8 Day Family Kenya Safari
8 Day Kenya Family Safari – Quick Answer
An 8 day family Kenya safari covering Ol Pejeta, Lake Naivasha, and Masai Mara costs USD 5,200 – 14,000+ for a family of four (two adults, two kids under 12). The route keeps drives under four hours and mixes game viewing with hands-on stuff so kids don’t lose their minds sitting in vehicles all day.
Ol Pejeta
The drive from Nairobi takes about four hours, maybe a bit more depending on traffic getting out of the city. Good road most of the way.
Ol Pejeta has chimps. Only place in Kenya where you can see them. They’re rescues—some from the pet trade, some from research facilities in other African countries. The sanctuary can’t release them to the wild so they live there permanently in social groups.
Kids like the chimps more than most safari animals, honestly. Lions sleep. Elephants are far away. Chimps are active and loud and do things that look almost human—they fight, play, steal food from each other. A seven-year-old will watch them for ages when the same kid got bored of the fifth sleeping lion.
There’s a blind black rhino named Baraka who lives in a special enclosure because he can’t survive in the wild anymore. The rangers let you feed him sugarcane through the fence. This is the thing kids talk about afterward—standing close enough to hear him chewing, feeling his rough lip take the food. It happens at specific times during the day and you need to ask your guide or the camp when.
They also have this K9 unit for anti-poaching—trained bloodhounds—and apparently you can book a demonstration where the dogs actually track you. You run off and hide in the bush and they find you. I’ve heard from families that kids over eight or so think this is the best thing on the whole trip. It’s not always available and costs extra, so you’d have to ask about it when booking. Not sure how far in advance you need to request it.
Najin and Fatu are there too—the last two northern white rhinos anywhere. Both female, so the subspecies is basically gone. Whether to take kids to see them depends on how old they are and whether you want to have that conversation. Older kids might find it meaningful. Younger ones might just be confused about why there are only two.
If you’re not staying at Sweetwaters, there’s a restaurant called Morani’s with a waterhole view right from the tables. The milkshakes are apparently really good—better than the lodge restaurants—and after hours in a dusty car, a cold milkshake solves a lot of problems.
Naivasha
Naivasha is basically a stopover to break what would otherwise be a seven-hour drive from Ol Pejeta to the Mara. Four hours to Naivasha, stay the night, four hours to the Mara the next day. Kids handle it better in pieces.
But the boat ride is actually nice. You go out on the lake, drift past hippo families, watch fish eagles hunting. The birds make this sharp call that carries across the water—kids try to copy it.
One thing about the boat ride: go in the morning. The lake gets choppy in the afternoon—there’s apparently a wind that kicks up around 4 PM—and kids who are prone to motion sickness will have a bad time. Morning the water is calm.
Also make sure your operator confirms whether the boat is actually included in your price. I’ve heard of families who thought it was covered and then got charged USD 25 per person when they showed up. Get it in writing.
Crescent Island is worth doing if you have time. It’s a sanctuary in the lake with no predators—no lions, no hyenas—so you can actually get out of the vehicle and walk around. Zebras grazing nearby, giraffes moving through trees, wildebeest watching you. For kids who’ve been stuck in cars, being on foot with animals wandering around is completely different. Takes maybe an hour to walk around the whole thing.
There’s also Hell’s Gate nearby, and inside it there’s a geothermal spa—Olkaria—with hot springs. The main pool is warm from the geothermal activity and there’s a shallow area for younger kids. I don’t know how many families actually do this since it’s a bit of a detour, but it could be a way to break up the driving if your kids need to burn energy. You can also rent bikes at Hell’s Gate and cycle around among zebras. They have smaller sizes.
Skip the gorge walk if it’s rained recently though. Flash floods.
At night the hippos come out of the lake and graze on the lodge lawns. The staff tells you not to walk around outside after dark and they mean it—hippos kill more people than any other large animal in Africa. But hearing them grunt outside your window is something.
The Mara
The drive from Naivasha takes about four hours but the last stretch from Narok is rough. Really rough. The “African Massage” people joke about. Some kids think it’s hilarious, others get carsick. If yours are prone to that, get them in the front seat and maybe pick up ginger beer at a gas station before Narok—there’s a Kenyan brand called Stoney Tangawizi that’s stronger than regular ginger ale and works pretty well.
The Mara is where the big cats are. Lions, leopards, cheetahs. Elephants, hyenas, hippos, crocodiles. If you go during migration (July through October) there are wildebeest everywhere.
The Lion King names help with kids—Simba for lions, Pumbaa for warthogs, Timon for meerkats (technically they’re mongoose in Kenya but close enough). It gives them a way to connect.
