Adventures in Africa: Nairobi to Sungura Safari Camp, Kenya

As I was planning my trip to Africa over the summer of 2025 my priority was arranging my Kilimanjaro climb. I decided I wanted to climb Mt Meru as well, so I worked with my tour operator, 21 Africa Safaris, on a package that included climbing both mountains. Prior to crossing into Tanzania, however, I wanted to do a short safari, and Amboseli National Park seemed to be an ideal option, since it is more or less on the way from Nairobi to Arusha, which is where the climbs would begin from. I had identified a Kenyan tour operator who offered a 3 day group safari that would include transportation from Nairobi to Amboseli National Park, and then transportation from the park to Arusha for $395 US. That was not a bad deal, but then it crossed my mind that perhaps my Tanzania tour operator could also include an Amboseli park package and save me some money. Indeed, when I asked, they offered me the same package for $350, so that seemed great!

So, my Amboseli trip began this morning with pick up from my hotel by my guide, Isaac, who works for Balu Travel, which was evidently the tour company subcontracted by 21 Africa Safaris. I quickly realized this was not going to be a group trip, and that it would just be me and Isaac. Nothing wrong with that, but then it also became apparent that Isaac was expecting to only take me for one night, not two, and that we would return to Nairobi tomorrow. Nairobi is the opposite direction from Tanzania, so this was not making sense. Several WhatsApp messages later and I had more or less accepted that my Amboseli trip was going to be much different than I had been told! It was going to be private, not shared; it was going to be two days, one night, not three days, two nights; I was going to be staying at a luxury camp, not public camping; and it was going to involve returning to Nairobi and taking the bus from there to Arusha, not driving to Arusha from Amboseli. And I had not been informed of any of these changes in advance! Obviously this was frustrating, but I decided I would handle that once I met my tour operator in Tanzania and not let it ruin my time in Kenya.

The drive out of Nairobi went smoothly and soon we were in the Kenyan countryside.

The trip to Amboseli is about four hours, but it was comfortable and passed quickly. We made a couple of roadside coffee stops . . .

. . . and shortly after one of these I noticed zebra mingling with donkey herds.

Just down the road we passed a herd of goats . . .

. . . and then more zebra really close to the highway.

Then we were back in an urban area, Kimana, and we passed through a vibrant market.

It was goat market day and when stopped for gas I had a good chuckle seeing these two guys carrying a goat on their motorcycle. 

Just after 13:00 and several kilometres of dirt road driving, we reached Sungura Safari Camp. 

Indeed, this was a far cry from the public camping I expected!

Down a path through the well-cultivated grounds . . .

. . . I found my tent!

Definitely this place is luxury.

I took a short rest in my tent then headed to the dining tent to enjoy lunch.

Isaac said there was little point in going into the park until after 15:00 as most of the animals would be resting in the heat of the afternoon, so after lunch I took a dip in the camp's pool!