Originally Posted by SafariCraig

Hi Glock,

You are on the right track by going in August. August is peak or peak season for almost all of Africa and especially Kenya. Animal viewing in Kenya will be epic and you will not only witness the great migrations but likely a crossing as well if you go to the right spots in the Mara. Also in peak of peak season are Zambia, Zimbabwe and Botswana although Botswana is very expensive if measured by the average price per day paid by a typical American visitor even though there are budget friendly options.

Based on the tours you posted originally, it looks like you are in search of a “value” safari experience and not wanting to spend too much on 5-star accommodations. Kenya is perfect for that as there are many places in the Mara where a 5-star lodge (Mahali Mzuri and Mara Plains f/e) are roughly 10 miles from a simple tented camp like Kicheche Bush or Encounters Mara. You see the same animals at both places. My one big-picture comment is that I would avoid driving around if at all possible. Kenya Air and SafariLink connect all the major areas and the flights are quick and relatively cheap depending on your personal time vs. money value equation.

I honestly don’t feel there is a need for you to go to Tanzania. Kenya is a great stand-alone safari destination and combining them will be logistically intense or time intense. If you combine you are missing a lot of Kenya especially the north. The Laikipia Plateau, Meru National Park (NP), Samburu, Lewa Downs, Sarara etc. all come to mind as viable 2nd and 3rd spots to compliment the Mara. There are easy flight circuits connecting them on the aforementioned airlines.

I could go on and one about the experience but it sounds like the biggest question you have now is “how to book”. There are at least 10+ safari companies here in the US that have extensive knowledge of East Africa and the business relationships and intimate destination knowledge to offer you the best overall value in trip planning. A modern, US based safari company, will contract directly with the service providers on the ground eliminating all other layers in the distribution channel and delivering the product to you for the same price as booking “direct”. Some lodges do not take direct bookings making the US based operator the cheapest way (or tied for the cheapest way) to book a four or five start safari. If you indeed want to drive from place to place on a group tour and stay at 3-star accommodations (Sopa) then the tour operator on the ground in Africa will be the cheapest way to book but I doubt they will offer you the best service and certainly CAN’T offer you an independent opinion on the comparative value of their offering. If you are booking a lodge-based itinerary with air, then it does not matter where the safari company you work with is located. What matters is their margin/mark-up and their knowledge!

I have excellent relationships with a lot of my “competitors” here in the US. If you want to deal with a company that knows Kenya perhaps contact Elizabeth Gordan at Extraordinary Journeys in New York. Alternatively, you could contact Sunit Sanghrajka at Alluring Africa in Orlando. I know both of them personally have met them may times and they are fellow members of Safari Pros. That may be a good start.

Here is my 2 cents on a nice budget-friendly trip:

Check out Encounters Mara or Speek’s Camp for the Mara portion. You could also look at doing a circuit with Offbeat. It looks like you do want to see the flamingos and they have a property there that can be combined with Offbeat Meru, Sosian Ranch, and Offbeat Mara. You could also do a circuit with Elewana Collection (including former Cheli and Peacock) as they have a great collection across the country where you can combine Amboselli, Meru, Laikipia and several spots in the Mara. To ensure you see the crossings, in an Elewana trip you could spend time at Sand River Mara in the SE of the ecosystem with Elephant Pepper in the NW on the Mara North conservancy. If you are looking to keep costs down it does make sense to use circuits in Kenya as most of the “chains” have discounts that accumulate the longer you stay with their properties.

If you want to “toss out the chains” a dreamy trip to Kenya for me would include Lewa Wilderness x 3 + Sarara x 3 + Naboisho x 4. Of, you could stay at Richards River instead of Naboisho.

I hope this helps. If you need more names of INDEPENDENT agents or ideas for circuits, just ask! If you want to continue this discourse on this forum page let me know your budget and I will tell you what is possible. Coming from Dallas you may want to look at air on Qatar.

Craig Beal – owner – Travel Beyond