Planning your safari
Getting to Your Safari from Nairobi
From the plane to the plains, sorted for you. Which airport you land at, how close the wildlife really is, when to drive and when to fly — and how we handle every transfer so you’re met and driven throughout.
Start here
Where your safari begins
In shortMost Nairobi safaris begin at one of two airports: JKIA for international flights, and Wilson for the domestic light-aircraft flights that reach the safari parks. From there it’s a short drive to Nairobi National Park and the wildlife circuit, or a road trip or quick flight to the Mara and the bigger parks. We arrange the transfers, so you’re met and driven throughout.
Getting to your safari is the part travellers most often overthink — and the part we most quietly take off your hands. Whether you’ve come for a park drive on the city’s doorstep or a full Masai Mara safari, the logistics come down to a handful of simple choices.
The two airports
JKIA and Wilson — and which you’ll use
JKIA · your way into Kenya
Jomo Kenyatta International Airport is the country’s main international gateway, about 15 km south-east of the city centre on Mombasa Road. Almost every visitor arrives here. We meet you at the arrivals hall with a name board and take it from there.
Wilson · where safari flights leave
Wilson Airport, about 6 km from the city centre, is the hub for the light-aircraft flights that serve the Mara, Amboseli and other parks. If your safari includes a flight rather than a drive, this is where it departs — a short transfer from the city or from JKIA.
Fact: the Nairobi Expressway, a tolled highway opened in 2022, runs right past JKIA into the heart of the city. Mechanism: it bypasses the notoriously congested Mombasa Road, so the airport run no longer lives or dies by the traffic. Consequence: JKIA to the city centre now takes roughly 15 to 20 minutes, instead of the one to two hours it once could at peak. Advice: your transfer driver takes the Expressway and handles the small toll — you simply enjoy a fast, smooth arrival.
If you land at JKIA and then fly on to your safari from Wilson, you’ll need a road transfer between the two — around 20 to 40 minutes — plus a comfortable buffer for bags and check-in. Light-aircraft safari flights also cap luggage at roughly 15 kg in soft-sided bags. We time the connection and arrange the transfer, so you never have to cut it fine.
On the city’s doorstep
Getting to Nairobi National Park
The closest safari there is — and the reason so many travellers fit one in around a flight.
The park’s Main Gate is on Lang’ata Road, roughly 7 to 10 km from the city centre and only about 7 km from JKIA. Depending on the traffic and your gate, that’s a 20-to-40-minute drive, much of it now quick thanks to the Expressway and the Southern Bypass. We collect you from your hotel — or straight from the airport if you’re on a layover — and drive you in.
The proximity is the whole magic of this park: within half an hour of the city you can be watching lions, rhino and giraffe grazing against the skyline of high-rises behind them. Nowhere else on earth puts big game and a capital city quite so close together.
All close together
Getting to the wildlife circuit
Four of Nairobi’s best wildlife experiences sit within a few minutes of one another.
The Sheldrick elephant orphanage, the Giraffe Centre, the Nairobi Safari Walk and the Animal Orphanage all lie in the leafy Karen and Langata suburbs, 20 to 40 minutes from the centre and close to each other. That clustering is exactly why a single guided circuit day flows so naturally — you move from one to the next without backtracking. We drive the whole loop and time it around each attraction’s hours, so you never touch a map or flag down a taxi.
The bigger journeys
Getting to the Masai Mara and the bigger parks
Further afield, it’s a choice between a scenic drive and a short flight — and we arrange whichever suits you.
The Mara by road
About 270 km via Narok, a 5-to-6-hour drive down the Great Rift Valley escarpment in our four-wheel-drive. The scenery and the first wildlife make the journey part of the safari, and it’s the more affordable option.
The Mara by air
Roughly 45 minutes from Wilson Airport to one of the Mara airstrips, then a short transfer to camp. It saves the best part of a day and is the pick when time is tight.
The other parks
Amboseli is about 4 to 5 hours by road or a short flight; Lake Nakuru around 2 to 3 hours by road; Tsavo 5 to 7 hours by road or a flight. We plan the route to whichever parks your safari includes.
One practical note for the Mara: the reserve runs on a 12-hour daily ticket, so if you’re staying just outside it, your departure by road is timed around the morning to avoid an extra day’s fee — your guide handles that. The full detail is on our Masai Mara safari page, and how it all adds up is in the safari cost guide.
The big choice
Road or fly?
For anywhere beyond the city park, it usually comes down to time against cost. Here’s how it tends to fall.
