Kenya Safari Destinations: Where to Go

Better than most first-time visitors expect. Kenyan safari camps run on full board, and the cooking in even mid-range camps is genuinely good — fresh bread, vegetables from local gardens, and a hot three-course dinner under canvas. Dietary requirements are handled routinely if you tell us in advance. Accommodation ranges from simple but comfortable tented camps through to some of the finest lodges in Africa, and almost all of it sits in unfenced wilderness where animals wander through at night.

Tipping is customary and forms a meaningful part of guide and camp staff income. As a rough guide, plan on roughly $20 to $30 per day for your driver-guide from the group as a whole, and a similar daily amount into the general staff box at each camp for the kitchen, housekeeping and waiting teams. Bring it in cash — US dollars work everywhere, in clean notes issued after 2009, which older bills are frequently refused.

Work backwards from what you want to see. The Masai Mara for big cats and the migration; Amboseli for elephants and the Kilimanjaro backdrop; Samburu for the arid-country species found nowhere further south; Lake Nakuru for rhino and flamingos; Tsavo for space and solitude. Two or three well-chosen parks over a week beats five parks rushed, and pairing one savannah park with one contrasting landscape gives a far more memorable trip than stacking two similar ones.

Excellent, with one caveat: off-road driving is prohibited in the national reserves, so sightings are often further away than in Tanzania and a long lens matters more. The conservancies allow off-road approach, which is why serious photographers gravitate to them. The light in the Mara at dawn and in the last hour before dusk is exceptional, and most camps will arrange an early breakfast so you are out in it rather than at the table.

They are more similar than either country's marketing suggests — they share the same ecosystem across a political border. Kenya has shorter distances, a better light-aircraft network, cheaper park fees and the conservancy model with its night drives and walking. Tanzania has more space, lower vehicle densities in the Serengeti, and the Ngorongoro Crater, which has no equivalent anywhere. If it is your first safari and you want the classic, choose Tanzania. If you want variety in a shorter trip, or you have been before, choose Kenya. Better still, do both — they combine easily.

Conservancies are community-owned lands bordering the national reserves, leased for wildlife and tourism, with strict limits on how many camps and vehicles are allowed. Because they are not national parks, they permit night drives, walking safaris and off-road driving to a sighting — none of which the Masai Mara National Reserve allows. In practice this means a leopard sighting shared with one other vehicle instead of fifteen. They cost more, and most guests who have tried both never go back.

Typically from mid-July through October, with August and September the most reliable months. That said, no one can promise a crossing on a given day. The herds gather at the river and may wait hours or days before one animal moves and the rest follow. Staying three or more nights near the river dramatically improves your odds, and the Mara is superb even when the herds are elsewhere — the resident lion, cheetah and leopard populations are there year-round.

Either by road in a private 4×4 with your guide, or by light aircraft between airstrips. Road transfers let you see the country and cost less; Nairobi to the Masai Mara takes five to six hours. Flights take about forty-five minutes and are worth it if your time is tight or you are combining several parks. Many itineraries mix the two — drive out through the Rift Valley, fly back.

Kenya is generally a little cheaper than Tanzania, largely because park fees are lower and the distances are shorter. Budget itineraries using simple camps start around $250 per person per day; mid-range tented camps typically run $350 to $500; and the well-known conservancy camps run from $600 upward, often all-inclusive of drinks and activities. Peak season in the Mara from July to October carries a substantial premium, and internal flights add roughly $200 to $400 per person per sector.

Most visitors need an electronic travel authorisation obtained online before departure, as Kenya no longer issues visas on arrival for most nationalities. The East Africa Tourist Visa covers Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda on a single document and is excellent value if you are visiting more than one of them, though it does not include Tanzania. Apply at least a week before you fly and carry a printed copy.

Very easily, and it is one of the best trips in Africa. The Masai Mara and the Serengeti are one ecosystem split by a border, so following the migration across it makes complete sense. You can cross by road at Isebania or fly between Nairobi and Kilimanjaro or the Serengeti airstrips. Each country needs its own visa and charges its own park fees, and we handle both as a single booking.