Overview–kenya

Lake Nakuru National Park

Scenic Lake Nakuru National Park is Kenya’s most popular national park and with good reason. It’s a fantastic place to see rhinos and sightings of lions and leopards are possible. It’s also easy to reach: the entrance is very close to the city of Nakuru. Centered on a large, shallow lake that supports great birdlife, including pelicans and flamingos, the park has experienced dramatically fluctuating water levels in recent years. This can affect everything from flamingo populations to trail access.

Scenery

For a small park, Lake Nakuru really is breathtaking, with the Rift Valley escarpment, dotted with euphorbia trees, rising up from the lakeshore. Heavy mist sometimes shrouds the lake and yellow fever trees, which seem to glow in the early morning. The view from the Out of Africa Lookout is as close as you can get to the famous plane journey scene from the film ‘Out of Africa’.

Activities

The main activity in Lake Nakuru is the guided game drive, which allows you to explore the park for wildlife watching and birding. In the park’s south, you can see moderately impressive Makalia Falls, where waters cascade through a cleft in the rock surrounded by acacia forest. If you’re staying at The Cliff, a luxury tented camp perched on the edge of the escarpment, you can also enjoy a boat excursion on the lake.

Best Time to Visit

Lake Nakuru National Park offers good wildlife viewing throughout the year, but the best months are from June to February. The rains might interfere with game drives and road conditions can be poor in the wettest months (April and May). However, the reorientation of some tracks to avoid the lake’s rising water levels has made trail conditions more consistent.

June to February –Dry Season

Days are sunny and dry, but it rarely gets hot
Short grass and few water sources make animals easy to spot
The park gets very crowded and good sightings tend to attract a lot of vehicles

March to May –Wet Season

It is generally less crowded and low-season rates may apply
The park is green, the skies are clear and there are lots of flowers
Newborn animals can be seen
Best time for bird watching with migratory birds present
April and May can be very wet and rain might interfere with game drives
The grass is long and animals are more difficult to spot

Excellent

Good

Fair

Poor

April

May

Mar

Rates

From: $204 to $1,223 pp/day

Best Time to Go

From: June to February (Best for wildlife viewing; little rain)

High Season

From: July to February (The park gets very busy)

Size

From: 188km² / 73mi²

Wildlife & Animals

Many big safari animals are present in Lake Nakuru National Park, except for elephants. The park is known for its populations of black and white rhinos. White rhinos are particularly easy to see, and different groups can be encountered throughout the day, especially around the causeway at the western end of the lake. Lake Nakuru is also an important refuge for the Rothschild’s giraffe, which inhabits the acacia forests extending out from the western end of the lake.

Wildlife Highlights

In addition to the rhino, Rothschild's giraffe was introduced here in the 1980s and has now become locally common. Vervet monkey and olive baboon are very common, but the beautiful black-and-white colobus monkey is rarer than it used to be. Tree-climbing lions are possible highlights. The acacia forest behind Mikingo Hill is a good place to look for leopards. Hippo, waterbuck, plains zebra, eland and Thomson’s gazelle are common on the floodplains.

Best Time for Wildlife Viewing

Lake Nakuru can be visited throughout the year, but wildlife viewing is best during the Dry season (June to February). It can be more difficult in April and May, which are usually the wettest months. At this time, rain might interfere with your game drives and the grass tends to be very high, making animal spotting more difficult.

General Wheather

Lake Nakuru National Park has a mild climate and temperatures are consistent year-round. Daytime temperatures are pleasant in the mid to high twenties Celsius (mid-seventies to low eighties Fahrenheit), although it is much cooler at night. Warm clothing for early morning game drives is a necessity. The wettest months are April and May. The rest of the year is relatively dry with some rain throughout.

Dry Season –June to February

The pleasant days of the Dry season are usually sunny but do not get too hot. It rarely rains, although don’t be surprised if there is an occasional shower at any time. It is recommended to wear warm clothing on early morning game drives.

June, July, August, September, October, November & December – Conditions are sunny with the occasional shower. Temperatures climb to around 24°C/75°F in the afternoon, but the beginning and end of the day is cold with temperatures hovering around 11°C/52°F.
January & February – These months, before the rains break, are the driest and warmest in the calendar. Temperatures climb to 25°C/77°F and push higher. Be aware of the chill factor in the early morning when the temperature only crawls up to 12°C/54°F.

Wet Season –March to May

There are many overcast, cloudy days in the Wet season, but it rarely rains all day. Temperatures in the afternoon are pleasant at around 25°C/77°F. Early mornings are a bit milder at 12°C/54°F. April is the wettest month.

March – March or April see the beginning of the rains, although it is rare for March to see much rain. Expect temperatures in the afternoon to reach around 25°C/77°F.
April – The wettest month, but it doesn't rain for long stretches very often.
May – The rains are already tapering off, but afternoon showers are still common.

Prons

Easily accessible
Stunning Rift Valley scenery
Varied habitats support an excellent range of wildlife, especially rhino
Fantastic birding with pelicans and flamingos

Cons

The park gets very busy in high season
A limited game-drive circuit

How To Get There

Your entry point to Kenya will most likely be Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO), 15km/9mi southeast of the capital city Nairobi.

Lake Nakuru National Park is 155km/96mi northwest of Nairobi and 5km/3mi from Nakuru town. Nakuru is an easy destination to reach by car via a tar road from Nairobi. The driving time is at least 3 hours*.

Lake Nakuru can also be reached by road from several other parks. The distance from Masai Mara National Reserve is 235km/146mi and the driving time is about 6 hours*. The distance from Samburu National Reserve in the north is 300km/186mi and the drive takes about 6 hours*. The driving time from Laikipia Plateau hugely depends on which reserve you are coming from but should be between 3 to 7 hours*.

There are currently no scheduled flights to Nakuru. Your tour operator will usually take care of bookings for charter flights between parks.

*Driving times are only a rough indication. You should always consider the possibility of significant delays.

Airlines & Ticket Prices

Please check Skyscanner to see which airlines can take you to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO), and what tickets would cost.