Ultimate East Africa: Mountains & the Masai Mara — Self-Launched

Land at JKIA and take a taxi or Bolt to a hostel in Westlands or Kilimani (£8-12). Nairobi isn't a city to wander at night — keep to main streets after dark and use Bolt rather than walking. Pick up a Safaricom SIM/eSIM (£1-2) and get cash from an ATM. Evening: eat at a local nyama choma joint or grab dinner at the hostel and plan the Uganda bus and gorilla permit logistics.

🚌Airport taxi ~£10

🛏Hostel or budget guesthouse, Westlands/Kilimani (£12-18)

• →Airport transfer to hostel
• →Safaricom SIM card
• →Evening food at a nyama choma spot

Book a shared 3-day/2-night Masai Mara camping safari with a Nairobi operator (many sell from hostel desks or via GetYourGuide, £300-380 including park fees, food and two game drives). Leave around 07:00, descend into the Great Rift Valley viewpoint at Mai Mahiu for photos, then on to the Mara via Narok with a packed lunch. Late-afternoon game drive into the reserve — elephants, giraffe, zebra and good odds on lions.

🚌Shared 4x4 safari van, ~6 hrs

🛏Budget safari camp tent inside/outside the reserve, shared (£part of safari)

• →Great Rift Valley viewpoint stop
• →Afternoon game drive in Masai Mara National Reserve

Full-day game drive with a pop-top roof — the Mara is big-cat country, so dawn and dusk drives are where the action is. Pack water and snacks. Optional balloon safari is £380-400 (G Adventures sells it at $499) — worth it only if the budget stretches; book at least a few days ahead. Evening back at camp with a fire.

🚌Safari 4x4

🛏Safari camp tent, shared

• →Full-day game drive
• →Optional hot-air balloon safari (~£390)
• →Optional Maasai village visit (~£20-25)

Morning game drive, then drive via Narok and Mai Mahiu to Lake Nakuru (£part of the shared safari package if you booked the 3-day extension, otherwise take a matatu to Nakuru town and a boda into the park gate). Nakuru is a fenced rhino sanctuary — black and white rhino sightings are near-guaranteed, plus Rothschild's giraffe and flamingos when water levels suit. Afternoon game drive.

🚌Shared safari van, ~5-6 hrs

🛏Budget guesthouse in Nakuru town (£15-20)

• →Transfer through the Rift Valley
• →Afternoon game drive in Lake Nakuru National Park

Morning game drive in Nakuru, then take an Easy Coach or Modern Coast bus from Nakuru to Eldoret (£6-8, ~3.5 hrs). Eldoret is a functional highland town — good for a cheap bed, laundry and a supermarket stock-up before Uganda. Not much sightseeing, but it breaks the long haul north.

🚌Easy Coach bus Nakuru–Eldoret ~£7

🛏Budget hotel near the bus stage (£12-16)

• →Morning game drive
• →Supermarket and laundry stop

Cross at Malaba: take a bus or shared matatu Eldoret → Bungoma → Malaba border, walk through immigration (have your Uganda e-visa printed), then a bus/matatu on to Kampala (total £10-15, 7-9 hrs door to door). Get a Ugandan SIM at the border. Kampala hostels cluster in Kololo/Nakasero and around Bunga — a dorm is £8-12.

🚌Bus/shared matatu Eldoret–Malaba–Kampala ~£13

🛏Kampala hostel dorm (£9-14)

• →Malaba border crossing
• →Ugandan SIM card

Bus from Kampala to Kabale (£8-10, ~8 hrs) with a company like Bismarkan or Gateway, then a boda or shared taxi down to Lake Bunyonyi (£2-3). Cross the equator en route — ask the driver to stop at the Kyamuhunga/Kayabwe marker. Bunyonyi is croc- and hippo-free, so you can actually swim; guesthouses on the lake (Bunyonyi Overland Resort, Crater Bay Cottages, or the cheaper hillside places) run £8-18 for a bandas.

🚌Coach Kampala–Kabale ~£9, then boda ~£2

🛏Lake Bunyonyi guesthouse bandas (£10-18)

• →Equator crossing photo stop
• →Swim in Lake Bunyonyi

The big one. Uganda Wildlife Authority permits are $800 (roughly £630) — book months ahead directly through UWA (booking.ugandawildlife.org) and never through a random broker. From Bunyonyi, arrange a shared 4x4 or boda to the trailhead for your assigned sector (Rushaga, Buhoma, Nkuringo or Ruhija — check which your permit names). Treks run 2-8 hours and can be steep, muddy and at altitude: wear old long trousers tucked into socks, sturdy boots, gardening gloves for the nettles, rain jacket and packed lunch. One hour with the family, then back for a very deserved beer.

