African Safari Diaries: A Family holiday in Kenya

Pareet recently visited Kenya after many years. He went with his family, taking his kids for the first time, opting to go on a safari as well as see his family that live in Kenya. We helped make recommendations on the best places to visit for their safari in order to make the most of their trip. On his return he kindly shared his experience, his highlights and some wonderful photos with us.

Was this your first time visiting Kenya? What made you decide to visit?

I’d been to Kenya a few times previously, but my last visit was before our kids were born, over 11 years ago. My wife has been once but that was in 1996. 

My parents are from Kenya and visit every 3-4 years. 

We chose Kenya as we wanted a family trip to do a safari and also see family that live there.

How did you choose your itinerary?

We wanted to take the family to see the Masai Mara, as it’s probably the best known park in Kenya and I have fond memories of previous family trips there. I’d also been to Amboseli on my first ever visit and remembered Kilimanjaro and the elephants, so really wanted to go there too.

Sweetwaters and Naivasha, as well as exact timings were recommended by speaking to the team at Somak, especially Nishma. Having their expertise and knowledge was invaluable to ensure that we had the best possible trip!

Where did you stay whilst on your trip and what was your favourite property and place?

We stayed at the following lodges:

Sweetwaters Serena Lodge

Naivasha Sopa Lodge 

Masai Mara Sopa Lodge 

Amboseli Serena Lodge 

 It’s really hard to pick a favourite but I think the two Serena lodges just shade it. The watering hole at Sweetwaters is amazing and you can view amazing wildlife from the veranda of your room. 

The rooms in Amboseli are beautifully themed and the kids loved them. You can see elephants when sitting on the patio outside the restaurant …it’s so surreal!

 What were the highlights from your trip?

That’s a really hard one so here’s a highlight reel!

Sweetwaters – the landscape is beautiful and so relaxing and you can just spend hours watching the watering hole. The best bit there was on our last night a herd of elephants appeared at the watering hole whilst we were having dinner.

Naivasha – cycling through Hell’s Gate with giraffe and zebra wandering by, and then the trek down the gorge. The other fantastic part was seeing hippos playing whilst on our boat trip on the lake. 

Masai Mara – seeing a beautiful leopard walk past our vehicle and then seeing a pack of cheetahs chase wildebeest….it was over in a flash but will be an eternal memory. 

Amboseli – when approaching the airstrip seeing dozens of dust devils on the horizon and then seeing elephants and other animals in the swamps on our drives. The other stand out memory was playing scrabble with the family on the patio with elephants in the background!

Meeting so many wonderful and hospitable people at every hotel made us feel at home at every place. We felt so relaxed and well fed!

Last, but not least were our amazing guides. Ken from Somak was with us for 6 days. He was absolutely fantastic…really patient with our family’s varying needs and kept us entertained every minute of our trip!

As we flew to Amboseli, Denge, from the Serena lodge looked after us there. Again he was excellent and really related to our kids. 

Do you have any advice or tips for anyone thinking of going to Kenya for a holiday?

Definitely use a reputable company like Somak and book early, especially if going during peak season. 

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If after reading about Pareet’s experience you would like to book a safari holiday, you can read more about our range of holidays here: https://www.somak.com/kenya-safari

We would love to work with you to plan the safari holiday of a lifetime. For more information on how our safari experts can help you, call Somak Holidays today on 020 8423 3000.

Please note all photos featured are credited to Pareet Shah.