Safari Overview
This epic 12-day Kenya Tanzania safari takes you through both sides of Africa’s most celebrated wildlife corridor — from Kenya’s northern wilderness of Samburu to Tanzania’s primordial Ngorongoro Crater, from the endless plains where the Serengeti Masai Mara safari ecosystem hosts nature’s greatest spectacle to Amboseli’s elephant kingdoms beneath Kilimanjaro’s eternal snows.
This is the definitive East Africa safari, the journey that allows you to experience the full diversity of the region’s wildlife, landscapes, and ecosystems without compromise. Track rare northern species in Samburu’s semi-desert wilderness. Witness millions of flamingos painting Lake Nakuru’s shores pink. Experience three full days in the legendary Masai Mara where predator and prey drama unfolds minute by minute. Cross into Tanzania for two days in the infinite Serengeti, descend into the volcanic wonder of Ngorongoro Crater, Africa’s own Garden of Eden, and walk among elephants beneath Kilimanjaro.
Every park on this itinerary is here for a reason. Every day builds toward something extraordinary. This is East Africa at its absolute finest.
Rates
Our rates are per person sharing unless we note differently. Please treat all pricing as a guide only:
- All rates are subject to availability and may change without notice.
- Single supplements may apply.
- Request a quote or speak to one of our African Safari Experts for the best, most current rates available.
Price from
$3767
Per Person Sharing
Day to Day Itinerary
Day 1: Nairobi – Samburu National Reserve | Journey to the Northern Frontier
Your East Africa adventure begins with a morning departure from Nairobi, driving north through the lush Central Highlands, crossing the Equator, and descending into Kenya’s sun-baked northern frontier. The landscape transforms dramatically, from coffee plantations to arid scrublands dotted with acacia and doum palms.
Arrive at Samburu National Reserve in time for lunch at your camp. This raw, semi-desert wilderness along the Uaso Nyiro River is one of Kenya’s most enchanting reserves, home to rare species found nowhere else in East Africa: the “Samburu Special Five” — Grevy’s zebra, reticulated giraffe, gerenuk, Beisa oryx, and Somali ostrich. Your afternoon game drive introduces you to this harsh, beautiful landscape where elephants gather along the river and leopards hunt from the rocky escarpments.
Return to camp as the African sunset paints the Mathews Range copper and rose. Dinner under vast northern skies, the sounds of the bush your only companion.
Accommodation: Mid-range tented camp
Meals: Lunch, Dinner
Highlights: Equator crossing · Samburu Special Five · Uaso Nyiro River · First northern wilderness game drive
Day 2: Samburu National Reserve | Full-Day Northern Wilderness Immersion
Spend the full day exploring Samburu’s extraordinary ecosystem on morning and afternoon game drives. The life-giving Uaso Nyiro River flows year-round, attracting massive elephant herds, Nile crocodiles, and countless bird species. Track leopards along the riverine forests — Samburu boasts one of Africa’s highest leopard densities. Watch for lion prides and, if fortune smiles, glimpse the rare African wild dog.
Between drives, relax at camp during the heat of the day or visit a nearby Samburu village to learn about these proud pastoralist warriors, cousins to the Maasai. Over 450 bird species inhabit Samburu, making this a paradise for birding enthusiasts alongside traditional game viewing.
Accommodation: Mid-range tented camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Highlights: Full-day Samburu exploration · Leopard tracking · Elephant herds · Optional Samburu village visit
Day 3: Samburu – Lake Nakuru National Park | Into the Great Rift Valley
After breakfast, depart Samburu and drive south toward Lake Nakuru National Park, descending into the legendary Great Rift Valley — one of Earth’s most dramatic geological features. The approximately 5-hour journey offers stunning valley viewpoints and changing landscapes.
Arrive for lunch, then embark on an afternoon game drive in this compact but incredibly wildlife-rich park. Lake Nakuru is world-famous for its flamingo spectacle — when present, millions create a shimmering pink ribbon along the alkaline shores. This is one of Kenya’s premier rhino sanctuaries, protecting both critically endangered black and white rhinos within an electric fence. Encounter rare Rothschild giraffes, buffalo, waterbuck, and if lucky, tree-climbing lions in the fever tree forests.
