Self-Launched Classic Serengeti & Zanzibar

Land at JKIA and take an airport taxi or the regular shuttle bus to the city centre (around £8-12 by taxi, cheaper by matatu if you're confident). Settle into a hostel in Westlands or the Kilimani/Ngong Road area. Spend the afternoon at the Nairobi National Museum (approx. £10 entry) or wander the Nairobi Arboretum. Eat at a local nyama choma spot or an Indian-Kenyan cafe in the city centre — Nairobi's food scene is genuinely excellent. Note that Kenya now requires an eTA (£30) and, from late 2026, inbound travel insurance bundled into the eTA process.

🚌Airport taxi ~£10

🛏Hostel dorm or private room, Westlands/Kilimani (£15-25)

• →Nairobi National Museum
• →Nairobi Arboretum walk
• →Kenyan coffee and nyama choma dinner

Most independent travellers use a Riverside Shuttle or Impala Shuttle minibus from Nairobi to Arusha — roughly 6-8 hours including immigration at the Namanga border post, around £25-35 one way. Book the day before at your hostel or via the operator's office. At Namanga you'll need to exit Kenya and get a Tanzania visa (check whether your nationality can do it online in advance — it's usually cheaper and faster). Arrive Arusha in the late afternoon, check into a guesthouse and eat at a local restaurant in the town centre.

🚌Riverside/Impala shuttle Nairobi-Arusha ~£30

🛏Guesthouse in Arusha town (£15-25)

• →Namanga border crossing
• →Arusha town orientation walk

Take a dalla-dalla (local minibus, ~£3) or a shared taxi to Mto wa Mbu at the foot of the Rift Valley escarpment. Book a community cultural walk directly through one of the village's small tourism cooperatives (about £15-20 including a traditional lunch with a local family — ask at your guesthouse or the Mto wa Mbu tourism office). In the afternoon, join a shared day-trip group into Lake Manyara National Park for tree-climbing lions, flamingos and Rift Valley views (park fees around £40 plus a shared vehicle share of £20-30).

🚌Dalla-dalla Arusha-Mto wa Mbu ~£3

🛏Guesthouse or campsite in Mto wa Mbu (£12-20)

• →Mto wa Mbu community walk with local family lunch
• →Lake Manyara NP shared day safari

Join a seat-in-vehicle safari departing Mto wa Mbu into the Serengeti — most budget operators run 3-4 day camping safaris from Arusha, but you can board at Mto wa Mbu if you arrange in advance. Today is a long drive through the Ngorongoro Conservation Area with game viewing en route to the Seronera plains in the central Serengeti (park fees around £60-70 per day, camping fees extra). Camp at a public campsite inside the park — no fences, no electricity, torch essential.

🚌Shared 4x4 Land Cruiser (pop-top roof)

🛏Public campsite, Serengeti NP (tent supplied, bring/rent sleeping bag)

• →Game drive en route through Ngorongoro Conservation Area
• →Evening around the campfire

Up before dawn for a full-day game drive with a picnic lunch in the bush — lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and, if you're lucky, the migration herds depending on season (the wildebeest are in the Seronera plains Nov-May and head north July-October). Budget travellers skip the balloon safari (G Adventures charges from $599; independent bookings run $500-600), but if you want it, book directly with Miracle Experience or Serengeti Balloon Safaris well in advance — it's genuinely spectacular but a big splurge.

🚌Shared 4x4 safari vehicle

🛏Public campsite, Serengeti NP

• →Full-day Serengeti game drive
• →Picnic lunch in the bush
• →Optional: hot-air balloon safari (~£400-470)

Morning game drive out of the Serengeti, then continue to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and camp on the crater rim (Simba or Ngorongoro public campsite). Sunset views over the caldera are one of the best moments of the whole trip — bring a warm layer, the rim sits at about 2,300m and gets cold at night.

