One hundred and eighty-eight square
kilometres, fully fenced.
Lake Nakuru National Park covers about 188 square kilometres around a shallow soda lake, and unusually for Kenya the whole park is fenced. That was done to protect rhino, and it worked: Nakuru now holds one of the country’s most important populations of both black and white rhino, and your chances of seeing them here are better than in almost any other Kenyan park. It is also a refuge for endangered Rothschild’s giraffe, translocated in for safekeeping. The flamingos the park was once famous for come and go with the water level.
Central Rift Valley
Approximate park area
Ideal length of stay
Driest months, easiest viewing
Why visit Lake Nakuru
Both black and white rhino in numbers, inside a fenced park. The best rhino odds on a standard Kenyan circuit.
An endangered subspecies moved here for protection, and easy to find in the open woodland.
Nakuru’s lions have a well-documented habit of resting up in the acacias, which is unusual.
Numbers swing with the lake level. When it is right, the shoreline turns pink for a long stretch.
Small enough to cover thoroughly in a day, with a genuinely high strike rate.
Three hours from Nairobi and directly on the road west, so it costs you almost no travel time.
What there is to do
Game Drives
Morning and late afternoon drives in an open-roof vehicle, timed for when the animals are actually moving.
Flamingo Viewing
Best in the early morning from the shoreline tracks, before the heat builds and the haze comes up.
Baboon Cliff Viewpoint
A high point over the lake and the park, and the standard photo stop on any Nakuru itinerary.
Birdwatching
Several hundred recorded species, with migrants arriving from November through to April.
Rothschild's Giraffe Sightings
The translocated herd is easy to find in the open woodland on the eastern side of the park.
Wildlife you can expect
Black Rhino
Nakuru is one of Kenya’s most important black rhino sanctuaries, and sightings here are more likely than most parks.
White Rhino
Larger, squarer-lipped and far more relaxed than black rhino, usually grazing in the open in small groups.
Lion
Resident prides work the acacia woodland, and Nakuru’s lions have a habit of climbing trees.
Rothschild's Giraffe
An endangered subspecies translocated here for safekeeping, recognisable by clean white lower legs.
Flamingo
Numbers swing hard with the water level. When the chemistry is right the shoreline turns pink for miles.
When to go
Good all year. The season affects the flamingos far more than it affects the rhino.
Dry season
Firm tracks, short grass and animals concentrated near water. The most reliable window.
Short dry spell
A second dry stretch, hot and clear, with lower visitor numbers.
Short rains
Green flush, excellent birding and dramatic light over the lake.
Long rains
Water levels rise and some tracks soften, but the park stays productive and rates drop.
Add Lake Nakuru to your safari
Nakuru appears on most of our Kenya itineraries, usually between Nairobi and the Maasai Mara.