Kenya & Tanzania Safari + Zanzibar: The Self-Launched Version

Land at JKIA, take an Uber or Bolt into the city (roughly £10–14) and check into a hostel in Westlands or Kilimani. Shake off the flight with a wander through the Nairobi National Museum or the Giraffe Centre in Karen, then eat nyama choma and ugali at a local grill. Buy a Safaricom SIM (£2–4) for M-Pesa — almost everything in Kenya runs on it.

🚌Uber/Bolt from JKIA ~£10–14

🛏Hostel dorm or private room, Westlands/Kilimani (£12–22)

• →Giraffe Centre (Karen) entry
• →Nairobi National Museum
• →M-Pesa SIM setup
• →Nyama choma dinner

The original flies to a Maasai-owned eco-lodge; independently, take a matatu or shared shuttle north via Nanyuki (roughly £8–12, 4–5 hrs). From Nanyuki arrange a conservancy transfer or join a guided conservancy walk. Community-run camps and bandas in the Il Ngwesi/Lewa area run about £30–45 per person per night with meals — still the most authentic Maasai stay on this route, and profits go to the community.

🚌Matatu/shuttle Nairobi–Nanyuki ~£8–12; conservancy transfer ~£15 shared

🛏Community conservancy camp/banda, Laikipia (£30–45 pp incl. meals)

• →Matatu to Nanyuki
• →Maasai conservancy bush walk with local guide
• →Community beadwork visit

Spend the morning on a guided walking safari with Maasai trackers — rhino, elephant and Grevy's zebra are possible in the northern conservancies. Afternoon village visit and a sundowner on the escarpment. Conservancy guiding fees are typically £25–40 for a half day; negotiate a package with your camp.

🚌On foot / camp vehicle

🛏Community conservancy camp/banda (£30–45 pp incl. meals)

• →Guided walking safari
• →Maasai village visit
• →Sundowner viewpoint

Travel south to the Mara — the cheapest independent route is a matatu back to Nairobi then a shuttle to Narok/Sekenani gate (long day, ~£20–25 total), or a direct budget shuttle if your camp offers one. Join a scheduled group camping safari based at Talek or Sekenani: three days of game drives plus tented camp and meals typically costs £200–320 per person in low/mid season. Head out for a late-afternoon drive the moment you arrive.

🚌Matatu + shuttle ~£20–25

🛏Budget tented safari camp, Talek/Sekenani (£25–40 pp full board within safari package)

• →Transfer to Maasai Mara
• →Afternoon game drive in the reserve

Sunrise drive, picnic breakfast in the grassland, then a long loop along the Mara River looking for lion, leopard, cheetah and, July–October, the Great Migration river crossings. Your group safari vehicle (pop-top minivan) is shared with 6–7 others — the same wildlife experience as a private 4x4 at a fraction of the price.

🚌Shared pop-top safari minivan

🛏Budget tented safari camp, Talek/Sekenani (within package)

• →Sunrise game drive
• →Mara River loop
• →Picnic lunch in the bush

Morning game drive, then a visit to a Maasai village near Talek (£10–15 entry, often including a guided walk) or a visit to a local conservancy. Optional hot-air balloon safari can be booked through your camp for around £380–450 — the operator's version is $499. Evening back at camp with a fire and a shared dinner.

🚌Shared safari minivan

🛏Budget tented safari camp, Talek/Sekenani (within package)

• →Morning game drive
• →Maasai village visit
• →Optional balloon safari

Final early drive, then shuttle back to Nairobi (4–6 hrs). Independent travellers can stop at one of the community cafés and craft shops along the Nairobi–Narok road — if you want the operator's Café Ubuntu experience, its farm-to-table lunch is around £12–18 when booked direct. Evening in Nairobi: hostel, cold beer, and logistics for Amboseli.

🚌Shuttle Mara–Nairobi ~£12–18

🛏Hostel, Westlands/Kilimani (£12–22)

• →Morning game drive
• →Shuttle to Nairobi
• →Community café lunch stop

Take a morning bus/shuttle from Nairobi to Emali or Namanga, then a matatu to Kimana/Amboseli gate (roughly £6–10, 4 hrs). Stay in a budget camp just outside the gate and join an afternoon game drive in Amboseli — the classic elephant herds against Kilimanjaro. Park entry for non-residents is around £45–60 per day; a shared afternoon drive plus entry runs £60–80.

🚌Bus/shuttle + matatu ~£6–10

🛏Budget camp/guesthouse outside Amboseli gate (£15–25)

• →Bus to Amboseli
• →Afternoon game drive
• →Sunset over Kilimanjaro viewpoint

Morning game drive at dawn when the mountain is clearest, then head to Namanga border. Cross on foot, pick up a shuttle or dala-dala on the Tanzanian side to Arusha (roughly £6–10 total from Amboseli). Kenyan eTA ~£25, Tanzania e-visa ~£40 (US$50). Settle into an Arusha hostel and book your Ngorongoro/Serengeti camping safari for the next days (3-day group camping safari roughly £350–500 pp).

