To their indigenous Masai inhabitants, the golden grasslands that lie between Lake Victoria and the Great Rift Valley were simply The Serengeti, “the endless plains”. Today, they are recognized as one of the world’s most important ecosystems, holding a unique concentration and unsurpassed range of grassland animals.
EAST AFRICA SAFARI
Itinerary
(Breakfast - B, Lunch - L, Dinner - D)
Day 1
Departure Day from North America
If you have booked your flights from North America with Quest Nature Tours, you will be leaving this evening on an overnight flight to Europe. Please call the Quest Nature Tours’ office for a quote on the group airfare from North America to Nairobi, Kenya.
(Airline Meals)
Day 2
Arrival Nairobi
Flights from North America will arrive in Europe after breakfast this morning. The connecting flight to Nairobi, Kenya will leave mid morning and is expected to arrive in Nairobi this evening. We will be met by our Kenyan hosts and driven to our hotel in Nairobi.
o/n Mayfair Court Holiday Inn, Nairobi (Airline Meals)
Day 3
Nairobi Activities
Since it has been somewhat hectic travelling from North America, we have designed a leisurely day of activities as we explore Nairobi and its suburbs. We will visit a sanctuary in Nairobi National Park to watch orphan elephants and rhinos being fed and then drive to the wildlife exhibit in Nairobi N.P., which was funded by the WWF. We will have lunch and group orientation meeting at Hardy House, the home of our Kenyan hosts, Lis and Tony Farrell. Afterwards we’ll continue on to the famous Karen Blixen Museum, honouring the writer highlighted in the movie “Out of Africa”. We’ll return to the hotel for a swim or to freshen up prior to our welcome dinner at the hotel.
o/n Mayfair Court Holiday Inn, Nairobi (B, L, D)
Day 4
Tarangire National Park
We’ll have an early morning start as we drive to the Tanzanian border town of Namanga, where we will go through customs entrance formalities. With Mount Kilimanjaro possibly visible in the distance, we’ll drive through the Tanzanian countryside to the town of Arusha and then on to Tarangire National Park. After a picnic lunch along the way and a short game drive in Tarangire National Park, we’ll arrive at our luxury game lodge.
o/n Tarangire Sopa Lodge (B, L, D)
Day 5
Tarangire National Park
Tarangire lies between the short grass plains to the north and the thick miombo belt to the south. It was designated as a national park in 1970, specifically to protect populations of Black Rhinoceros, Lesser Kudu and Fringe-eared Oryx. This is, in fact, the only park in Tanzania where Fringe-eared Oryx regularly occur. We will take an early morning and an afternoon game drive through part of the grasslands, floodplains, woodlands and rocky outcrops, which make up the wildlife reserve. The dry undulating landscape is rich in wildlife where we can expect to find, among other mammals, Leopard, Common Zebra, Wildebeest, Impala, Cape Buffalo, Elephant, Masai Giraffe, Eland, Warthog, Lion and Olive Baboon.
o/n Tarangire Sopa Lodge (B, L, D)
Day 6
Ngorongoro Crater
From Tarangire, we’ll drive to our next destination, the legendary Ngorongoro Crater. Described as “one of the wonders of the world” by Professor Bernard Grzimek, the crater was once an enormous volcano, as high as Kilimanjaro. Between 2 and 3 million years ago, the entire summit of the cone disintegrated and collapsed, probably in a cataclysmic explosion. It left behind the natural amphitheatre or caldera, which is known today as the Ngorongoro Crater. At approx. 2400 m above sea level, the rim of the Crater is clothed in temperate forest and the walls enclose a caldera that is 700 m deep and 16 – 19 km in diameter. Watered by springs, the crater is the permanent home of an abundance of remarkably confiding animals and birds. It offers some of Africa’s best game viewing and photographic opportunities, in a setting of breath-taking beauty.
o/n Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge (B, L, D)
Day 7
Ngorongoro Crater
During our stay at Ngorongoro Crater, we shall fully explore the crater and the Ngorongoro Conservation area, using our four-wheel drive vehicles. We shall concentrate our efforts on obtaining close encounters with as many of the bird and mammal species as possible. The excellent light conditions, abundant wildlife and superb scenery make Ngorongoro a paradise for the wildlife observer.
All of Africa’s “Big Five” game animals, Elephant, Cape Buffalo, Lion, Leopard and the now extremely rare Black Rhinoceros, occur within the crater itself. Other notable mammals recorded here include Cheetah, Eland, Common Bushbuck, Wildebeest, Common Zebra, Thomson’s and Grant’s Gazelle, Coke’s Hartebeest, Black-backed and Golden Jackal, and Serval. Spotted Hyenas are very common and Leopard, Vervet Monkey and Olive Baboon can all be located among the Acacia trees of the Lerai Forest. This is the time of year when groups of wildebeest, zebras and gazelles will be giving birth to their young.
The avifauna of the area is equally diverse and rich. Some highlights, that we can reasonably expect to see, include Ostrich, Hamerkop, Secretary Bird, Bateleur Eagle, African Fish Eagle, Martial Eagle, the very local Grey Kestrel, Kori and Black-necked Bustards, Temminck’s Courser, Verreaux’s Eagle Owl, Rosy-breasted Longclaw, Greater and Lesser Flamingo, Sulphur-breasted Bush Shrike and the Golden-winged Sunbird, a local specialty of the temperate cloud forest around the crater’s rim.
o/n Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge (B, L, D)
Day 8
Serengeti National Park
We will leave our lodge after breakfast and drive a short distance to Olduvai Gorge. Here, in 1959, Louis and Mary Leakey discovered fossil remains of an early hominid,
Australopithecus Boisei, dating back some 1.75 million years. This find established Africa as the most likely home of our early ancestors and gave Olduvai a worldwide reputation as “the cradle of life”. We will visit the small museum and enjoy its multitude of birds including Red and Yellow Barbets, Speckle-fronted Weavers and Purple Grenadiers.
