Australian long service leave safari plans work best when you use the extra weeks to slow down rather than cram more in. Most Australians build 3 to 6 weeks around Kenya’s dry seasons, pairing the Masai Mara, Samburu and Amboseli with Tanzania, Zanzibar or a gorilla trek, and booking 9 to 12 months ahead.
Sense of Adventure is a TRA-licensed safari operator and DMC based at Mountain Mall on Thika Road, Nairobi (licence TRA1/47/C01/77087). Our Nairobi team plans private safaris across Kenya, Tanzania with Zanzibar, Uganda and Rwanda, in our own pop-up roof 4×4 Land Cruisers with English-speaking driver-guides. This guide is for Australians who have finally reached the leave they have been banking for years and want to turn it into one well-paced journey.
Long Service Leave Safari at a Glance
- How much leave: most states give about 8.67 weeks after 10 years; South Australia and the Northern Territory give 13 weeks; Victoria and the ACT reach an entitlement after 7 years.
- Ideal length: 3 to 6 weeks in East Africa, with rest days built in and some time at home either side.
- Best months: June to October for the dry season and the Great Migration; January to March for green, quieter parks.
- Booking window: 9 to 12 months ahead for July to October; 4 to 6 months for other months.
- Paperwork: a Kenya eTA from etakenya.go.ke plus the mandatory Kenyan inbound travel health insurance.
Long service leave approved? Tell us how many weeks you have and which months you can take, and we will sketch a first East Africa route around them.
Shape My Long Service LeaveWhat an Australian Long Service Leave Safari Looks Like
An Australian long service leave safari is a longer, slower version of a Kenya trip, built around a block of leave most people only get once or twice in a career. Instead of squeezing three parks into ten days, you spend two or three nights in each place, add a second country and still come home rested.
Why the leave changes the trip
Australians fly a long way to reach East Africa, with at least one change of aircraft and most of a day in transit each way. On a two-week holiday those travel days eat a large share of your time. On an Australian long service leave safari they become a small part of the whole, so you can recover properly on arrival and travel home without rushing back to work the next morning.
Who an Australian long service leave safari suits
This style of journey suits anyone who has reached ten years with one employer: teachers, nurses, public servants, tradespeople and office workers alike. It works for couples lining up both sets of leave, solo travellers, and families travelling with adult children. An Australian long service leave safari can also become a reunion with family or friends overseas on the way there or back.
For the wider picture of travelling from Australia, read our Kenya safari from Australia guide and browse our Kenya safari packages from Australia. This page focuses on one question: how to turn a long block of leave into the right Australian long service leave safari.
How Much Long Service Leave Do Australians Get?
Most Australian employees reach about 8.67 weeks of long service leave after 10 years of continuous service with one employer, but the exact figure depends on your state or territory law, your award or agreement and sometimes your industry. The table below gives the general state rules as a starting point for planning an Australian long service leave safari.
| State or territory | General entitlement | What it can mean for a safari |
|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | About 8.67 weeks after 10 years | Room for a 4 to 6 week East Africa journey plus rest at home |
| Victoria | Accrues from 7 years (about 6.07 weeks at 7 years) | A 3 to 4 week safari, or wait longer for a bigger trip |
| Queensland | About 8.67 weeks after 10 years | Two countries and a beach without rushing |
| Western Australia | About 8.67 weeks after 10 years | A long Kenya and Tanzania route |
| South Australia | 13 weeks after 10 years | Enough for East Africa plus a separate trip elsewhere |
| Tasmania | About 8.67 weeks after 10 years | A 5 to 6 week journey with time to settle back in |
| ACT | About 6.07 weeks after 7 years | A 3 to 4 week safari with Rwanda or Zanzibar |
| Northern Territory | 13 weeks after 10 years | A full East Africa circuit at an easy pace |
Public sector staff, construction workers and others may sit under separate or portable schemes with different rules. Before you plan your Australian long service leave safari, check your own entitlement with your employer or on the Fair Work Ombudsman long service leave page, which explains where entitlements come from. We plan around the weeks you confirm, never around a guess.
