National Parks

Kenya is known for having the best wild life in the world with 57 National Parks, Reserves and Sanctuaries.A total area the size of Switzerland! Sun-baked savannahs, snow-capped mountains, forest jungle, glistening coral reefs, a myriad of game, rivers, water falls, lakes and deserts: Kenya has it all!

Kenya's landscape ranks among the most fascinating and diverse the world over. From the low-lying coastlands to the snow capped Mt. Kenya that rises to 17,058ft. Above sea level. From the tree dotted plains to the escarpment that marks the sudden drop into the floor of the eastern arm of the Great Rift Valley with it's alkaline lakes.

EGS has selected the best of all of this, for you to experience in luxury.

Serengeti National Park

During the annual migration, when the wildebeest and zebra pack up and leave their grazing areas to find fresher ones, the Serengeti is an astonishing place to be.

It provides very good safari trips at other times of the year too but the migration has been ranked by many as one of the wonders of the natural world.

Masai Mara National Park

If you want to see the big cats, this wildlife park is the best of the best. Lion, leopard and cheetah abound and they are relatively easy to spot because of the grassland vegetation which means you get unrestricted views for miles around.

Another big plus is the fact that going off-road is allowed as long as you are not making new trails of your own. This is one of the few vacations in Africa parks that still allows this and it is a big advantage because the animals will rarely oblige you and stay next to the major roads.

Amboseli

Amboseli National Park at the foot of Africa's highest mountain, 5895m Kilimanjaro, is one of the most popular of Kenya's national parks. The snowcapped peak of Mt Kilimanjaro rising above a saucer of clouds dominates every aspect of Amboseli. The park covers 392 square kilometers and supports a wide range of mammals (over 50 species) and birds (over 400 species). Elephants roam the parks in herds of hundred or more and nowhere else can these largest land mammals be seen in larger numbers. This is also the home of the Maasai people - tall, proud nomads whose legendary prowess in battle and single-handed acts has spread across the globe. They live harmoniously with the wildlife. The park is composed of a seasonal lake, swamps and springs fed by underground rivers from Kilimanjaro's melting snow. The snows of the Kilimanjaro white and crystalline, form a majestic backdrop to one of Kenya's most spectacular displays of wildlife - over thousands of elephants, leopard, giraffe, cheetah, buffalo and host of plains' game.

Laikipia

THE LAIKIPIA PLATEAU, KENYA
The Laikipia plateau in central Kenya is the last stronghold of romantic East Africa: vast open ranches, shadowed by snow-capped Mount Kenya, home to ethnically diverse communities including the Mukogodo Maasai and Samburu. These indigenous tribespeople have joined together in partnership with the settlers and ranchers to create a conservation and wildlife haven that spans two million acres (800,000 hectares) of wild savannah.

Fed by the Ewaso Nyiro and Ewaso Narok rivers, Laikipia's abundant plains have long nurtured exceptional diversity, with traditional resources still very much the mainstay of the community: from wheat and livestock ranching to wildlife conservation and now tourism.

Diversity is the key to Laikipia's attraction as a tourist destination - there is something for everyone. From wildlife conservation, activity holidays, to simply retreating from the world, it's all here. The "Big 5" are often seen (rhino, elephant, lion, leopard, buffalo) and the district is home to more endangered mammals than anywhere else in Kenya, protecting half of Kenya's black rhino in the Solio, Lewa, Ol Jogi, Ol Pejeta and Ol Ari Nyiro Sanctuaries. Laikipia also boasts the biggest herds of elephant (over 3200 at last count) outside the Tsavo National Parks and is the only place to view the endangered Jackson's Hartebeest.

Wild dog, leopard, lion, cheetah and other predators hunt the plentiful plains game: impala, gazelle, reticulated giraffe, Grevy's zebra, Somali ostrich, Beisa oryx (endemic to the north of Kenya) and gerenuk.

Lake Naivasha

The area around Naivasha was one of the first to be settled by white people and one of the hunting grounds of the hedonistic Happy Valley set. In fact Delamere Estates, originally owned by the eccentric Lord Delamere, surrounds the town.

Between 1937 and 1950 this beautiful, peaceful fresh water lake was used as a landing place for plane passengers destined for Nairobi! The flying boat from London would land on the lake where the Lake Naivasha Country Club now stands, and travellers would board a bus for Nairobi. Today the lovely lake, with its cool climate, has become a retreat for Nairobi residents and tourists looking for peace. Because the lake is freshwater and the surrounding soil fertile, this is a major production area for fruit and vegetables and, more recently, vineyards. Over 400 birds have been recorded on the lake and it supports a large number of hippo. Despite conservation efforts however, the ecological balance has been tipped by the introduction of sport fish, including the Nile perch, the north American red swamp crayfish and various aquatic plants. There are several wildlife sanctuaries in the area.

Lake Nakuru National Park

The Rift Valley is the greatest valley in the world, a continental fault system that stretches from the Dead Sea all the way to Mozambique.

