16-Day Combined Kenya & Tanzania Grand Safari: Big Five, Mount Kenya & Northern Circuit

Embark on the definitive East African grand tour with this comprehensive 16-day Kenya and Tanzania combined wildlife safari. Seamlessly bridging the pinnacle reserves of both nations, this expedition starts and concludes in Nairobi,pairing untamed savanna game drives with iconic heritage lodges and luxury tented camps.

Experience hands-on wildlife conservation in Nairobi, capture elephant herds framed by Mount Kilimanjaro in Amboseli, photograph ancient baobabs in Tarangire, descend into the world-famous Ngorongoro Crater caldera, track the Great Migration across the Serengeti and Masai Mara, encounter rare rhinos along the pink-fringed shores of Lake Nakuru, and unwind in country-club luxury on the slopes of Mount Kenya completing your Grand East Africa safari tour with Bushtroop Safaris

Combined Kenya and Tanzania luxury Safari Itinerary

Day 1: Arrival in Nairobi – Welcome to The Green City in the Sun

Arrive at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO) in Nairobi. Meet your dedicated Bushtroop Tours & Safarischauffeur-guide at the international arrivals hall.

Enjoy a seamless private transfer to the 5-star Emara Ole-Sereni Hotel, positioned along the boundary of Nairobi National Park. Relax in contemporary luxury, take a swim in the rooftop infinity pool overlooking open savanna where wild giraffes and zebras often graze, and unwind ahead of your safari journey.

Accommodation: Emara Ole-Sereni Hotel Nairobi
Meal Plan: Bed & Breakfast (Dinner available at the rooftop restaurant)

Day 2: Karen Blixen Museum, Giraffe Centre, Community School & Carnivore Feast

Excursion Focus: Cultural history, hands-on conservation, philanthropy, and world-famous dining
Key Stops: Karen Blixen Museum, AFEW Giraffe Centre, Tenderfeet Education Center, The Carnivore

Travel after breakfast to the historic garden suburb of Karen. Step back in time at the Karen Blixen Museum, touring the original 1917 colonial farmhouse where the renowned Danish author wrote Out of Africa.

Continue to the AFEW Giraffe Centre (Rothschild Giraffe Sanctuary). Climb the elevated wooden platforms to feed endangered Rothschild giraffes directly by hand, feeling their 18-inch prehensile tongues brush your palms while learning about breeding efforts that saved this subspecies from extinction.

In the afternoon, visit the Tenderfeet Education Center in Kibera, supported by the Collette Foundation, an uplifting community initiative that provides schooling, nutritious meals, and empowerment for orphaned and vulnerable children.

Celebrate your evening in Nairobi with a feast at the world-famous Carnivore Restaurant, where succulent cuts of beef, pork, lamb, and chicken are slow-roasted over an open charcoal pit and carved directly onto your sizzling iron plate.

Accommodation: Emara Ole-Sereni Hotel Nairobi
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Farewell/Welcome Dinner at The Carnivore

Day 3: Nairobi to Amboseli National Park – The Royal Court of Kilimanjaro

Drive Distance: ~240 km (149 miles) | Drive Time: ~4 hours on paved highway
Safari Focus: Elephant matriarch herds, open savannas, and Africa’s tallest mountain
Habitat: Semi-arid scrubland, acacia woodland, and seasonal marshes

Depart Nairobi in your custom 4×4 Safari Land Cruiser, heading south across the Athi Kapiti plains and Maasai rural country toward Amboseli National Park, resting in the shadow of Mount Kilimanjaro (5,895m).

Enter Amboseli and enjoy a mid-morning game drive en route to Amboseli Oltukai Safari Lodge, nestled in a grove of fever trees with views of the mountain peak. Enjoy lunch, settle into your room, and set out for a late-afternoon wildlife drive.