🚌Shared 4x4 safari vehicle

🛏Public campsite on Ngorongoro Crater rim

• →Morning game drive
• →Crater rim sunset

Descend into the crater at dawn for one of Africa's densest wildlife concentrations — black rhino, huge elephant bulls, flamingo lakes and vast herds of wildebeest. Crater entry is around £50-60 plus vehicle fees. In the afternoon visit a Maasai village in the Monduli District (entry around £15-20, negotiate politely and buy crafts rather than paying inflated photo fees), then return to Arusha for the night.

🚌Shared 4x4 safari vehicle

🛏Guesthouse in Arusha town (£15-25)

• →Ngorongoro Crater game drive
• →Maasai village visit, Monduli District

A slower day to do laundry, change money and rest. Options: the Arusha National Park day trip (approx. £60-80 shared), the Cultural Heritage Centre, or the Shanga social enterprise workshop near the airport. Pick up anything you need for Zanzibar here — prices are better than on the island. Pre-book tomorrow's flight to Zanzibar tonight (Coastal Aviation or Precision Air, roughly £90-130 one way, cheaper booked a few weeks out).

🚌Local taxis and dalla-dalla ~£3

🛏Guesthouse in Arusha town (£15-25)

• →Arusha National Park day trip (optional)
• →Cultural Heritage Centre
• →Shanga workshop

Short scenic flight from Arusha or Kilimanjaro to Zanzibar Abeid Amani Karume airport (about 1.5 hours). Buy lunch at the airport — no meal on board. Take a shared taxi or dala-dala into Stone Town and check into a guesthouse in the old quarter. Spend the afternoon wandering the UNESCO-listed alleys, the Darajani market and the seafront; sunset at Forodhani Gardens food stalls is unmissable and cheap (grilled seafood skewers and Zanzibar pizza for a few pounds).

🚌Local flight ~£110, airport transfer ~£6

🛏Stone Town guesthouse (£20-35)

• →Stone Town self-guided walk
• →Darajani market
• →Forodhani Gardens street food at sunset

Book a spice farm tour directly through your guesthouse or a local guide in Stone Town (around £15-20 including transport, a couple of hours, and the best-value experience on the island — vanilla, cloves, cinnamon and cardamom growing wild plus a fruit tasting). Afterwards take a shared minibus or dala-dala down to the east or south coast — Jambiani and Paje for quiet white sand and kite-surfer energy (about £4-8, one to one-and-a-half hours).

🚌Dala-dala/shared minibus south-east coast ~£6

🛏Beach guesthouse/bungalow, Jambiani or Paje (£20-35)

• →Spice farm guided tour
• →Beach afternoon

Free day. Swim, snorkel, or hire a bike. Snorkelling day trips to the reefs go for around £30-40 organised locally through beach guesthouses — cheaper than the tour companies' listed rates if you book at the guesthouse. Alternatively, take a dhow sunset cruise for about £15-20 per person (negotiate to join a group). Eat at local beach shacks rather than resort restaurants — a full-plate lunch of grilled fish and chips (chipsi mayai) costs £4-6.

🚌Walking / bicycle hire ~£4

🛏Beach guesthouse/bungalow, Jambiani or Paje

• →Snorkelling trip (optional)
• →Sunset dhow cruise (optional)
• →Beach time

Another free day. Optional half-day trip to Jozani Forest to see the endemic Zanzibar red colobus monkeys (entry around £8-10, plus ~£8 shared transport — much cheaper than the £28-125 the tour operator quotes). Or a Swahili cooking class in a village for around £20-30. Otherwise, just do nothing on the sand; that's the point of day 12.

🚌Shared minibus to Jozani ~£8

🛏Beach guesthouse/bungalow, Jambiani or Paje

• →Jozani Forest red colobus monkeys (optional)
• →Swahili cooking class (optional)
• →Beach lounging

Early shared transfer back to Stone Town (about 45-60 minutes). If time allows, visit the Old Slave Market and Christ Church Cathedral (about £4) or the Sultan's Palace Museum (about £2.50) before heading to the airport. Book onward flights no earlier than mid-afternoon to allow for the transfer and check-in.

🚌Shared minibus to Stone Town ~£6, taxi to airport ~£5

🛏N/A — departure day

• →Old Slave Market & Christ Church Cathedral (optional)
• →Last-minute spice shopping