I would suggest Jan that you hire a private guide & vehicle. We have all seen the TV documentaries where elephants walk by the vehicle within touching distance, the presenter supposedly alone. What we don't see is the background crew & advisers & possibly the hunter with a rifle.
We have all had elephants that close to the vehicle but with an experienced guide, reading all the signs & body language, accompanying us.

It is a hell of a lot different when it is down to you & you alone. Better safe than sorry!

The driving can become a bore with track conditions & having all the right equipment is no good if you do not know how to use it.
You'd like to take a photo from the roof hatch but dare you leave the drivers seat?

With a private guide you are still in command to do as you want, go where you will, stop as long as you want but without the worry.

Before you self drive. Take a local off road driving course to see how you feel if you walk away exhilarated great! If not then you have found out in safety & not in the wilds of Africa.
River crossings, you need to check the river bed for ruts & mud (Looking for crocodiles) There is an optimum speed to keep your bow wave in the right place.
In sand & mud do not fight the wheel let the vehicle go where it wants. All this will be taught at a good 4x4 driving center tell them the conditions you expect & need to experience before you go.
A lesson on corrugated roads is also a good idea.

Again, great advice.

Thanks for sharing your knowledge.

Great advice, kipper.

Big book shops usually have detailed maps of parks but I agree they re a bit hard to find. With GPS you can not get lost anymore but please remember that GPS will not show you which areas should be avoided for security reasons. Remote borders are often used for illegal transfers. It always helps to speak to locals before leaving for such areas.

It is always a good advice to share your itinerary with someone and ask them to search for you if you do not report as arranged. Then again, please consider that you might not have reception for your mobile at the planned destination, so do not trigger off a search just because you said you will send an SMS on arrival and when you get there, there is no reception.

A good jeep will get you through nearly any terrain but it makes sense to have some experience. Do not test your (or the cars) abilities if there is no help in sight. To save fuel (for the sake of the environment and your budget) you might want to switch off 4-wheel drive on normal roads even if not asphalted. The reduction of fuel consumption is significant.

Your jeep might have a differential lock on the wheel. Keeping the differential lock on all the time produces enormous noise and wears off tires extremely. Hence it is normally kept off. Keep this in mind when approaching wildlife. I once got myself stuck in a little puddle just because I wanted to go one meter forward for a great photo of a lion. The only way to get out of the puddle was to get out of the car to activate the differential lock. The lion watched me very skeptically as I was fiddling about with the wheel. Not a situation I would like to go through again.

I fully agree with Kipper that you are best off with a driver that has local knowledge. Most drivers are experienced and know where to look for wildlife. Whilst the driver will take you wherever you wish, you can keep your head out of the roof and enjoy the atmosphere rather than having to worry about poor road conditions. He can also help with negotiations with locals if you do not speak the local language but keep in mind that he might add his own profit into the bargain.

The only advantage I see in rooftop tents is a better view in the morning and maybe less insects trying to share your bed.

We tend to read signs like "keep your rubbish in the car" as a pure advice not to litter the environment. Of course this applies as well but first time visitors will be surprised how many insects and small animals are keen to tear anything apart in order to get to the content. A plastic bag in the tent that smells of food will definitely attract animals and on your return you might end up with your tent torn to pieces. Even in New Zealand I once woke up in the night as an opossum tried to rip a hole in my tent to get to my rubbish. Many animals are used to humans and will not feel threatened by a simple "ksst, kssst". I had to get out of the tent and approach the opossum to convince it to let go of my tent. Replace the opossum with a hyena and you have a problem

If you are looking for cheap accommodation, you might also speak to game wardens as you enter the parks. In many parks the Wildlife Service has vacant cottages for wardens or even rooms for visitors that can be rented. I always enjoy these places because you get a chance to spend the whole evening to chat with the wardens and learn a lot from them.

Carsten:

I note on the KWS website that they avertise the bandas that they have available for people to stay in; go to
http://www.kws.org/new-accommodation-tariffs.html.

The problem I see with them is that they are self-serve meaning you have to take all your own food and drink with you and then prepare it. Also, their rates run from $50.00 per night up to $150.OO per night - not all that much less than staying at a nice lodge/camp where all meals, game drives, etc are included. My guess is that it is you guys in the younger set who would take advantage of these places. As a senior, I like to have my meals prepared and be a little pampered :T

It is also good to know that there are people around the regular camps/lodges to catch a snake should one turn up!

Well noticed, Jan,

the accommodations offered by KWS are not exactly cheap and offer relatively little. I did not mention them in my post because I wanted to keep it more general and not focus so much on Kenya.

Of course the accommodations are not exactly ideal for seniors. I would only suggest them to self driving, youngsters who wish something different.