Amboseli provides Africa’s premier setting for photographing massive free-ranging elephant herds walking against the snow-capped volcanic cone of Kilimanjaro. Scan the savanna for cheetah coalitions, lions, giraffes, zebras, and Cape buffaloes before returning to the lodge for a multi-course dinner.

Accommodation: Amboseli Oltukai Safari Lodge
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner (Full Board)

Day 4: Full-Day Amboseli Wildlife Safari – Tracking the Big Five

Safari Focus: Dawn Kilimanjaro photography, apex predators, and Observation Hill panoramas
Activity: Morning and afternoon game drives with lodge or bush picnic lunch

Rise early at 06:15 AM to catch the peak of Mount Kilimanjaro clear of morning cloud cover during the golden hour:

Predator & Plains Game Tracking: Head across dry lakebeds and swamp margins where spotted hyenas return to dens and lions hunt. Search for the rare black rhino that occasionally ventures into the brush.

Observation Hill: Ascend this volcanic lookout to take in panoramic views of the Enkongo Narok marshlands, watching pods of hippos and elephant families bathe belly-deep in the reeds below.
Afternoon Game Drive: Traverse the western sector of the park searching for bat-eared foxes, caracals, fringe-eared oryx, and over 400 species of birds.

Return to the lodge at sunset for dinner and an evening relaxing around the floodlit waterhole.

Accommodation: Amboseli Oltukai Safari Lodge
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner (Full Board)

Day 5: Amboseli to Tarangire National Park (Tanzania) via Namanga Border

Transit Logistics: Scenic morning road transfer to Namanga (~1.5 hrs) → Border clearance → Highway drive past Arusha to Tarangire (~2.5 hrs)
Safari Focus: Cross-border transition, ancient baobabs, and elephant congregations
Habitat: Maasai plains transitioning to ancient baobab savannas and river valleys

Bid farewell to Kenya this morning and drive south to the Namanga border crossing. Complete immigration and customs formalities with the assistance of your Bushtroop guide, then switch to your Tanzanian 4×4 Safari Land Cruiser.

Journey past Arusha and descend the Great Rift Valley corridor to Tarangire National Park, gazetted in 1970 and encompassing 2,600 square kilometers. The park derives its name from the life-giving Tarangire River, which cuts through the reserve from south to northwest before draining into Lake Burungi.

Arrive in time for an afternoon game drive. Elevate the vehicle’s pop-up roof to photograph the park’s signature landscape:

ancient baobab trees (Adansonia digitata) and umbrella acacias (Acacia tortilis). Track herds of over 300 elephants, Cape buffaloes, giraffes, and tree-resting lions along dry riverbeds. Arrive at Tarangire Sopa Lodge for dinner and an evening in the wilderness.

Accommodation: Tarangire Sopa Lodge

Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner (Full Board)

Day 6: Tarangire to Ngorongoro Conservation Area – The Crater Rim

Drive Distance: ~150 km (93 miles) | Drive Time: ~2.5 to 3 hours scenic ascent
Safari Focus: Morning baobab game drive, Rift Valley escarpment, and caldera views
Habitat: Open baobab woodland ascending into misty highland montane forest

Enjoy a morning game drive in Tarangire, watching elephants dig for water in the sandy river channels while martial eagles soar overhead.

Depart the park and ascend the outer slopes of the Great Rift Valley, passing through the farming communities of Karatu into the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Ascend through dense cloud forests to reach the rim of the world-famous Ngorongoro Crater.

Check into your lodge perched along the crater rim. Gaze out the panoramic windows for your first glimpse 600 meters (2,000 feet) down into the 260-square-kilometer volcanic caldera—the largest intact caldera on earth and home to over 20,000 large mammals. Enjoy a cozy fireside dinner in the cool highland air.

