FLYING SAFARI COMBINING KENYA AND TANZANIA
Amboseli - Samburu - Masai Mara - Lake Duluti -
Serengeti National Park - Olduvai Gorge - Ngorongoro
Crater - Lake Manyara
Begins: Nairobi, Kenya
Ends: Kilimanjaro, Tanzania or Nairobi, Kenya
Accommodations: First class lodges and hotels throughout.
Serena hotels have been recognized as pioneering in
their attention to detail, community involvement,
environmental sensitivity and continual evolvement
in offering new activities, which maximize their guests
stay in Africa.
Transportation: Scheduled flights in small propeller
aircraft. Each lodge will host you locally. Game drives
will be conducted in a variety of vehicles —
some 4WD vehicles with photo hatches and some safari
vans with pop-up roof; guaranteed window seat for
game drives.
Trip Description:
Our most popular East African combo! This active safari
makes the most of your safari time by using flights
between parks. Your accommodations are in the beautiful,
award winning Serena Lodges. The Serena Lodges offer
a mixture of stylish and imaginative lodging throughout
East Africa. This safari includes their prime properties…perfect
locations that often act as game viewing platforms
themselves. You are independently hosted by each lodge.
Travel between destinations is by air, allowing more
time for game viewing, activities and total relaxation
in a delightful African ambiance.
Day 1 Arrive Nairobi, Kenya
Upon arrival, you are met and transferred to your
beautiful hotel. Welcome to Kenya! Nairobi Serena
Hotel.
Day 2 Amboseli National Park
Following an early breakfast you will be transferred
to Nairobi Wilson Airport for your scheduled flight
to Amboseli (45min.). Upon arrival, you will be met
and transferred to the lodge with a game drive en
route. After lunch relax with an afternoon siesta
or a refreshing swim in the pool. Later, there is
a game drive that returns to the lodge as the sun,
sets. Amboseli Serena Lodge (BLD)
In the shadow of Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa's highest
mountain, beside a copse of giant Acacia trees and
a gently flowing natural spring, stands Amboseli Serena
- one of Africa's finest safari lodges. All around
the lodge roams the big game that has made East Africa
legendary - lion, buffalo, cheetah, giraffe, baboon,
gazelle and wildebeest. More wild elephant can be
seen in Amboseli National Park than almost anywhere
else on the continent.
With Kilimanjaro 6,000-meter snow-capped peaks presiding
over the landscape, the setting is unrivalled. Influenced
by native Masai architecture, the lodge is in perfect
harmony with its environment. Beautifully landscaped
gardens, unique guest services and exceptional amenities
enhance the distinctive ambience. Enjoy a refreshing
swim in the pool during the quiet mid-day hours —
the pool deck is a great platform to view game!
Day 3 Amboseli National Park
Early morning and afternoon game drives in Amboseli
National Park. While Kilimanjaro is actually across
the border in Tanzania, Amboseli has a perfect view
of this world's tallest freestanding mountain, at
an impressive 5km above the plains. Amboseli is not
a large park, but it offers you the best opportunity
of seeing endangered black rhino, as well as a spectacular
range of wildlife. Amboseli Serena Lodge (BLD)
Days 4-5 Samburu National Reserve
Early morning scheduled service flight to Nairobi
to connect with the flight to Samburu in Northern
Kenya. Morning scheduled flight to Samburu. This is
the area where the recent Survivor series was filmed!
Transfer to your beautiful lodge. Morning and afternoon
game drives in this fascinating countryside. The river
and several springs attract much wildlife, especially
in dry periods. Mammals restricted to the Somali-Masai
arid zone are found here, such as Grevy's zebra, the
reticulated giraffe, the Beisa Oryx, Guenther's dik-dik
and the gerenuk. Also present are lesser kudus, elephants,
Grant's gazelles, lions, cheetahs, leopards and 350
bird species, including the blue-flushed Somali ostrich
and the bristle-crowned starling. Samburu Serena Lodge
(BLD)
Situated on the fertile banks of the Uaso Nyiro River,
in the center of the Samburu Game Reserve in Kenya's
rugged, semi-arid Northern Province, Samburu Serena
Safari Lodge echoes the robust rhythms of riverfront
life. This bucolic and serene lodge was inspired by
the architecture of the indigenous Samburu tribe and
blends into the verdant environment by making full
use of native materials. Thatched cabins built using
exotic African woods create an escapist atmosphere.