🚌Shuttle + border crossing ~£10–14

🛏Hostel/guesthouse, Arusha (£12–20)

• →Dawn game drive
• →Namanga border crossing
• →Book Ngorongoro/Serengeti safari in Arusha

Join your group camping safari. Drive up through Karatu and Mto wa Mbu (a good stop for a village walk or banana-plantation bike ride, ~£12–18 direct), then onto the crater rim viewpoint. Descend early for a full crater-floor drive — black rhino, lion, flamingo at Lake Magadi — with a picnic lunch by the hippo pool. Camp on the crater rim or in Karatu.

🚌Shared safari 4x4/land cruiser

🛏Crater rim / Karatu campsite with safari crew (£20–30 within package)

• →Crater rim viewpoint
• →Full crater-floor game drive
• →Hippo pool picnic

Drive from Ngorongoro into the Serengeti via Naabi Hill Gate (~3.5 hrs), game-viewing the whole way. Serengeti park fees for non-residents are roughly £55–70 per 24 hours plus vehicle fees, which is why a group camping safari is the cost-effective route. Set up at a public campsite in Seronera and take an afternoon drive.

🚌Shared safari 4x4

🛏Public campsite, Seronera (within safari package)

• →Naabi Hill Gate entry
• →Afternoon drive in Seronera
• →Campsite sundowner

A full day in the park — lions in the golden grass, giraffe on the horizon, and if you're there December–May, calving herds on the southern plains. Optional Serengeti balloon safari booked direct with operators like Serengeti Balloon Safaris runs around £420–480 (vs $599 with the tour). Return to camp for dinner under the stars.

🚌Shared safari 4x4

🛏Public campsite, Seronera (within safari package)

• →Full-day game drive
• →Optional balloon safari
• →Night at public campsite

Drive back out of the park through the Ngorongoro highlands to Arusha, with a stop at Mto wa Mbu for market lunch. Back in Arusha, stay in a hostel and sort your Zanzibar flight for tomorrow — book direct with Precision Air or Air Tanzania (one way roughly £60–110) rather than paying the operator's bundled fare.

🚌Return safari drive + Arusha evening on foot

🛏Hostel/guesthouse, Arusha (£12–20)

• →Drive out of Serengeti
• →Mto wa Mbu market lunch
• →Book Zanzibar flight

Fly Arusha to Zanzibar (or the slightly cheaper Kilimanjaro–Zanzibar route with a short transfer). Check into a Stone Town guesthouse inside the old town and spend the afternoon getting lost in the alleyways, the Darajani market and the waterfront. Evening at Forodhani night market — a cheap feast of grilled seafood skewers and Zanzibar pizza for £4–7.

🚌Flight Arusha–Zanzibar ~£60–110; airport taxi ~£6

🛏Stone Town guesthouse (£18–32)

• →Flight to Zanzibar
• →Forodhani Gardens night market
• →Darajani market wander

Self-launched Stone Town walking tour: hire a licensed local guide via GetYourGuide or at the Old Fort for a 2.5–3 hr UNESCO old-town walk including the Old Slave Market and Anglican Cathedral (~£20–30), or download a free self-launched audio guide and pay only entry fees. Afternoon spice tour at a Kizimbani farm — book direct for £15–22 including tastings.

🚌On foot; dala-dala for spice farm ~£1

🛏Stone Town guesthouse (£18–32)

• →Guided Stone Town walking tour
• →Old Slave Market & Cathedral
• →Spice farm tour

Walk down to the Forodhani waterfront and join a shared dhow trip to the Nakupenda sandbank — the operator's version is included; booked independently it's around £20–30 per person including snorkelling gear and often a grilled seafood lunch on the sandbank. Alternatively the half-day Safari Blue boat (sandbank, snorkelling, seafood lunch) is roughly £50–65 booked direct.

🚌On foot to Forodhani, dhow included

🛏Stone Town guesthouse (£18–32)

• →Dhow to Nakupenda sandbank
• →Snorkelling
• →Seafood BBQ lunch

Hop a dala-dala south to Jambiani (roughly £1.50, 1 hr) — quieter, better value and with a seaweed-farming village feel — or north to Nungwi for the beach bars. Check into a beach guesthouse or hostel and do nothing much at all. Optional Mnemba Atoll snorkelling/dolphin trip from Nungwi or Matemwe direct with a local boat (~£25–35) is worth it.

🚌Dala-dala ~£1.5

🛏Beach guesthouse/hostel, Jambiani or Nungwi (£18–30)

• →Dala-dala to beach
• →Swimming and snorkelling
• →Optional Mnemba Atoll boat trip

Final swim, a proper Zanzibar coffee, then a shared or private transfer back to Abeid Amani Karume International Airport (roughly £15–22). Allow plenty of time — the operator advises avoiding departures before 14:30, and independents should budget three hours before an international flight.

🚌Shared/private transfer to airport ~£15–22

🛏N/A (departure day)

• →Beach morning
• →Transfer to Zanzibar airport