3 Day Tsavo Safari from Mombasa and Diani: Tsavo East and West

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A 3 day Tsavo safari from Mombasa is the easiest way to add a proper safari to a coast holiday, with no flights and no change of base.

You leave your hotel in your own pop up roof 4×4 with a driver guide. Tsavo East gives you red elephants, big buffalo herds and open plains. Tsavo West gives you springs, lava fields and a rhino sanctuary.

This page shows the day by day plan, what each tier gets you, the park fees in the price and the best months to go. Send your dates on WhatsApp and we reply with a written quote.

Highlights

• Pickup and drop off at your Mombasa, Nyali, Bamburi or Diani hotel
• Tsavo East and Tsavo West in one trip, two very different parks
• Red elephants, lion, buffalo, giraffe and a good chance at leopard
• Mzima Springs for hippos and crocodiles in clear water
• Park fees, lodge nights and meals counted in the price
• Budget, mid range and luxury lodges to match your style

Day by day plan

1. Day 1

   Mombasa or Diani to Tsavo East

   Your 3 day Tsavo safari from Mombasa starts at about 6 am from Diani or 7 am from Mombasa. The road runs north west to Voi, which takes about three hours from Mombasa. You enter Tsavo East at Voi Gate, then spend the afternoon on a game drive. Look for elephant, buffalo, lion and gerenuk. You sleep at a lodge or camp near the Galana River. Dinner is served at about 7 pm and many lodges have a waterhole where elephants come after dark.

2. Day 2

   Tsavo East to Tsavo West

   You take a dawn game drive for the best chance of lion and leopard. After breakfast you visit Mudanda Rock or Lugard Falls, then leave for Tsavo West. The transfer takes about two hours. You reach your lodge for lunch and rest, then visit Mzima Springs in the afternoon. Hippos and crocodiles live in the pools and fish drift past the underwater hide. Your 3 day Tsavo safari from Mombasa gives you time to walk the short trail slowly.

3. Day 3

   Tsavo West and back to the coast

   You enjoy a final game drive in Tsavo West, with a stop at the Shetani lava flow or the Ngulia Rhino Sanctuary. After a late breakfast you return to the coast. The drive takes about four to five hours, with a lunch stop at Voi or Mariakani. You reach Mombasa by late afternoon and Diani by early evening. Your hotel waits with a cold drink and a pool.

3 Day Tsavo Safari from Mombasa, guide price per person sharing, USD, low season

• Guide price per person sharing, confirmed in writing on WhatsApp before any payment
• Low season (Jan to Jun) shown, with KWS fees of about USD 80 per day for Tsavo
• Jul to Dec adds about USD 40 to 80 per person for high season lodge rates
• Christmas, New Year and Easter dates carry a surcharge, confirm at booking

Get my exact price on WhatsApp

What a 3 day Tsavo safari from Mombasa Really Gets You

Tsavo is Kenya’s largest park system and it sits about 160 km from Mombasa. That makes a 3 day Tsavo safari from Mombasa the shortest route from the beach to a wild landscape.

You get two nights, one full game day and two part days. The route covers Tsavo East and Tsavo West. If you only have two days, see our 2 day Tsavo East safari from Mombasa. For one day, our Tsavo East day trip from Mombasa fits a tight schedule.

How Much Is a 3 day Tsavo safari from Mombasa?

Our guide prices start at USD 780 per person for six people sharing a budget lodge in low season. Two people in a mid range lodge pay about USD 1,000 each. Two people in a luxury lodge pay about USD 1,400 each.

The price covers your vehicle, guide, two nights on full board and the park fees. From 1 Oct 2025, KWS fees for non resident adults are about USD 80 a day for Tsavo. Confirm exact fees at booking.

See our Kenya national park entry fees guide for the full fee table, or the Kenya safari packages and prices page to compare trips.

Tsavo East: Red Elephants and Open Plains

Tsavo East is flat, hot and wide. The red soil coats the elephants, which gives them their famous colour. You also see zebra, buffalo, lion, lesser kudu and gerenuk, the long necked antelope that stands to eat.

The Galana River draws game in the dry months. Mudanda Rock is a long stone ridge where herds gather at a water pan. Lugard Falls is a rocky stretch of rapids on the river.

Tsavo West: Springs, Lava and Rhino

Tsavo West is greener and more rugged. Mzima Springs pours clear water from the Chyulu Hills and hippos wallow in the pools. The Shetani lava flow is black and strange and the Chaimu Crater gives wide views.

The Ngulia Rhino Sanctuary protects black rhino. Sightings are never guaranteed, but they are possible. For a longer trip that adds Amboseli, see our 3 day Tsavo East and Amboseli safari from Mombasa or the 4 day Mombasa, Tsavo and Amboseli Big Five safari.

Best Time for a 3 day Tsavo safari from Mombasa

Jun to Oct and Jan to Feb are the driest months and the best for game viewing. Animals gather at water and the bush is thin, so you see more. Nov and Mar to May bring rain, green bush and fewer vehicles.

