13-day East African Explorer

An African safari touches something deep within all of us; for it is an experience that will never be forgotten. The following safari combines intriguing cultures, beautiful landscapes and an excellent opportunity for spotting the Big 5. The driver-guides are all very experienced and will certainly make this safari feel special.

Highlights: Nairobi, Mount Kenya, Rift Valley, Masai Mara, Lake Victoria, Serengeti National Park, Ngorogoro, Tsavo, Amboseli National Park
Group Size: Maximum 10 people
Type of Safari: Lodge
Vehicle: 4WD

Price: from USD$4035 per person sharing*

Includes: Meet and greet services, All transport and game drives in Kenya will be in a modern safari cruiser (with seven window seats) with an English speaking driver-guide on shared basis All transport and game drives in Tanzania will be in a modern 4x4 Landrover/Landcruiser with an English speaking driver-guide on shared basis Meals and accommodation as specified All park fees and government taxes ½ litre bottle mineral water per person sharing* per day on game drives (excludes air safaris)

Excludes: Visas and international flights Airport taxes (clients pay direct) Driver-guide gratuities, drinks, dining rooms tips and porterage Personal travel, baggage and medical insurance Telephone bill, laundry and any items of a personal nature.

Day 1 - Nairobi
On arrival at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (flight booked as per own arrangement) you will transfer to the Safari Park Hotel, outside Nairobi, where you will spend 1 night on a bed and breakfast basis. Depending on the time your flight arrives the remainder of the day will be enjoyed at leisure, exploring Nairobi at your own pace.

Day 2 - Masai Mara
After breakfast, you will travel towards Kenya's fertile highlands and head down the Rift Escarpment on a road built by Italian prisoners of war during World War II. Look for the charming chapel they built at the foot of the escarpment. You will pass the impressive Longonot earth satellite station as you head across the Valley to Narok, and then travel across acres of wheat and barley, before you reach the Masai Mara National Game Reserve in time for lunch. Following lunch and a siesta, you will enjoy an afternoon game drive through the Masai Mara Game Reserve. Return for dinner at the lodge and relax in comfort. Spend 2 nights at the lodge on a full board basis.

Day 3 - Masai Mara
Today you will embark on an early morning game drive in the Masai Mara and return to your lodge. After lunch, you will enjoy another game drive. At certain times of the year the park is the scene of the Wildebeest Migration - and timing your safari accordingly might mean that you are witness to this great wildlife spectacle.

Days 4 - Lake Nakuru National Park
Leaving the Masai Mara after breakfast, you'll travel across the ‘breadbasket' of Kenya, where acres of wheat and barley litter the landscape as you head north to Narok, the district headquarters of this part of Maasailand. Now travel across the vast plains on the floor of the Rift Valley, keeping an eye out for herds of giraffe and gazelle as you head up the Mau Escarpment, before arriving at Lake Nakuru lodge for lunch. The waters here are often coloured shimmering flamingo pink, from thousands of the beautiful birds lining its shores. After lunch you will take an afternoon game drive in Nakuru National park before continuing to the lodge where you will spend 1 night on a full board basis.

Day 5 - Amboseli National Park
After an early breakfast you will depart with a picnic lunch, leaving the Rift Valley behind, you continue towards Nairobi and then head south towards Amboseli. You will enjoy an afternoon game drive in the park en route to the lodge where you will spend 02 nights on a full board basis.

Day 6 - Amboseli National Park
Today you will embark on morning and afternoon game drives in the Amboseli National Park and return to your lodge as the sun sets.

Day 7 - Lake Manyara
After breakfast, you continue the journey to the Tanzania border post and then on to Arusha for lunch. After lunch, drive across the Masai Steppe to the Great Rift Valley. Here, your hotel is perched high on the rim overlooking the park below. Spend 1 night at the lodge on a full board basis.

Day 8 - Serengeti National Park
This morning, after breakfast, you will enjoy a game drive in the Lake Manyara National Park that returns to the lodge for lunch. Leaving Lake Manyara behind, the journey continues North West across the stunning hilly countryside of the highlands which is filled with wheat and coffee plantations, and then into the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. From here lie the vast plains of the Serengeti, where you'll hopefully start spotting game well before you get into the park. Spend 2 nights at the lodge on a full board basis.

Day 9 - Serengeti National Park
You will embark on morning and afternoon game viewing drives in the Serengeti National Park, exploring this famous park and all that it has to offer.

Day 10 - Ngorongoro Conservation Area
After breakfast you will depart towards the Ngorongoro conservation area viewing game across the vast Serengeti plains, stopping off at Olduvai Gorge en route. The Gorge acquired its name from the Sansevieria bush that grows profusely in the area, named Olduvai by the Maasai.

The Gorge is about 50km long and in some places around 90m deep and is found between the Crater and the Serengeti. It was first discovered by a German entomologist named Professor Kattwinkel, who instigated an expedition just before the First World War. Later, the exploration was continued by Dr Louis Leakey and his wife, who in 1959 found humanoid remains of Zinjanthropus, later renamed Australapithicus Boisei, an early form of man. You will have time to walk through the simple small museum at the gorge, where you can view copy displays of some of the finds as well as pictures of what life was like for the gorge's earliest inhabitants.

After a picnic lunch you will continue to your lodge, set high on the rim of Ngorongoro Crater. Spend 2 nights at the lodge on a full board basis.

Day 11 - Ngorongoro Conservation Area
A highlight awaits you this morning as you depart to explore what is commonly referred to as the World's largest wildlife zoo. After breakfast, you'll descend through the early morning mists and 2,000 feet into the crater. Ngorongoro Crater is the World's largest intact volcanic caldera and is also one of the World's seven natural wonders. Due to its size and diversity, the crater floor is comprised of several distinct areas, ranging from forest, swamps, lakes and springs, to open grassland and some sandy dunes. It's an awesome wildlife experience. You will return to the lodge for lunch followed by an afternoon excursion of a Masaai Village and return back to the lodge in the late afternoon.

Day 12 - Tarangire National Park
This morning you will depart the Ngorongoro Crater after breakfast and head south east en route to Lake Manyara, Mto wa Mbu village and Tarangire beyond. Through the highlands and the Karatu district, you'll view the scenic wheat plains and coffee plantations here before journeying down the spectacular escarpment where you turn south on to the main Arusha - Dodoma road and into the park. From here you'll enjoy a game drive en route to your lodge. After lunch and perhaps a swim, the remainder of the afternoon will be spent on a game drive. Spend 01 night at the lodge on a full board basis.

Day 13 - Depart
Today you will depart Tarangire after breakfast and drive back to Arusha arriving in time for lunch. After lunch you continue the journey by road to Nairobi and enjoy dinner in the city centre before you are dropped off at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport or a City Hotel where you will continue as per your own arrangements