Half pay, annual leave and public holidays
Some employers and agreements allow long service leave to be taken at half pay over a longer period, and many people join it with annual leave and public holidays. These options can stretch eight weeks into a much longer break. The rules differ between workplaces, so confirm what applies to you in writing before you book flights.
How Long Should an Australian Long Service Leave Safari Be?
For most travellers, 3 to 6 weeks is the sweet spot for an Australian long service leave safari. That leaves time at home before and after, while giving you room for three or four wildlife regions, a second country and genuine rest days. Longer is possible, but most people find six weeks of travel is plenty.
Three weeks: Kenya in depth
Three weeks lets you see Kenya properly: the dry north of Samburu, the rhino sanctuaries of Laikipia, the Rift Valley lakes, the Masai Mara and Amboseli beneath Kilimanjaro, with a beach finish if you like.
Four to six weeks: two or three countries
This is where an Australian long service leave safari really comes into its own. You can follow the Great Migration from the Mara into Tanzania’s Serengeti, add the Ngorongoro Crater, trek to mountain gorillas in Rwanda or Uganda and finish with a week on Zanzibar or Diani Beach, all without a single rushed day.
Splitting the leave into two trips
Some Australians use part of their leave for an Australian long service leave safari and keep the rest for a different journey or for time at home. That approach works well if you want a three-week safari now and still have weeks in reserve for family later in the year.
| Trip length | What fits comfortably | Who it suits |
|---|---|---|
| 3 weeks | Kenya’s north, Rift Valley, Masai Mara and Amboseli, optional beach | First-time visitors and those keeping leave in reserve |
| 4 weeks | Kenya plus the Serengeti and Ngorongoro, or Kenya plus gorillas | Wildlife lovers who want two countries |
| 5 to 6 weeks | Kenya, Tanzania, a primate trek and a week on the coast | Couples and solo travellers using most of their leave |
| 7 weeks or more | A full East Africa circuit with slow stays and free days | Those with 13 weeks or extended leave |
Three weeks, five weeks or more?
Share the number of weeks you can spend away and the wildlife you care about most. We will suggest the trip length and route that use your leave well, with honest notes on what each extra week adds.
Match Weeks to My RouteBest Months for an Australian Long Service Leave Safari
The best months for an Australian long service leave safari are June to October, the long dry season, when grass is short and animals gather near water. Many Australians like the timing because it swaps a southern winter for warm, dry days. January to March is the second strong window, with green landscapes and fewer vehicles.
| Months | Kenya season | What to expect | Planning view |
|---|---|---|---|
| January to March | Short dry season | Green plains, warm days, newborn animals | Quieter and good value for long stays |
| April to May | Long rains | Lush scenery, afternoon storms, some camps closed | Best for flexible travellers who like solitude |
| June | Start of the dry season | Cool mornings, good game viewing | A sweet spot before peak demand |
| July to October | Dry season and migration | River crossings in the Mara, busy camps | Peak demand; book 9 to 12 months ahead |
| November | Short rains | Fresh grass, fewer vehicles | A calm start to a long trip |
| December | Festive period | Warm and green, high demand over the holidays | Book about a year ahead |
Timing the migration within a long trip
Because an Australian long service leave safari gives you several weeks, you can place your Mara days in the heart of the river-crossing season and spend the rest of the trip in quieter areas. For month-by-month herd movements, read our Great Migration 2027 guide.
Sample Routes Built Around Long Service Leave
Our longer published trips make good starting points for an Australian long service leave safari, and each one can be stretched, split or joined to another. Prices below are the from prices shown on each trip page, per adult sharing; your quote reflects your dates, accommodation level and group size.
| Trip | Length | Highlights | From (per adult sharing) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18 Day Kenya Wildlife Odyssey | 18 days | Eight wildlife regions, then Diani Beach | USD 5,900 |
| 14 Day Kenya Grand Slam Signature Safari | 14 days | Samburu to Tsavo by private Land Cruiser | USD 4,650 |
| Great Migration Safari Kenya and Tanzania | 12 days | Masai Mara, northern Serengeti, Ngorongoro | USD 4,600 |
| Gorillas and Savannah | 11 days | Rwanda, Uganda and Kenya | USD 5,500 |
| 14 Day Kenya Big Five and Beach Retreat | 14 days | Samburu, Ol Pejeta, Mara and Diani | USD 4,450 |
Joining two trips together
One long-leave pattern that works well is to join the Grand Slam safari to the Gorillas and Savannah trip, or to run the migration safari and then fly to the coast. We remove any overlap, add a rest day where the trips meet and quote your Australian long service leave safari as one private itinerary.