The lodge has a spacious swimming pool for cooling
down in the heat of the day and a special game-viewing
verandah.
Days 6-7 Masai Mara National Reserve
Early morning game drive enroute to the airstrip for
your scheduled flight to Kenya’s famed Masai
Mara. Upon arrival, you are transferred to your lodge.The
Masai Mara Game Reserve is the Africa of movies and
photographs: large, open grasslands dotted with acacia
trees and traversed by the Mara River, teeming with
hippos and crocodiles. Morning and afternoon game
drives. Opportunities for village visits and an optional
balloon safari. Mara Serena Lodge (BLD)
An interpretation of a traditional Masai Manyatta
village of domed huts, Mara Serena Safari Lodge is
set on the saddle of a hill where it overlooks the
1,800 square kilometers of rolling plains, woodlands
and rivers that make up the Masai Mara Triangle -
one of the world's richest wildlife sanctuaries. No
other lodge has such a spectacular view of the surrounding
landscape or the game and bird life that inhabit it.
Day 8 Kilimanjaro, Tanzania Lake Duluti
Following an early morning activity and breakfast
in the Mara, you will catch the scheduled flight to
Kilimanjaro (via Nairobi). Upon arrival, you will
be met and transferred to your lodge overlooking the
small, but picturesque Lake Duluti. Serena Mountain
Village Lodge (BLD)
Nestled on the shores of Lake Duluti and renowned
for its collection of spectacular bougainvilleas,
Serena Mountain Village is the perfect place to relax
before or after experiencing the adventure of a safari.
Designed as an authentic African village, Mountain
Village invites visitors to experience what life is
like on a coffee plantation. Guests are housed in
banana stem thatched huts, grouped in semi-circles
around tropical shade trees. All guest rooms have
private balconies that boast magnificent views of
the mighty snow-capped Kilimanjaro on one side and
Lake Duluti and the rugged peaks of Mount Meru on
the other.
Day 9 Arusha Serengeti National
Park
Drive to Arusha airstrip for scheduled flight to the
world famous Serengeti. Game drive enroute to your
lodge. Serengeti Serena Lodge (BD)
Serengeti Serena Safari Lodge is set high on a hill
with breathtaking vistas of sweeping grasslands and
the unspoiled wilderness landscape of the Serengeti
plains. Big game feed in full view of the lodge. The
Serengeti is a natural paradise and home to one of
the greatest wildlife spectacles on earth - the annual
migration of millions of wildebeest, zebra and gazelle.
The lodge design is simple but stunning. Inspired
by a traditional African village, separate rondavel
"huts" house the luxury guest rooms that
have their own view of the vast Serengeti plains.
From the overall impression to the smallest detail,
the lodge is rich in local atmosphere created by indigenous
handicrafts and art. A delightful water feature runs
through the main public areas, creating a natural
source of waterborne plants and provides a home to
many indigenous species of reptiles, amphibians and
birds.
Day 10 Serengeti National Park
Morning and afternoon game drives. The Masai translation
of Serengeti is "endless plains." This expansive
park, which covers over 23,000 square miles, is home
to thousands of animals that form the annual migration.
Early morning and afternoon game drives allow you
to explore the areas where thousands of animals gather
in the Serengeti during migration (movement varies
month to month — but the herds are usually in
the southern Serengeti Dec-May), to bear their young
and continue the pursuit of food and water. Behind
the masses of migrating animals, follows the ever-searching
predators — watch as this life and death drama
unfolds before you. Serengeti Serena Lodge (BLD)
Day 11 Olduvai Gorge Ngorongoro
Crater
Depart after breakfast and drive across the Serengeti
plains viewing game en route and arrive at Olduvai
Gorge, the famous archaeological site where the Leakeys
uncovered 1.75 million year old humanoid fossils of
Australopithecus, Homo Habilis, and Homo Erectus.
