Kenya’s Hidden Wonders

06:00 hrs.  Your driver/guide will pick you up from your Nairobi hotel or Nairobi airport. We’ll take the Mombasa/Nairobi Highway in our private Land Cruiser Jeep for Tsavo East.

Along the way, we’ll make stops to stretch and enjoy the scenery.

Arriving at Tsavo East you’ll know you’ve come to a large and legendary park, home to tales of the Man-Eating lions. Notice the oxide-red soil – the red dusted elephants like to roll in it and give themselves a unique rosy coat.

We’ll begin our first game drive of your 9 - day safari looking for the big animals like lion, buffalo, zebra, giraffe, and more, over this vast and rugged terrain.

Your driver/guide will point out the special sites and of course, all the wildlife you’ll be tracking.

Tonight, we’ll stay in Tsavo East safari lodge/ tented safari camp.

Now that we’re on a safari schedule, we’ll be up with the birds to hear their song and catch the first breaking light upon the park. It’s time for an early game drive to search for the wildlife as it awakens to the new day.

We’ll breakfast and then enjoy another game drive as we exit the park for the short trip to Tsavo West.

The look is different here with more colours to the landscape and the inclusion of all the Big Five. That means Tsavo West features rhinos and we’ll head over to the Ngulia Rhino Sanctuary to track these fascinating but sometimes elusive creatures.

We’ll spend our safari night at your Tsavo West safari lodge or tented safari camp.

Before our breakfast, let’s see who we can spot on the way to their breakfast with an early morning game drive.

The park and its natural features are stunning this time of day as the light is soft at this golden hour.

Some of the park’s population may be headed for Mzima Springs, a natural, fresh oasis. We’ll join them to view hippo, crocodile, fish, and birds amidst the crystal waters and green canopy of this lush spot.

It’s soon time for the short drive to Amboseli National Park and we’ll have lunch, relax and head out for an afternoon game drive.

Amboseli’s signature landmark is the grand form of Mt. Kilimanjaro soaking up the south view of the park. With the great herds of elephants and other wildlife, it all combines to create postcard views throughout the reserve.

We’ll spend the night at your Amboseli safari lodge or tented safari camp.

Amboseli is a small but exciting park. The foliage is spare making for easier game viewing and sightings of the large animals (including the elephants) are common.

We will fill our day with game drives and see how many species we can check off our list. Keep an eye out for wildebeest, zebra, buffalo, gazelle, and lion.

But there is plenty of small wildlife as well – hyena, fox, monkey, and baboon have been frequently spotted.

The park is also known for its active birdlife so look for pelican, kingfisher, crake and, egret.

And if you desire some relaxation time, just tell your driver/guide and he’ll be happy to comply.

Toward evening look toward Kilimanjaro’s snowy peak which may emerge through the clouds as they sometimes disperse. You may be rewarded with a stunning view of Africa’s grandest summit.

We’ll spend the night at your Amboseli safari lodge or tented safari camp.

We have a lot to see and experience today, so let’s be up and bid adieu to the mighty mountain as we head out to the Great Rift Valley to view its dramatic towers and gorges.

We’re on our way to Lake Naivasha and will arrive in time for a fun sailing safari across the lake. Say ‘hello’ to hippo and other aquatic life as we gently glide by, perhaps taking in zebra and antelope near the lakeshore.

We’ll follow this boat ride with a walking safari – a guided tour of nearby Crescent Island Game Sanctuary. This tiny park can be deceiving as it is filled with game, the peaceful type. We’ll walk by wildebeest, waterbuck, zebra, and gazelle.

We may also see giraffe, buffalo, and even some hippo. What a fun way to end the day.

We’ll spend the evening at Lake Naivasha at your lodge or tented camp.

(You can choose to go to Lake Bogoria instead of Lake Nakuru if you’d like to view larger flocks of flamingoes.)

Ever been to a park called Hell’s Gate? Ever safari on a bicycle?  Today we’ll do both as we take an easy bike ride to the nearby national park. There’s lots of geothermal activity – geysers and hot springs – hence the park’s curious name.

We’ll take a hike through the canyons here looking for peacefully grazing wildlife such as impala and antelope.

Then it’s a quick one-hour drive to Lake Nakuru National Park to view waterfalls, acacia and euphorbia trees accenting the park. This pretty spot boasts fascinating birdlife, and we’ll look for ostriches, cormorants, pelicans, and pink flamingoes!

The park’s wildlife is just as unique, showing off rare Rothschild’s giraffe and a great population of endangered rhinos.

But keep an eye out for lion and leopard as they’ve been seen here as well.

We’ll overnight here at your choice of safari lodge or tented camp.

We will depart early from Lake Nakuru to maximize our time at our next and Kenya safari destination, Masai Mara National Reserve. This is one of the top African photographic safari destinations with excellent game viewing all year round.

But now it’s time to buckle up and head out for the mighty Masai Mara National Reserve – call it the best African wildlife safari destinations in the world.

The Masai Mara may well be the world’s most famous wildlife park. It’s certainly one of the most popular. There is a dense concentration of wildlife on these rolling hills and golden savannahs, with a special emphasis on lions and other big cats.

We’ll get here in time for an afternoon game drive to get you familiarized with the park’s beautiful terrain, complete with Africa’s iconic acacia trees.

The sunsets here are also spectacular.

Return for dinner and overnight at your Masai Mara tented safari camp/ safari lodge.

We’ll get started early to take advantage of this natural wealth on the first of unlimited game drives throughout the day. Just speak with your driver/guide as to how you’d like to plan your time in the park.

This will be our second day exploring the Masai Mara – what a treat!

Along with traversing the vast open spaces here, we’ll also travel down to the Mara River, site of the migration crossing during the season.

We’ll have lunch while viewing hippos, crocodiles and perhaps predators like lion and hyena searching these timeless hills for their prey.

And if all this time at the Mara wasn’t enough, there are a few optional activities we’ve prepared to make your stay here even more memorable. Take a visit to the local Maasai in their nearby village. See their community, their homes, and learn about their ancient lifestyle herding cattle and farming.

Enjoy dinner and overnight after return to the Masai Mara tented safari camp/ safari lodge.

Wrapping up your African safari package today is a leisurely morning breakfast at your tented safari camp/ safari lodge, afterward you have an option to visit the Masai village before starting your journey back to Nairobi.

Your dedicated expert driver guide will assist you with the checkout process and proceed to Nairobi with stops along the way. We’ll depart Masai Mara with a hot lunch stop along the way, arriving in Nairobi during late afternoon hours (approximately 15:00Hrs, typically 3:00 Pm) and bring you to your Nairobi hotel, or the Nairobi airport.

Drop off at your Nairobi City hotel /Nairobi airport.

We hope you soaked up plenty of Africa’s wildlife sightings on this busy tour. It’s been our pleasure to have you as our guest and from all of us at African Vulture Safaris, a big thanks!