🚌Shared 4x4 to trailhead ~£15

🛏Lake Bunyonyi or Bwindi-area guesthouse (£12-20)

• →Guided mountain gorilla trek in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
• →Optional porter hire (~£15-20)

A slow day after the trek. Rent a dugout canoe for a couple of pounds and paddle between islands, hike the terraced hills for the view over the 29 islands, or take a motorboat tour (£25-30). Birding is excellent — this is where 'place of many little birds' gets its name. Optional day trip across the Rwandan border to Kigali is possible but long; only worth it if you wanted a Rwanda stamp.

🚌On foot / canoe

🛏Lake Bunyonyi guesthouse (£10-18)

• →Canoe rental on the lake
• →Hillside nature walk
• →Optional motorboat island tour (~£28)

Long travel day: shared taxi or bus Bunyonyi → Kabale → Mbarara → Ishaka/Bushenyi, then a boda to Kalinzu (£10-14 total, 7-8 hrs). Base yourself in Bushenyi or at a camp near the Kalinzu gate. Afternoon at leisure — the drive through the tea belt past Ishaka is genuinely scenic.

🚌Shared taxis/bus via Kabale, Mbarara, Ishaka ~£12

🛏Guesthouse near Kalinzu/Bushenyi (£10-16)

• →Scenic drive through Uganda's tea country

Early Kalinzu Forest chimpanzee tracking (£60-70, paid direct to the reserve — book a day or two ahead; morning sessions are best). Then visit a roadside tea plantation for a look at how the leaf gets processed. Continue to Lake Mburo (£6-8, ~2 hrs). Optional afternoon boat cruise on the lake (£20-25) or a walking safari with a ranger — Mburo is one of the few Ugandan parks where you can walk, and it's zebra and impala country.

🚌Shared taxi to Lake Mburo ~£7

🛏Guesthouse or camp near Lake Mburo (£12-20)

• →Chimpanzee tracking in Kalinzu Forest Reserve
• →Tea plantation visit
• →Optional Lake Mburo boat cruise (~£23)

Cross the equator again at Kayabwe — stop for the water-swirl demo and a coffee at a roadside café. Bus/shared taxi Mburo → Masaka → Kampala → Jinja (£8-12, 6-7 hrs). Jinja is Uganda's adventure capital and has proper backpacker hostels (Nile River Explorers, Nile It, Adrift) with dorms from £8-12 and river views.

🚌Bus via Masaka/Kampala ~£10

🛏Jinja riverside hostel dorm (£9-14)

• →Equator crossing at Kayabwe
• →Settle into a riverside hostel

Optional full-day white-water rafting on the Nile (£105-120 with Adrift or Nile River Explorers, lunch included) — one of the best-value grade-5 rafting days anywhere. Softer options: sunset boat cruise (£23), kayaking, quad biking (£80), or bungee off the source-of-the-Nile bridge (£110). Otherwise free: wander to the Source of the Nile and the Jinja market.

🚌Boda around town ~£3

🛏Jinja riverside hostel dorm

• →Optional White Nile rafting (~£112)
• →Optional sunset Nile cruise (~£23)
• →Source of the Nile walk

Back to Nairobi: shuttle from Jinja/Kampala to Nairobi with a company like Modern Coast or Easy Coach (£20-28, 12-14 hrs overnight), or fly if you can find a cheap Entebbe–Nairobi fare. Book a hostel bed for two nights ahead. Note the G Adventures tour uses a private shuttle here; the public coach is slower and less comfortable but a fraction of the price.

🚌Overnight coach Jinja–Nairobi ~£24

🛏Nairobi hostel dorm (£10-15)

• →Long-haul coach south
• →Border crossing at Malaba/Busia

Take the shuttle or public bus Nairobi → Namanga border → Arusha (£12-18, 6-8 hrs). The Impala Shuttle and Riverside Shuttle run direct for around £18. Namibia... rather, Namanga — walk the border, get your Tanzania e-visa sorted in advance, and pay any inbound insurance required. Arusha is safari central; spend the evening comparing quotes from 3-4 operators for Serengeti/Ngorongoro.

🚌Riverside/Impala shuttle Nairobi–Arusha ~£17

🛏Arusha hostel dorm (£8-14)

• →Namanga border crossing
• →Safari operator quotes in Arusha

Start a shared 4-day/3-night Serengeti + Ngorongoro camping safari. Group-joining seats are the budget trick: roughly £550-700 per person including park fees, a 6-seat 4x4 with pop-top, cook, tents and all meals. Drive via Ngorongoro Conservation Area and the Naabi Hill Gate, entering the Serengeti in the afternoon — game drive en route to camp. Serengeti park fees alone are ~$82/day plus vehicle fees, so DIY self-drive rarely saves money.