Accommodation: Mid-range lodge
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Highlights: Great Rift Valley panorama · Flamingo spectacle · Black & white rhino sanctuary · Rothschild giraffes
Day 4: Lake Nakuru – Masai Mara National Reserve | Gateway to Africa's Greatest Show
After breakfast, journey west toward Kenya’s crown jewel — the legendary Masai Mara. The 5-hour drive passes through the dramatic Rift Valley escarpment and vast Maasai pastoralist lands where red-robed warriors tend their herds.
Arrive at your camp for lunch, then head straight out for your first Mara game drive. The vast savannah teems with life — massive elephant herds, thousands of zebras and wildebeest, towering giraffes, and the predators that follow: lion prides lounging in the shade, solitary cheetahs scanning from termite mounds, and elusive leopards. Visit the Mara River, famous for the Great Migration’s dramatic crossings (July-October), where crocodiles lurk year-round alongside bathing hippos.
Accommodation: Mid-range tented camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Highlights: Rift Valley escarpment · First Mara game viewing · Mara River · Predator encounters
Days 5 & 6: Masai Mara National Reserve | Full Immersion into the Greatest Wildlife Theater
Two full days dedicated to exploring Africa’s most famous wildlife reserve — the Masai Mara, where over 95 mammal species and 570 bird species create an unparalleled safari experience. Rise before dawn when predators are most active: lions returning from night hunts, cheetahs surveying the plains, leopards descending from trees where they’ve cached kills.
The Mara’s extensive road network allows close-range encounters perfect for photography. Track all the Big Five — lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo, and the rare black rhino. If visiting between July and October, witness the Great Migration — over 1.5 million wildebeest and hundreds of thousands of zebras thunder across the plains in one of nature’s greatest spectacles. Enjoy picnic breakfasts in the bush, visit the hippo pool where hundreds wallow and yawn, and watch the golden light transform the landscape each evening.
Optional activities include a hot air balloon safari at dawn ($450-500pp) or a visit to a traditional Maasai village to learn about warrior culture and pastoralist lifestyle.
Accommodation: Mid-range tented camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner (both days)
Highlights: Big Five tracking · Great Migration river crossings (seasonal, Jul-Oct) · Dawn predator drives · Bush picnics · Hippo pool · Optional balloon safari & Maasai village visit
Day 7: Masai Mara – Serengeti National Park, Tanzania | Crossing into the Endless Plains
After a final early morning Mara game drive and breakfast, depart Kenya and cross the border at Isebania into Tanzania. The landscape barely changes — this is one continuous ecosystem that predates international borders by millions of years.
Enter the legendary Serengeti — “endless plains” in the Maasai language — a UNESCO World Heritage Site spanning 12,000 square miles and home to approximately 70 large mammal species and 500 bird species. Your afternoon game drive en route to your camp offers immediate wildlife encounters: massive herds of wildebeest and zebra, giraffes browsing acacia tops, and the predators that follow the herds.
Arrive at your camp as the Serengeti sunset transforms the plains into something otherworldly. This is Tanzania — wilder, vaster, older than anything you’ve experienced so far.
Accommodation: Mid-range tented camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Highlights: Border crossing ceremony · First Serengeti game viewing · Endless plains panorama · Tanzania arrival
Day 8: Serengeti National Park | Full Day in the Infinite Wilderness
A full day exploring the Serengeti’s vast grasslands, rocky kopjes, and acacia woodlands on morning and afternoon game drives. The Serengeti is renowned for its exceptional predator populations — massive lion prides, numerous leopards, the highest density of cheetahs in Africa, and spotted hyena clans.