Apr and May are the wettest. Roads can turn muddy and some tracks close. Our Kenya safari month by month guide gives a month by month view and the Kenya public holidays and peak dates shows peak dates when lodges fill up.

Lodge or Camp: What Your Tier Gets You

The lodge you pick changes your comfort more than your wildlife. On a 3 day Tsavo safari from Mombasa, all tiers visit the same parks with the same guide.

Budget stays give you clean rooms or tents, hot water and plain meals. Mid range stays give you private bathrooms, a pool and better views. Luxury stays give you large rooms, a pool, a bar and often a waterhole in view.

• Budget: simple rooms or tents, shared or basic facilities, full meals
• Mid range: private bathrooms, a pool and a lounge, often a waterhole view
• Luxury: large suites, a pool, a bar and top service, often inside the park

Wildlife and Birds on This Trip

Tsavo is famous for elephants, but the full list is long. You can see zebra, giraffe, Cape buffalo, waterbuck, impala, hartebeest and dik dik. Predators include lion, cheetah, spotted hyena and leopard.

On a 3 day Tsavo safari from Mombasa, birders do well. Look for golden breasted starlings, lilac breasted rollers, secretary birds and ostrich. Our Kenya safari animals guide shows what lives where and our guide to the Big Five in Kenya covers the headline animals.

Night life matters too. Lodges with floodlit waterholes show elephants, buffalo and sometimes leopards after dark.

Combining Tsavo with a Beach Stay

The best part of a 3 day Tsavo safari from Mombasa is that you never leave the coast region. You can spend three nights at Diani, then take the safari, then spend three more at the beach. We handle hotel storage and transfers.

Many guests pair it with a sea day out. The Diani and Wasini Island dolphin trip costs about USD 120 per person. The Shimba Hills day trip and the Mombasa and Diani day trips fill gaps in a longer stay.

Pickup, Roads and Timing

We pick you up from your hotel in Mombasa, Nyali, Bamburi, Mtwapa, Diani or Watamu. Diani guests start earlier because of the Likoni ferry. The Mombasa to Voi road is paved and fast.

Inside the parks, tracks are dusty. Take a scarf and a dust cover for your camera. If you prefer the SGR for one leg, read our SGR Madaraka Express guide. We also run longer coast to Mara trips, see our Maasai Mara safari from Mombasa and Diani.

Health, Packing and Comfort

Tsavo is hot, so bring a hat, sunscreen and a refillable bottle. Evenings can be cool in Tsavo West. Tsavo is a malaria area, so speak to your doctor about tablets and pack repellent.

Our Kenya safari packing checklist and our Kenya vaccinations and malaria guide cover the details. Your hotel can store extra luggage while you are away.

• Neutral clothes and closed shoes
• Binoculars and a camera with a spare card
• Reef safe sunscreen for the beach on return
• A power bank, since vehicle charging is slow

Book Your 3 day Tsavo safari from Mombasa

Send your dates, hotel name, group size and budget for the 3 day Tsavo safari from Mombasa on WhatsApp at +254 720 731957. We reply with a written quote and a lodge shortlist, usually within a few hours.

Book Dec and Jul to Oct trips three months ahead. Low season trips often work with a week or two of notice. Browse the full list of our safari packages to compare other lengths, or the beach holiday packages and prices to build a beach plus safari holiday.

How to book your 3 day Tsavo safari

Booking your 3 day Tsavo safari with us takes about five minutes of your time. The rest is our job. Here is exactly what happens, step by step, so there are no surprises along the way.

1. Send your dates. Message us on WhatsApp with your travel dates, how many people are coming and the ages of any children. Tell us if you have a budget in mind. We plan with it, not around it.
2. Get a written quote. We reply with a clear price per person, what it includes and what it does not. No hidden park fees and no vague extras. If a cheaper camp or a shorter route makes more sense, we say so.
3. Tweak it until it fits. Change a camp, add a night or swap a park. Ask as many questions as you like. Changes cost nothing until you confirm.
4. Confirm with a deposit. A deposit holds your vehicle, guide and rooms. You get a written confirmation with every detail and the date the balance is due.
5. Travel day. Your driver guide meets you at your hotel or the airport with a name board. You have their number and ours for the whole trip.

What every trip with us includes

Every 3 day Tsavo safari plan we put together comes with the basics done properly. You ride in a safari vehicle with a pop up roof, with a professional driver guide who knows the parks. Water is in the cooler box and park fees are sorted in advance so you do not stand in a queue at the gate.

We also stay reachable. If something changes on the road, a flat tyre, a closed route or a sudden storm, we sort it and keep you posted on WhatsApp.

Paying safely

We share payment details in writing only and every payment gets a receipt. The payment options and the balance date sit on your written quote, so nothing is left to memory or a phone call.

Why book with a Nairobi team

We live here. We drive these roads all year, we know which camps are honest about their photos and we know when a park is too busy to enjoy. That local knowledge is what turns a good 3 day Tsavo safari into a great one. Our Google rating sits at 5.0 from 46 reviews and we plan to keep it that way.

Ready when you are. Send us a message and we will put a plan together for you shortly.

Questions people ask

Official information: Kenya Wildlife Service, the official park authority.

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