Kenya, Tanzania....or Both?

1/31/2024

Both countries are iconic safari destinations, offering vast, beautiful, and ecologically valuable landscapes. They are home to diverse wildlife populations and fascinating cultures, with a wide range of unforgettable experiences, various accommodation options, and myriad methods of exploration. 

The long land border where southern Kenya meets northern Tanzania is a beautiful patchwork of savannah grasslands, lakes, forest and volcanic mountains; while the east of both countries is bordered by the Indian Ocean. The landscape on both sides is therefore similar; the difference only begins to show as one travels away from the border.

In Kenya, heading north onto the Laikipia Plateau and beyond into the Samburu area, the terrain becomes increasingly arid. Wildlife density is naturally less, but species change is fascinating as visitors encounter animals seen only in northern Kenya like the gerenuk, reticulated giraffe, and Grevy's zebra. The Maasai cultural group gives way to the equally colorful Samburu people and the distant Mathew's Mountains draw visitors onwards.

In Tanzania, crossing the arid Maasai Steppe leads to the remote beauty of the south, where the Eastern Arc Mountains guard amazing biodiversity, the waterways of Nyerere offer unforgettable boating safaris, and acacia savannah meets the miombo woodland of southern Africa in Ruaha National Park. 

The famed natural spectacle of millions of animals moving endlessly around the Mara-Serengeti eco-system in search of rain and the fresh grass that follows, is one of the drawcards to East Africa, and the migration experience differs throughout the year, makes travel at any time productive. 

It is easy to combine the highlights of both Kenya and Tanzania using the scheduled light aircraft flights available. A Zanzibar escape can also be added, or a more remote adventure in the southern Tanzania parks of Nyerere and Ruaha.