16 Days East Africa Grand Safari, Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania

On arrival at Entebbe International Airport you are welcomed by your Bespoke Safaris representative and transferred to your hotel. Depending on your arrival time you can rest after the flight or take a gentle introduction to Entebbe, a lakeside town on Lake Victoria, with a short waterfront walk or a meal at a local restaurant.

Your representative reviews the journey, confirms the gorilla trekking arrangements and explains the domestic flight and transfer logistics. Dinner at leisure and your first night in East Africa.

After breakfast you transfer to Entebbe Airport for a domestic flight to an airstrip serving the Bwindi region, subject to flight schedules and lodge location. A local driver-guide meets you and you continue by road through the highlands of south-western Uganda, past terraced hills, rural settlements, cultivated valleys and forested slopes.

After check-in you have lunch and a relaxed afternoon. Your guide talks through the trekking arrangements, what to carry and how to behave around mountain gorillas. The lodge is chosen to match the sector of your confirmed permit, to avoid unnecessary transfers on trekking day.

After an early breakfast you go to the park headquarters for registration, a safety briefing and allocation to a gorilla trekking group. With trained Uganda Wildlife Authority ranger guides and trackers you enter the dense forest to find a habituated mountain gorilla family. The trek can take several hours over forest trails and uneven, sometimes steep or muddy ground.

When the gorillas are found you watch them feed, groom, rest and play, normally for up to one hour. After the trek you return to your lodge for a meal and rest. Gorilla sightings are not guaranteed, and permits must be secured in advance for the confirmed date.

After breakfast you head back to the airstrip for your domestic flight to Entebbe, subject to the schedule. If the flight time allows, a pre-arranged community visit near Bwindi can show local livelihoods, crafts, music and cultural heritage, and a Batwa cultural experience can be arranged with a recognised community host, subject to timing and availability. If the schedule is tight, the visit is left out to protect the onward travel.

In Entebbe you transfer to your hotel for a relaxed evening. This night is a buffer before travelling to Kenya, instead of a tight same-day connection from the gorilla region to an international flight.

After breakfast you transfer to Entebbe International Airport for your flight to Nairobi. A Kenyan representative meets you and takes you to your hotel. Depending on arrival time you can rest or take a short optional city outing.

Your representative confirms the arrangements for the journey into the Maasai Mara, including your scheduled flight or road transfer, luggage requirements and the camp location. Dinner and the night in Nairobi, before the move from Uganda’s rainforest to Kenya’s open savannah.

After breakfast you transfer to the Nairobi airstrip for a scheduled light-aircraft flight into the Maasai Mara, which saves road time and gives you more hours in the wilderness. A camp representative meets you and takes you to your lodge or luxury tented camp.

After lunch and a short rest you set out on your first game drive across the Mara’s grasslands, riverine habitats and acacia plains, looking for elephants, giraffes, zebras, wildebeest, buffaloes and predators. You may find lions resting in the grass, although sightings depend on natural conditions. You return to camp around sunset for dinner.

You spend a full day exploring the Maasai Mara, setting out early when cooler temperatures favour wildlife activity. The Mara is known for its lions, large herds of grazing animals and predator-prey drama. Depending on the season you may also see cheetahs, spotted hyenas, giraffes, topis, gazelles, elephants, buffaloes, leopards and many birds. Your guide explains animal behaviour and the ecology of the grasslands.

You take a picnic lunch in an authorised area on an extended game drive, or return to camp for lunch and head out again in the afternoon. If your visit coincides with the Great Wildebeest Migration you may see large herds of wildebeest and zebras, but timing varies each year and river crossings cannot be guaranteed.

Another day of guided wildlife viewing, with the flexibility to explore areas different from the day before. An early drive may bring cheetahs on the open plains, leopards near riverine woodland or lions moving through their territories. Your guide adapts the route to recent sightings, animal movements and conditions.

You return to camp for lunch and a rest, then head out for an afternoon drive as the light softens. If you are interested in local culture, a respectful, community-led Maasai visit can be arranged, subject to availability and additional charges. After sunset you return to camp for dinner and your last night in the Mara.

