There are several options for you to do the African Safari. Some people prefer South Africa some prefer the central ones. Within the central you have the options to go to Masai Mara or Serengeti as well. But which one is better? And what about the other near by places that we can club along with it. We also had a lot of such questions while planning for this trip.

First you need to decide if you want to go to South Africa or the Mara region in Kenya/Tanzania. We decided to do the later as South Africa can be a separate trip which includes the beaches. And we thought the national parks in Mara region are much larger and will give us a better wild life experience. We did both Masai Mara and Serengeti as they offered completely different landscapes. Here is the itinerary that we followed:

Pros of Masai Mara:
-Smaller and densely packed with wild life. So higher chances of seeing them in action.
-Greener compared to Serengeti
-Half the price of a typical Serengeti guided 3-4 days game drive
– There is no fixed path for the vehicles to follow so you can get very close to the wild life.
Cons of Masai Mara:
-There was no option to stay inside the national park. So you have to come out in the afternoon to your accommodations outside the gates of the national park.

Pros of Serengeti:
– The entry to Serengeti is fantastic. It is a long dusty road which looks like a scene from Mad Max- Fury Road.
– You can camp inside the national park. And the get the thrill of knowing that the wild animals are roaming around you unrestricted 🙂 . But it was quite safe.
– More wildlife as this national park is much much bigger than Masai Mara.
Cons of Serengeti:
– Because of the size of it we did not get a chance to see a lot of action.
– The rules are a bit strict on the movement of vehicles and on many occasions we have to look at the animals from very far.

One possible change that we could have done in the itinerary is to add Zanzibar to it as well. Its a very beautiful island in Tanzania and it’s worthwhile to visit it while you are there.

Hope this helps! Happy adventure!