Then, on to the fabled Serengeti Plains where, last year, we had our picnic lunch in the shade of an Acacia tree, overlooking hundreds of thousands migrating wildebeest and zebras. During our afternoon game drive, in the Ndutu area, we should encounter many thousands of wildebeest constantly moving across the short grass plains in search of fresh grazing. The wooded valley at Ndutu, with its river and lakes, is one of the few places where the plains’ animals can obtain water and it’s usually alive with animals at this time.
o/n Serengeti Sopa Lodge or Ndutu Lodge (B, L, D)
Days 9 - 10
Serengeti National Park
Our game drives for the next two days will take us to the world-renowned Serengeti Plains. We’ll explore the richest areas of the short grass plains frequented by vast herds of ungulates and their attendant predators. Lions, Cheetahs and Spotted Hyenas, as well as Black-backed and Golden Jackals, are constantly on the look-out for an easy meal, and will provide us with many opportunities to view their behaviour and take photos.
o/n Serengeti Sopa Lodge or Ndutu Lodge (B, L, D)
Day 11
Lake Manyara NP
After breakfast, we’ll leave our Serengeti Game Lodge and drive to Lake Manyara National Park. Lying between the spectacular Western Wall of the Rift Valley and the lake, two thirds of this park is composed of the alkaline waters of Lake Manyara. The remainder is, however, made up of such a diverse range of habitats that the park supports an outstanding variety of birds and mammal species.
The afternoon will be spent visiting the rich mosaic of different vegetation zones within Lake Manyara National Park. The lush tropical groundwater forest in the northern area thrives upon a supply of water seeping down from the west wall escarpment. Among the Date Palms, Tamarind and Mahogany trees, we may encounter some of the Elephants, Olive Baboons, Blue and Vervet Monkeys, or even Leopards, which occur here. Crested Guineafowl and Silvery-cheeked Hornbill are just two of the interesting bird species living in the forest zone. Many of the Acacia trees in the park have been damaged by one of Africa’s densest populations of Elephant, although some regeneration is starting to take place. The open grasslands support large numbers of Cape Buffalo and, where the Simba River enters the lake, large numbers of Hippo wallow in the fresher water. There are over 340 bird species listed for the park with such notable species as African Spoonbill, Pygmy Falcon, Ground Hornbill, Malachite Kingfisher, and Collared Pratincole.
o/n Lake Manyara Serena Lodge (B, L, D)
Day 12
Arusha / Nairobi
Today, we’ll leave Lake Manyara and drive east to Arusha. After a stop at one of the best craft stores in the country, we’ll continue on to the border crossing at Namanga. After entering Kenya, we’ll drive on to our hotel in Nairobi.
o/n Mayfair Court Holiday Inn, Nairobi (B, L, D)
Day 13
Journey to Samburu Reserve
We’ll depart early from our hotel and drive north, in our safari vehicles, around the snow-covered peak and forest-covered slopes of Mount Kenya, to the northern region of Kenya. We’ll stop for lunch and then continue on to the dry lands of Isiolo. As we enter the Samburu Game Reserve, we’ll begin our game drive and make our way towards our campsite and waiting staff.
o/n Ewaso Nyiro River Safari Camp (B, L, D)
Days 14 – 15
Game Drives in Samburu Game Reserve
Our days will start at dawn with a cup of tea or coffee served in the comfort of our tents. Then we’ll start our game drive in Samburu and Buffalo Springs Game Reserves, as the sun rises from the east and the animals are still active.
We expect to see Elephant, the rare Grevy’s Zebra, a large animal with delicate striping, the Lesser Kudu, amongst the dry scrub, the Reticulated Giraffe, a very dark, large giraffe with beautiful brown markings, the handsome Gerenuk, an antelope with a strikingly long neck, and the shy Beisa Oryx.
The reserves are popular with the big cat researchers, as it is one of the most reliable areas in the country for spotting the elusive Leopard, as well as Lion and Cheetah. We usually have good “cat” sightings while exploring these Game Reserves.
Samburu is also a very rich area for birds that are much less common in other parts of East Africa. We will be looking for the Martial Eagle and Pale Chanting Goshawk, raptors that prey on the small mammals that live in the sparse scrub of this harsh terrain. Also, we hope to see Green Wood Hoopoe, Golden-breasted Starling and the Rose-patched Shrike.
We will return to our campsite for a late breakfast and, in the heat of the day, relax while we enjoy the ambience of this unique region of East Africa.
The reserve is located within the ancestral lands of a semi-nomadic pastoral tribe, the Samburu, close relatives of the Masai. During our time here, we expect to arrange a visit to one of the nearby Samburu villages.
In the later afternoon, the animals begin to become more active as the day cools off, and we will set out for another game drive. This is the best time to see Cheetah and Leopard as this is when they are usually starting to move around their territory. We’ll return to our camp at sunset in time to enjoy camp sundowners and snacks, in front of a campfire, as we watch masses of stars light up the equatorial sky.
o/n EwasoNyiroRiver Safari Camp (B, L, D)
Day 16
Return to Nairobi / International Flights Home
After breakfast, we will take our last game drive as we work our way out of the Reserve to the Isiolo road and our route back to Nairobi. We expect to arrive in Nairobi, and the Mayfair Court Holiday Inn, in the early afternoon. On arrival, a day room will be available for us. We’ll have our farewell dinner this evening at the hotel. After dinner, we will be driven to the International Airport for our return flights to Europe and
North America. (B, D)
Day 17
Arrive North America
We’ll arrive in Europe, early in the morning, to connect with our early afternoon flight to North America.
(Airline Meals)