Adding Tanzania, Zanzibar, Rwanda and Uganda
An Australian long service leave safari is the ideal moment to see more than one country, because the long flights from Australia are already behind you. Short regional flights link Nairobi with Kilimanjaro, Zanzibar, Kigali and Entebbe, so a second or third country adds days rather than weeks.
Tanzania and Zanzibar
From the Masai Mara, the Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Crater are a natural next chapter, especially between July and October when the herds move across the border. Zanzibar then gives your Australian long service leave safari Stone Town’s lanes and a slow week on the Indian Ocean before the flight home.
Rwanda and Uganda
Mountain gorilla trekking in Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park or Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable Forest is one of the great wildlife encounters on earth. Permits are limited and the minimum trekking age is 15, so we secure permits early once the dates of your Australian long service leave safari are fixed.
Pacing an Australian Long Service Leave Safari: Rest Days and Light Aircraft
The secret to a good Australian long service leave safari is pace. We plan two or three nights in most places, a free afternoon every few days and a light-aircraft hop wherever a long drive would wear you down.
Rest days that still feel like safari
A rest day on an Australian long service leave safari can still hold a dawn game drive, followed by a long lunch, a swim or a nap while the animals rest too. Lodges with views over a waterhole are ideal for these slower days, because wildlife often comes to you.
Fly the long legs, drive the short ones
Our private Land Cruisers have pop-up roofs, reclining seats and charging ports, and your English-speaking driver-guide stays with you on road sections. Between distant regions, such as the Mara and the coast, a light-aircraft seat saves most of a day. Light aircraft accept soft bags only, with weight limits, so pack accordingly or leave extra luggage with us in Nairobi.
Budgeting Your Australian Long Service Leave Safari
Budget an Australian long service leave safari from the published trip prices, which are in US dollars per adult sharing, then add international flights, your own travel insurance, the Kenya eTA, the Kenyan inbound insurance, tips and personal spending. Long stays can lower the nightly cost when they include quieter months and fewer flights.
Ways to stretch the budget over more weeks
- Mix comfort levels: our quotes come in Midrange 3* and Standard Luxury 4* options, and you can choose a higher level only where it matters most.
- Use the shoulder months: June, November and January to March usually cost less than peak migration weeks.
- Stay longer in fewer places: fewer moves mean fewer transfers and flights.
- Plan the beach as the finale: a coastal week often costs less per night than safari camps.
Because prices are in US dollars, check the exchange rate when you budget and again before paying deposits. Our guide to Kenya mandatory travel insurance explains the Kenyan policy that sits alongside your own Australian cover.
When to Book an Australian Long Service Leave Safari
Book an Australian long service leave safari 9 to 12 months ahead if any part falls between July and October or over Christmas, and 4 to 6 months ahead for other months. Long trips need many separate nights in the right camps, so an early start keeps the whole chain intact.
The booking order that protects your leave
- Confirm your leave dates with your employer in writing.
- Ask us for a written quote, usually within 24 hours.
- Secure camps, gorilla permits and your private vehicle with a deposit.
- Book international flights and your own travel insurance straight away.
- Apply for the Kenya eTA and the Kenyan inbound insurance a few weeks before departure.
Entry paperwork
Every visitor needs an Electronic Travel Authorisation from the official Kenya eTA portal, together with the mandatory Kenyan inbound travel health insurance bought through the same process. Tanzania, Rwanda and Uganda have their own entry steps, which we list in your itinerary. Before you book, we talk you through your route and current travel conditions.
