Kenya & Seychelles: Maasai Mara, Wildlife Safaris & Island Shores — Self-Launched

Land at JKIA (NBO) and take a pre-booked Bolt/Uber or airport taxi into the city (~£15-20). Kenyan entry now requires an eTA (~£25) plus the mandatory Inbound Travel Health Insurance bundled into the eTA process — apply a week ahead. Settle into a hostel or budget hotel in Westlands or Kilimani, buy a Safaricom SIM with data (~£3), change some cash and eat dinner at a local nyama choma or Indian-Kenyan spot. No activities today — just get your bearings and confirm tomorrow's shuttle.

🚌Airport taxi/Bolt ~£15-20

🛏Private room in a Nairobi hostel/budget hotel, Westlands or Kilimani (e.g. stay at a well-reviewed hostel such as Wildebeest Eco Camp or a mid-range guesthouse) — ~£35

• →Arrival & SIM card
• →Neighbourhood wander

Travel north through Nanyuki into the Il Ngwesi conservancy — the community-owned Maasai lodge used on the original tour. Book your stay directly by email with Il Ngwesi Eco-Lodge (or the neighbouring Lewa/Il Ngwesi community camps) — rooms are open-fronted and simple but magical. Take a shared 4x4 shuttle or book a private transfer from Nanyuki to the conservancy gate, or self-drive if you've hired a car with a driver. Settle in, meet your Maasai hosts and walk to the watering hole at sunset.

🚌Shared Nairobi–Nanyuki shuttle ~£10 + conservancy transfer ~£70 split

🛏Il Ngwesi Eco-Lodge (community-owned, directly booked) — ~£120-160 B&B equivalent; cheaper community bandas available nearby

• →Conservancy arrival walk
• →Sunset at the waterhole

Book a morning bush walk with a Maasai guide through the lodge (included in most conservancy rates or ~£20 pp) — track game on foot and learn traditional tracking and plant-lore. Afternoon visit to the nearby Maasai manyatta to learn beadwork and talk with the community. Dinner at the lodge under canvas.

🚌On foot / lodge vehicle

🛏Il Ngwesi Eco-Lodge

• →Guided Maasai bush walk
• →Maasai village visit & beadwork
• →Night sky viewing

Choose your own adventure day: either a full-morning game drive through the conservancy (rhino, Grevy's zebra, elephant are the stars of Laikipia) or a slower cultural day in the village. The conservancy is one of the last strongholds for northern Kenya species and far quieter than the Mara. Pack sundowners and don't miss the evening chorus.

🚌Conservancy safari vehicle (lodge-operated)

🛏Il Ngwesi Eco-Lodge

• →Conservancy game drive
• →Guided nature walk

Travel overland or via light aircraft to the Maasai Mara. The cheapest realistic route is a shared safari shuttle from Nairobi (~£45-60 one way, 5-6 hours via Narok) or a domestic flight (Safarilink/Airkenya NBO–Keekorok, ~£130-170). Book a small tented camp or safari-vehicle-based budget camp in the Talek or Sekenani area — most will do shared game drives and park-fee arrangements. Afternoon drive straight into the reserve.

🚌Shared shuttle or light aircraft NBO–Mara (~£45-170)

🛏Mid-range tented camp, Talek/Sekenani area (direct booking) — ~£90-130 full board

• →Afternoon game drive in the reserve

Classic full-day game drive with a shared safari vehicle — out before dawn with a picnic breakfast in the bush, all day following the big cats and (July-October) the migration herds along the Mara River. Book a shared vehicle seat through your camp or a GetYourGuide/Klook Mara day-safari (~£60-90 pp) to keep it cheap; the park entry itself is ~£80 pp/day (High Season), payable at the gate.

🚌Open-roof safari 4x4 (shared)

🛏Mid-range tented camp, Maasai Mara

• →Full-day game drive & picnic breakfast
• →Mara River viewpoint

One more morning and afternoon drive focused on cheetah and leopard territory — the Mara has some of the densest big-cat populations on earth. Optional sunset ballon safari if you want to splash out (~£400 pp, book direct with a licensed operator). Back to camp for a bush dinner by the fire.

🚌Open-roof safari 4x4 (shared)

🛏Mid-range tented camp, Maasai Mara

• →Morning & afternoon game drives
• →Bush dinner at camp

Morning drive out of the Mara and back north toward Nairobi (shared shuttle ~£45-60, ~6 hours). Stop at Café Ubuntu in Maai Mahiu for the 3-course farm-to-table lunch that supports local women's employment (~£15) — it's on the highway and easy to ask your driver to stop. In Nairobi visit the Nairobi National Museum (~£10) for the Leakey prehistoric finds, then dinner in Westlands.

