Big Five Safari Explorer - 36 days
Member Savings
Sign in to see which companies give additional
savings to Travelstride Members (it’s free)
Overview
Highlights
- Kenya: go on safari in the Masai Mara and Lake Nakuru, stay in the capital Nairobi and visit a traditional Masai settlement
- Uganda: spend time in Kampala and relax at Lake Bunyoni before your optional gorilla trek in search of endangered Mountain gorillas
- Tanzania: spot Africa's Big Five in some of the continent's premier game reserves, including the Ngorongoro Crater and the mighty Serengeti
- Zanzibar: unwind on pristine white sandy beaches and opt for a sunset dhow cruise, snorkelling or scuba diving
- Malawi: visit the Malawian capital of Lilongwe and spend three days camping along the shore of spectacular Lake Malawi, which takes up one third of the country
- Zambia: admire the Zambian side of Victoria Falls and search for giraffes, elephants and more on safari in South Luangwa National Park
- Botswana: camp in the wilderness of Chobe National Park, listening for the sounds of the nocturnal wildlife
- Zimbabwe: end your safari adventure at Victoria Falls, where you can marvel at the cascades and opt for bungee jumping or helicopter rides
What's this trip about?
Details
Travel Themes
Destinations
Attractions
Activities
Trip includes
- 30 breakfasts, 29 lunches, 29 dinners
- 1st night dormitory accommodation at Wildebeest Eco Camp and 31 nights camping. Tents and sleeping mats provided
- 3 night Zanzibar Excursion including ferry transfer, accommodation, Spice Tour and Dhow Sunset Cruise
- Arrival transfer from Nairobi Airport on day 1
- A fully equipped overland truck for transportation and game drives
- Park entry - Lake Naivasha NP. Park entry and game drives - Masai Mara, Ngorongoro NP, Serengeti NP, Lake Nakuru NP, South Luangwa and Chobe NP
- Services of 3 person crew (leader, driver, cook)
- All camping fees and appropriate equipment
- All road taxes and tolls
Popular Trips
Itinerary
Welcome to Nairobi! We’ll be there to collect you at Nairobi Airport and transfer you to the Kenya Comfort Hotel. Tonight you will stay in shared dorms. There will be a pre departure meeting at 17.00.
Nairobi - Masai Mara. Heading west from Nairobi on day 2, we reach possibly Kenya’s most famous natural attraction - the Masai Mara National Reserve. The Kenyan section of the wildly beautiful Serengeti Plains teems with wildlife. The highlight of the Mara is no doubt...
Masai Mara - Eldoret - Kampala (Uganda). Leaving the Masai Mara early on day 4, we head out of Masai Land and pass through the scenic tea plantations of Kericho before descending the Rift Valley Plateau. The following morning, we cross the border into Uganda where we overnight it the capital city, Kampala.
Kampala - Lake Bunyoni. From Kampala we drive to Lake Bunyoni, the deepest Crater Lake in Africa and home to a large and varied number of beautiful birds, which is the base from which the optional Gorilla trek takes place. Dependant on where trekking permits are avail...
Lake Bunyoni - Kampala - Jinja. After marvelling at the experience of our gorilla encounters and enjoying the peaceful Lake Bunyoni, we begin our drive back to Kampala. We cross the Equator for the second time and stop for the classic “one foot in each hemisphere” ph...
Jinja - Nakuru - Naivasha (Kenya). Departing early, we head back to Kenya, stopping for lunch and supplies en route. We overnight outside Nakuru. Nakuru is Kenya’s 4th largest town and capital of the Rift Valley Province and lies adjacent to the small but wildlife ri...
Lake Nakuru - Naivasha - Nairobi. Departing Lake Nakuru, we head for Lake Naivasha, home to a multitude of bird life, the most magnificent being the African Fish Eagle with his regal cry. At 1880 m, this is the highest of the Rift Valley lakes. We spend the day enjo...
