15 Day Kenya Tanzania highlights Guided Motorcycle Tour

Day 01 - Arrival – Nairobi

The start of the tour depends on your flight schedule: night flight or day flight: day 1 can be the day of arrival if taking a morning flight. But generally, the flights depart the country of origin the evening before.

Karibu, welcome! You will be picked up from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, which is named after Kenya's first president post-independence. You immediately experience the hectic city life of Nairobi, full of traffic and people on the move. The city of Nairobi has a population of around 5 million people, increasing to 10 million if the suburbs are included. The city is named after the Nairobi River and is located at an altitude of 1.800 meters, which makes the temperature very pleasant and even quite cool at night in the summer months. The city was officially founded in 1899 with the arrival of the railways. Today's program depends on whether you arrive in the morning or late afternoon/evening.

Day 02: Nairobi – Mount Kenya 

Early rise to leave the city: We head north, quickly leaving the main roads and following country roads, ride through small towns. The roads will be a mix of mainly asphalt and some gravel. We will quickly leave behind construction work, buildings and traffic jams and welcome village life, nature and lush hills. We will pass the Aberdare National Park and head to Mount Kenya. Its highest peak is 5199 meters high. It was designated in 1978 as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. The mountain plays an important role in the culture of local ethnic groups that live around there, such as the Kikuyu, Ameru, Embu and Maasai. We will stay in a simple accommodation at the foot of the mountain.    

Day 03: Mount Kenya – Matuu

We start the morning with an adventurous gravel path at the edge of Mount Kenya National Park. We will meet the car a bit later to continue our route along the southern side of the mountain. We cruise to Embu, for lunch. Then we ride through the hilly countryside to our accommodation. This area is seldom visited by tourists We stay in a small village but at a nice guesthouse. 

Day 04: Matuu - Amboseli

We cross through plantations, use small bridges and pass lively villages. All roads in this area are dirt roads even if they are the main roads. This is the real countryside of Kenya. Then we cross the noxious Nairobi – Mombasa highway: the main road from the capital to the most important seaport of East Africa. We continue our journey on a smooth and quiet tarmac road to Amboseli National Park – formerly known as Maasai Amboseli Game Reserve, named after the Maasai tribe, a Nilotic ethnic group, known for its distinctive customs and dress. The last 20 km will be gravel again. We stay in a nice resort. With the right weather, we can see Mount Kilimanjaro in its full glory.

Day 05: Amboseli - Stay

In the mornings the view on Kilimanjaro is even better, as there is less chance of clouds. A great view whilst joining an optional car safari: You will encounter large herds of buffalo, wildebeest, zebras and antelopes as well as giraffes and lions crossing the road.  

Amboseli is especially known for its elephant population. We can ride around until late in this magnificent wild park of Kenya. Take enough power and memory cards for your camera because it is really beautiful. The real safari experiences!

Day 06: Amboseli - Longido

Today we head closer to Mount Kilimanjaro and ride to Tanzania. During border crossing our patience is often tested – African time and sense of urgency can have a different dimension! Once we have cleared all formalities we will continue our ride West wise, towards a small town called Longido. Accommodation is very basic today, but we are staying in the best family-run guesthouse in town. 

Day 07 – Longido – Mto Wa Mbu

 Only the first few kilometers in town to the turnoff are on asphalt road today as the rest is gravel. Once we are on the gravel roads, the landscape changes into wilderness and there are no more villages apart from a few small houses. You will see the first giraffes moving through the bushes. Small pockets of sand can make these routes a bit challenging at moments. We will have a simple lunch in a small Masaai town before we get a beautiful view of Mount Lengai, the sacred Masaai Mountain. After the turnoff to the South, we will see the outside wall of the Ngorongoro crater. Just before we reach our destination, we will have a challenging track through dense forests and open plains. 

Mto Wa Mbu is translated into Musquuito River. It is a nice busy town close to the entrance gate to the Ngorogoro and Serengeti.

Day 08: Mto Wa Mbu – daytrip Ngorongoro

 Today there is an option to dedicate a full day to a jeep safari in the Ngorongoro crater. The crater entrance is about 50 km from the town. After the gate, we ride up the crater’s ridge and afterward ride down into the cater. The catering is huge and full of wildlife. You will most likely see the big five here, with the Rhino amongst the most special species to spot. In the afternoon, the jeep will return to Mto Wa Mbu.

There is also an option for a motorbike day trip

Day 09: Mto Wa Mbu – Marangu

This morning we proceed to the big town of Arusha over recently asphalted roads and travel onwards to Moshi. Close to Marangu, we take a gravel road. Marangu is at the foot of the Kilimanjaro mountain. If you rise early tomorrow, you may see a cloudless top. You will see the other side of the mountain compared to the view from Amboseli.

Before reaching Marangu we need to climb a little bit and within this short ride, you will see nature become greener and greener.

Day 10: Marangu - Same

 There is only a few km of asphalt on today’s route. Today we turn towards the Para mountains and follow dirt tracks through the hills. We ride very close to the Kenya border. The car will not join us for most of the day.

We will pass the Mkomazi National Park on our righthand side and we may see some wildlife at the roadside. This park is connected with the huge Tsavo parks in Kenya. Before reaching Same, we follow a beautiful track through the eastern Para mountains. Same is a small town.

Day 11: Same - Mambo

 Again, an adventurous day full of gravel. We continue our journey via a dirt track through the bushes, passing a dammed lake, small Masaai settlements and a few small towns. 

In the afternoon we will reach the Usambara mountains. We will ascent through a different route with stunning views and some tricky bends. After reaching the top, we arrive in a completely different part of Tanzania. It is cool, windy and very green. It is a short dirt road ride to our hotel at the edge of a cliff with magnificent views over the plains to the south

Day 12: Mambo - Tanga

Today we ride to the east, to the coast. We continue our journey through the mountains. We slowly will descend our journey to sea levels, going from over 2000 meters high to 2 meters. Tanga is the most northern port city of Tanzania and once started as a small fisherman village, history brought them influences from Portugal, Oman, Germany, and Britain. It was once an important gateway for the export of the Sisai plant. We stay at the seaside.

Day 13: Tanga – Diani Beach

Today we enjoy the breeze during our coastal ride, along the Indian Ocean. The humidity is higher, so any fan is most welcome! The border normally goes quite smoothly, it is easier to bring the bikes back into the country than temporarily export them out. We continue our tour to the south of Mombasa, to Diani Beach. There we will enjoy our refreshments at the beach, and look back to our adventurous tour.

Day 14 - Diani Beach - stay

A relax day at the beach before you return home.

Day 15: Diani Beach - Departure

 If you have not booked an optional extension, to relax a bit more and enjoy the beach, then it is time to pack your back and say goodbye.