Accommodation: Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge (or Ngorongoro Safari Lodge)
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner (Full Board)

Day 7: Full-Day Ngorongoro Crater Floor Safari & Maasai Cultural Boma

Crater Floor Tour: 600m caldera descent, 5–6 hours wildlife tracking with picnic lunch
Safari Focus: Critically endangered black rhinos, heavy-maned black lions, and authentic Maasai culture
Habitat: Volcanic caldera floor, alkaline soda lake, Lerai yellow fever tree forest, and short-grass plains

Descend early down the steep, forested caldera walls onto the floor of the Ngorongoro Crater—a UNESCO World

Heritage Site often described as the “Eighth Wonder of the World.”

Spend the day exploring this natural amphitheater:

The Big Five Challenge: High probabilities of spotting resident lion prides, Cape buffaloes, heavy bull elephants carrying massive tusks, leopards along the Lerai forest edge, and northern Tanzania’s most stable sanctuary for the rare black rhino.

Lakeside Bush Picnic: Enjoy a scenic picnic lunch near the hippo pool at Ngoitoktok Springs, watching giant bulls bathe.
Maasai Cultural Interaction: Ascend the crater rim in the afternoon to visit an authentic Maasai Boma. Learn about their pastoralist heritage, social structures, and traditional medicinal plants, and witness an energetic jumping dance (adumu).

Return to the lodge at sunset for a multi-course dinner.

Accommodation: Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Bush Picnic Lunch, Dinner (Full Board)

Day 8: Ngorongoro to Serengeti National Park via Olduvai Gorge

Drive Distance: ~140 km (87 miles) | Drive Time: 3 to 4 hours game-viewing transit
Safari Focus: Paleoanthropology, boundless golden savannas, and kopje lions

Habitat: Montane highland forest to endless short-grass plains and granite kopjes

Following breakfast, depart the Crater Highlands traveling northwest toward the endless grasslands of Serengeti National

Park—the Maasai “Siringet,” meaning “the place where the land moves on forever.”

Stop en route at Olduvai Gorge, the world-famous archaeological site known as the “Cradle of Humankind.” Tour the canyon museum overlooking the rugged ravine where Dr. Louis and Mary Leakey unearthed hominid fossils including Australopithecus boisei and Homo habilis, instrumental in theories of early human evolution.

Enter the Serengeti through Naabi Hill gate and begin an afternoon game drive across the golden savannas. Arrive at Kubu kubu Tented Camp, nestled among rolling hills overlooking the plains, in time for sundowners and dinner.

Accommodation: Kubu kubu Tented Lodge
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Picnic Lunch, Dinner (Full Board)

Day 9: Full-Day Serengeti National Park Wildlife Safari

Safari Focus: Apex predator tracking, Great Migration herds, and riverine leopards
Activity: Morning and afternoon game drives with a scenic bush picnic lunch

Dedicate a full day to tracking the legendary wildlife of the Serengeti:

The Great Migration Engine: Over 1.5 million wildebeests, 200,000 zebras, and gazelles move through this ecosystem year-round. Track massive herds moving across the grasslands or grazing along river valleys.
Predator Encounters: Early mornings offer prime opportunities to spot lions lounging atop smooth granite kopjes, cheetahs scouting from termite mounds, and leopards resting in sausage trees.
Bush Picnic: Enjoy lunch under the shade of an umbrella acacia tree in the open bush before heading out for a golden-hour afternoon game drive.

Return to the lodge at dusk for dinner and an evening under the starlit African sky.

Accommodation: Kubu Kubu Lodge
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Bush Picnic Lunch, Dinner (Full Board)

Day 10: Serengeti to Masai Mara Game Reserve (Kenya) via Isebania Border

Transit Logistics: Full-day cross-border expedition via Sirari/Isebania border
Safari Focus: Cross-border transition, rolling Mara hills, and sunset game drive
Habitat: Boundless plains transitioning into rolling green hills and acacia thickets

Depart the Serengeti early with packed breakfast and lunch boxes, driving northwest toward the Isebania/Sirari border crossing. Complete immigration formalities to re-enter Kenya and rejoin your Kenyan 4×4 Safari Land Cruiser.

