Private or Group Kenya safari
One full day in the reserve, framed by the drive in and the drive out.
Choose your level
The road, the parks and the day-by-day itinerary are the same at every level. What changes is where you sleep, what you travel in and what it costs.
Trip facts
Overview
Three days works well when time is limited and the Maasai Mara is the priority. It gives you an arrival-afternoon drive, one uninterrupted full day in the reserve, and a return to Nairobi on the third day.
The full day is the point. With a picnic lunch on board, your guide can work the reserve properly: follow a pride through the morning, sit with a sighting instead of moving on, and finish in the good light of late afternoon.
Both nights stay in one Mara base, so there is no accommodation change. The trade-off is that road travel is a meaningful part of the first and last days, and this focused route does not include Lake Nakuru, Lake Naivasha or Amboseli.
RouteNairobi · Maasai Mara · Nairobi
Featured journeyA focused Maasai Mara route with one full game-drive day and two nights in one place.
Is three days enough?
Three days works well when the Maasai Mara is your priority and you accept road travel on the first and last days.
It gives you an arrival-afternoon game drive and one full reserve day, while keeping both nights in one place. It is a focused one-reserve route, not a compressed version of a wider Kenya circuit.
How the trip feels
Day 1 · Nairobi → Maasai Mara
Road travel from Nairobi is a meaningful part of the day. The scheduled safari opportunity comes after arrival and lunch, with the afternoon game drive in the itinerary.
Scheduled: Rift Valley escarpment viewpoint · Afternoon game drive
Day 2 · Maasai Mara
This is the route’s uninterrupted Maasai Mara day. The picnic lunch lets the guide work across the reserve without returning to camp at midday.
Scheduled: Full-day game drive with picnic lunch · Mara river hippo pools
Day 3 · Maasai Mara → Nairobi
There is no additional game drive scheduled on the standard third day. After breakfast, the optional village visit can take place before the road transfer to Nairobi.
Scheduled: Optional Maasai village visit · Road transfer to Nairobi
Road time varies with traffic, weather and road conditions. The itinerary does not promise a fixed transfer duration or arrival time.
Best fit · What you gain
Consider longer · What you trade off
Accommodation and price
Transport in a 4×4 Safari Land Cruiser is included at every level. Accommodation and price change; the three-day itinerary does not.
Know the place
This page explains the itinerary. Read the destination guide for the reserve itself, or use the migration planner if seasonal herd movement is the reason for your trip.
Migration timing follows rainfall and herd movement. A river crossing cannot be guaranteed on this—or any—specific departure.
This route · Luxury
Your selected route and safari level carry into the existing Plan My Safari enquiry.
Plan this 3-day Maasai Mara safariIf you have longer
5 days / 4 nights
Nairobi · Maasai Mara · Lake Nakuru · Lake Naivasha · Nairobi
Choose this when you have five safari days and prefer a lake and walking pause to adding a fourth wildlife area.
View this safari6 days / 5 nights
Nairobi · Maasai Mara · Lake Nakuru · Amboseli · Nairobi
Consider this route if Mara and Amboseli matter more to you than a Naivasha pause and you have six days.
View this safari7 days / 6 nights
Nairobi · Maasai Mara · Lake Nakuru · Lake Naivasha · Amboseli · Nairobi
Choose this when you have a full week and want the widest first-time Kenya circuit of these three options.
View this safariYour route
Where you stay, and for how long. The full route is listed in text below the line, so it reads the same however you are viewing this page.
Day by day
Timings are indicative and depend on road and park conditions on the day. Meals shown are those included in the safari price.
Day 1Nairobi → Maasai Mara
Collection from your Nairobi hotel in the morning, then west over the Rift Valley escarpment with a viewpoint stop, and on through Narok. You arrive at camp for lunch and head out for an afternoon game drive as the heat comes off the day.
Day 2Maasai Mara
Out after breakfast with a picnic lunch, and back at camp around sunset. The reserve has a good track network, which lets your guide cover the different grassland and river country rather than circling one area. Lunch is usually taken near the hippo pools on the Mara river.
Day 3Maasai Mara → Nairobi
There is time for an early optional visit to a nearby Maasai village before a full breakfast at camp. You then drive back to Nairobi with lunch on the way, arriving in the afternoon for a hotel or airport drop-off.
Accommodation · Luxury
These are properties Ndurumo may recommend or use at this level on this route. Final accommodation is confirmed with your quotation and remains subject to availability.
Maasai Mara · Luxury2 nights
Either of these luxury camps may be used, depending on dates and availability.
Accommodation confirmed with your quotation and subject to availability.
Plan this safariWhat you’ll experience
A full, unhurried day in the Maasai Mara with a picnic lunch
Two nights in one place, so no time lost to packing
The hippo pools on the Mara river
An optional visit to a neighbouring Maasai community
A format that works at every accommodation level
Package detail
These lists apply to the luxury version of this route. Optional extras are listed against the day they fall on.
Pricing
Price depends on travel dates, group size, accommodation level, park fees at the time of travel and vehicle arrangements.
We have not loaded a contracted rate for this tier yet, and we would rather quote you accurately than estimate. Price depends on dates, occupancy, park fees, vehicle arrangements and accommodation availability.
This route, shaped around you
Your enquiry carries this route and level automatically, so you only add the details we genuinely need to price it.
It can be enough when the Maasai Mara is your main priority and you are comfortable with road travel on the first and last days. The route includes an arrival-afternoon drive and one full safari day. If you want a slower pace or other Kenya destinations, compare the five-, six- and seven-day circuits.
The standard itinerary includes an afternoon game drive after arrival on Day 1 and a full-day game drive with picnic lunch on Day 2. Day 3 is the return to Nairobi, with an optional Maasai village visit before departure rather than another scheduled game drive.
The route is available as a Private or Group safari. Private departures use their own vehicle and guide; group departures share the safari vehicle. We confirm the available format for your dates with the quotation.
The Maasai Mara may receive the northern migration seasonally, but herd movement follows rainfall and grazing conditions. Neither the herds nor a river crossing can be guaranteed for a particular three-day stay. Use the Great Migration planner to choose a likely broad region, then plan for the wider safari experience.
Yes. Published rates are per person sharing a twin or double room. Solo travellers pay a single-occupancy supplement, which we quote with the rest of the trip.
Travel dates, the number of people travelling, your accommodation tier, park fees at the time of travel and vehicle arrangements. We reprice every enquiry for the exact dates rather than working from a fixed sheet.
Yes. The route below is the standard shape of the trip. Nights can be added or moved, and destinations can be swapped, as long as the driving distances still work.
Yes. All park and reserve entrance fees for the parks in the itinerary are included in the quoted price.
Road safaris use a 4×4 Safari Land Cruiser. Private departures have their own vehicle; group departures share the vehicle with fellow travellers.
Yes. Tell us your children's ages when you enquire and we will confirm which properties on the route suit them and whether child rates apply.
3 Days Maasai Mara Safari
Share your dates and party, and we will come back with a quotation for this itinerary at the level you have chosen — or tell you honestly if a different route fits better.
A guided enquiry, not an instant booking. No obligation.
