Kenya Safari Cost 2026: Per Person, Per Day All-inclusive

How Much Does A Kenya Safari Cost? An Expert Guide

As many variations on a zebra’s pattern as there are safari routes in Kenya. A daily safari in Kenya might cost anywhere from $150 to $1,000 or more!

Affordable safaris: $150-$300 day per person. From Nairobi, you can book a three-day safari for as low as $250, but I wouldn’t suggest it.

The daily rate for an all-inclusive tented camp on a mid-range safari ranges from $300 to $600 per person.

Price range: $600-$1,000+ per person, each day for luxury and high-end safaris! The inclusion of gin and tonic will make you happy.

Typical costs for a Kenya safari

Safari prices and what you get for your money

1. Mid-range Kenya Safari Cost

An approximate daily rate of $300 to $600 USD is reasonable for a multi-day, mid-range safari that visits well-known parks and reserves.

The package includes a shared vehicle for wildlife drives, three decent meals each day, and lodging in a cosy (but uninteresting) safari lodge or camp. It is possible that this vehicle is an air-conditioned, open-air jeep with only a few additional passengers, or it could be a cramped minibus.

Transportation between national parks should also be included in your plan, while internal flights may incur additional costs. The admission price to the big parks is often around US$70 per person, per day, so it should be included in as well.

What to look out for:

With this kind of money, you can expect to see the famous parks like the Mara, Amboseli, etc. At the height of the season, these spots become jam-packed with people. Find out as much as you can about your campsite, including how far away it is from other areas. Enquire about the safari vehicles offered by each lodge. Even though you might not have many choices at this pricing, try to steer clear of trips that stick close to the park’s main entrances.

2. High-end Kenya Safari Cost

Those on a more affluent budget are less likely to stay in one of the more well-known national parks and more likely to explore the network of conservancies that surround these parks.

These wildlife conservation zones are either privately or communally owned and operated for the benefit of local residents and wildlife.

If you want to go on a safari like no other, you have to visit one of these conservancies. Due to the low density of other safari cars, the entire outing will feel incredibly private. The safari tents are luxurious (but not garish) and the food is out of this world. The prices also cover most alcoholic beverages.

Safaris in specially built, open-sided vehicles and the services of an excellent wildlife guide are all part of the package. On many occasions, this vehicle will be exclusively available to your group. In addition to the payment, there are no additional charges for conservation or park admission.

By the way, how much time are we spending talking? An average of $350 USD per person, per night during off-peak seasons is what you can anticipate. Nightly rates of $600 to $1,000 are not out of the ordinary, though, for truly exceptional locations offering the greatest guides and animal experiences. When you consider these prices, you’ll be grateful that gin and tonic were part of the deal!

You should try to have a high-end safari in a conservancy if at all possible, but before you freak out at the prices, you should know what you’re getting.

In most cases, a ranch or community-owned piece of land will serve as the site of a conservancy. Tourism stakeholders, such as safari camps, work with local communities on a community conservancy to lease property with the stipulation that it be managed in a way that benefits both humans and animals. The land leasing expenses and other community and environmental programs are covered by the fees you pay to remain on a conservancy.

Private ranches that host conservancies must generate sufficient revenue to persuade the landowner to abandon cattle ranching in favour of wildlife preservation and tourism. To rephrase, staying in a reserve is fantastic for the local ecology and makes for an excellent safari.

What to look out for

Each of the conservancies, as well as the nearby camps and lodges, is a safe bet. Before you book, check availability for any activities you may have in mind, such as night drives, hot air ballooning, or Maasai culture talks.

My only other piece of advice would be to find out exactly where the camp or resort is located. To ensure that a larger portion of your purchase price stays in Kenya, consider supporting one of the many great locally owned businesses in the country. If at all feasible, make reservations with Kenyan-based establishments.

3. Budget Kenya safari

It may seem ridiculous to spend hundreds of dollars every day only to look at animals, especially because most of us are trying to save money wherever we can.

A three-day safari in the Masai Mara, Tsavo, or Amboseli parks from Nariobi can be yours for as little as $250 USD. It’s a great option for those on a tighter budget. Included in this pricing are transportation from Nairobi, lodging, lunches and two game drives. The Kenya tour operator can overlook the fact that it does not cover park admission costs.

You should proceed with extreme caution when considering such inexpensive deals, even though they sound fantastic. There are a couple of major drawbacks.

What to look out for:

Make sure you know how much time you can expect to spend on safari before you book it. For example, a three-day point-to-point safari that starts and ends in Nairobi would only allow you one day of game drives because most of these cheap safaris are extremely rushed.

Typically, at this price point, you’ll find uncomfortable, ancient minibuses with poor or blocked views; enquire about the vehicle quality.