Enter the world-renowned Masai Mara Game Reserve, the northern continuation of the Serengeti ecosystem. The Mara boasts Kenya’s richest concentrations of wildlife and is universally celebrated for its rolling scenery and big cat density.

Enjoy an en-route game drive into the reserve, arriving at Mara Sarova/ Mara Maisha Tented Camp, set on a high ridge overlooking the Mara Triangle. Settle into your luxury room, take in the views, and enjoy a multi-course dinner.

Accommodation: Mara Sarova / Mara Maisha Tented Camp
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Picnic Lunch, Dinner (Full Board)

Day 11: Full-Day Masai Mara Safari – The Predator Capital of Africa

Safari Focus: Big cat density, Mara River crossings, and boundless grasslands
Activity: Dawn-to-dusk safari tracking with packed bush picnic or split morning/afternoon game drives

Spend a full day exploring Africa’s premier wildlife sanctuary:

Apex Predators on the Hunt: Track famous lion prides, follow stealthy leopards through riverine thickets, and watch cheetah coalitions hunt across open plains.
The Great Migration Dynamics (Seasonal July–October): Witness columns of wildebeests and zebras mass along the banks of the Mara River before plunging across the currents against giant Nile crocodiles.
Herbivore Abundance: Spot large herds of topis, elands, impalas, giraffes, and elephants moving across the rolling savanna.

Return to the lodge at dusk for fireside cocktails on the panoramic deck, followed by a gourmet dinner.

Accommodation: Mara Sarova/ Mara Maisha Tented Camp
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Bush Picnic Lunch, Dinner (Full Board)

Day 12: Sunrise Balloon Safari (Optional), Bush Walk & Traditional Maasai Bush Dinner

Optional Excursion: Dawn Sunrise Hot Air Balloon Safari ($480 per person)
Safari Focus: Aerial savanna views, guided bush walk with a Maasai warrior, and traditional evening dance

Rise before dawn for an optional hot air balloon flight drifting silently above the Mara River and savanna as wildlife herds wake below, concluding with a champagne bush breakfast.

Alternatively, embark on a morning game drive across the Mara Triangle. Later in the day:

Maasai-Guided Nature Walk: Join a local Maasai warrior for an educational walking safari outside the main reserve tracks, learning traditional tracking methods, wild plant medicines, and bush survival skills.
Maasai Village Visit: Tour a local community manyatta to experience traditional dances and daily pastoralist routines.

Accommodation: Mara Sarova/ Mara Maisha Tented Camp
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Traditional Bush Dinner (Full Board)

Day 13: Masai Mara to Lake Nakuru National Park – Rhino Sanctuary

Drive Distance: ~230 km (143 miles) | Drive Time: ~5.5 hours scenic transit
Safari Focus: Great Rift Valley scenery, endangered black & white rhinos, and pink flamingos
Habitat: Rolling grasslands descending to an alkaline soda lake and euphorbia forests

Depart the Masai Mara after breakfast, driving northeast through the Great Rift Valley toward Lake Nakuru National Park.

Arrive in time for a hot lunch at Lake Nakuru Sopa Lodge, situated on a range of hills overlooking the lake. Set out on an afternoon game drive through this compact, fenced sanctuary:

The Rhino Sanctuary: Lake Nakuru is one of Kenya’s most successful sanctuaries for both endangered black rhinos and southern white rhinos, which can frequently be photographed grazing in open lakeside pastures.
Alkaline Lake Birdlife: Spot thousands of lesser and greater flamingos tinting the water’s edge pink, alongside large flocks of pelicans, cormorants, and African fish eagles.
Rare Rothschild Giraffes & Predators: Track endangered Rothschild giraffes browsing in yellow fever tree forests, alongside lions and leopards.

Return to the lodge for dinner overlooking the glittering lake basin.

