Kenya & Tanzania Safari Overland: Nairobi to Arusha (Self-Launched)

Land at JKIA and take the airport shuttle bus or a pre-booked taxi (~£15) into the city. Check into a hostel or budget guesthouse in Westlands or Kilimani — Hostelworld lists several good dorms and private rooms in this range. Spend the afternoon at the Nairobi National Museum or the Giraffe Centre if time allows, and buy a local Safaricom SIM with data. Do your safari shopping tonight: a sleeping bag liner, head torch and refillable water bottles are far cheaper here than in the Mara. Change money or withdraw Kenyan shillings — cards are patchy outside Nairobi.

🚌Airport shuttle or taxi from JKIA (~20km, £10–18)

🛏Hostel or budget guesthouse in Westlands/Kilimani (dorm or twin ensuite)

• →Settle in and SIM card setup
• →Optional Nairobi National Museum (£8)
• →Optional Giraffe Centre (£15)

Take an early matatu or shared shuttle from Nairobi's Bus Station to Nakuru town (roughly 3 hours, £5–8), or book a seat on one of the Easy Coach/Modern Coast buses. From Nakuru, a boda-boda or short matatu run gets you to the park gate. Join an afternoon game drive in a shared 4x4 with a licensed guide arranged through your guesthouse or GetYourGuide (~£45 per person including park entry contribution). Lake Nakuru is famous for flamingos when water levels allow, plus black and white rhino, Rothschild's giraffe and tree-climbing lions. Stay in a guesthouse or banda near the park gate.

🚌Matatu/shuttle Nairobi–Nakuru (~£7); boda-boda to gate (~£2); shared 4x4 game drive

🛏Guesthouse or bandas near Lake Nakuru gate

• →Afternoon game drive in Lake Nakuru NP
• →Rift Valley viewpoint stop
• →Rhino and Rothschild giraffe spotting

Head south to Naivasha by matatu (~£4) and take a boat ride on the lake to see hippos and fish eagles — operators at the lake shore charge around £15–20 per person for an hour, far cheaper than a packaged add-on. Add a bicycle hire into Hell's Gate National Park (~£12 plus entry ~£20) for walking access among zebra and the Elsa Gate cliffs. Late afternoon, take a matatu toward Narok and on to the Loita Hills area, or arrange a shared transfer through your Naivasha guesthouse. Sleep at a simple local guesthouse or community campsite in the hills.

🚌Matatu Naivasha (~£4); boat and bike hire locally; matatu to Narok/Loita (~£6)

🛏Simple guesthouse or community campsite, Loita Hills

• →Lake Naivasha boat ride
• →Hell's Gate cycling and walking safari
• →Loita Hills hillside sunset

Continue by matatu to Narok, then pick up a seat on a shared safari vehicle heading into the Mara conservancies (~£20–25). Most budget travellers book a 3-day Mara camping package locally (roughly £150–200 per person for accommodation, meals, park fees and game drives in a shared van) — GetYourGuide and local Nairobi agents both sell these. On the way in, stop at a Maasai manyatta. Rather than a packaged cultural visit, go with a community-run guide arranged in Narok or Sekenani (£10–15) and agree the price up front. Evening game drive in the reserve.

🚌Matatu to Narok (~£5); shared safari van into the Mara (~£22)

🛏Budget tented camp or camping banda inside/near the Masai Mara reserve

• →Masai settlement visit with community guide
• →Afternoon game drive
• →Campfire dinner

Two game drives today, sunrise and late afternoon, in a shared 4x4 with a licensed Maasai driver-guide. When the migration is in the Mara (roughly July–October) the Mara River crossings are the headline, but Big Five sightings are possible year-round. Pack a picnic breakfast and eat it under an acacia. Bring a good zoom lens and binoculars — rental is £5–10 per day at the camps if you don't own them. Optional evening sundowner beers with camp-mates.

🚌Shared 4x4 game drives (usually included in your 3-day Mara package)

🛏Budget tented camp or camping banda, Masai Mara

• →Sunrise game drive
• →Mara River and cat spotting
• →Picnic breakfast on the plains
• →Optional night sky viewing

One last early game drive before breakfast, then back out through Narok by shared van and matatu to Nairobi (~£12 total). Return to the same hostel you started at so you can leave heavier gear there — it's a well-worn traveller routine. Evening in the city: cheap and excellent nyama choma or a Kenyan-Indian meal in Westlands (£6–9). Repack for Tanzania — cross-border shuttles want modest luggage.

