Itinerary

• Day 1

  Nairobi - Masai Mara

  Early morning departure from Nairobi to try to avoid the numerous traffic jams that slow down travel to the city gates. After the northern expressway, we head due west towards Narok. Villages and small towns follow one another, and the roadside scenes gradually reveal some of the habits of Kenyan life. After Narok, you're on Masai land, with fewer villages as you approach the Masai Mara reserve. Settle in at your camp outside the park for a free day on the banks of the Talek River.

• Day 2

  Masai Mara

  Covering some 1,510 km² along the border with Tanzania, the Masai Mara is by far the country's best-known and most visited game reserve. A World Heritage Site, the Masai Mara is the Kenyan extension of Tanzania's Serengeti National Park. The reserve's name is derived from the river that flows through it, Mara, and the people who live there, the Masai. It is home to a rich fauna, with 2.5 million herbivorous mammals that delight the reserve's predators. Twice a year, the animals migrate from one reserve to another in search of the best grazing. Wildebeests and zebras gather in their millions during this transhumance. The group can be dozens of kilometers long! The most moving moment of this spectacle comes in July. First big day on safari. You usually set off for the day's safari with a “lunch box”. Depending on the season and the wildlife, your guide will choose a route, sometimes through the plains, sometimes along small rivers, or towards the Mara or Talek rivers when wildebeest are present.

• Day 3

  Masai Mara - Lake Nakuru

  Morning departure north towards Nakuru National Park. You leave the Masai Mara region and head back towards the town of Narok. A few kilometers after passing through the large town of Narok, where numerous street vendors have already set up their stalls on the roadside, you turn off north towards Nakuru. The pleasant road climbs steadily in altitude, and as it goes on, you're treated to beautiful mountain scenery, the folds of the Rift Valley. Numerous cultivated plots dot the road before descending to Lake Nakuru. Arrive at the park for lunch, check into the lodge and depart for your safari. Lake Nakuru is frequented by flamingos and pelicans. The park is home to a wealth of wildlife, including Rothschild's giraffe, white rhinoceros (easy to spot) and reed antelope. Buffalo, waterbuck and lion complete this non-exhaustive list.

• Day 4

  Lake Nakuru - Naivasha

  You start the day with a morning safari in Nakuru Park, where you'll have another chance to see the rhinos near the lake or the colony of flamingos in the shallow waters. In the late morning, departure for Lake Naivasha. Lake Naivasha is one of the few freshwater lakes in the Great Rift Valley. Located at the foot of the Longonot volcano, some 100 km from Nairobi, it is home to an incredibly diverse flora and fauna. After lunch, explore Crescent Island on foot and take a boat trip on the lake. Return to the lodge in the late afternoon.

• Day 5

  Naivasha - Amboseli

  Morning departure for a long transfer day between the rift valley region and the south of the country. You join the expressway in the town of Nakuru to reach Nairobi fairly quickly, which you bypass via the southern expressway. From there, it's on to the south of the country and the Amboseli reserve. The road is quite long and sometimes slowed down by the numerous trucks, but there's no other way to reach the south. Arrive in Amboseli mid-afternoon, with a view of Kilimanjaro if the weather is clear. Check-in at your lodge a few kilometers from the park.

• Day 6

  Amboseli

  On the border with Tanzania, Amboseli National Park is one of Kenya's oldest national parks, but also one of its smallest. Nevertheless, it remains one of the most beautiful in the country, north of Kilimanjaro, where the latter can be seen (sometimes) at sunrise and sunset. One of Kenya's best-known postcards! The dry, swampy savannah of Amboseli is home to many species, including the elephant, Kenya's largest population. You can observe them in the swamps on dry days, basking in the refreshing water. This poach-free park offers a unique experience to travellers, who can easily get up close to these pachyderms with their spectacular tusks. The park takes its name from Lake Amboseli, an immense dry basin with cracked ground. The clouds of dust that rise from the lake contrast with the lush green vegetation of wetlands such as the Enkongo Narok Swamp. These swamps are also home to buffalo and hippopotamus, while giraffe, zebra and gazelle gather in the shade of the acacia trees. A day devoted to wildlife observation and exploring the park.