Accommodation: Lake Nakuru Sopa Lodge
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner (Full Board)

Day 14: Lake Nakuru to Mount Kenya – Fairmont Mount Kenya Safari Club

Drive Distance: ~150 km (93 miles) | Drive Time: ~3 hours scenic transit
Special Highlight: Equator crossing, Coriolis effect demonstration, and Hollywood heritage
Habitat: Rift Valley basin climbing into the fertile highland foothills of Mount Kenya

After breakfast, depart Lake Nakuru and journey toward the jagged, snow-dusted peaks of Mount Kenya (5,199m).

Cross the equator near Nanyuki, pausing for a live demonstration of the Coriolis effect, showing how water drains in opposite directions on the northern and southern hemispheres and runs straight along the zero-degree line.

Arrive at the landmark Fairmont Mount Kenya Safari Club, spread across 100 acres of landscaped gardens along the equator. Originally founded as a private retreat by Hollywood actor William Holden, this historic country-club resort has hosted international royalty and celebrities.

Spend your afternoon lounging beside the heated outdoor pool, wandering manicured rose gardens, enjoying high tea at the Zebra Bar, or visiting the on-site Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy. Savor an elegant dinner in the grand dining room.

Accommodation: Fairmont Mount Kenya Safari Club
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner (Full Board)

Day 15: Full Day at Fairmont Mount Kenya Safari Club – Mountain Elegance

Activity Focus: Highland leisure, optional horseback riding, golf along the equator, and farewell dinner

Dedicate a relaxing day to soaking up the luxury of this iconic mountain estate:

Wildlife Conservancy Tour: Visit the rare mountain bongo antelope breeding program at the adjacent conservancy.
Spectacular Farewell Dinner: Rejoin your fellow travelers for a celebratory multi-course farewell dinner recounting the highlights of your 16-day East African expedition.

Accommodation: Fairmont Mount Kenya Safari Club
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Gala Farewell Dinner

Day 16: Mount Kenya to Nairobi – Departure

Drive Distance: ~190 km (118 miles) | Drive Time: ~3.5 hours on smooth tarmac highway

Enjoy a leisurely final breakfast overlooking the forested slopes of Mount Kenya. Board your 4×4 Safari Land Cruiser for the scenic drive south through the central agricultural highlands of pineapple and coffee plantations back to Nairobi.

Arrive in Nairobi in the early afternoon. Your driver-guide transfers you directly to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO) for your international flight home, concluding an unforgettable 16-day grand safari across Kenya and Tanzania.

● Meal Plan: Breakfast included

PRICE PER PERSON FROM;

HIGH SEASON : Jul 1, – Oct 31, Jan 1,- Mar 31, Dec 1, – Dec 31,

2 PAXS $12,900

4 PAXS $11,500

6PAXS $10,900

LOW SEASON : Nov 1, – Nov 30, – Apr – Jun 30,

2 PAXS $10,500

4 PAXS $8,700

6 PAXS $8,300

The Price Includes:

Airport transfers on arrival and departure in Nairobi as per the itinerary
1 night bed & breakfast accommodation in Nairobi Serena Hotel, standard room
Transportation & inclusive use of our 4 wheel drive safari landcruiser throughout
your safari
Services of an experienced English Speaking driver / guide throughout your safari
Unlimited game drives during the day as per itinerary
Park entrance fees for the above mentioned game parks & reserves
Accommodation as per the Itinerary
Meals as per the itinerary
Evacuation insurance in Kenya in case of an emergency

Excluded

Items of personal nature i.e. beverages, laundry, telephone, souvenirs etc.
Travel / medical / cancellation insurance
Tips / gratuities for driver / guide and hotel / Lodge / Camp staff
Extra cost incurred if change in itinerary
Excursions / additional accommodation / meals in Nairobi
Any extras not mentioned above e.g. extra meals, activities on safari & beach etc
Visa fees for Kenya

For more Tanzania Safaris, contact Bushtroop tours and Safaris on www.bushtroop-safaris.com, by email at: info@bushtroop-safaris.com, bookings@bushtroop-safaris.com or call/whatsApp us on +254 722 802513