🚌Shared Mara–Nairobi shuttle ~£45-60

🛏Private room in Nairobi hostel/budget guesthouse — ~£35

• →Café Ubuntu farm-to-table lunch
• →Nairobi National Museum

Full day to enjoy Nairobi: visit the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust elephant orphanage for the 11am public visit (~£10, book ahead), then Giraffe Centre (~£12), or the Karen Blixen Museum. Coffee-hopping through Kilimani and an evening out — Nairobi's nightlife is excellent and cheap.

🚌Bolt/Uber around the city ~£10

🛏Private room in Nairobi hostel/budget guesthouse

• →Sheldrick elephant orphanage
• →Giraffe Centre
• →Coffee & nightlife

Fly Nairobi to Seychelles (1,500 km across the Indian Ocean). There are no true budget carriers on this route — the best value is a condor/airline connection via Addis or direct Kenya Airways/Ethiopian to Mahé, roughly £250-380 one way. Note the Seychelles Travel Authorisation (~£60) plus mandatory travel insurance. Land and bus or take a taxi to Beau Vallon — guesthouses here are far cheaper than the resorts and right on the beach.

🚌Flight NBO–SEZ ~£250-380; airport bus/taxi ~£5-20

🛏Beau Vallon guesthouse or self-catering studio (direct booking, e.g. booking.com) — ~£60-90

• →Arrival & beach walk at Beau Vallon

Choose your OMG day. Option A: hike the Copolia Trail in Morne Seychellois National Park — about 2 hours up through jungle to 360° granite-slab views over Victoria and the coast (free, trailhead at Sans Souci; bus from Victoria ~£1). Option B: visit Cap Lazare Private Nature Reserve to meet free-roaming giant tortoises (~£25-35). Either way finish with sunset swim at Beau Vallon.

🚌Local bus ~£1-2 / taxi ~£10

🛏Beau Vallon guesthouse

• →Copolia Trail hike
• →or Cap Lazare giant tortoises
• →Beau Vallon swim

Take the Cat Cocos fast ferry from Mahé to Praslin (~£50-60, 1 hour; book online ahead). Drop bags at a guesthouse in Baie Sainte Anne, then hop the local bus or a taxi to Anse Lazio at the island's northern tip — widely claimed as one of the world's best beaches, with palm-fringed white sand and giant granite boulders. Swim, snorkel, and stay for the sunset.

🚌Cat Cocos ferry ~£50-60; local bus ~£1

🛏Praslin guesthouse, Baie Sainte Anne (direct booking) — ~£70-95

• →Anse Lazio beach day
• →Swimming & snorkelling

Morning self-guided walk through UNESCO-listed Vallée de Mai (~£20 entry) — home of the coco de mer palm and black parrots. Afternoon join a local boat trip to Curieuse Island (~£45-60 pp) to walk among free-roaming giant tortoises and snorkel off St Pierre islet. Book a small-group tour through GetYourGuide or a local boat operator at the Baie Sainte Anne pier rather than a private catamaran.

🚌Local boat tour boat ~£45-60

🛏Praslin guesthouse, Baie Sainte Anne

• →Vallée de Mai self-guided walk
• →Curieuse Island boat trip & giant tortoises
• →Snorkelling at St Pierre

Take the short ferry from Praslin to La Digue (~£25-30, 15-20 mins). Hire a bicycle for a couple of days (~£10/day) — La Digue is tiny and bike-friendly. Ride to Anse Source d'Argent, the granite-boulder beach made famous by every Seychelles postcard (~£12 entry via L'Union Estate), and do the easy walk-through to the beach. Afternoon at Grand Anse or Anse Cocos.

🚌Praslin–La Digue ferry ~£25-30; bike hire ~£10/day

🛏La Digue guesthouse (self-catering or B&B, direct booking) — ~£70-95

• →Bike hire & island loop
• →Anse Source d'Argent
• →Grand Anse / Anse Cocos

Morning clear-kayak or snorkel session over the coral gardens at Anse Source d'Argent (~£30-40, book locally or via Klook). Spend the afternoon on the beach and pick up Creole takeaway — grilled fish, octopus curry, breadfruit. Farewell dinner at a local Creole restaurant with the waves behind you.

🚌Bicycle

🛏La Digue guesthouse

• →Clear kayak at Anse Source d'Argent
• →Snorkelling
• →Creole dinner

Ferry La Digue to Mahé (~£30-40, 1.5 hours; check timings against your flight), then bus or taxi to Seychelles International Airport. If you have a late flight, leave the bag in storage and squeeze in a last swim at Beau Vallon.

🚌La Digue–Mahé ferry ~£30-40; bus to airport ~£1

🛏—

• →Last swim at Beau Vallon