🚌Shared 4x4 safari vehicle, full day

🛏Public campsite tent in the Serengeti (part of safari cost)

• →Drive into Serengeti via Naabi Hill
• →Afternoon game drive

Dawn-to-dusk game drives across the Seronera plains — lions, cheetah, elephants, buffalo, and the migration herds if the season lines up (roughly June–October in the western/northern Serengeti, December–March on the southern plains). Optional balloon safari over the Serengeti is $500-600 — the G Adventures version is $499, so similar; book ahead if you want it.

🚌Safari 4x4

🛏Serengeti public campsite tent

• →Full-day game drives
• →Optional Serengeti balloon safari (~£430)

Morning game drive, then drive up to the Ngorongoro Crater rim to camp at Simba or similar. It's cold and windy at 2,300m — take layers. Sunset over the caldera is worth the altitude headache. Early night; you're up before dawn.

🚌Safari 4x4, ~4 hrs

🛏Ngorongoro rim campsite tent

• →Morning game drive
• →Sunset at the crater rim

Descend into the crater at first light — the world's largest intact volcanic caldera and your best single shot at black rhino, plus huge lion prides, flamingos at Lake Magadi and elephants. Picnic lunch by the hippo pool, then climb out and drive back to Arusha. Safari ends here; pay tips to your driver and cook (£8-12 total is plenty for a budget trip).

🚌Safari 4x4, then drive to Arusha

🛏Arusha hostel dorm (£8-14)

• →Ngorongoro Crater descent and game drive
• →Hippo pool picnic lunch

Long day south: bus Arusha → Dar es Salaam (Kilimanjaro Express or similar, £15-20, 12-14 hrs) or a cheap Precision Air/Coastal flight if you'd rather buy back a day. Alternatively break it at Moshi or Same. If you've got the day, the Arusha coffee tour or the Cultural Heritage Centre fills time before an overnight bus.

🚌Coach Arusha–Dar es Salaam ~£18

🛏Dar es Salaam guesthouse or night bus (£10-15)

• →Optional Arusha coffee tour
• →Long-distance bus south

Morning ferry Dar → Stone Town with Azam Marine (£20-25 for the fast boat, ~2 hrs; book the day before). Walk the old town yourself — it's a UNESCO maze of carved doors, the Old Fort, the House of Wonders and the seafront fish market at sunset — or join a £10-12 walking tour. The Old Slave Market and Christ Church Cathedral ($5) is essential. Note Zanzibar is conservative: cover knees and shoulders in town.

🚌Ferry ~£22, then dala-dala/taxi ~£2

🛏Stone Town guesthouse (£15-25)

• →Azam ferry crossing
• →DIY Stone Town wander
• →Old Slave Market & Christ Church Cathedral (~£4)
• →Forodhani Gardens night food market

Take a dala-dala from Stone Town to Jambiani or Paje (£1-2, 1-1.5 hrs). Beach banda guesthouses run £12-25 a night and Paje is better for the budget backpacker scene. Afternoon swimming on the turquoise flat lagoon — tide-dependent, so check timings. Optional Jozani Forest red colobus tour (£20-25) on the way down.

🚌Dala-dala ~£2

🛏Beach guesthouse banda (£12-22)

• →Dala-dala to the east coast
• →Swimming at Jambiani/Paje
• →Optional Jozani Forest tour (~£23)

Unstructured: snorkel trip to the reef (£20-30), kitesurf lesson at Paje (£50-60), or just lie on the sand and eat grilled fish. If you want a spice-farm visit, tuk-tuk to a nearby farm for £10-15. This is the decompression day — East Africa trips are long drives and early alarms, so take it.

🚌On foot / tuk-tuk ~£3

🛏Beach guesthouse banda

• →Optional reef snorkelling (~£25)
• →Optional spice farm visit (~£12)
• →Beach time

Morning at the beach, then dala-dala or taxi back to Stone Town (allow 1.5 hrs). Zanzibar airport charges a $48 departure tax in cash at the desk behind check-in — budget for it and keep dollars. Don't book onward flights before mid-afternoon. Or if you're staying on, extend the beach days — this leg is the easiest to stretch.

🚌Taxi to Zanzibar airport ~£10

🛏Night flight home

• →Return to Stone Town
• →Airport departure