Budget
The two halves cost nothing like each other
Which is the single most useful fact for deciding how to split your nights.
A safari night is fully inclusive — accommodation, all meals, park fees, guiding, vehicle. A beach night is a hotel room, sometimes with breakfast. They are different products and the price gap is wide.
The safari half
| Level | Per person per night | What it buys |
|---|---|---|
| Camping and small-group | Under US$300 | Seasonal camping or simple lodges, shared vehicle, longer road transfers. Real wildlife, minimal comfort. |
| Comfort to classic | US$300 – 650 | Solid mid-range lodges and tented camps inside or beside the parks, a private vehicle on most departures, and usually one light-aircraft hop to save a day of driving. |
| Premium | US$650 – 1,000 | Conservancy camps with off-road driving, night drives and walking, flights between most parks, and small guest numbers. |
| Top end | US$1,000 and up | Owner-run and exclusive-use camps, a dedicated guide throughout, private flights, and exclusive-use houses for families and groups. |
Indicative planning ranges only, per person per night sharing, for a fully inclusive safari — accommodation, meals, park and conservancy fees, guiding, and transport between parks. They are what we see in the market, not a quote and not an official tariff. Your quote will be exact and itemised. International flights are not included.
The beach half
Considerably less, and with a much wider spread between simple and extravagant. A good mid-range coastal hotel on a bed-and-breakfast basis is a fraction of a mid-range safari night; an all-inclusive resort or a private villa with staff moves it up but rarely to safari levels.
The practical consequence: extra beach nights are cheap, extra safari nights are not. If your budget is tight, the lever to pull is safari nights, not beach nights.
The arithmetic that surprises people
Cutting one safari night and adding two beach nights often costs less than the original itinerary and produces a better-rested traveller. We suggest it frequently.
What sits outside both
- International flights
- Internal flights between the parks and the coast — a real cost on this shape of trip, so the routing matters
- Entry authorisation and travel insurance
- Tips, on both halves
- Diving, kitesurfing, dhow trips and the balloon flight if you want one
More from our Kenya guides
Specialist guides across our Kenya network
Each of these is a focused guide we publish. Same Kenya specialist behind every enquiry.
Ready to turn this into a real itinerary?
Send us your dates, who is travelling and roughly what you want to spend per person per night. Our Kenya specialist comes back within 24 hours with a plan built around them and a costed quote.