Skip to content
Budget Holiday SafarisBudget Holiday Safaris
Plan

Explore East Africa

Smartly planned from Nairobi.

Plan My SafariWhatsApp us

10 days · Kenya & Tanzania · Mid-range

10 Days Kenya & Tanzania Midrange Safari: Nakuru, Mara, Serengeti, Ngorongoro & Manyara

Ten days on a mid-range lodge safari that follows the great migration ecosystem across the border — Lake Nakuru and the Maasai Mara in Kenya, then the Serengeti, the Ngorongoro Crater and Lake Manyara in Tanzania.

  • 10 days
  • Kenya & Tanzania
  • Mid-range
  • Starts Nairobi
  • Ends Arusha
Rhino white rhino pelican

Safari snapshot

At a glance

The essentials for comparing this journey before you enquire.

Duration
10 days
Country
Kenya & Tanzania
Destinations
Lake Nakuru · Maasai Mara · Serengeti · Ngorongoro Crater · Lake Manyara
Safari style
Mid-range
Price
Price subject upon request
Starts
Nairobi
Ends
Arusha

Best for

  • Migration seekers
  • Two-country safaris
  • Couples

The route

From Nairobi to Arusha

  1. Stop 1Nairobi
  2. Stop 2Lake Nakuru
  3. Stop 3Maasai Mara
  4. Stop 4Serengeti
  5. Stop 5Ngorongoro Crater
  6. Stop 6Lake Manyara
  7. Stop 7Arusha

Safari highlights

What shapes the journey

  • Lake Nakuru with a night at Buraha Zenoni
  • Three nights in the Maasai Mara
  • Three nights on the Serengeti
  • Ngorongoro Crater and Lake Manyara

Day by day

Ten days, day by day.

The plan is a guide: timings may change with road and park conditions and your group's interests. Wildlife sightings can never be guaranteed.

Flamingos along the shore of Lake Nakuru

Day 1

Nairobi → Lake Nakuru

Into the Rift Valley

Leave Nairobi and descend into the Great Rift Valley, with wide views across the valley floor from the escarpment, to Lake Nakuru National Park for an afternoon game drive. The park protects black and white rhino and Rothschild's giraffe, and flamingos may gather along the shore beneath the forested escarpment. Buffalo and waterbuck are often seen near the lake. It is a gentle, scenic start to the journey.

Overnight
Buraha Zenoni, Lake Nakuru
Main activities
Afternoon game drive

Day 2

Lake Nakuru → Maasai Mara

West to the Mara

After breakfast, cross the Rift Valley floor to the Maasai Mara, passing farmland and Maasai country before the land opens into rolling grassland. Arrive at your lodge for lunch. An afternoon game drive introduces the reserve's grasslands, where lion prides, elephant, buffalo and plains game are present all year, and the evening light over the plains is often spectacular.

Overnight
Maasai Mara · lodge
Main activities
Afternoon game drive

Day 3

Maasai Mara National Reserve

A full day on the plains

Spend a full day exploring the Mara with a picnic lunch. From about July to October, migration herds may be present in the reserve, depending on the rains, and your guide will look for crossings along the Mara River. At any time of year, the reserve's resident predators and plains game reward patient viewing, and a full day allows time to follow whatever the morning reveals.

Overnight
Maasai Mara · lodge
Main activities
Full-day game drive
Cheetah walking through grass in the Maasai Mara

Day 4

Maasai Mara National Reserve

Rivers, woodland and quieter corners

A second full day in the Mara allows time to explore more widely — riverine woodland favoured by leopard, open plains where cheetah hunt, and quieter areas away from other vehicles. Your guide can return to promising sightings from the day before or head for different parts of the reserve. An early balloon flight can be arranged at extra cost for a view of the plains at sunrise.

Overnight
Maasai Mara · lodge
Main activities
Full-day game drive

Day 5

Maasai Mara → Serengeti

Crossing into Tanzania

Leave the Mara for the border and continue into Tanzania's Serengeti, the southern part of the same ecosystem, where the grassland rolls on beyond the frontier. Border formalities are completed on the way. Game viewing begins as you travel onto the plains, with your guide heading for the region where the herds are expected at that time of year. Crossing between the two parks is a highlight of this route.

Overnight
Serengeti · lodge
Main activities
Border crossing · Game drive en route

Day 6

Serengeti National Park

Following the season

Spend a full day on the Serengeti, following the migration when it is within reach, or exploring the kopjes and river valleys where lion, leopard and cheetah live year-round. The Serengeti's scale means every day can feel different, from vast open plains to wooded river courses. Lunch is taken in the bush or at your lodge, depending on where the day's game viewing leads.

Overnight
Serengeti · lodge
Main activities
Full-day game drive
Wildebeest herd crossing the open Serengeti plains

Day 7

Serengeti National Park

A second day on the plains

A second full day gives time to explore different areas of the park and to linger where the wildlife is most active. Your guide may head for the granite kopjes, where lions often rest, or follow a river valley in search of leopard. Evening drives back to your lodge often bring good light for photography over the open grassland, a fine end to your time on the plains.

