What 7 Days Gives You in East Africa: Two Countries or One Island
A 7 day luxury journey gives you 6 nights. We offer two: a Maasai Mara and Serengeti safari, and a Mnemba Island beach safari. The Maasai Mara and Serengeti safari...
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The Short Answer
A journal for people planning a safari.
The Ongeri Expeditions blog is where our team in Nairobi answers the questions guests ask before a luxury safari: what a safari costs, when to travel, where the Great Migration is in each month, what gorilla permits cost in Rwanda and Uganda, and which camps are worth the money in the Maasai Mara, the Serengeti, Amboseli, Laikipia, Zanzibar, the Seychelles and Mauritius. We compare the finest camps against one another by name, with the rates on the page, so you can see where the money goes before you commit to it. Every guide is written from our own visits and kept up to date, and every one ends where you can ask us to plan it.
Written and reviewed by Abner Ongeri and the team in Karen, Nairobi.
Latest
Fresh from the field.
Field notes, camp openings and planning guides, written by our team in Nairobi and kept up to date.
Start Here
The six guides we send first.
If you are planning a first safari, these answer the questions we are asked every week: the cost, the timing, the country and the camps.
- PlanningHow Much Does a Luxury Safari Cost? A Price Guide
- WildlifeBest Time to See the Great Migration: A Month by Month Guide
- PlanningKenya and Tanzania Luxury Safari Guide: Where to Go and When
- PlanningGorilla Trekking Cost: Rwanda and Uganda Permits
- Where to StayTop Luxury Safari Camps and Lodges in the Maasai Mara
- Where to StayLuxury Camps and Lodges in the Serengeti
Every Guide
The whole journal, by subject.
Choose a subject, or search by name. Every guide is written by the people who plan the journeys.
What 7 Days Gives You in East Africa: Two Countries or One Island
A 7 day luxury journey gives you 6 nights. We offer two: a Maasai Mara and Serengeti safari, and a Mnemba Island beach safari. The Maasai Mara and Serengeti safari...
Read more →What 5 Days Gives You on a Luxury Safari in East Africa
A 5 day luxury safari gives you 4 nights in one camp, about 3 full days of game viewing, and a flight in and out. It is one place done well. We have 6 itineraries of 5...
Read more →Ultra Luxury Safaris in East Africa: What You Really Get
An ultra luxury safari in East Africa means small camps, a private guide and vehicle, access to private conservancies, and a price that includes flights, fees, meals and...
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Luxury Beach Honeymoons in Kenya: Diani, Vipingo, Lamu and Watamu
The best luxury beach honeymoon stays in Kenya are Alfajiri Villas, The Maji, Msambweni Villas and Almanara Villas in Diani, Cardamom House in Vipingo, Manda Bay, The...
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Luxury Honeymoon Camps in Amboseli and the Chyulu Hills: Our Top 5
The best luxury honeymoon camps in Amboseli and the Chyulu Hills are Ol Donyo Lodge, Angama Amboseli, Kitirua Plains Lodge, Elewana Tortilis Camp and Campi ya Kanzi...
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Luxury Honeymoon Camps in Laikipia and Lewa: Our Top 10
The best luxury honeymoon camps in Laikipia and Lewa are Segera Retreat, Loisaba Lodo Springs, Loisaba Star Beds, The Sanctuary at Ol Lentille, Ol Malo, andBeyond Suyian...
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Luxury Honeymoon Camps in the Maasai Mara: Our Top 6
The best honeymoon camp in the Maasai Mara depends on what you want most. Choose Angama Mara for the view, Mara Plains Camp or Mara Nyika for privacy, Mahali Mzuri for...
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Luxury Honeymoon Camps in Samburu: Sasaab, Saruni and More
The best luxury honeymoon camps in Samburu are Sasaab, for a private plunge pool in every suite, and Saruni Samburu, for hilltop villas with views to Mount Kenya...
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Luxury Honeymoon in Meru National Park: Elsa's Kopje
The best luxury honeymoon lodge in Meru National Park is Elsa's Kopje, on a hilltop above George Adamson's original campsite. Choose Elsa's Kopje for the Born Free...
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Luxury Honeymoon Lodges in Tsavo
The best luxury honeymoon lodges in Tsavo are Finch Hattons in Tsavo West and The Hildana Lodge in the Taita Hills. Choose Finch Hattons for a plunge pool suite, springs...
