How you travel between the parks can make the difference between a good Kenya safari and a really good one. The norm is road travel and it does work. At the top end of the market, however, travellers fly and knowing why is a lot to do with what luxury on safari really means.
A fly-in safari is a safari that is conducted by light aircraft that fly between airstrips located within or near the parks/reserves, rather than by long road transfers. A drive that takes most of a day becomes less than an hour in the air. That saved time is the first luxury, for it makes travel days into game-viewing days and allows a short trip to be unhurried instead of rushed.
The second luxury is the reach. Some of Kenya’s best camps are located in remote conservancies, which are difficult and cumbersome to get to by road, but easy to get to by plane from Nairobi or another airstrip. These are opened up by flying, so a fly-in traveller can link up camps that a road trip would never sensibly link up. The outcome is a journey that is centered around where to stay, not where the road leads.
The flights are part of the experience. Small aircraft fly across the Great Rift Valley and the plains at low level and the view from the window, herds scattered below, the shine of the lakes, the green folds of the highlands, is a sightseeing flight in its own right. The arrival at a bush airstrip, where a guide is waiting for the plane and drives you straight into a game drive, sets a tone no road transfer can match.
Fly-in travel has its own rules. Light aircraft have very limited weight restrictions and luggage is typically limited to approximately 15kg in soft bags, with hard suitcases remaining in Nairobi. The day is dictated by the flight times of the scheduled and charter circuits, and a well-designed trip takes this into account. These are small costs for the time and range that flying provides, and a good operator will take care of the logistics, the traveller just steps from the plane to the vehicle.
Fly-in also alters the tempo of a journey in a manner that is appropriate for luxury travellers. The days are spent on game drives and at camp, with only short flights in between to avoid long drives that leave everyone tired. A four or five night journey that would seem hectic by car is a leisurely flight by air, with more time for the slow pleasures of a great camp, the long lunch, the afternoon by the pool, the evening drive that turns into a sundowner. This is where luxury Kenya safari packages get their premium, as the traveller’s days are spent on the wilderness and not on the road.
Part of the attraction of the fly-in trip is the camps that are reached. Vehicle numbers are kept low in remote conservancies, off-road driving and night drives are permitted, which are not allowed in the public parks, and often sightings are shared between one vehicle and another. These conservancies are most accessible via air and therefore fly-in travel and exclusive game viewing are often synonymous. The plane is not only a quicker transfer, but it is the key to the quieter, more private side of a Kenya safari.
The honest trade is cost. There’s no doubt that flying is more expensive than driving, and a fly-in vacation is definitely in the luxury category. That’s the luxury market and for people who have limited time and money to spend, that’s what they’re paying for: days that can’t be spent on the road. If you have more time than money, a road safari is still the prudent option, and it’s not a disgrace.
Fly in safaris are specialist work, as they involve arranging flights, camps, private guides and ground transfers into one seamless operation. This is where a specialist like Majestic Kenya Safaris earns its place, arranging fly-in luxury safaris that run end to end from the moment you land in Nairobi. In the case of one team owning the entire setup, the traveller can move from Nairobi to camp to coast without ever having to make a connection or worrying about a missed flight. That unseen coordination is a true luxury here, the feeling that nothing is left to chance.
For some trips, a fly-in is the best option, and for others, it isn’t, and knowing the difference can help a traveller decide if the extra cost is worth it. It’s great for short trips, when you can save whole days of driving and make a four-night escape a true safari instead of a whirl of transfers. It is ideal for trips that connect far-flung areas, such as the Mara and the northern parks, or a safari and the coast, which would be very hard on the road. It’s for honeymooners and celebration travellers who desire an unrushed pace and the best remote camps to be found. If you’re looking for a longer, more economical route through parks that are close together, the road still makes sense.
There’s a choice in fly-in travel, too. The more economical method of flying is by scheduled light aircraft services which operate set circuits between the main airstrips at fixed times and fixed per-seat fares. Private charters are much more expensive but can travel anywhere and anytime, making them ideal for groups, families or anyone with a tight schedule who wants to have control. A good operator will tell you which is appropriate for a particular route, as a combination of scheduled and charter hops may be the most cost-effective and convenient. In either case, the flights are arranged as part of the entire package and not left up to the traveller to arrange.
A fly-in safari is the sophisticated way of experiencing Kenya and is ideal for people who value their time and wish to visit the best camps in the least-visited areas. Short flights instead of long drives, remote conservancies instead of crowded reserves, and days spent in the wild rather than on the road. For the right traveller, taking to the air is what makes a good safari into the trip of a lifetime.
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