🚌Shared van and matatu Mara–Nairobi (~£12)

🛏Hostel or budget guesthouse, Nairobi

• →Final morning game drive
• →Nyama choma dinner
• →Trip admin for Tanzania

Book a shared cross-border shuttle Nairobi–Arusha with Riverside or Impala Shuttle (roughly £25–35, 6–8 hours) which handles the Namanga border formalities with you. Alternatively, do it yourself: matatu to Namanga, walk across the border, then a daladala via Longido to Arusha — cheaper (~£10) but slower. You'll want a Kenyan eTA and a Tanzanian e-visa before travelling. Arrive Arusha, walk the clock tower, eat at a local 'hoteli' (£3–4) and book your Serengeti/Ngorongoro camping safari tonight.

🚌Shared cross-border shuttle Nairobi–Arusha (~£28)

🛏Hostel or budget guesthouse, Arusha

• →Namanga border crossing
• →Arusha town walk
• →Book 4x4 camping safari locally

Take a daladala from Arusha to Mto wa Mbu (~£2), an hour along the Rift Valley escarpment with good views. Join the village's community-run walking tour — several cooperatives run these for about £10–15 and include the banana and rice fields, a woodcarver's workshop and a home-cooked lunch with a local family. Afterwards, visit a Maasai village in the Monduli district with a community guide (£15–20) and, if you're interested, ask about the clean cookstove initiatives run by local women's groups — much the same ground G Adventures covers. Sleep in a village guesthouse or camping banda.

🚌Daladala Arusha–Mto wa Mbu (~£2)

🛏Local guesthouse or campsite, Mto wa Mbu

• →Mto wa Mbu community walking tour and lunch
• →Maasai village visit
• →Optional village cycling tour (~£25)

Start your 4-day Serengeti/Ngorongoro camping safari with a local Arusha operator (budget shared 4x4 camping trips run roughly £380–480 per person including park fees, cook, food, tents and a driver-guide — GetYourGuide lists several). Drive via Olduvai Gorge and the Naabi Hill gate, game viewing all the way to the central Seronera plains. Set up camp at a public campsite in the park; expect basic flush toilets, bucket or solar showers, and animals wandering nearby after dark. Eat dinner under genuinely spectacular stars.

🚌4x4 safari vehicle from Mto wa Mbu/Arusha (~6–7 hours with game viewing)

🛏Public campsite tent, central Serengeti (tent and mattress supplied by operator)

• →Olduvai Gorge optional stop
• →Game drive into the Serengeti
• →Seronera plains wildlife spotting

A full day of game driving across the Seronera and Moru Kopjes area — lions, leopard in the kopjes, elephant, buffalo, cheetah and vast herds when the migration is south. Optional hot-air balloon safari if you want the splurge: Serengeti balloon flights are expensive (~£420–480 per person) but include a champagne bush breakfast, and can be booked directly with Serengeti Balloon Safaris or Mirari Africa. Otherwise stay with the vehicle and cover more ground. Second night under canvas.

🚌4x4 safari vehicle

🛏Public campsite tent, central Serengeti

• →Full-day game drive
• →Optional hot-air balloon safari (~£450)
• →Kopje and waterhole spotting

Game drive out of the Serengeti via the western plains, stopping at the Naabi Hill viewpoint and the Simba Kopjes. Climb the highlands to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and camp on the crater rim at Simba or Ngorongoro Rhino campsite — cold at 2,300m, so bring layers and a warm sleeping bag. Sunset over the caldera is the highlight of the day.

🚌4x4 safari vehicle (~4–5 hours with stops)

🛏Crater rim campsite (Simba or Rhino camp)

• →Game drive out of the Serengeti
• →Crater rim sunset
• →Conservation Area viewpoint walks

Descend into the crater at dawn in a 4x4 down the steep access road — the largest intact volcanic caldera on earth and one of the best places in Africa for black rhino. Expect zebra, wildebeest, buffalo, hyena, hippo in the Ngoitokitok springs and a good chance of lion. Climb out by late morning, drive back to Arusha and take a well-earned guesthouse room with a real shower. Celebrate over a Tanzanian barbecue.

🚌4x4 safari vehicle (~3–4 hours back to Arusha)

🛏Hostel or budget guesthouse, Arusha

• →Ngorongoro Crater descent and game drive
• →Rhino spotting
• →Evening in Arusha

A slow morning: coffee at a local café, the Arusha Declaration Museum or a walk through the Maasai Market for crafts and kangas. Kilimanjaro International Airport is about 45 minutes away by shuttle or taxi (~£30); pre-book a shared shuttle (~£15) if you're flying out. If you're heading to Zanzibar, catch a shuttle to Moshi and bus to Dar es Salaam, or fly direct from Arusha. Trip ends.

🚌Shared shuttle or taxi to Kilimanjaro International Airport (~£15–30)

🛏None (departure day)

• →Market shopping
• →Optional Arusha Declaration Museum (~£2)