14-Day Rwanda Gorillas & Kenya Luxury Fly-In Safari
Two weeks across two countries, flown rather than driven — an hour with mountain gorillas in Volcanoes National Park, then Kenya's conservancies by bush plane: elephants beneath Kilimanjaro in Amboseli, rhino country at Lewa, and big cats in Mara Naboisho.
About this safari
This is the fullest expression of an East African safari: the continent's two headline wildlife encounters — mountain gorillas and the big cats of the Mara — joined by a short regional flight rather than a long road transfer, with the Kenyan legs flown between airstrips so the days belong to game viewing instead of driving.
You start in Rwanda with Kigali and a gorilla trek in the Virungas, then fly to Nairobi for the Sheldrick orphan elephants and the Giraffe Centre. From Wilson Airport the safari proper begins: Amboseli for the big tuskers beneath Kilimanjaro, Lewa for black and white rhino, Grevy's zebra and walking safaris across 62,000 acres, and Mara Naboisho — a private conservancy bordering the Maasai Mara with one of the highest lion densities in Africa, where night drives and off-road tracking are permitted. Between July and October you can spend a full day in the reserve itself, on the Mara River, where the migration herds cross.
What makes this one special
- An hour with a habituated mountain gorilla family in Volcanoes National Park
- Big tuskers against Kilimanjaro in Amboseli, and a bush breakfast on arrival
- Black and white rhino, Grevy's zebra and walking safaris at Lewa
- Night drives and off-road tracking in the private Mara Naboisho Conservancy
- A full day in the Maasai Mara National Reserve with a picnic on the Mara River
- Bush flights throughout Kenya, so the days are spent looking rather than driving
The journey, morning by morning
Arrival in Kigali
Met at Kigali International with a VIP meet-and-greet and transferred to your hotel in the centre of Rwanda's capital. An easy evening to settle in before the drive to the volcanoes.
Kigali city tour and the drive to Volcanoes National Park
A guided morning in Kigali including the Genocide Memorial, then lunch before the scenic three-and-a-half-hour drive through terraced hills to Musanze, at the foot of the Virungas.
Mountain gorilla trekking and the Gorilla Guardians village
An early briefing at park headquarters, then a guided trek through bamboo forest to one of the habituated gorilla families and an hour in their company. The afternoon is spent at the Gorilla Guardians Cultural Village with the community that lives alongside the park.
Fly Kigali to Nairobi
A morning transfer to Kigali International for the regional flight to Nairobi. Your Kenyan guide meets you at Jomo Kenyatta and drives you out to Karen, the leafy suburb below the Ngong Hills.
Sheldrick orphan elephants and the Giraffe Centre
The Sheldrick Wildlife Trust at the morning feed, where orphaned elephants are hand-raised for release, then the Giraffe Centre to meet the endangered Rothschild's giraffe at eye level. Lunch in Karen and an unhurried afternoon.
Bush flight to Amboseli, beneath Kilimanjaro
From Wilson Airport, a light-aircraft hop south to Amboseli. A bush breakfast on the plains on arrival, then your first game drive among the swamps that draw the park's celebrated elephant herds, with Kilimanjaro filling the southern sky on a clear morning.
A full day in Amboseli
Morning and afternoon game drives across the dry lake bed and the spring-fed swamps, where the big tuskers feed. There is an option to visit a Maasai village, arranged privately rather than as a set piece.
Fly north to the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy
A scheduled safari flight north to the Laikipia plateau and Lewa, a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of the more important rhino sanctuaries in Africa. Grevy's zebra and reticulated giraffe are here in numbers, and Mount Kenya stands to the south.
Lewa — game drives and walking
Sixty-two thousand acres of protected conservancy with few other vehicles in it. Private 4×4 drives, guided bush walks with a naturalist, and birding along the swamps, with black and white rhino the reason most people come.
Lewa — a second day at your own pace
A second full day to use as you like — tracking a lion pride, walking a different part of the conservancy, or spending the morning with the anti-poaching and rhino-monitoring teams, which is often the part guests remember.
Fly to Mara Naboisho Conservancy
Southwest over the Great Rift Valley to the Maasai Mara ecosystem, landing in the private Naboisho Conservancy — Maasai-owned land bordering the reserve, with one of the highest lion densities in Africa and a fraction of the vehicles. An afternoon game drive on arrival.
A full day in the Maasai Mara National Reserve
A full day into the reserve itself with a picnic lunch on the Mara River, where hippo pods and crocodiles hold the banks. Between July and October this is where the migration herds cross — the timing is nature's, not ours, so we go where the reports are strongest.
Naboisho — night drives and walking
Back on conservancy land, where the rules allow what the reserve does not: off-road tracking, guided walks and a night drive after dinner, when the genets, aardwolf and hunting cats come out. Starlit dinner in camp if the weather holds.
