Lake Nakuru National Park was first gazetted as a bird sanctuary in 1960 and upgraded to National Park status in 1968.

Lake Nakuru National Park has Kenya’s largest population of rhinos. The surface of the Lake Nakuru occupies about a third of the park. It supports a dense bloom of the blue-green Cyanophyte Spirulina platensis from which it derives its color and is a food source for flamingos.

During peak season over millions of flamingos and Pelicans congregate on the lake. Located in the Great Rift Valley, Nakuru is a shallow, alkaline lake where both lesser and flamingos can be found in vast numbers, sometimes literally turning the water pink!

Where is Lake Nakuru National Park

Lake Nakuru National Park lies in Rift Valley, 160 Kilometers north-west of Nairobi, in Nakuru County of the Rift Valley Region. This Kenya National Park provides the visitor with one of Kenya’s best known images.

The lake varies in size from five to 30 square kilometers – depending on rainfall – and is rich in birdlife; there are 400 resident species on the lake and in the surrounding national park. Thousands of little grebes and white-winged black terns are frequently seen, as are black-winged stilts, pelicans, cormorants, avocets, ducks and – in the European winter – many migrant waders.

Black and white rhinos thrive in Lake Nakuru National Park, which also has its fair share of Cape buffalo, African wild dog, zebra, eland, waterbuck and lion.

In recent years Lake Nakuru National Park has attracted fame for the high number of leopard sightings, and the rare Rothschild’s giraffe. Its acacia and euphorbia forests are havens for animals during the heat of the day, making Lake Nakuru National Park an excellent wildlife-viewing destination, while the hippo pool is a favorite spot for picnics.

Attractions in Lake Nakuru National Park

The main way to experience on a Kenya safari tour to Lake Nakuru National Park is on a game drive. This is best done in the company of an expert guide who knows their birds, as they really are the main attraction in this Park.

The Lake Nakuru National Park Game Drive Experience

Most visitors explore the park on guided game drives run by Kenya safari tour operators. It is one of the only parks in Kenya where you can drive up close to White Rhino and may even snap a shot of them with flocks of flamingos on the Lake in the background. Lake Nakuru National Park is a must-see for any avid birder, not only will you witness the spectacle of up to two million Greater and Lesser Flamingos. There are also many other water birds, most notably pelicans, herons and storks that call the lake home.

Lake Nakuru National Park is one of the best places in Kenya to see Leopard and, as it is a Rhino sanctuary, this is one of the best places in Africa to see 4 of the Big Five. Leopards are elusive, so sightings are not guaranteed, but you may just come across one lounging on a branch. The Park is also a sanctuary for the rare Rothschild Giraffe. Other animals to keep a lookout for include Zebra, Impala, Gazelle, Waterbuck, Lion and many Buffalo.

How to Get to Lake Nakuru National Park

Lake Nakuru National Park has three gates, Main Gate and Lanet Gate that link the park with the Nairobi-Nakuru highway and the less used Nderit Gate. They are the entry points that those on any Africans afari in Kenya to Lake Nakuru National Park will use.

Lake Nakuru National Park has a tarmac road connection with Nairobi. The park is a distance of 156 km North West of Nairobi on the main A104 road. The most commonly used route into the Lake Nakuru National Park is via the main gate, 4 km from Nakuru Town Centre. It is also possible to enter this national park in Kenya from the main Nairobi Nakuru road at Lanet Gate. The Nderit Gate is used by people accessing the park from Masai Mara or Elementaita.

For those on Kenya luxury safari, The Naishi airstrip services the park for tourism and KWS activities.

Lake Nakuru National Park has an adequate and well serviced passable roads that make most parts of the park accessible.