South Africa or East Africa Safari: Which Is Yours?

The short answer

Both are good. They suit different people.

Choose East Africa if you want a safari that moves: your own guide and vehicle all day, a new camp every two or three nights, the Great Migration, the Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti. Choose South Africa if you want a nonstop flight from Atlanta or New York, a lodge where the drives come to you, a leopard tracked off-road after dark, and Cape Town to finish.

We run our own team in Tanzania, so for a first safari most travelers we speak to start there. South Africa is a fine first safari too, and not a consolation prize. If you are still weighing it up, tell us your dates and who is traveling and we will say which we would book.

The long version is our South Africa versus Tanzania guide.

Two kinds of safari day

One lodge and drives that come to you, or a safari that moves

South Africa

The drives come to you

You base yourself at one lodge. A ranger and a tracker take you out at dawn and again late in the afternoon, and the lodge sets the rhythm: breakfast out in the bush, a rest in the heat, a sundowner, dinner. In a private reserve such as the Sabi Sand, which shares an unfenced boundary with Kruger National Park, your ranger can leave the road to follow a leopard, drives run after dark, and few vehicles share a sighting.

Meals and game drives are in the lodge rate. You change lodges, not vehicles, and Cape Town is a short flight away.

East Africa

The safari moves with you

Your own guide and 4x4 stay with you the whole trip, and you move every two or three nights: Tarangire's baobabs and elephants, the Ngorongoro Crater at dawn, the central Serengeti and, in season, the herds. Inside national parks you stay on the tracks and in daylight, which is where South Africa's private reserves have the edge, but your guide plans each day around you and not around a lodge timetable.

In Tanzania our own team, guides and vehicles run it. Park fees are charged per person per day and are in our price.

Side by side

The differences that decide it

	South Africa	East Africa (Tanzania and Kenya)
Where you sleep	One lodge for two or three nights at each stop	A new camp every two or three nights
Who guides you	The lodge's own ranger and tracker	Our own guide and vehicle with you all trip in Tanzania; a local driver-guide in Kenya, with a handover at the border
Off-road and night drives	Yes, in private reserves	Not inside national parks: you stay on the tracks and in daylight
The Great Migration	No	Yes: calving from January to March, Mara River crossings from mid-July, and September and October the peak from the Tanzanian side
Flights from the US	Nonstop from Atlanta and Newark to Johannesburg, 15 to 16 hours	Nonstop from New York to Nairobi, about 14 hours; Tanzania is 17 hours or more
Malaria	Some reserves are described as malaria-free; Kruger is a malaria area	The safari areas are malaria areas
The city or the beach	Cape Town, the Winelands and the Garden Route	A beach finish on Zanzibar
Best months	May to October for the reserves, November to March for the Cape	June to October, or January to March for calving
Self-drive	Kruger is the classic self-drive; private lodges are guided only	Guided only
From, per person	$6,950 for 14 nights, with Victoria Falls and Cape Town	$5,150 for 10 nights in budget camps, $8,050 in mid-range lodges

Malaria is a medical question: please talk to a travel doctor and check the CDC's travelers' health page for your route.

Which one are you?

Pick by what you want to feel on the second day

Pick South Africa if

You want a nonstop flight, from Atlanta or Newark (New York)
You want Cape Town and wine on the same trip
A malaria-free reserve matters to you (check with your doctor)
You like staying put and want tracking after dark
You want to add Victoria Falls or Botswana, which link with short flights

Pick East Africa if

It is your first safari and you want the migration, the Serengeti and the crater
You like the idea of one team running your trip, with our own guides
You would rather move through different landscapes than settle in one
You want a beach finish on Zanzibar
You want the Mara and the Serengeti on one trip

What it costs

A real from-price for each, in US dollars

South Africa

Cape Town, Kruger and Victoria Falls

From $6,950

per person, 14 nights, late September to early October, flights from the US extra

Two nights near Johannesburg, four at the Falls, three in a private reserve beside Kruger and five in Cape Town, with the flights between them. Priced from a real quote for three adults traveling together.

See the day by day →

East Africa

Tanzania, with your own guide

From $5,150

per person, 10 nights in budget camps, November. $8,050 in mid-range lodges, September. Flights extra

The northern circuit by road, with Tarangire, Lake Manyara, the crater and the Serengeti. Add Kenya, Zanzibar or both: see Kenya and Tanzania and Tanzania and Zanzibar.