Driving makes sense if…
- Budget matters to you
- The distance is short — the city park, Nakuru
- You enjoy the scenery and the journey
- You’d like the freedom to stop along the way
- You’re travelling with children who prefer breaks
Flying makes sense if…
- Time is tight and saving a day matters
- The park is far — the Mara, Amboseli, Tsavo
- A long drive simply doesn’t appeal
- You’re happy within the ~15 kg luggage limit
- Comfort matters more than cost
We’ll help you choose if…
- You’re weighing cost against time
- You’re combining several parks
- You’d like a mix of road and air
- You’d simply rather we advised
- Just tell us your dates and budget
Off your hands
How we handle your transfers
From the moment you land to the moment you leave, the moving parts are ours to manage.
A name board waiting at JKIA arrivals, or your incoming flight monitored if you’re flying in — so someone is always there.
We collect you wherever you’re staying, at a time chosen to beat the traffic rather than sit in it.
No juggling taxis, apps or strangers — the same team looks after you from arrival to departure.
You travel in your safari vehicle with your driver-guide, not a random cab hailed on the street.
JKIA-to-Wilson transfers and safari-flight timing are arranged and buffered, so nothing is ever cut fine.
We build realistic timings into every transfer, so you’re never rushed, stranded or stuck watching the clock.
Your own time in the city
Getting around Nairobi itself
For your safari you won’t need any of this — we drive you. But for free time in the city, here are your options.
Ride-hailing & taxis
Uber and Bolt operate widely across Nairobi and are cheap and easy, and metered taxis and hotel cars are everywhere too. It’s the simplest way to get around town or out to dinner.
Matatus & local transport
The shared minibuses, or matatus, are inexpensive and an experience in themselves, but crowded and not suited to luggage or airport runs. Fine for the adventurous on short city hops.
The SGR train
The Madaraka Express links Nairobi to Mombasa in around four and a half hours — the smart way to reach the coast. Note that it doesn’t serve the Mara or the safari parks.
A word on traffic: Nairobi’s is real, so always allow generous time for journeys across the city, especially at the morning and evening peaks. It’s the one thing that catches visitors out — and the reason we plan every safari transfer with the clock in mind.
Frequently asked questions
Getting there FAQs
Airports & arrival
Almost certainly JKIA, Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, which is Kenya’s main international gateway. The domestic light-aircraft flights that reach the safari parks leave from a separate, smaller airport, Wilson.
The Nairobi Expressway makes it quick — usually 15 to 20 minutes into the city. We meet you at arrivals and drive you, and ride-hailing or a taxi is easy too if you’d rather arrange your own.
JKIA handles international flights and is Kenya’s main airport; Wilson is a smaller airport about 6 km from the centre, used for the light-aircraft flights to the parks. The two are around 20 to 40 minutes apart by road.
Getting to the parks
The Main Gate is about 7 to 10 km from the centre and only around 7 km from JKIA — a 20-to-40-minute drive depending on the traffic. It’s the closest safari to any capital city in the world.
About 5 to 6 hours by road via Narok, down the Rift Valley escarpment, or roughly 45 minutes by air from Wilson Airport to a Mara airstrip.
Often, yes — Nairobi National Park is close enough for a game drive on a longer layover. Tell us your landing and onward times and we’ll tell you honestly whether it fits before anything is booked.
Road or fly
Both are common. Driving is cheaper and genuinely scenic; flying saves the best part of a day and skips the long road. We’ll recommend based on your time and budget.
Light aircraft cap luggage at roughly 15 kg per person, in soft-sided bags. If you’re flying to your safari, pack accordingly — we’ll remind you when we plan the trip.
Transfers & getting around
Yes. We meet you at JKIA arrivals with a name board, or monitor your flight if you’re arriving on a domestic connection, and drive you onward from there.
It’s possible, but most visitors travel with our vehicle and guide, who know the roads, the parks and where the wildlife is. It’s safer, easier, and you’ll see a great deal more.
Uber and Bolt are cheap and easy, and taxis and hotel cars are plentiful. Just allow extra time for the city’s traffic, particularly at the morning and evening peaks.
No. The SGR, the Madaraka Express, runs to Mombasa and the coast, not to the Mara or the safari parks — those are reached by road or light aircraft.
Not with us. Every transfer, connection and drive is arranged as part of your safari, so you’re met and driven throughout — no taxis to hail, no maps to read. Tell us your flights →
Arrive to a plan, not a scramble
Send us your flights and where you’re staying, and we’ll have you met at arrivals, driven wherever you need to be, and on safari without a single taxi to hail or a map to read — every transfer sorted and timed around the traffic.
Plan the rest: what a safari costs, what to bring, or pick a safari from Nairobi. More in safari planning.