The Gorge is about 50km long and in some places 90m
deep. You will have time to walk through the little
museum. Continue to your lodge, set high on the rim
of Ngorongoro Crater. After lunch at the lodge, depart
on a gentle nature walk with a lodge naturalist. Ngorongoro
Serena Lodge (BLD).
As if in a land before time, Ngorongoro Serena Safari
Lodge is built into the rim of a dormant and collapsed
volcano (known as a caldera), the plant and ivy-covered
native stone blending masterfully with its surroundings.
Close by lies the Olduvai Gorge, the "birthplace
of man". Today the volcano and surrounding landscape
are part of a vast conservation area inhabited by
the Masai tribe, as well as an extraordinary variety
of big game and bird life. Most guest rooms have private
terraces with views of the crater floor where countless
animals make their home. At Ngorongoro Serena Lodge
visitors co-exist in perfect harmony with the natural
environment and the wildlife that inhabits it.
Day 12 Ngorongoro Crater
After an early breakfast you descend into the Crater
in a 4x4 vehicle for a full day of game viewing with
a picnic lunch enjoyed on the Crater floor. Late afternoon
you leave the Crater and drive back to the lodge perched
on the rim. Ngorongoro Serena Lodge (BLD)
Day 13 Gibbs Farm - Lake Manyara
After breakfast, you leave the Crater and drive into
the highlands, with a stop at Gibbs Farm for lunch.
Gibbs Farm has been a coffee plantation since colonial
Days, and you can pick up some of the world’s
best coffee here. After lunch, hike to the nearby
waterfalls or stroll through the garden before continuing
on to your nearby lodge for a spectacular sunset over
the Great Rift Valley. Lake Manyara Serena (BLD)
It is difficult to imagine a more spectacular setting
for Lake Manyara Serena Lodge - on the edge of the
Mto Wa Mbu escarpment, overlooking the Great Rift
Valley and the stunning Manyara soda lake. Tree-climbing
lions are but one lure. The extraordinary bird life
has made this place world-renowned among ornithologists,
who come to observe the masses of pink flamingos and
great birds of prey. The abundant bird life inspired
the design of Lake Manyara Serena Safari Lodge - swooping
curves are complemented by soft, geometric patterns;
stylish murals depict bird migration patterns. The
circular shape of the buildings is a tribute to indigenous
architectural traditions. Beyond the superb standards
of hospitality offered, there is a spirit of tranquility
that prevails.
Day 14 Lake Manyara National Park Mto wa
Mbu Village
Today, you’ll depart after breakfast into the
park for a morning game drive. At lunchtime, head
to the village of Mto wa Mbu where a great cultural
lunch awaits. Located near the shores of Lake Manyara,
this village is a living example of one of the richest
linguistic mixes in Africa. Home to over 90 tribes,
Mto wa Mbu is possibly the only place you can hear
Bantu, Nilotic, Khoisan and Cushitic being spoken
in the same marketplace. A guide will accompany you
to local homes, farmlands, resident bars, a kindergarten
and a church. Afterwards, you’ll return back
to the lodge during the late afternoon. Lake Manyara
Serena (BLD)
Day 15 Arusha — Nairobi — Depart
(or extend to Zanzibar)
Depart after breakfast to Arusha for lunch. Options
here: 1. Continue your travels with a flight to Zanzibar;
2. Continue with the scheduled tour and drive to Kilimanjaro
and fly onto Nairobi, for your onward arrangements;
3. You can opt to fly out of Kilimanjaro this evening.
A dayroom and transfer for your evening flight can
be arranged (additional). (B
Includes
- Accommodation with private facilities
- Transport in 8-seat safari vans and 4WD vehicles
as offered by each lodge.
- Scheduled flights within Kenya and Tanzania as specified
- Professional English speaking Driver/Guides at each
lodge.
- Game drives and activities as noted
- Park entrance and conservation fees
- Meals as noted (B-Breakfast, L-lunch, D-dinner)
- 1 bottle of water per person in vehicle during game
drives
- Temporary membership in Flying Doctors Society
- Tour Escort through out the safari.
Excludes
- Flights to/from Africa.
- Tips, porterage, beverages, items of personal nature
such as laundry, travel insurance phone, fax etc.
- Fees for passport, visas
- Airport departure taxes
- Any other item not mentioned in the itinerary