What size is your group? Most people won’t even have a window seat if the minibus is packed (which the safari firm will probably do everything it takes to make sure it’s full).

Would you happen to have a good manual? These inexpensive trips make use of drivers who are not just experienced but also enthusiastic about the parks’ flora and fauna. Unfortunately, some businesses save on driver training and hire Nairobi natives who drive matatus, the city’s public minibuses, and who know very nothing about the parks and animals. Unfortunately, they might not be familiar with or respectful of the park’s policies. Those awful pictures you might have seen of forty or fifty cars jammed around a single cheetah are mostly the fault of these men.

How about your accommodations? While this may not be a dealbreaker, keep in mind that low-cost safaris often include sleeping in tiny dome tents pitched on public campgrounds without running water or even flush toilets. These safaris are strictly forbidden in conservancies and only ever held in larger national parks and reserves.

4. DIY or Solo Kenya Safari Cost

A do-it-yourself safari is the perfect middle ground between an inexpensive safari and a more personalised experience.

Just hire a good 4WD vehicle and a driver. You could technically do it solo, but I’d suggest going with a guide for safety and fun reasons; hiring a guide also won’t break the bank.

All you need is a gas cooker, a tent and some food, and you can be on your way. With the exception of lodging reservations, you will have complete freedom to alter your schedule on the fly. You can alternate between staying in high-quality lodges and camping on occasion; the former is much more comfortable than the latter, and there are just a dozen other people on the minibus.

You can hire a private car with a driver from almost any tour operator in Mombasa or Nairobi for about $150 to $200 per day. This price usually covers the driver’s salary, petrol and most other expenditures. Everything from lodging to meals to park admission will be on you.

A Kenya family vacation like this is sure to be memorable. Keep in mind that driving into most conservancies is not permitted. The personnel of the conservancy camp will be waiting for you at the gate if you intend to spend time there on this route; from there, you will be transferred to one of their vehicles for the rest of your stay. In most cases, your driver will be provided with lodging while he waits.

How to save money on a Kenya safari

Cheaper trips, lower-quality campgrounds, etc., are ways to save money. For your own amusement and the sake of wildlife preservation, though, I truly do not advise it.

Being flexible with your trip dates and destinations can help you save money on your Kenya safari.

Seasons with lower prices

Costs will naturally be lowest in November and during the low season (March–April) and highest during the high season (July–September & Christmas–February).

Accommodation prices can vary by as much as 50% between the two time periods. Obviously, you can save a tonne of money by going on safari during the low season, often known as the green season.

Unfortunately, the wildlife viewing is subpar and many camps are closed during this time, therefore I recommend coming on safari in the middle of the season (late May to June and October are great). You may expect to pay about 25% less than during peak season, but you’ll also enjoy far less crowds and better chances of seeing wildlife.

Where to find cheap(er) Kenya Safaris

The only places to go if you’re determined to see the “big five” are the iconic parks. Unfortunately, in the pursuit of yet another lion photo, many equally fascinating animals go unnoticed amid Kenya’s wonderfully diverse fauna.

Visiting some of Kenya’s smaller or less well-known parks will not only give you a more varied view of the country’s ecosystems and animals, but it will also save you a tonne of money compared to the more popular parks. This is due to the fact that everything from park admission fees to lodging is typically much cheaper at these smaller parks.

• Kakamega Forest Reserve: In this remote western park, visitors can stroll through a gloomy rainforest in search of hornbills and graceful colobus monkeys.
• Saiwa Swamp National Park, Additionally, there is a western location with a high wooden boardwalk that passes over a marsh that is home to the endangered sitatunga antelope.
• Ruma National Park, is located in western Kenya and is home to towering roan antelope as well as one of the healthiest populations of elusive rhinos.
• Hells Gate National Park: Renting bicycles in the Rift Valley allows you to pedal by herds of zebra as you traverse traditional open savannah grasslands.

The perfect itinerary would include both well-known parks and a number of smaller parks.

Skipping a national park or reserve entirely is another cost-cutting measure. A large portion of Kenya’s wildlife, perhaps as much as 70% according to some estimates, resides unencumbered by any kind of official protection.

There is an increasing number of tiny, affordable camps and even home stays maintained by Maasai in the Loita Plains and hills area, which is just north of the Masai Mara National Reserve.

You can learn a lot about Maasai culture, support local communities, and get up close and personal with herds of grazers by spending a few days at one of these.

Then there are the Kenya national parks that are located in urban areas, like Nakuru and Nairobi. Spectacular megafauna abounds in both parks, but the presence of rhinos is particularly abundant in both. You may get your animal thrills quickly and cheaply (despite the hefty entrance fee) by hiring a jeep or joining a half-day trip from the city hubs of Nairobi or Nakuru and then returning to sleep in the city.