In Kenya it passes from Lake Turkana in the north to Lake Magadi in the south. In between there are a series of lakes e.g. Baringo, Bogoria, Nakuru, Elementeita and Naivasha. Lake Bogoria, Nakuru and Elementeita boast millions of flamingoes, which is a spectacular sight. Volcanic activities left their mark in the Rift Valley and can be found in form of half submerged islands, giant calderas and the distinctive cone shapes which dot the landscape as well as dormant volcanoes.

The Rift Valley evokes a sense of immense mystery and the power of time.Nakuru National Park - "Bird Watchers' Paradise..."Lake Nakuru is a very shallow strongly alkaline lake 62 km2 in extent. It is set in a picturesque landscape of surrounding woodland and grassland next to Nakuru town. The landscape includes areas of marsh and grasslands alternating with rocky cliffs and outcrops, stretches of acacia woodland and rocky hillsides covered with a Euphorbia forest on the eastern perimeter.The lake catchment is bounded by Menengai crater to the north, the Bahati hills to the north east, the lion hill ranges to the east, eburu crater to the south and the mau escarpment to the west. Three major rivers, the njoro, makalia and enderit drain into the lake, together with the outflow from several springs along the shore.

Lake Nakuru was first gazetted as a bird sanctuary in 1960 and upgraded to National Park status in 1968. A northern extension was added to the park in 1974 and the lake was designated as a Ramsar site in 1990. The foundation of the parks food chains is the cyanophyte spirulina platensis which can support huge numbers of lesser flamingo.

Location:
Central Kenya, 140km north-west of Nairobi, in Nakuru District of the Rift Valley Province. It covers an area of 188 km2.

Major Attractions:
Millions of Flamingos (Greater and Lesser) and other water birds including Pelicans and a variety of terrestrial birds numbering about 450 species in total.

Mammals:
56 different species including white rhinos, Giraffes and Waterbucks.Unique vegetation: About 550 different plant species including the unique and biggest euphorbia forest in Africa. Picturesque landscape and yellow acacia woodlands.

Maasai Mara Game Reserve

Maasai Mara is Kenya's finest wildlife sanctuary and covers about 1510 square kilometers. The wildlife is abundant and the gently rolling plains ensure that animals are never out of sight. Bird life too is prolific - there are well over 450 spices recorded among them 57 species birds of prey. Between July and October, when the great wildebeest migration is in the Mara the sensation is unparalleled. We guarantee that you will see the famous Maasai lions, which nowhere else can be seen more plentiful. The Maasai Mara is served by several rivers along which most of the lodges are built. These rivers are home to hippos and crocodiles. Apart from the plains' game, the Mara is also a host to - lion, leopard, rhino, cheetah elephant and buffalo.

Mt. Kenya/ Abardares

Mount Kenya & the Aberdares Region
These two neighboring areas are in the Central Highlands of Kenya and have an amazing geography of contrast. The deep green of cultivated farmland gives way to the purple-gray scrub grass of high ranches where cattle, sheep and plains game graze. The mountain ranges are covered with forests with hidden trout streams. In the center is the Mt. Kenya (5189m) - among the world's largest free-standing volcanic mountains. The equator crosses the northern slopes of the Mt. Kenya at 3350 meters. At the equator slight variations of altitude create enormous changes in both climate and landscape causing diverse weather changes. You can pass from the cool misty forest of the Aberdares to the dry Laikipia Plateau scenery offers different choices to the traveler in terms of places to stay and activities.

Sweet Waters Sanctuary

Sweet Waters Sanctuary is a 24,000-acre Game Reserve, with magnificent views across the plains to the snow capped peaks of Mount Kenya. This game sanctuary is the closest reserve to Nairobi (2.5 hours drive) home to all the big five game: Lion, Elephant, Buffaloe, Leopard and Rhino, and has the highest ratio of game-to-area of any park or reserve in Kenya.

At Sweet Waters Sanctaury, there is plenty to do. Game drives at Sweetwaters are indeed a pleasure. Game viewing may also take the form of game walks accompanied by the Resident Naturalist, and game rides on horseback. Camel riding, night game drives and “bush” lunches or dinners are a delight. The Chimpanzee Sanctuary & Information Centre, Morani the tame black rhino and the Visitor’s Information Centre are most informative and entertaining and should all be visited while in the Game Reserve.

Tsavo National Park

Tsavo National Park is approximately 11,000 square kilometres of varied bush, arid flatland and desert. Most of the park is the Yatta Plateau, a lava flow 300 kilometres long. Oases along the Athi, Tiva, Tsavo and Voi Rivers relieve the dry scrublands. The park is a wilderness area and the game can be shy but it offers great bio-diversity. Animals commonly seen at Tsavo include elephant, antelope, hippos black rhino, giraffe and eland. Uncommon species seen there include the lesser kudu, gerenuk, fringed-eared oryx, hirola and Peter’s gazelle. Tsavo has a fairly unique climate, as it is only 1400ft above sea level and therefore generally hot and dry. The river and the Yatta Plateau though create a constant breeze and the nights are cool and pleasant.