• Day 7

  Amboseli - Namanga (Tanzanian border) - Arusha

  Early departure from Amboseli for a last safari in the morning light. You gradually leave the park to reach the border at Namanga around 1 pm. Crossing the border, you are greeted by your Tanzanian team on the other side. Lunch en route and on to the town of Arusha for the night.

• Day 8

  Arusha - Tarangire National Park - Karatu

  Departure for the Great Parks region and drive to Tarangire Park. Numerous roadside villages accompany the first kilometers of your journey in Tanzania. Further on, tea and coffee plantations and lush vegetation give way to savannah dotted with acacias and baobabs as you enter the park. A day's safari in Tarangire National Park, considered one of the country's finest wildlife sanctuaries. Covering an area of, 2850 km2, it is renowned for its exceptional concentrations of animals. The park is home to species that are harder to locate and often impossible to find in other parks in northern Tanzania, such as the Gerenuk, lesser kudu, Oryx beisa, eland and the most sought-after antelope, greater kudu. In the hills dotted with umbrella acacias and baobabs, you'll come close to elephants, wildebeest and buffalo, among others, as they try to reach the river. The photo safari continues near swamps and waterholes to observe the great African fauna and the many migratory birds that have come to drink. At the end of the day, you leave the park for the town of karatu for the night.

• Day 9

  Karatu - Serengeti national Park

  This morning, we head west into the vast Serengeti Park. A radical change of vegetation, you leave the exuberant flora and certainly the morning mist to reach the great plains of the Serengeti, in the Seronera area.
  Along the way, a number of Masai villages dot the trail, and it's not uncommon to come across a shepherd on the side of the road herding their cattle. As the Serengeti Park is continuous with the Ngorogonro Conservation Area, you reach the park plains before noon. Depending on animal sightings, it will take another 2/3 hours to reach your camp.

• Day 10

  Serengeti National Park

  The Serengeti National Park is a World Heritage Site. With its 25,000 km², including the Ngorongoro and Masai Mara, it is one of the largest preserved ecosystems on the planet. It is also the scene of the world's largest animal migration. In Masai, Siringit means “endless plain”. The vast grassy plains of the south-east from which it takes its name cover a third of the park's surface. Fertilized by volcanic ash some 3 million years ago, they are covered with short grass rich in the mineral salts needed by wildebeest and zebra for calving. The other two thirds provide different habitats for an extremely rich and varied fauna: wooded savannah in the center, wooded hills in the north and gallery forests in the western corridor. The day is spent at the pace of the safari and according to the movements of the wildlife. You usually leave just at sunrise, returning to camp around 11 a.m. for lunch and a short rest, before setting off again around 3 p.m. until sunset. (Optional hot-air balloon flight available)

• Day 11

  Serengeti - Ngorongoro - Karatu

  Early departure for a full-day safari inside the Ngorongoro Crater. From the top of the road leading down into the crater, you can enjoy a panoramic view of the perfectly round caldera (formed by the explosion of the original volcano), home to just over 25,000 mammals in an area of 260km². Here you can see almost all of Tanzania's wildlife, with a good chance of spotting rhinoceros or the timider serval. The Ngorongoro Crater is a World Heritage Site. It is a caldera, a gigantic ancient crater that collapsed 2.5 million years ago, spilling its entire interior around it. This is what formed the top layer of the Serengeti. The Ngorongoro Crater is Africa's most densely populated animal area. In the late afternoon, you return to your lodge.

• Day 12

  Karatu - Kilimandjaro Airport

  A leisurely start to the morning as you pack your bags. After breakfast, depending on your return flight schedule, you'll discover the small town of Mtowembu and its market. Transfer back to Kilimanjaro Airport. On the way, stop for a picnic lunch and, if schedules permit, visit Arusha's big market before returning to the airport in the late afternoon.
  After this superb safari, you can also choose to relax on Zanzibar's beaches. Don't hesitate to contact us to discuss your options.