15-Day Kenya Birdwatching Tour

Nairobi National Park

Your Kenya Birding Tour begins at Nairobi National Park, an extraordinary urban wildlife haven just 10km from downtown with an impressive record of over 520 bird species within its 117km² area.

Potential sightings include the distinctive Nairobi Pipit, majestic Secretary Bird, Saddle-billed Stork, African Spoonbill, and powerful raptors like the Martial Eagle and Lappet-faced Vulture. Additionally, we'll search for specialized grassland species, including Yellow-necked Spurfowl, Hartlaub's Bustard, and Jackson's Widowbird.

While focusing on birdwatching, we'll also encounter the park's renowned big game, such as White and Black Rhino, Lion, Cape Buffalo, Masai Giraffe, and various antelope species.

Overnight: Ole Sereni Hotel

Nairobi - Mt Kenya Forest

After breakfast, we'll head to the Thika area in pursuit of one of Kenya's prized endemic birds—the Hinde's Babbler—along with the localized Grey-Olive Greenbul. Subsequently, we'll continue to the southern slopes of Mount Kenya to explore highland forest habitats.

Here, we'll search for forest specialists including Hartlaub's Turaco, African Crowned Eagle, Sharpe's Starling, and another Kenyan endemic, the Kikuyu White-eye. Additionally, we may spot the vibrant Purple-throated Cuckooshrike, Eastern Double-collared Sunbird, and Red-fronted Parrot among the lush forest canopy.

Overnight: Castle Lodge

Mt Kenya Forest – Samburu National Reserve

Birding tour/walk at the lodge and picking up some missing species before leaving for Samburu National Reserve located on the northern banks of Ewaso Nyiro River and adjoining the Buffalo Springs National Reserve on the southern bank.

After lunch birding in the reserve till dusk.

Overnight at Samburu Game Lodge

Samburu National Reserve

Moderate birding tour in Samburu National Reserve. Somali Ostrich, Bateleur, Palm-nut Vulture, African Hawk-eagle, Pygmy Falcon, Martial Eagle. A hard one to miss is a rib-tickling looking Vulturine Guineafowl. Buff-crested Bustard, Black-faced, Chestnut-bellied & Lichtenstein’s Sandgrouses, Rosy-patched Bushshrike,African Orange-bellied Parrot, African Scops-owl, Pearl-spotted Owlet, Von der Decken’s Hornbill, Red-and-yellow Barbet, Bearded Woodpecker, Somali Bee-eater, Rufous-crowned Roller, Pink-breasted Lark, African Bare-eyed Thrush, Hunter’s & Black-bellied Sunbirds, Golden-breasted, Hilderbrant’s & Fischer’s Starlings, Donaldson-Smith’s Sparrow-weaver and a special trip to one corner of the reserve in search of another Kenyan Endemic the William’s Lark and may include the Northern Grosbeak Canary, Somali Crombec, Shining Sunbirds, Brown-tailed Rock Chat and Gambaga Flycatcher.

A wide set of mammals thrive in the 3 reserves and including Reticulated Giraffe, endangered Gravy’s Zebra, Dwarf Mongoose, Kirk’s & Gunther’s Dikdik, Common Waterbuck, Gerenuk and the war-like horned Beisa Oryx, African Elephant, Lion, Leopard & Cheetah.

Overnight at Samburu Game Lodge

Samburu National Reserve – Ol Pejeta Wildlife Conservancy

Birding and enroute game drive and transfer to the largest Black Rhino sanctuary in East Africa known as Ol Pejeta Wildlife Conservancy. Arrive for lunch and gamedrive in the afternoon.

Our tented camp, a sheltered oasis, clustered around a water hole and set in the pristine calm of the private conservancy, Sweetwaters Serena Camp offers a charming blend of under-canvas ambiance and Kenyan safari luxury.

Overnight at Serena Sweetwaters Tented Camp 

Ol Pejeta Wildlife Conservancy – Lake Nakuru National Park

Birding and gamedrive in the conservancy en route transfer to Lake Nakuru National Park stopping at a large cliff wall that is a roosting spot for the highly-sought-after Mackinder’s Eagle-Owl. Also possible are Little Rock Thrush, Red-winged Starling, Pale Flycatcher and Long-billed Pipit.

Birding in Lake Nakuru National Park is regarded as the “the greatest ornithological spectacle in the world” with both Lesser and Greater Flamingoes sometimes exceeding 100s of thousands of individuals, however in the recent years you hardly see many thousands individual birds but still it’s a place far worth the birding experience. The alkaline habitat, acacia woodland, grassland, rivers and inlets with marshes holds residents as well as migratory species.