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Best Honeymoon Camps and Lodges in Kenya by Region
The best regions for a luxury honeymoon in Kenya are the Maasai Mara, Amboseli and the Chyulu Hills, Laikipia and Lewa, Samburu, Tsavo, Meru, Mount Kenya, the coast and...
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Luxury Honeymoon in Nairobi: Giraffe Manor, The Emakoko and More
The best luxury honeymoon stays in Nairobi are Giraffe Manor, The Emakoko, Hemingways Nairobi and Villa Rosa Kempinski. Choose Giraffe Manor to have breakfast with...
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Luxury Honeymoon Lodges in Mount Kenya: Our Top 3
The best luxury honeymoon lodges around Mount Kenya are the JW Marriott Mount Kenya Rhino Reserve Safari Camp, the Fairmont Mount Kenya Safari Club and Arijiju. Choose...
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Luxury Honeymoon Camps in Olare Motorogi Conservancy: Our Top 5
The best luxury honeymoon camps in the Olare Motorogi Conservancy are Mahali Mzuri, Mara Plains Camp, Olare Mara Kempinski, Kicheche Bush Camp and Porini Lion Camp...
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Who Runs the Best Camps?
andBeyond, Great Plains, Singita and A&K on rates, guiding, what the nightly rate includes and conservation. From a company that books all four.
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Angama Mara or Mahali Mzuri?
The finest view in East Africa against the ground rules that change a game drive. Rates, access, guiding and who each one suits.
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Mahali Mzuri or Mara Plains?
Two of the finest luxury camps in East Africa, 20 minutes apart in the same private conservancy. From about USD 1,800 and USD 2,200 a night, and how we choose.
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The Central Serengeti or Grumeti?
Game density against exclusivity, and about USD 2,000 a night between them. Where to sleep for an ultra luxury Serengeti safari.
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Sasakwa or Four Seasons Serengeti?
An ultra luxury manor on 350,000 private acres against the finest full service lodge in the Serengeti. About USD 4,300 a night against USD 2,250.
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The Mara Conservancies, Compared
Olare Motorogi, Naboisho and Mara North on size, bed density, the camps in each and the fees. Why a private conservancy beats the Reserve.
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The Ngorongoro Rim, Compared
Crater Lodge, Lemala Osonjoi and Crater’s Edge on position, rates and how early you reach the crater floor. Why position beats decoration.
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Is the Migration Worth the Peak Price?
What the peak months cost at the luxury end, what you are not guaranteed, and the 3 seasons that cost USD 12,150 less a head.
Read more →Is Singita Sasakwa Worth It?
What the rate actually includes, what 350,000 private acres give you that the national park cannot, and the three alternatives we suggest instead.
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Reserve, Triangle or Conservancy?
Where you sleep decides where you may drive, at what hours and beside how many other vehicles. The decision that shapes a Mara week most.
Read more →A Private Vehicle: When It Is Worth It
What it costs, what changes when you have one, and the six times we say yes. Also the four times we tell guests to spend the money elsewhere.
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What USD 1,500 a Night Actually Buys
Two camps, the same night, a thousand dollars apart. What the money is really doing, band by band, in the Maasai Mara.
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Maasai Mara Fees, Explained
Park fees, conservancy fees and what camps include, with worked examples for a family in August and the resident rates in shillings.
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The Most Famous Lions in Africa: The Marsh Pride
Millions know the Maasai Mara without ever having been, through a marsh, a pride of lions and thirteen years of the BBC. Who Notch was, what happened in 2015, and whether you can still see them.
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Stargazing on the Equator
Kenya sits on the line, so you can see the Southern Cross and the Plough on the same night. What to look for, when to go, and why safari camps make superb observatories.
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A Safari Glossary
From askari to sundowner, kopje to conservancy. Every word you will hear in Kenya, and the difference between a park, a reserve and a conservancy that changes your safari more than the camp does.
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Halal Luxury Safari in Kenya
Prayer on the equator, where the halal meat actually comes from, and the one question about alcohol at camp that no brochure answers.
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Kosher Safari in Kenya
What is genuinely possible in the bush, what has to be flown in, and why keeping Shabbat on the equator is easier than almost anywhere else on earth.
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Coeliac Disease on Safari in Kenya
Gluten free and coeliac safe are two different standards. Most Kenyan camps meet the first, far fewer meet the second, and this is how to tell them apart.
