10 Day Tanzania and Kenya Safari

Arusha to Tarangire National Park

You breakfast in Arusha and drive until the farms fall away — about two hours — and baobabs, the park gate and the river take their place. We start the safari here. We do not tack a short game drive onto a transfer. A private Land Cruiser with a pop-up roof carries you; the window seat is yours for the whole trip.

Elephant country, plainly. In the dry months whole families walk the Tarangire River and the Silale swamp. Giraffe work the acacias, lion the shade of the same giants you came to photograph. Picnic out so that when the light tilts you are still inside, watching herds move toward water.

That week's quiet track is already in your Super Luxury Safaris' Guide's head. You travel with the Super Luxury Safaris Team, not a distant call centre convoy, and they still answer WhatsApp after dinner.

Overnight: in the Karatu highlands, in the camping, mid-range, luxury or high-end lodge named on your

Karatu to Serengeti National Park

Climb through Iraqw farmland, pause at the Ngorongoro viewpoint, drop through Naabi. That is the hour the horizon opens and the Serengeti — grassland so wide it rearranges how you think about space — takes over. Spend the afternoon on the Seronera River with lion on the kopjes, leopard in the sausage trees if the day is kind, and zebra and gazelle on the open grass.

We refuse to rush what most guests have been holding in their heads since they booked. Picnic or a late lodge lunch. Then a slower drive so you arrive in camp with the sun still on the plains.

Dinner and overnight in the Serengeti, in the camp or lodge class named on your quote.

Overnight: in the Serengeti, in the camp or lodge class named on your quote

Full day in Serengeti National Park

Because sleeping in the Serengeti instead of driving through it is the point, there is no long transfer today. We leave in the cool, carry a picnic, and stay with the morning’s offer: a hunt, resident herds crossing, a leopard on a kopje if you sit still.

A balloon at first light is there if you want it and is not hidden inside the base package. Dry months mean riverine strips. December to March we can lean south toward Ndutu when the calves are on the short grass. The rest of the day is yours in your own vehicle. A Super Luxury Safaris' Guide would rather you see one pride well than ten animals from a traffic jam.

Dinner and overnight in the Serengeti, in the camp or lodge class named on your quote.

Overnight: in the Serengeti, in the camp or lodge class named on your quote

Second full day in Serengeti National Park

When the herds have moved, push a little north or south. If not, go back to a corner you liked. A second full day on the plains is when the safari settles, with time to sit with a cat instead of covering kilometres for the sake of a checklist.

A balloon, a walking safari where it is legal, or a long picnic under a sausage tree — that is what many guests choose today. Still a private vehicle. Still your guide’s radio, not a loudspeaker in a packed truck.

Dinner and overnight in the Serengeti, in the camp or lodge class named on your quote.

Overnight: in the Serengeti, in the camp or lodge class named on your quote

Serengeti to Ngorongoro

Empty tarmac this is not. After a last dawn on the plains you game-drive east toward the crater highlands, and the conservation area still holds giraffe, eland and Maasai herds on the open slopes.

Tomorrow is the descent, so sleep early. Evening is on the rim or in Karatu, the caldera below you if the lodge class you chose sits on the edge.

Overnight: on the Ngorongoro rim or in Karatu, depending on the lodge class you chose

Ngorongoro Crater to Arusha, fly to the Masai Mara

This closed caldera is the fairest chance you will have at black rhino, which are never guaranteed — we never pretend they are. The morning that sells the northern circuit is the drop of roughly 600 metres onto the crater floor while the grass is still cold. Zebra, wildebeest and buffalo pack the short grass. Hippo hold the pools. Lion are often in the open.

We climb out with time to wash off the dust after picnic lunch on the floor, not a rushed snack at the gate. You will talk about this day for years. We pace it so you are still looking, not watching the clock.

After the climb-out we drive to Arusha or Kilimanjaro Airport for the included scheduled flight to the Masai Mara. A Kenya driver-guide meets you at the airstrip for an afternoon game drive.

Overnight: in the Masai Mara, reserve or conservancy as named on the quote

Full day in the Masai Mara

Dawn in the Mara is cold, gold, and noisy with birds. We work the river, the marsh or a conservancy gate depending on where the cats hunted overnight. Picnic or lodge lunch, then a second drive when the heat breaks.

This is not a Nairobi day trip. You slept in the reserve. You will sleep here again. That is why four days can still feel like a proper safari.

Overnight: in the Masai Mara, reserve or conservancy as named on the quote

Masai Mara game drives

The Masai Mara is the Kenya side of the same grassland system you may already know from the Serengeti. Cats hold territories here all year. From August to October the herds pile onto the Mara River and the crossings become the story. The rest of the year the marsh, the resident lion and the open grass are enough.

You travel in a private 4×4 with a Kenya driver-guide. Conservancy nights, when we use them, add walking and night drives that the reserve itself does not allow.

Overnight: in the Masai Mara, reserve or conservancy as named on the quote

Masai Mara game drives

Cold, gold, noisy with birds: dawn in the Mara. Depending on where the cats hunted overnight we work the river, the marsh or a conservancy gate. Picnic or lodge lunch. A second drive when the heat breaks.

You slept in the reserve. You will sleep here again. This is not a Nairobi day trip, which is why four days can still feel like a proper safari.

Overnight: we work the river, the marsh or a conservancy gate

Masai Mara to Nairobi

A last cool morning in the reserve, then the road back to Nairobi — or a Wilson airstrip departure if that flight is named on the quote. Hotel or airport drop-off, which ends the safari. Do not book an international departure before 18:00 unless the Mara–Wilson connection lands in time.