Kenya Wildlife Safari & Beach Holiday

0500 hrs: The long awaited African safari tour starts off with an early pick up from your Nairobi hotel or Nairobi airport. We depart for an approximate 5 – 6 hours’ drive to the best safari destination in Africa, the Masai Mara National Reserve. We’ll journey via the Great Rift Valley Escarpment which will offer you breathtaking views of the kind landscape to which you’re moving towards.

We should arrive in time for a delicious lunch and orientation of the camp/lodge in which we’ll overnight before heading out on our first afternoon safari, you’ll find so much to see on this massive expanse of savannah and green hills.

The Mara is the seasonal home to the Kenya Great Migration safari, an awesome display of thousands, sometimes millions of foraging wildebeests and zebra in search of the tall grasses. Awaiting them are predators like river crocodile, lion, cheetah and leopard. If you are in this season (July – October) you’ll be there to witness this timeless cycle of nature play out before you on the riverbanks and acacia studded plains of this great park.

Our focus will be game drives as we try our level best to maximize our time with predators, something which Masai Mara is well known for. Overnight at your Masai Mara safari lodge or tented safari camp.

We shall spend our entire day on game drives throughout the reserve. There’s so much to see as the park is home to over 90 mammals in great concentration. Of course, the Africa’s “Big Five” are here in big numbers as are many smaller species.

We’ll head down to the Mara River where the animals cross over from the Serengeti National Park. During Masai Mara migration season (July-October), you will see them by the thousands, herding, rushing, and thrashing their way across – an unending stream of wildlife searching for food.

A wonderful way to view this flow of nature is in an early morning hot air balloon safari ride. Rising above the Mara, you’ll take in the awakening land and the life upon it. The excursion is optional, ask us for details. We’ll be happy to arrange it.

We shall traverse the reserve on a full day of unlimited game viewing encountering the big five and more of the lesser game.

You shall visit the Mara river where we may watch hippos & crocodiles or maybe the great migration (July -October). Dinner and overnight at your Masai Mara safari lodge/ tented safari camp.

We’ll finish our tour of the Mara with an early morning breakfast as we exit the park. We’re headed for the Great Rift Valley and Lake Naivasha. The lake and its surrounding areas are a haven for birds, fish and larger wildlife grazing on the shores.

We’ll take an afternoon drive to Hell’s Gate National Park for a game drive. Here is the only place one can walk inside the park as there are no predators. You will decide if you’ll do the game drive with the safari vehicle or hire a bicycle to cycle the 11 kms down towards the gorge. At the gorge you will get a guide who will direct you and share information about the rock layers.

This is a place of dramatic cliffs, hot springs, geysers and steaming vents here are dramatic proof of the geothermal activity below ground. But we’ll be gliding along on bicycles past impala, gazelle, zebra, giraffe and baboon. A fitting and joyful way to end a busy day of animal watching.

Overnight at your Lake Naivasha safari lodge / tented safari camp.

We will depart early from Lake Naivasha to maximize our time at our next and Kenya safari destination, Amboseli National Park. This is where the elephants roam… in great numbers. So great, in fact, that viewings are guaranteed. Perhaps the only wild animal park in the world that can make this claim.

So get your camera ready for the great herds, and adding to the fun, mighty Mt. Kilimanjaro looms over the park like a picture postcard. In addition to elephant you’ll have a good chance of finding the African big five; lion, cheetah and plenty of colourful birdlife – the park hosts close to 400 bird species.

You’ll settle in at your Amboseli lodge or tented campground, and with a little luck this evening, the clouds hiding Kilimanjaro’s snowy peak will part, revealing the world-famous summit.

Overnight at your Amboseli safari lodge or tented safari camp.

Short morning game viewing drive is scheduled at the Amboseli this morning.

Now it’s a relatively short drive to Taita Hills Sanctuary with game en route on an approximate 3 hours’ drive to Taita Hills Sanctuary. Arrive in time for an appetizing lunch as you check in at Sarova Salt Lick Game Lodge.

This private sanctuary is located right next to Tsavo West, so it’s an easy hop to get here. The landscape in this park is more verdant than Tsavo, and the game viewing is every bit as good. The sanctuary offers good birdwatching but that isn’t Taita Hills’ main attraction.

A unique aspect of this small park is the rangers here usually have a very good idea where the larger animals can be found. It’s not unheard of for safari-goers to spot over a dozen species on a game drive.

Dinner and overnight at the Sarova Salt Lick Game Lodge with all rooms having a private viewing balcony which commands views of the adjacent Taita Hills.

We’ll enjoy one more early morning game drive as we depart Taita Hills and then it’s a short run to our next and final wildlife safari park, Tsavo East (approximately 2 hours).

You may have heard of Tsavo’s red dust elephants. The soil here has a rusty colour from oxidation so when the herds are ready for a dirt bath, they roll in this ruddy earth presenting a colourful coat for us to admire.

The park will offer us opportunities to find other African “Big Five” like the black rhino, Cape buffalo and leopard. On our game drives through Tsavo’s rugged plains we’ll also be tracking the famous maneless Tsavo lions, whose man-eating reputation from a century ago still sparks fascination and a little excitement.

A sure spot to find some of this wildlife is at the Aruba Dam, a beautiful structure that has formed an impressive watering hole. Thousands of animals are attracted to its waters, and we’ll be there as they nourish themselves at this life-giving oasis.

This is the perfect time for some African photographic safari memories. Return to the camp/lodge for dinner and overnight at your Tsavo East safari lodge or tented safari camp.

On our final day of this Kenya wildlife safari, we’ll take one more game drive before heading to the nearby train station at Voi and your trip to the Kenyan coast.

On that train ride, you’ll be traveling through parts of Tsavo East, so there are still more opportunities to view the park and possibly some wildlife.

At the train station, your driver/guide will assist you with tickets and transfer to the Madaraka Express, the new high-speed train to Mombasa and the coast.

Your first-class ticket is included with the tour, so enjoy the comfort of your air-conditioned compartment and reclining seat. The train’s route is positioned higher than the roadway and offers an elevated view of the park. And with its large windows you’ll enjoy wonderful vistas of the passing landscapes.

In about 2 hours, you’ll arrive at the state-of-the-art train station in Mombasa.

Transfer to your hotel or resort is also included – we’ll pick you up and bring you to your local hotel or resorts in Malindi, Watamu, Diani, Mombasa and Kilifi beach.

Drop – Off

Later proceed to Voi train station (Next to Tsavo East) where you shall board the standard gauge Nairobi-Mombasa Train (Madaraka Express).

Approximately 11:45am arrive at the train station.

12:08am:  Depart for Mombasa on the Madaraka Express Train with elevated country views through parts of Tsavo East national parks.

14:00pm: Arrive Mombasa train station where you shall be met by your transfer vehicle and driver.

Transfer to your beach hotel in Mombasa, Kilifi, Diani, Watamu or Malindi.

You may transfer to your beach resort by car if you prefer or when train tickets are not available.