After breakfast you transfer to the airstrip for a scheduled flight from the Maasai Mara towards the Serengeti. Depending on season, operator and schedule, the journey may be direct or involve a connection, and immigration formalities may need to be completed at an approved entry point. The plan is built around confirmed flight availability and border procedures.

At the Serengeti airstrip you meet your Tanzanian safari guide and transfer to camp, with wildlife viewing on the way where park rules allow. After check-in and lunch you head out on an introductory game drive if time allows, looking for grazing herds, elephants, giraffes and predators. Dinner and the night in the wilderness.

After breakfast you spend a full day in the Serengeti, an immense protected ecosystem. Depending on your camp location and the season, your guide picks routes for lions, elephants, giraffes, zebras, wildebeest, gazelles, hyenas and other residents. The Serengeti is also a well-known setting for the Great Wildebeest Migration, whose timing and location change through the year, so the experience depends on your dates.

You take a picnic lunch on an extended drive or return to camp for a midday break. In the afternoon you continue across the plains and rocky outcrops, where predators may be resting or hunting. Dinner at camp and time to share the day’s sightings.

A further day gives you more time to explore the Serengeti’s habitats and search for its wildlife. Depending on recent sightings and where the herds are, your guide may focus on open plains, seasonal water sources, kopjes or riverine areas, which support everything from large herbivore herds to lions, cheetahs and leopards.

You can choose an extended morning drive with a picnic lunch, or a relaxed schedule with a midday break at camp, then head out again in the afternoon for more viewing and photography. Dinner and a last night in the Serengeti. An optional hot-air balloon safari may be available at additional cost and must be booked in advance.

After breakfast you leave the Serengeti for the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, with game viewing on the way where permitted. The landscape shifts from open savannah and rocky formations to woodland and highland scenery, and the air grows cooler as you near the highlands.

You reach your lodge near the crater rim or in the Karatu area, depending on your chosen accommodation and budget. After lunch you relax or take in the view. Your guide briefs you on tomorrow’s crater excursion, including the early start and the conservation rules. Dinner and the night in the highlands.

After an early breakfast you descend into Ngorongoro Crater for a guided game drive. The caldera holds open grassland, seasonal wetlands, woodland and a lake that draws many birds. Its floor supports zebras, wildebeest, buffaloes, elephants, hippos and predators such as lions and spotted hyenas. With luck you may see the endangered black rhino, though sightings cannot be guaranteed.

Your guide interprets the landscape and explains how wildlife uses the habitats. After a picnic lunch in an authorised area you continue exploring, subject to park rules and conditions, then climb out of the crater and return to your lodge to relax. It is a striking contrast to the open Serengeti plains.

After breakfast you leave the Ngorongoro area for Arusha, northern Tanzania’s main safari gateway. Depending on your interests and the road, you can add a short stop in Karatu or a pre-booked cultural or agricultural experience on the way. The drive crosses highland landscapes, rural settlements and farmland.

In Arusha you check in at your hotel and have the rest of the day at leisure, in the gardens or at a local craft market if time allows. The night also gives you a buffer before departure, especially if your flight leaves from Kilimanjaro International Airport the next day or later.

A relaxed day in Arusha after your wildlife journey across three countries. You can rest at the hotel or arrange an optional outing, such as a local market, a cultural attraction, a coffee experience or a scenic excursion nearby, depending on opening times and availability.

Your representative reconfirms your airport transfer, departure airport and flight time. If you would rather spend an extra night in the Serengeti or add another wildlife area, this day can be reallocated at the planning stage, subject to trip length and flight availability.

After breakfast, depending on your flight schedule, your driver takes you to Kilimanjaro International Airport or another agreed airport for your onward flight. The right airport depends on your international ticket and final arrangements.

If your flight is later in the day, there may be time for a final coffee or a short stop in Arusha, as long as it does not put the airport transfer at risk. Your East Africa Grand Safari ends with mountain gorillas in Uganda, the plains of the Maasai Mara and the wildlife landscapes of the Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater.