Evening temperatures
I will be on the KT Tauck trip this July (their winter) and although very excited and taking all proper precautions, I have not read how travelers manage to cope with 40-50F ambient room temperatures at night. I understand there are often hot water bottles given to guests however, I have a condition called Raynald's Syndrome (fingers and toes lose circulation, go white/blue/numb when temperatures drop usually below 60F)... I am the person you might see wearing gloves while doing grocery shopping in the middle of the summer! If anyone has any tips I would love to read about them...
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I have been to this area twice in July, I am familiar with Raynauds my mother had it and so does my daughter in law, you should be fine wearing warm socks and maybe gloves at night in bed. If you need the addition of a hot water bottle, be sure to ask in case they are not provided, they definitely are in some resorts. And of course, ask for extra blankets. It is not as cold this area of the world as say the South Africa tour in their winter. Me, I sleep stark naked wherever I go, which was pretty risky in one of our tented camps since there were no 'curtains' at all, never mind the shadows you can see when there is a light on in the tent, all adds to the fun!
The K&T trip stays very close to the equator and much of it is at moderately high altitude- Nairobi is over a mile high at 5,500 ft.! The altitudes of the Serengeti and Masai Mara range from 3,000 to over 6,000 ft. However, the clear skies and thinner atmosphere also result in the suns rays being much stronger than areas at lower altitude.
So what does this all mean? Be prepared for a wide range of temps- cool mornings, warm to hot during midday, and possibly downright chilly again after the sun goes down- great for sleeping when you don't have A/C!
So, as to average temperature, unless your source says average "daytime" temperature, what they are most likely listing is a 24 hour temperature average which is not too useful if you don't have any nighttime activities planned. I may be wrong, but doubt very seriously that you will see temps in the 40's on tour unless you take time to climb to top of Mount Kilimanjaro or Mt. Meru.
I would check NOAA, Weather dot com, or Weatherunderground, etc to get a more accurate (hour-by-hour) picture of daytime temps in East Africa. Below are selected meteorological data from a chart I made last year to help me select a tour date (I am on the June 13, 2015 departure). Again, remember, these are 24 hour average high and low temperatures. July 8, 2014 Nairobi temps ranged from a 24 hour low of 59°F at 8:00AM to a high of 80°F at 4:00 PM.
June, July
City (avg high/low °F)
Nairobi 63/73 , 63/72
Masai Mara 63/77, 63/78
Ngorongoro 60/72, 59/72
Kilimanjaro 60/81, 56/82
Manyara 60/82, 59/80
p.s. Selecting the best time to travel is not easy you must consider and balance- times you can go with weather (air & water temps, storms/hurricanes, rain, river flooding, snow, etc.), tourist volume, timing of major events (great migration, holidays, etc.), etc., etc. I look at all that stuff, but like my wife says, I'm OCD : )
As for water bottles, they do an amazing job keeping the bed warm throughout the night. I am also sure that if you requested more than 1, the hotels would happily provide them. When you get into bed, they are truly boiling hot and you need to be careful not to keep them against your skin!
We did K & T in July last year, and my wife gets quite cold quite easily, but she has me to keep her warm ... and a hot water bottle in at least one place. The Four Seasons and the Mt. Kenya Safari Club had fire places. At the Safari Club we had them reset the fire before bed. We were never uncomfortable.