Kenya Nairobi-Amboseli-Samburu Mount Kenya-Lake Nakuru- Lake Naivasha-Masai Mara 13 Days | African Charm & Close to Nature
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Kenya Nairobi-amboseli-Samburu mount Kenya-Lake Nakuru- Lake Naivasha-masai mara 13 Days | African Charm & Close to Nature DAY 1 Destination: Arrival at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport; Transfer to Nairobi Accommodations: Ololo Safari Lodge Activities: Optional Game Drive Arrival at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. After clearing customs, you will be met by your expert naturalist guide and transferred to the lovely Ololo Safari Lodge, an elegant, thatched-roof African manor situated right on the edge of the African wilderness, overlooking Nairobi National Park. Just outside of Nairobi’s central business district is Nairobi National Park, Kenya’s first national park established in 1946. This park is iconic for its wide open grass plains and scattered acacia bush with the city of Nairobi’s skyscrapers in the backdrop. Despite its small size and proximity to human civilization, this park plays host to a wide variety of wildlife including lions, leopards, cheetahs, hyenas, buffaloes, giraffes and diverse birdlife with over 400 species recorded. As well, it is home to one of Kenya’s most successful rhino sanctuaries, and you are likely to see the endangered black rhino here. After settling in, you will meet with your guide to briefly go over your safari itinerary. Enjoy a lovely lunch, featuring Ololo’s garden grown produce and eggs. You then have the option of going on a late afternoon game drive into Nairobi National Park or staying at the lodge, perhaps taking a dip in the pool, walking around the beautiful gardens, reading a book by the fire, or enjoying a drink on the terrace overlooking the park. Enjoy a fresh, seasonal dinner at the lodge, and retire to your lovely room for a good night’s rest. DAY 2 Destination: Nairobi National Park Accommodations: Ololo Safari Lodge Activities: Game Drive; Elephant Nursery Visit; Giraffe Center Visit; Bomas of Kenya Visit After an early breakfast at the lodge, depart on a full day game drive with stops at a few attractions in and around the park. In late morning, arrive at the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust which houses the orphanage where you can see rescued milk-dependent baby elephants at their first stage of rehabilitation before being released into the wild. Continue from here to the Giraffe Centre, a sanctuary and breeding site for the endangered Rothschild giraffe, where you can meet and feed the resident giraffes. Return to the park for some game viewing with a stop for a 1 | [email protected] • (530) 994-6533 • 2110 K STREET SACRAMENTO CA 95816 USA picnic lunch. Continue on to Bomas of Kenya for a performance featuring dances from several of the tribes and ethnic groups on Kenya. Head back to a late afternoon game drive in the park. Return to the lodge for another delicious farm-to-table dinner. DAY 3 Destination: Amboseli National Park Accommodations: Tawi Lodge Activities: Game Drive After breakfast, depart for Amboseli National Park, situated due south of Nairobi. Most of the park consists of a dry, ancient lake bed and fragile grassland with patches of acacia woodland, while in the southern area there are a number of small, rocky, volcanic hills. Around the swamps, Ol Okenya, Ol Tukai, and Enkongo Narok, the vegetation is lush with yellow barked acacias and phoenix palms. The park also has perhaps the best view of Mount Kilimanjaro. Wildlife here includes the zebra, wildebeest, giraffe, impala, caracal and serval cat, lion, leopard, cheetah, buffalo among others. There are also over 400 species of birds, including the bee-eater, kingfisher, African fish eagle, martial eagle and pygmy falcon. Arrive to Tawi Lodge in time to check into your luxury cottage and for lunch in the restaurant with a fabulous view of Kilimanjaro. Set off for a late afternoon game drive in Amboseli, and return in early evening to the lodge. Tawi is a charming eco-lodge with magnificent grounds, including a water hole that attracts large fauna from the surrounding area. Enjoy a sundowner around the campfire at the tree bar followed by a delicious Swahili-inspired dinner made with produce grown in their own organic gardens. Retire to your cottage for a sound sleep to the sound of nature around you. DAY 4 Destination: Ol Donyo Sabuk National Park Accommodations: Ol Donyo Sapuk Resort Activities: Game Drive; Walking Safari Depart in the morning for Ol Donyo Sabuk, a small park about 20 km2 in area, about 45 kilometers from Nairobi, Ol Donyo Sabuk (sometimes spelled “Sapuk”) is a Maasai phrase that means "Mountain of Buffalo." Indeed, about 250 buffalos can be found on the slopes of this park. The Kikuyu people call the mountain Kea-Njahe, or the "Mountain of the Big Rain", and consider it as one of the homes of the Supreme Being Ngai. In addition to game viewing, highlights of this park include the unique montane landscape, the sublime “butterfly kingdom,” a visit to the unusual burial site of Sir William Northrup McMillan, Some unique geological formations, and abundant bird. Around noon, check in to Ol Donyo Sapuk Resort, a warm and friendly lodge nestled between Kilima Mbogo Mountain and the Famous Fourteen Falls. Enjoy a late lunch of nyama choma while looking out onto the mountains. After lunch, head out to Ol Donyo Sabuk National Park for a game drive and the opportunity to exit your vehicle and explore the park on foot. Return for dinner before retiring to your suite for the night. 