Your guide will have a radio and listen to calls from other guides about what’s been spotted where. If you learn the Swahili animal names you can eavesdrop—Simba is lion, Chui is leopard (that’s the exciting one), Duma is cheetah, Tembo is elephant, Kifaru is rhino. If you hear “wageni wengi” it means too many tourists and your guide is probably avoiding that sighting.
Vehicle crowding is a real thing. A lion with cubs might have fifteen vehicles around it all trying to get the same angle. Good guides avoid the pile-ups—partly for ethical reasons, partly because sitting in safari traffic while your kids ask “can we go yet” isn’t fun. The conservancies (Mara North, Naboisho, Olare Motorogi) have vehicle limits and feel less crowded than the main reserve. They cost more but the experience is different.
Something to know about the fees: if you’re leaving on Day 8, you have to be out of the reserve by 10 AM or they charge you for another full day. This is a relatively new rule (2024 I think?) and it catches people off guard. Schedule an early sunrise drive and hit the gate by 9:45.
Most lodges can arrange a Maasai village visit. Warriors do jumping dances, women show beadwork, kids can try throwing a rungu. Quality varies a lot—some feel genuine, some feel like a tourist show. Budget about USD 20-30 per person.
The balloon is expensive (USD 450-550 per person) and most operators won’t take kids under 7 or 8. The 5 AM wake-up is brutal for younger ones anyway. It’s memorable if your kids are old enough and actually want to do it, but it’s not essential.
Practical Stuff
The dust in the Mara is fine like talcum powder and gets into everything—camera lenses, phone charging ports, inside bags that were zipped closed. Put electronics in Ziploc bags inside your main bag.
Tsetse flies are around in some areas. Their bite feels like a needle. They’re attracted to dark blue and black specifically—something about resembling buffalo shadows—so stick to khaki and green.
“Jambo” is what tourists say. “Sasa” or “Hujambo” gets a warmer response from staff.
Don’t assume hot showers are reliable at midrange places. Some lodges have inconsistent hot water even when reviews say they’re decent. Worth asking.
Ask whether your camp is fenced or not. Some Mara camps have no real fence and rely on guards—which is fine, but it changes how you manage kids after dark. They can’t just run to the bathroom alone.
For snacks, skip the imported granola bars. Tropical Heat crisps (the chili-lemon ones) or Manji biscuits from any gas station are cheaper and kids seem to like trying local stuff.
Costs
Family of four: two adults, two kids under 12. Includes private vehicle, accommodation, meals, activities, park fees.
Level | Low Season | Peak Season |
Standard lodges | USD 5,200 – 6,400 | USD 7,200 – 8,800 |
Nicer lodges | USD 7,500 – 9,200 | USD 10,000 – 12,500 |
Top-end camps | USD 11,000 – 13,000 | USD 14,000 – 18,000+ |
Kids under 12 sharing with parents usually pay 50-70% of adult rates.
Get a line-item breakdown of what’s extra—boat rides, Crescent Island entry, village visits, tips, drinks. The complaints are usually about surprise add-ons, not the main price.
Fees
Ol Pejeta: USD 90 per adult, USD 45 per child. Payment through olpejetaconservancy.org.
Lake Naivasha: No entry fee. Crescent Island is separate (USD 25-30).
Masai Mara: USD 100 per adult January-June, USD 200 per adult July-December. Kids pay around 30% of adult rate. Payment via aps.co.ke/kfms/gm_booking.php.
Official info: Kenya Wildlife Service
Included
Private Land Cruiser for all 8 days, driver-guide, 7 nights accommodation, all meals, Giraffe Centre, chimp sanctuary fees, Crescent Island, Naivasha boat ride, all park and conservancy fees, airport transfers, bottled water.
Not included: Flights, Kenya eTA, insurance, K9 demonstration, Junior Ranger (around USD 30 per kid), Hell’s Gate/Olkaria, Maasai village (USD 20-30), balloon (USD 450-550), tips (USD 20-30 per day for guide), alcohol.
FAQs
What age works for this?
Five and up, probably. Younger than that and the car time is hard, attention spans are short, and they won’t remember much anyway.
How far ahead to book?
Three to six months. Family rooms and tents are limited so earlier is better if you need specific configurations. July-August school holiday dates fill up fast.
Can we make it shorter?
Yes—skip Ol Pejeta and go Nairobi → Naivasha → Mara. That’s 6 days. You lose the chimps and rhino feeding though, which are often kids’ favorite parts.
Wi-Fi?
Most lodges have it in common areas. It’s slow. Download stuff before you leave home.
Written by Robert Ogema, safari consultant with over 10 years of experience. Edited by Sankale Ole Neboo.
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