birds. Target species include the colorful Von der Decken’s Hornbill, Yellow-billed Hornbill, Rufous-naped Lark, Rufous Chatterer, and Fischer’s Starling. Meanwhile, elephant herds with Kilimanjaro as a backdrop provide iconic photographic opportunities.

Overnight: Ol Tukai Lodge

A morning in search of more birds of Amboseli National Park and later transfer to Tsavo West National Park which is famous for the autumn bird ringing/banding at the Ngulia Safari Lodge with thousands of European and Asian Palearctic migrants on their way south.

The habitat is relatively denser thicket of savanna dominated by acacia-Commiphora bush land with Baobab, grassy plains, riverine woodland.

Overnight at Ngulia Safari Lodge.

Our Kenya Birding Tour in Tsavo West National Park, more birds may include the enigmatic Friedmann’s Lark, Red-naped Bush Shrike, Scaly Chatter which would be some of the star birds of this Kenya Birding Tour. Other birds may include Singing Bush Lark, Bare-eyed Thrush, Rufous Chatterer, Black-headed Plover, Quail-Plover, Somali Courser, African Scops Owl, Pringle’s Puffback, Olive-tree, Basra Reed Warbler, Violet Wood-hoopoe, Southern Black, Spot-flanked, Red & Yellow, D’Arnaud’s, Black-throated, White-headed Barbet, Greater, Scaly-throated, Yellow-billed Oxpecker, Vulturine Guineafowl,

Northern Brownbul, Desert, Zitting, Ashy, Rattling, Tiny Cisticola, Tsavo Sunbird, Hunter’s Sunbird, Jameson’s Firefinch, Green-winged Pytilia & Fire-fronted Bishop.

Overnight at Ngulia Safari Lodge.

Birding the Ngulia area en route to Rukinga Wildlife Sanctuary, bordering Tsavo East National Park. We have (though very limited) walking space in search of birds, unlike in the park, and we will take a nocturnal birding drive. Birds may include Friedmann’s Lark in case it were still wet. Bare-eyed Thrush, Scaly & Rufous Chatterers, Black-headed Plover, Quail-Plover, Somali Courser, Hartlaub’s, Bustard, African Scops Owl, Pringle’s Puffback, Southern Black Flycather, Red-winged Lark, Tiny Cisticola, Tsavo & Hunter’s Sunbird, Orange-bellied Parrot, Jameson’s Firefinch, Donaldson Smith Nightjar, Spotted Eagle-Owl, and Red-naped Bush-Shrike

Overnight at Kivuli Camp.

Birding tour in Rukinga Wildlife Sanctuary and later after lunch we drive across into Tsavo East National Park. The Park is mainly made of a large track of open country with lava ridges and rocky outcrops, Acacia-Commiphora woodlands, and Galana River with its bushed thickets dominated by the Doum Palm.

Overnight at Ashnil Aruba Lodge.

Birding tour through the Tsavo East National Park with picnic lunches and exiting from the eastern gate driving to Watamu, Malindi arriving early evening.

Overnight at Turtle Bay Beach Club

The birding family members on this birding tour will visit the famous Arabuko Sokoke Forest and the non-birders will enjoy marine park visit, deep sea fishing, or sun-bathing along the white sandy beaches. The forest is the largest remnant of the East African Coastal Forest. We hope to see the rarely seen Kenyan endemic Clarke’s Weaver among the rich diversity of other bird species.  Other birds of Arabuko Sokoke Forest may include near endemic Amani Sunbird, Sokoke Pipit & Malindi Pipit, East Coast Akalat, Scaly Babbler, Mombasa Woodpecker.

 This is also the home to near endemic Golden-rumped Elephant Shrew.

Depending on the tide we will either visit Mida Creek or the forest fringed by mangrove forest, the creek has a large area that fills with the saline water during high tides. Watching and identifying wading birds here is superb, fun and hard. They may include the “the special one” Crab-Plover, Greater & Lesser Sandplovers, Black-tailed Godwit, Sanderling, Dunlin, Grey Plover, Curlew & Terek Sandpipers, Whimbrel & Eurasian Curlew, Oystercatcher, Dimorphic Egret, Yellow-billed & Wooly-necked Storks, Mangrove Kingfisher.

Depending on the tide we’ll visit Mida Creek (hopefully during the lunch time) fringed by mangrove forest, the creek has a large area that fills with the saline water during high tides. Watching and identifying wading birds here is superb, fun and hard. They may include the “the special one” Crab-Plover, Greater & Lesser Sandplovers, Black-tailed Godwit, Sanderling, Dunlin, Grey Plover, Curlew & Terek Sandpipers, Whimbrel & Eurasian Curlew, Oystercatcher, Dimorphic Egret, Yellow-billed & Wooly-necked Storks, Mangrove Kingfisher.

Overnight at Turtle Bay Beach Club

We’ll also squeeze some time to visit Sabaki River Estuary an area characterized by sandbanks, mudflats, mudbanks, sand dunes, fresh pools, and marshes. The site is important for both intra-African and Palearctic migrants for roosting, resting, and feeding ground for gulls and terns.

A good site for Madagascar Pratincole, African Skimmer. Also Dimorphic & Little Egrets, Great & Lesser Flamingos, Water Thick-knee, Ruddy Turnstone, Heuglin’s,, Sooty and Lesser Black-backed Gulls, Gull-billed, Caspian, Greater-crested, Lesser-crested & Common Terns, also the Southern Carmine Bee-eater, Ethiopian Swallow, Zanzibar Red Bishop also nearby Malindi Pipit.

Overnight at Turtle Bay Beach Club

Residing at Turtle Bay Beach Club located at the waterfront of Watamu Marine National Reserve we spend two days on the beach and activities may include snorkeling, deep see diving, glass bottom boat marine fish viewing, sky diving, a visit to ruins of Gedi (a historical and archaeological site) or just basking on the white sandy beach.  Again the non-birders family members will have had longer beach holiday while we visited the forest for birding.

Overnight at Turtle Bay Beach Club

Beach holiday at the club before your local Malindi -Nairobi flight connecting you to Nairobi for your international flight at JKI Airport.