2 | [email protected] • (530) 994-6533 • 2110 K STREET SACRAMENTO CA 95816 USA DAY 5 Destination: Mount Kenya National Park; Samburu National Reserve Accommodations: Samburu Simba Lodge Activities: Game Drive; (Optional) Massage After breakfast, depart for Samburu National Reserve with game drives and a picnic lunch in Mount Kenya National Park along the way. Mount Kenya National Park boasts a pristine wilderness with lakes, tarns, glaciers, dense forest, mineral springs, and a selection of rare and endangered species of animals—high altitude adapted plains game and unique montane and alpine vegetation—all this with Africa’s second tallest mountain in the backdrop. Enjoy a picnic lunch in the park and continue on to Samburu with game viewing along the way. In the early evening, check in to Samburu Simba lodge, a charming lodge with authentic African touches in the heart of Buffalo Springs National Reserve on the opposite side of Ewaso Ngiro River from Samburu National Reserve. Treat yourself to a massage at the spa, take a dip in the pool, or enjoy a drink in the open-air bar before a delicious dinner in the lodge restaurant, where you are likely to catch a glimpse of Elephants grazing in the bush. Sleep soundly in your comfortable room to the distant sound of roaming and frolicking animals. DAY 6 Destination: Samburu National Reserve Accommodations: Samburu Simba Lodge Activities: Game Drive Depart after breakfast for a full day game drive with picnic lunch in Samburu National Reserve. This park is bordered by the Ewaso Ng'iro River in the southeastern corner of Samburu District in the Rift Valley. The reserve is remarkable for its plethora of rare northern specialist species such as the Somali Ostrich, Reticulated Giraffe, Grevy Zebra, Gerenuk, and the Beisa Oryx, as well as its abundance of elephants. Large predators such as the big cats are likely to be spotted here, as are wild dogs. Birdlife, a combination of the arid northern bush country species and a number of riverine forest species, is copious with over 450 species recorded. The threatened lesser kestrel and the Taita falcon both call this reserve their home. Other vulnerable species, namely the African darter, great egret, white-headed vulture, martial eagle and the yellow-billed ox-pecker live here as well. Additionally, the critically endangered pancake tortoise (Malacochersus tornieri) is found in the reserve. Return for sundowners followed by a bush dinner at the lodge. DAY 7 Destination: Mount Kenya Accommodations: Serena Mountain Lodge Activities: Game Drive; Forest Nature Walk 3 | [email protected] • (530) 994-6533 • 2110 K STREET SACRAMENTO CA 95816 USA After an early breakfast, depart on a half-day game drive, stopping through several small parks and reserves and concluding with a return to Mount Kenya National Park. Check in to the Serena Mountain Lodge set within the green, forested slopes which gaze to a water hole bustling with elephant and buffalo herds. Enjoy a late lunch on the open air deck. Depart for a two-hour walk through the Mount Kenya forest where your guide will take you through the story of Kenya’s independence. Along the way, spot a variety of birds and some unique animals such as the black and white colobus monkey, Sykes monkey, olive baboon, giant forest hog, bush pig, genet cat, white-tailed mongoose and mole-rat. One can also spot a variety of members from the Antelope family such as Mt. Kenya Bongo, Bush bucks, Defassa waterbucks, Red forest duikers and Suni. A surprise “Dawa” treat is served to keep you warm. Return to the lodge for a rooftop sundowner, overlooking the game-occupied waterhole, followed by a private dinner on the private balcony your room. Enjoy a sound sleep to the sound of forest fauna. DAY 8 Destination: Lake Nakuru; Lake Naivasha Accommodations: Lake Naivasha Simba Lodge Activities: Game Drive After breakfast, enjoy a morning drive via Thompson’s Falls down the floor of the Great Rift Valley to Lake Nakuru National Park, a protected game sanctuary for endangered species such as the black rhino, white rhino, Rothschild giraffe, and other common game, such as the big cats. Famously Lake Nakuru attracts vast numbers of fabulously colored pink flamingos to its shallow alkaline waters.