See Tanzania safari packages →

Every figure is the price of a real quote we wrote and locked, per person, converted at our current exchange rate and rounded, in US dollars with the exchange rate fixed on your own quote. The trips are different lengths, so compare what each gives you, not the totals. Our guides to what an African safari costs and what a Tanzania safari costs go line by line.

Good to know

Questions about South Africa or East Africa

Is South Africa or East Africa better for a first safari?+

For most Americans we'd start in Tanzania, because the Great Migration, the Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Crater have no South African equivalent, and our own guides run your trip there. South Africa is just as good a first safari if a nonstop flight, Cape Town or malaria-free reserves matter more. It is a question of fit, not a ranking.

Is a South Africa safari cheaper than East Africa?+

It depends mostly on where you sleep. A South African private reserve lodge includes meals and two game drives a day in its rate, so it costs the most per night but there is little else to add. East Africa prices a private vehicle and guide for every day, park fees per person per day and the camp itself. Our real quotes start at $6,950 per person for 14 nights across Johannesburg, Victoria Falls, a private reserve beside Kruger and Cape Town, and at $5,150 per person for 10 nights in Tanzania in budget camps. Flights from the US are extra in both.

Which is better for a family with young children?+

It depends on their ages and on malaria. Some South African reserves, such as Madikwe and Tswalu in the Kalahari, are described as malaria-free, while Kruger and the Tanzanian safari areas are malaria areas. That is a medical question, so please talk to a travel doctor and check the CDC's travelers' health page. Tell us the children's ages and we will plan around the lodges' own minimum ages.

Can we see the Big Five in South Africa as well as in Tanzania?+

Yes. Kruger, the private reserves beside it and Madikwe all have the Big Five, and so do the Serengeti, Tarangire and the Ngorongoro Crater. The difference is the setting: South Africa's private reserves allow off-road tracking and drives after dark, while Tanzania gives you scale and the migration.

How long is the flight from the US to each?+

Delta flies nonstop from Atlanta and United from Newark (New York) to Johannesburg, about 15 to 16 hours. East Africa has no nonstop from the US to Tanzania: the quickest route is Kenya Airways nonstop from New York JFK to Nairobi, about 14 hours, then an hour on to Kilimanjaro, roughly 17 hours in all, and most other routes take 17 to 21 hours from the East Coast. Schedules change, so we check the days and times for your dates.

Can I drive myself around Kruger?+

Yes. Kruger National Park is public, and it is the classic self-drive. At private reserve lodges, drives are guided only. For a first safari we would go guided, and keep the self-drive for the Cape and the Garden Route.

Can we do South Africa and East Africa on one trip?+

You can, but there is no nonstop between Kilimanjaro and Johannesburg, so linking the two costs a connection and about a day. Adding Victoria Falls to Tanzania needs one transit night, because there is no nonstop to the Falls and no reliable same-day connection. We book that flight and tell you which night it replaces. For a first trip we would usually choose one region.

How do we choose?+

Tell us your dates, who is traveling and what you most want to see, and we will say which we would book. Fill in the short form below, email [email protected], book a call, or WhatsApp Samara on +61 492 037 622.

Keep planning

Cape Town, Kruger and Victoria FallsThe South Africa circuit, day by day Tanzania safari packagesPrivate and tailor-made, with prices Kenya and TanzaniaThe Mara and the Serengeti on one trip South AfricaKruger, the private reserves and the Cape TanzaniaThe Serengeti, the crater and Tarangire Reviews and who to book withDated guest reviews and the facts to check

Tell us which way you are leaning

Tell us your dates and who is traveling, and the Kingse team will come back to you personally, usually the same day, with the trip we would book.

First name *

Last name *

Email *

Phone * (so we can call you back)

Your country *

Adults *

Children under 18

Trip length

Travel month

Travel year

Rough budget per person (USD)

First safari? (optional)

Special occasion? (optional)

Tell us about your trip (optional)

By submitting, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms. We'll reply about your trip and may send the odd safari planning email. Unsubscribe any time.

Kingse Safaris Pty Ltd, ABN 37 698 821 886 · Insured for tour operator liability · Payments go to our company account in US dollars, by bank transfer or card.

Australian-owned, Tanzania-run. No obligation, no pressure.

South Africa or East Africa: which safari is yours?