Game viewing here feels different from the Mara — wilder, more remote, more pristine. The landscape stretches unbroken to every horizon. During your midday break at camp, attend optional discussions about local species, ecology, and conservation efforts. Your afternoon drive extends into the golden hour when the light becomes magical and animals gather at waterholes.
Accommodation: Mid-range tented camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Highlights: Full-day Serengeti exploration · Predator concentrations · Rocky kopjes · Wildebeest herds · Conservation talks
Day 9: Serengeti – Ngorongoro Crater | Descent into Africa's Garden of Eden
After a final morning Serengeti game drive and breakfast, journey toward the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and Biosphere Reserve. Optional stop at Olduvai Gorge, one of the world’s most significant archaeological sites where evidence of early human evolution was discovered.
Arrive at your lodge perched on the crater rim — 2,200 meters above sea level with breathtaking views into the caldera below. After lunch, descend 600 meters to the crater floor for an afternoon game drive in this extraordinary ecosystem. The Ngorongoro Crater hosts the highest density of predators in Africa and offers perhaps the best chance anywhere to see all the Big Five in a single day. Watch black rhinos grazing near the Lerai Forest, lion prides resting in the grasslands, and massive elephant bulls with tusks that sweep the ground.
Return to your lodge on the crater rim as the sun sets, painting the caldera walls in shades of amber and rose.
Accommodation: Mid-range lodge (crater rim)
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Highlights: Crater rim panorama · Descent to crater floor · Big Five in one ecosystem · Highest predator density in Africa · Optional Olduvai Gorge visit
Day 10: Ngorongoro – Lake Manyara National Park | After the Tree-climbing Lions
After breakfast with crater views, depart Ngorongoro and drive to Lake Manyara National Park — one of Tanzania’s smallest but most diverse parks, sheltered by the craggy Western Escarpment of the Great Rift Valley.
Arrive for lunch at your lodge, then head out for an afternoon game drive. Lake Manyara is renowned for its tree-climbing lions (a rare behavior), massive elephant herds, abundant birdlife including flamingos along the alkaline lake shores, and hippos wallowing in the shallows. The park’s varied habitats — from groundwater forests to acacia woodlands to open grasslands — support an extraordinary diversity of wildlife in a compact area.
Accommodation: Mid-range lodge
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Highlights: Crater rim departure · Tree-climbing lions · Lake Manyara birdlife · Hippo pools · Rift Valley escarpment
Day 11: Lake Manyara – Amboseli National Park, Kenya | Return to Kilimanjaro's Shadow
After an early morning Lake Manyara game drive, depart Tanzania and cross back into Kenya via the Namanga border. Drive to Amboseli National Park — home to Africa’s greatest elephant herds and the finest views of Mount Kilimanjaro anywhere on the continent.
Arrive in time for lunch at your lodge, then embark on an afternoon game drive beneath the mountain’s snow-capped summit. Amboseli’s open plains and sparse vegetation create perfect visibility — massive elephant families move in slow procession, lions rest beneath acacia shade, and if the clouds part, Kilimanjaro reveals itself in all its majesty. Witness the park’s signature photograph: elephants silhouetted against Africa’s highest peak.
Accommodation: Mid-range lodge/tented camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Highlights: Tanzania border crossing · Kilimanjaro views · Amboseli elephant kingdoms · Open plains game viewing
Day 12: Amboseli – Nairobi | Farewell to East Africa
Rise before dawn for a final game drive — your last chance to watch elephant families gather at the central swamps with Kilimanjaro glowing pink in the morning light. Return to your lodge for breakfast as the day’s warmth settles over the plains.
Check out and begin the scenic 4-hour drive back to Nairobi, carrying twelve days of memories across two countries, eight legendary parks, and the greatest wildlife territory on Earth. Arrive in Nairobi by early afternoon with drop-off at your hotel or Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.
The wild has marked you forever. You’ll be back.
Accommodation: No accommodation (end of tour)
Meals: Breakfast
Highlights: Final dawn Amboseli game drive · Kilimanjaro sunrise · Scenic return to Nairobi · Hotel or airport drop-off
Included
Excluded
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