Close up views of Little Grebe, Great White Pelican, Black-winged Stilt, Gull-billed, Whiskered Tern, Grey-headed Gull, Cape, Red-billed Teal, Three-banded Plover, Little Stint, Long-crested, Tawny Eagle, Black-shouldered Kite, Augur Buzzard, White-fronted Bee-eater, Lilac-breasted Roller, Rock Martin, Arrow-Marked Babbler, Little Rock Thrush, Wailing, Rattling Cisticola, Rüppell’s Long-tailed Starling, Rüppell’s Robin Chat, White-shouldered Cliff Chat, African Grey Flycatcher, Yellow-breasted Apalis, Common, Grey-backed Fiscal, Tropical Boubou, Black Cuckoo-shrike, Red-cheeked Cordon-bleu among many others.

In addition, the park is rich in big games that includes the Rothschild’s Giraffe, Cape Buffalo, waterbuck, Common Eland, hippo, both Black and White Rhino, Lion, leopard, Spotted Hyena

Overnight at Lake Nakuru Lodge

Lake Nakuru National Park- Lake Baringo

Birding tour in Lake Nakuru National Park later leaving for Lake Baringo. Birding in the afternoon around the lake.

Overnight at Tumbili Cliff Lodge Lodge

Lake Baringo Conservation Area

Lake Baringo make Kenya a true Birding Safari country and birding around the lake’s many habitats including the cliffs and the shores. If lucky with the help of the local guides we hope to see some the specialties such as the Northern White-faced & African Scops Owls, Greyish Eagle-owl, Verreaux’s Eagle-Owl, Three-banded (Heuglin’s) Courser, Slender-tailed Nightjar.

Some good chunk of our time will be spent also at the campground that is rich in birds. Other birds may include: Bristle-crowned Starling, Brown-tailed Rock Chat, Hemprich’s, Jackson’s Hornbills, Green-winged Pytilia, Red & Yellow Barbet, African Pigmy Kingfisher, Black-headed Plover, Black-throated Barbet, Somali Tit, Little, Golden-backed, Northern Masked, Lesser Masked & Black-headed Weavers, Northern Red Bishop, Red-fronted Warbler, Lanner Falcon, Verreaux’s Eagle, Blue-naped Mousebird, Red-fronted Barbet, Pygmy Batis, Northern Crombec and Cardinal Quelea among many other species.

And birding at Lake Baringo is not enough without a boat trip to explore the lake for water birds such as Purple & Goliath Herons, Yellow-billed Stork, White-backed Night Heron, African Darter, Knob-billed Duck. A star bird from the boat ride is a Northern Red Bishop

Overnight at Tumbili Cliff Lodge

Lake Baringo- Lake Naivasha

A morning birding tour on a boat ride and explore the lake for water birds such as Long-tailed Cormorant, Common Squacco, Green-backed, Purple, Goliath Heron, Yellow-billed Stork, African Darter, Knob-billed Duck and later after breakfast go birdwatching along the cliffs for more species before transfer to Lake Naivasha.  

Overnight at Elsamere Centre

Lake Naivasha - Masai Mara National Reserve

Our Kenya Birding Tour takes to the famous Masai Mara National Reserve, a plain of rolling grassland dotted with a mixture of acacia trees and the plain game which includes large herds of elephants, zebras, topis, hartebeests, gazelles, Impala’s not forgetting the well known Mara/ Serengeti Wildebeest’s migration, lions, cheetah. We’ll stay on the central part of the reserve along the Mara River. Specialties include the Long-tailed, Rock Cisticolas, Wattled Plover, Rufous-bellied Heron, Pale Wren Warbler. Also Rosy-breasted Longclaw, Ashy Flycatcher, Grey-rumped, Red-rumped Swallow, White-headed, Lappet-faced, White-headed Vulture, White-naped Raven, Ross Turaco, Black-backed Puffback, Croaking Cisticola, Fan-tailed Widowbird, Hildebrandt’s Starling, Yellow-billed Oxpecker, Black & White Casqued Hornbill, Narina Trogon, Lilac-breasted Roller, Common Wattle-eye, Silverbird, Plain and Long-billed Pipit, Saddle-billed, Woolly-necked Stork, Yellow-fronted Canary among many others.

Overnight at Ashnil Mara Tented Bush Camp

Masai Mara National Reserve

Today we en-route game drive the entire reserve looking for bird specialties of the eastern parts of Mara.

Overnight at Ashnil Mara Tented Camp.

Masai Mara National Reserve- Nairobi

After an early morning breakfast transfer to Nairobi en route game drive in Masai Mara National Reserve on our way to Nairobi while searching for more bird species especially the Magpie Shrike and others on the eastern part of the reserve. Picnic lunch along the way.

Nairobi

The final day of our Kenya Birding Tour takes us to the Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage where we will interact with the little orphaned elephants and here their stories from the keeper for an our.

Later visiting the Giraffe Centre interacting with the Rothschild Giraffe and Kazuri Beads Factory again iteracting with the local women hand crafting the sort after beads. We later visit Carnivore Restaurant for dinner before transfer to the airport for your outbound flight