Lake Nakuru and Naivasha

Lake Nakuru is a soda lake inside a fenced national park and one of Kenya's rhino sanctuaries, holding both black and white rhino along with Rothschild's giraffe. Naivasha, an hour south, is freshwater, and the reason to stop is that you can get out of the vehicle: boat trips, and walking or cycling among game on Crescent Island. Flamingo numbers at Nakuru vary enormously with water level and have not returned to their historic peaks.

Both are an easy drive from Nairobi and make the usual overnight break on the road to the Mara. Do not come for flamingos alone: numbers depend on water chemistry and the birds move between Rift Valley lakes from one year to the next.