Leave approved for next year?
Send us your start and finish dates and who is travelling. We reply with a written quote within 24 hours and tell you plainly which camps and permits are still open for those weeks.
Hold My Leave DatesHow Our Nairobi Team Looks After a Long Trip
A single Nairobi team runs your Australian long service leave safari from first landing to final departure, so there is one plan, one point of contact and no hand-over between operators while you are in East Africa.
- Airport welcome: meet and greet at Jomo Kenyatta International or Wilson Airport, with every transfer arranged.
- Your own vehicle: a private pop-up roof 4×4 Land Cruiser and an English-speaking driver-guide on road sections.
- Bookings handled: lodges and camps, light-aircraft seats, park entry and regional extensions on one itinerary.
- Evacuation cover: complimentary AMREF Flying Doctors emergency evacuation cover for every guest.
- Flexibility: because the safari is private, we can adjust plans on the ground when you want an extra night somewhere special.
For official background on parks and regions, Magical Kenya and the Kenya Wildlife Service are reliable starting points.
Expert Tips From Our Nairobi Team
These are the points our planners raise most often when shaping an Australian long service leave safari.
Expert tip 1: keep a buffer week at home
Plan to land back in Australia several days before you return to work. Long flights home are tiring, and a quiet week lets the trip settle rather than your Australian long service leave safari ending in a rush.
Expert tip 2: put the beach last
A week on Diani, Watamu or Zanzibar at the end of an Australian long service leave safari gives you time to sort photos, rest and absorb everything you have seen. It also acts as a buffer if an international flight home changes.
Expert tip 3: decide the anchor first
Most long trips have one fixed point, such as the Mara river crossings or a gorilla permit date. Fix that first, then build the rest of your Australian long service leave safari around it so every other leg fits neatly.
Australian Long Service Leave Safari FAQs
How much long service leave do I need for a safari?
Three weeks of leave is enough for a thorough Kenya safari, and four to six weeks lets you add Tanzania, Zanzibar or a gorilla trek in Rwanda or Uganda. Many Australians with about 8.67 weeks of leave use part of it for East Africa and keep some time at home.
What is the best month for a long service leave safari?
June to October is the classic choice, with dry weather, short grass and the Great Migration in the Masai Mara from about July. January to March is the best alternative, with green landscapes, newborn animals and quieter camps, and it suits travellers who prefer fewer vehicles.
Can I take long service leave at half pay for a longer trip?
Some employers and agreements allow long service leave at half pay over a longer period, but the rules differ across Australia. Check your entitlement with your employer or the Fair Work Ombudsman before booking, and we will plan your safari around the dates you confirm.
How far ahead should I book a long safari from Australia?
Book 9 to 12 months ahead for any travel between July and October or over Christmas, because the best camps have only a few tents. For January to March, June or November, four to six months is usually enough, although gorilla permits are best secured as early as possible.
Is there a direct flight from Australia to Kenya?
No. Every route from Australia to Nairobi includes at least one change of aircraft, usually through a Gulf hub or Johannesburg depending on your city and season. Check current schedules with the airline, and we will match your first safari day to your arrival time.
Can a long service leave safari include gorilla trekking?
Yes. Rwanda and Uganda are short flights from Nairobi, and a gorilla trek adds three to five days to a longer trip. Permits are limited and the minimum trekking age is 15, so we secure them early once your leave dates are confirmed in writing.
Do Australians need a visa for Kenya?
Australians apply online for a Kenya Electronic Travel Authorisation at etakenya.go.ke and buy the mandatory Kenyan inbound travel health insurance through the same process. Tanzania, Rwanda and Uganda have their own entry steps, which we set out clearly in your itinerary before you travel.
Escape. Explore. Discover.
You earned the leave. Let us make the weeks count.
Tell us how many weeks you have, who is coming and the moments you most want to see. Our Nairobi team will design a private East Africa journey around your leave and reply with a written quote within 24 hours.
Begin My Long-Leave Journey Ring +254 799 160 081Or email reservations@senseofadventure.co.ke or fill in our Plan My Safari form.
