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Best Vacations in Africa: 7 Trips Across the Continent

Updated 2026-10-01 · Vacation Planner editorial
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Africa is a continent-sized vacation menu that covers safari, ancient civilizations, Mediterranean North Africa, and some of the most dramatic coastal and desert landscapes on the planet. This guide picks seven African trips worth the long flight, each with distinct timing windows and realistic pricing per person for the week.

East African safari

Serengeti and Masai Mara deliver the Great Migration experience. July to October is the Mara River crossing peak; January to March is calving season in southern Serengeti. Serengeti week: $5,500 to $15,000 per person; Masai Mara week: $5,000 to $14,000. Cape Town pairs well with South African safaris for a longer trip at $7,000 to $18,000 per person all-in for safari-plus-city week.

Serengeti Safari
Serengeti & Ngorongoro, Tanzania
$5,500 to $15,000 per person
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Kenya Safari (Masai Mara)
Masai Mara, Kenya
$5,000 to $14,000 per person
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Cape Town + Wine Country
Cape Town + Stellenbosch, South Africa
$2,800 to $7,500 per person
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Egypt and the Nile

A Nile River cruise plus Cairo and the Pyramids delivers one of the single densest historical weeks in the world. Egypt's major sites (Pyramids, Karnak, Luxor, Valley of the Kings, Abu Simbel) fit in a one-week itinerary. Pricing runs $1,800 to $6,500 per person for a week including flights. October through April is the comfortable window; summer heat makes southern Egypt punishing.

Cairo + Pyramids
Cairo, Egypt
$1,200 to $3,800 per person
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Nile River Cruise
Luxor → Aswan, Egypt
$1,800 to $6,500 per person
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North Africa

Marrakech, Morocco runs $1,400 to $4,200 per person for a week in a riad with day trips to the Atlas Mountains, Essaouira coast, and the Sahara at Merzouga. A separate week-long Sahara-focused trip to Merzouga runs $1,600 to $4,200 per person. Both are at their best in October, November, March, and April; summer is too hot and winter nights are cold.

Marrakech
Marrakech, Morocco
$1,400 to $4,200 per person
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Sahara Desert (Merzouga)
Merzouga, Morocco
$1,600 to $4,200 per person
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African trips reward two to three week itineraries for travelers making the long flight investment. Combine safari with Cape Town; or combine Egypt with Jordan; or combine Marrakech with Spain across the strait. Single-destination weeks work but underuse the long flight.

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