Overnight
Serengeti · lodge
Main activities
Full-day game drive

Day 8

Serengeti → Ngorongoro

Olduvai Gorge and the crater rim

Leave the Serengeti after a morning drive and travel east, climbing from the plains into the Ngorongoro highlands and stopping at Olduvai Gorge if you wish to learn about the region's early human history. The change from grassland to forest is striking, and the air cools as you gain height. Arrive at your lodge near the Ngorongoro Crater rim for the evening.

Overnight
Ngorongoro · lodge
Main activities
Morning game drive

Day 9

Ngorongoro Crater → Lake Manyara

Crater floor and the Rift wall

Descend into the Ngorongoro Crater for a game drive among black rhino, lion, buffalo, zebra and wildebeest, with the steep crater walls rising all around. The caldera's grassland, swamps and soda lake concentrate wildlife in a compact area. Then climb out and continue down the Rift Valley escarpment to the Lake Manyara area for the night, below the great wall of the Rift.

Overnight
Lake Manyara · lodge
Main activities
Crater game drive
Lake Manyara and the Rift Valley escarpment

Day 10

Lake Manyara → Arusha

A final game drive

Enjoy a morning game drive in Lake Manyara National Park, among its groundwater forest and lakeshore where elephants, baboons and giraffe are often seen and flamingos may gather on the water. The park's compact size makes it a relaxed final drive. Then drive to Arusha, where the safari ends, after ten days that followed the great ecosystem from Kenya into northern Tanzania.

Main activities
Morning game drive

Recommended accommodation

Where you stay.

Named properties are the ones used for this package. Nights listed by category are confirmed with your quotation, subject to availability.

Package accommodation

Buraha Zenoni

Mid-range · Lake Nakuru · 1 night

Accommodation category

Overnight at the lodge

Mid-range · Maasai Mara · 3 nights

Accommodation category

Overnight at the lodge

Mid-range · Serengeti · 3 nights

Accommodation category

Overnight at the lodge

Mid-range · Ngorongoro · 1 night

Accommodation category

Overnight at the lodge

Mid-range · Lake Manyara · 1 night

What’s included

Inclusions are itemised in your quotation.

Park fees, meals, transport and accommodation depend on the final plan, so your planner lists exactly what is and is not included before you book.

Flexible pricing

A clear quote for your journey.

The final price depends on when and how you travel: season, group size, accommodation level and private or shared transport.

Pricing

Price subject upon request

We quote this journey individually because travel dates, group size and accommodation availability change it significantly.

What affects the final price?

  • Travel dates and season
  • Group size
  • Accommodation availability
  • Private or shared vehicle
Request Exact Quote Ask on WhatsApp (opens WhatsApp)

Made around you

Make this safari yours.

Where operationally possible, a local planner can help adapt the journey without losing the route’s natural rhythm.

  • Travel dates and pace
  • Adding or removing nights where the route allows
  • Accommodation choices, subject to availability
  • Combining with another destination
Customise This Safari

Optional experiences

Add a different perspective.

Availability, location, age limits and extra costs are confirmed for your final itinerary.

Hot-air balloon safari over the Maasai Mara

Optional · extra cost · pre-arrangement required

Maasai village visit

Optional · extra cost

Olduvai Gorge museum visit

Optional · extra cost

Verified guest voices

Proof, connected to its source.

We only show traveller stories that link directly to the published review.

External review source

SafariBookings

Read independent traveller feedback at its original source. Ratings and review totals remain on SafariBookings, where they stay current.

Read our reviews on SafariBookings

External review source

Tripadvisor

Read independent traveller feedback at its original source. Ratings and review totals remain on Tripadvisor, where they stay current.

Read our reviews on Tripadvisor

Before you travel

Safari questions, answered clearly.

How much does the 10 Days Kenya & Tanzania Midrange Safari: Nakuru, Mara, Serengeti, Ngorongoro & Manyara cost?

The 10 Days Kenya & Tanzania Midrange Safari: Nakuru, Mara, Serengeti, Ngorongoro & Manyara is quoted individually (price subject upon request), because travel dates, group size and accommodation availability change the cost. Share your dates and a planner will send an exact quotation.

Where does this safari start and finish?

It starts in Nairobi and finishes in Arusha. Your planner can advise on arrival and departure arrangements.

Where will I stay?

The package uses Buraha Zenoni. Other nights are listed as “overnight at the lodge”: the specific property is confirmed with your quotation, subject to availability.

Is the day-by-day plan fixed?

Not yet. The plan shown is a suggested outline for this route; the final day-by-day itinerary, activities and timings are confirmed with your quotation.

Keep exploring

You may also like

Similar routes compared with the same practical details.

Destinations on this route

Start planning with a local expert

Your safari starts with a conversation.

Tell us your dates, travel style and what matters most. A Nairobi-based planner can shape the details with you.

Plan My Safari WhatsApp (opens WhatsApp)
PricingPrice subject upon request
Request Safari