Nairobi - Arusha (Tanzania). Leaving Nairobi, we cross the border into Tanzania. Arusha is the starting point for the optional 3 day excursion to Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti. The Ngorongoro/Serengeti excursion takes us via the Masai town of Mtu Wa Mbu (Mos...
Arusha - Pangani - Dar es Salaam. We return to Arusha before continuing on towards Dar es Salaam. On the way we drive through the town of Moshi situated at the magnificent Mount Kilimanjaro – Africa’s highest mountain. We may even catch a glimpse of this magical mount...
Dar es Salaam - Zanzibar. A ferry from Dar Es Salaam takes us to ‘Spice Island’, where we have the option to spend the next three nights. Zanzibar is steeped in history and offers a wealth of experiences. Wander the streets of Stone Town, take an excursion around a spice plantation or simply laze on one of the pristine white sandy beaches, the choice is yours!
Zanzibar - Mikumi - Iringa. Leaving Zanzibar in the morning, we return to the mainland and head west to Mikumi for an overnight stop. The next day we continue our journey west. Our destination today is Iringa where we spend the night in a beautiful rustic campsite famous for its Amarula Hot Chocolates and its steamy showers!
Iringa - Lake Malawi (Malawi). Winding our way through the beauty of the Tukuyu tea and banana plantations, we travel into Malawi, a landlocked country with 20% of its total area made up of beautiful Lake Malawi. We travel the length of the western side of the lake, s...
Lake Malawi - South Luangwa (Zambia). We head away from Lake Malawi, and cross into Zambia. Across the border we head towards South Luangwa National Park. This breath taking park is situated on the Luangwa River in the Eastern part of Zambia, and it is the southernmos...
South Luangwa - Lusaka Area - Livingstone. Today we depart this amazing National Park and make our way down south. As we drive, we pass through a few of the villages and towns of Zambia along the way. Prosperous during the copper boom in the 60’s, Zambia was able to b...
Livingstone - Chobe (Botswana). Today we cross the border into Botswana and continue to the town of Kasane, on the banks of the Chobe River which forms a border between Zambia, Namibia and Botswana. Tonight we enjoy an exciting overnight experience in the wilds of ...
Chobe - Victoria Falls (Zimbabwe). After our night in the bush, we head out early to continue our search for wildlife, before packing up the camp and heading back to Kasane. Crossing the border into Zimbabwe, a short drive takes us to the nearby Victoria Falls. Named ...
Saturday marks the end of our expedition. Consider extending your stay in Victoria Falls to take advantage of all the exciting optional excursions available.
Want a tailor-made trip instead?
Your trip, your way, planned by an expert:
- You choose budget, destinations, activities, transport & lodging type
- Expert designs the itinerary for you, and once approved, takes care of logistics
Dates & Availability
Check Current Availability, prices, specials with On The Go Tours.
The total tour cost includes the tour price (regular or promotional) and the compulsory local payment. The promotional price is subject to change. Check directly with the operator for the latest price offer. The tour operator requires you to pay only the tour price to purchase your travel. The compulsory local payment will be paid when you join the trip. All prices are based on double, twin or triple share occupancy. Solo passengers will be accommodated in a double, twin or triple room according to availability with a passenger(s) of the same gender. Single supplement only needs to be paid if the passenger does not want to share and requests their own room. Discounts can only be applied at the time of booking and cannot be added at a later date, regardless of any changes made to the original booking.
Prices may vary due to local taxes and trip seasonality. Click "Request Info" to inquire directly with the tour operator for the final trip price.
On The Go Tours Reviews & Ratings
Other On The Go Tours Reviews
South African Mom & Daughter Exceptional First Tour
First time we (mom and daughter) have done a tour and first time with on the go tours. What a special trip we had doing the 13 day Casablanca to Essaouira Morocco to...
Recently did the Very Vietnam tour plus…
Recently did the Very Vietnam tour plus add-on to Mai Chau. Excellent trip giving a great introduction to Vietnam. Greta food and accommodation (even the Reunificati...
Totally Morocco Nov 23 - Perfectly organised
I did the Totally Morocco tour in Nov 2023 and there isn’t a single thing I could fault! Our tour guide was Jamal who took extremely good care of us and went above a...
Travelers also viewed
Tour Operator
Escaping a cold London winter back in 1998, we followed the sun for a colourful adventure around the world. Discovering amazing history, interesting cultures and the jaw-dropping beauty of our planet, the friends we made along the way made our journey all the more special. Inspired to share our experiences, the seeds were sown and On The Go Tours was born.
Over the years we’ve grown into a small yet global company, with a purposeful local ethos. True to our own travels, authenticity is core to our holidays. We’d love you to experience a country the way it really is, with people who live there and know it inside out. We know this makes the difference between a great holiday and a truly memorable one. Our carefully sought out English-speaking local guides are passionate about sharing their country with you and we believe that they are amongst the best in the business.
We know too that adventure feels better with a chilled beer poolside or a soft pillow at the end of each day and we search out comfortable hotels and boutique properties for your stay. As we love to say - travel with us and adventure in style!
Unbeatable value: Combining authentic local experiences with an excellent range of 3-5 star hotels & boutique properties, our tours represent unbeatable value. Add in airport transfers, passionate tour guides and all transportation and you do get the best of adventure travel and creature comforts too.
Great group size: With an average of 15 and a maximum of 24, our group size really works well on tour, so you’re bound to meet like-minded travellers and make lasting friendships. Our festival tours do have larger group sizes due to their ‘one-off’ nature.
100% Guaranteed: Not only are all our group tour departures 100% guaranteed, we are also fully financially bonded, so you can book our tours with absolute confidence. We’re proud to say that we recently won 2 prestigious British Travel Awards and were runner up for another 3, testament to the quality of our holidays.
About Travelstride
Find your perfect trip
Save time
Save money
Travel confidently
Logistics
What's excluded
- Sleeping bag - please bring your own
- Gorilla Permit, Transaction fee and ground transfer fee to Gorilla trekking meeting point: Please note that Gorillas often move across the border, between the national parks in Rwanda and Uganda, therefore itineraries often change at short notice in order to track the Gorillas in whichever National Park they have migrated to. For this reason the cost of the Gorilla Permit and relevant transfers varies, as do the applicable visa costs, dependent upon which country we need to travel into. Permits are subject to availability and need to be booked in advance.
- International flights and visas
- Tipping - an entirely personal gesture
- Entrance Fees: Gorilla Permit & transaction fee approx USD$805pp has to be pre booked, aprox USD$200 transfer costs payable locally
- Local payment - 2022 - $2100pp, 2023 - $2200pp paid in USD
Accommodation
18 and over.Overland Age Policy:To travel on one of our overland family departure safaris children need to be a minimum age of 6 for Southern Africa safaris (Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia, South Africa) and a minimum of 8 years old for East Africa safaris (Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Malawi, Zambia). If a safari includes both East and Southern Africa then the minimum age will be 8 years old. Please note that they will be travelling with the normal group. These are not separate family tours. For family dates look for the icon next to the tour date online. IMPORTANT: South Africa and Botswana regulations aimed at fighting child trafficking:'All parents travelling with children into or out of SA and/or Botswana may be asked to show the child’s unabridged (full) birth certificate, and where only one parent is accompanying, parental or legal consent for the child to travel (eg an affidavit from the other parent, a court order or – if applicable – a death certificate). You should travel with these documents in case you’re asked to provide them. There are other requirements for children travelling unaccompanied or with adults who are not their parents.' Tell pax to contact the South African High Commission, South African Department of Home Affairs and/or the Botswana High Commission for further information.
Become a member
- Save up to $700 per person
- Access members-only specials
- Personalize trip recommendations