Fly to Nairobi and a VIP departure
A last morning drive in Naboisho, then the flight back to Wilson. A farewell lunch at the Karen Blixen Coffee Garden and a day room near the airport to shower and repack, before fast-track assistance at Jomo Kenyatta for your flight home.
How this journey unfolds — 7 stops in 14 days
- 1Kigali
- 2Volcanoes
- 3Nairobi
- 4Amboseli
- 5Lewa Wildlife Conservancy
- 6Mara Naboisho Conservancy
- 7Maasai Mara
The year on this safari, month by month
Good year-round. July to October places you in the Mara for the migration and the river crossings; January to March brings clear skies, strong predator sightings and the calving season.
Rwanda's forests are wet year-round; the drier windows (around June–September and December–February) make for firmer trekking trails.
Conditions along the route
Live readings where this safari spends its days.
The world this journey moves through
Photography of the landscapes and wildlife along this route — tap any photo to view it full screen.
Included and not included
Included
- VIP airport meet-and-assist in Kigali and Nairobi
- All airport and airstrip transfers
- Regional flight Kigali to Nairobi
- Internal bush flights Nairobi – Amboseli – Lewa – Maasai Mara – Nairobi
- Accommodation as listed
- Meals as listed in the day-by-day
- Official Rwanda mountain gorilla trekking permit — US$1,500 per person
- Private 4×4 Land Cruiser in Rwanda; shared 4×4 game drives in the Kenyan conservancies
- Guided Kigali city tour and Genocide Memorial entry
- Gorilla Guardians Cultural Village entry
- Sheldrick Wildlife Trust and Giraffe Centre entry
- Park, reserve and private conservancy fees
- AMREF Flying Doctors emergency evacuation cover
- Drinking water, soft drinks and snacks on game drives
Not included
- International flights
- Travel, medical and cancellation insurance
- Visas
- Tips and items of a personal nature
- Increases in park fees or other charges beyond our control
What a journey like this costs
Indicative all-inclusive rates per person, per night. Your own quote is built from your dates, your camps and the size of your party, and holds once agreed.
- Mid-rangeUS$450 – US$950per person, per night
Comfortable park lodges and permanent tented camps, road transfers between parks, shared game drives, all park fees.
Comfort · Classic camps and lodges
- LuxuryUS$950 – US$1,500per person, per night
Fly-in bush transfers, boutique tented camps, shared or private 4×4 vehicles, all park fees, fine dining.
Luxury camps and lodges
- Ultra-luxuryUS$1,600 – US$3,200+per person, per night
Private charter flights, exclusive-use conservancy lodges, a dedicated private guide and vehicle throughout.
Ultimate luxury camps and lodges
See the camps and lodges behind these bands
*Correct as at September 2026. Third-party costs such as park fees, gorilla permits, balloon flights and lodge rates are set by others and can change — we will quote the current price at the time of confirmation.
Travellers who want both gorillas and big cats in one journey, and would rather fly between camps than drive. The minimum age for gorilla trekking is 15.
Luxury lodges, boutique hotels and tented camps
Questions travellers ask
- Why fly between the Kenyan camps rather than drive?
- Distance. Amboseli to Lewa to the Mara is two long days on the road; flown, each is under two hours and you land at an airstrip inside the conservancy. On a fourteen-day trip that is roughly three days returned to game viewing, which is what you came for. The light aircraft carry a soft-bag luggage limit, usually around 15kg including hand luggage — we confirm the exact figure with the operator before you pack.
- Will I see the Great Migration on this itinerary?
- Between roughly July and October, if the herds are in the northern Mara. Day 12 is a full day in the reserve on the Mara River, which is where the crossings happen. No operator can promise a crossing on a given day — the herds move on rain, not on schedules — so we position you where the reports are strongest and give you the time to wait.
- What is the difference between the conservancies and the national reserve?
- The reserve is public land with no cap on vehicles and no off-road driving. Naboisho and Lewa are private conservancies leased from their Maasai and Laikipia landowners, with limited beds, off-road tracking, walking and night drives allowed, and far fewer vehicles at a sighting. We use both deliberately: the reserve for the river and the sheer scale, the conservancies for the quiet and the access.
- Is the gorilla permit included?
- Yes, one Rwanda mountain gorilla trekking permit per person is included, at the published Rwanda Development Board rate of US$1,500. Permits are limited daily and the popular months go early, so we recommend confirming six to twelve months ahead where your dates allow.
- Could this itinerary be done in reverse, or shortened?
- Both. Some travellers prefer to finish with the gorillas rather than begin with them, and the Kenyan legs can be reduced to two if you have less time. Tell us how long you have and what matters most, and we will rework it — these journeys are built to order.