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Luxury Camps and Lodges in the Serengeti
Where you stay in the Serengeti matters more than anywhere else in Africa. Eleven of the finest camps and lodges, arranged by region and by season so you wake where the herds are.
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Luxury Resorts in Zanzibar
One thing decides where you stay in Zanzibar, and most guides skip it: the tide. A coast by coast guide to the island's finest resorts, and how to pair it with a safari.
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Luxury Resorts in the Seychelles
Three and a half hours from Nairobi, and the most natural place to end a safari. Eight resorts across Mahe, Praslin and the private islands, and how to choose between them.
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Luxury Resorts in Mauritius
A barrier reef rings almost the whole island, which is why the water lies so still. Seven resorts coast by coast, when to go, and how Mauritius compares with the Seychelles.
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Luxury Camps and Lodges in Amboseli
Elephants beneath Kilimanjaro, and some of the last great tuskers on earth. The camps and lodges we book most, and why the private conservancies beat the park.
Read more →Luxury Camps, Lodges and Villas in Laikipia
Kenya's quiet luxury heartland, where private conservancies allow walking, riding and night drives. Ten of the finest stays, from exclusive use villas to tented lodges.
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Wilderness Mara Opens in the Mara Triangle
A complete rebuild of Little Governors' Camp at the foot of the Oloololo Escarpment. Twelve tented suites, a photographic studio, and the quietest corner of the Mara.
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Destination Weddings on Safari and the Islands
Say your vows in the Maasai Mara or on a beach in Zanzibar, the Seychelles or Mauritius. A guide to safari and island weddings, the legal side and the cost.
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Luxury Small Group Safaris in East Africa
Set departures of six to twelve guests, great value, expert hosts and single friendly. What a small group safari is, who it suits, and what it costs.
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Luxury Family Safari in Kenya: Cost and What to Expect
From about USD 6,500 per adult, with child rates and a family of four estimate. A clear 2026 and 2027 guide to the cost of a family safari in Kenya.
Read more →How Much Does a Honeymoon Safari Cost?
A clear 2026 and 2027 guide to honeymoon safari prices, from a safari only escape to a full bush and beach journey in Zanzibar, the Seychelles or Mauritius.
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Rwanda or Uganda for Gorilla Trekking?
Compare permit costs, access, scenery and lodges, and choose the right country for your luxury gorilla safari in 2026 and 2027.
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Gorilla Trekking Cost: Rwanda and Uganda Permits
Rwanda permits are USD 1,500 and Uganda USD 800 in 2026 and 2027. A clear guide to permit prices, the four hour habituation option, and what a luxury gorilla safari costs.
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JW Marriott Mount Kenya Rhino Reserve Opens in Solio
A luxury rhino safari camp opened on 1 July 2026 in Kenya's Solio Game Reserve. The rates, what is included, and how to add it to your Kenya safari.
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Why Travellers Choose Ongeri for an East African Safari
The honest reasons travellers choose us: local roots in Nairobi, tailormade journeys, the finest camps, and signature touches like meet and greet, lounge access and complimentary city nights.
Read more →How Much Does a Luxury Safari Cost? A Price Guide
What a luxury safari really costs in 2026 and 2027, what drives the price, and how to get the most from your budget across Kenya and Tanzania.
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Gay Safaris in Africa: A Guide for LGBTQ Travellers
Where LGBTQ travellers are most welcome in Africa, how to travel safely and discreetly, and how to plan a private luxury safari.
Read more →A&K Kitirua Plains Lodge: A New Lodge in Amboseli
Inside Amboseli's newest luxury lodge, a private concession in the Kitirua Conservancy with Kilimanjaro views, walking safaris and night drives.
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Kenya and Tanzania Luxury Safari Guide: Where to Go and When
Kenya or Tanzania? A luxury guide to where to go and when, comparing the Maasai Mara, the Serengeti, the seasons and the Great Migration.
Read more →Top Luxury Safari Camps and Lodges in the Maasai Mara
A guide to eight of the best luxury Maasai Mara camps, with locations, highlights, and how to pick the right one for your safari.
Read more →Best Time to See the Great Migration: A Month by Month Guide
Where the herds are through the year, when the Mara River crossings happen, and how to time your luxury safari for the moment you most want to witness.
Read more →Nothing matches that yet. Try another word, or ask us directly and we will answer it.
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