8 Days Kenya Highlights Safari

After breakfast this morning, drive to the Ol Pejeta Conservancy, a private game sanctuary situated on the Laikipia Plains near Mount Kenya, arriving in time for lunch at Sweetwaters Tented Camp.

Built on the grounds of a colonial-era farm inside the conservancy, Sweetwaters is the perfect base for exploring Ol Pejeta. After settling into your accommodations, set out into the bush for your first game-viewing drive. Later this afternoon, you will tour Sweetwater’s Chimpanzee Sanctuary - the only facility of its kind in Kenya. The sanctuary provides an authentic habitat for rescued chimpanzees who cannot otherwise be re-introduced into the wild. It’s a powerful and memorable experience that highlights the challenges and responsibilities of wildlife protection and conservation. Upon your return to camp, you can relax on your private verandah overlooking the camp’s extensive and lighted water hole, take a dip in the pool, or catalog the day’s haul of wildlife photo- graphs. After dinner, relax by the fire or retire to the wonderful ambiance of your tent. The camp’s luxurious tents all feature comfortable beds, electricity, hot/cold running water, and full in-suite bathroom with shower.

Overnight: Sweetwaters Tented Camp | Meals: B/L/D

Enjoy the entire day on game drives in Sweetwaters with morning and afternoon game drives through the Ol Pejeta Conservancy. Boasting an incredible density of wildlife within its borders, the conservancy is also home to a host of endangered species. Ol Pejeta is especially known for its huge population of black rhinoceros. Return to camp for dinner and another pleasant evening. All meals are included with overnight at Sweetwaters Tented Camp. You may also partake in an optional game drive run by the camp that departs after dinner and explore the bush under cover of night when animals are grazing, sleeping, and hunting.

Overnight: Sweetwaters Tented Camp | Meals: B/L/D

This morning, you may find yourself awakened by the trumpeting of elephants who have come for their morning visit to the water hole. After breakfast, we drive to Lake Nakuru National Park arriving in time for lunch at Lake Nakuru Sopa Lodge. Enjoy an afternoon game drive in the park, returning to the lodge for dinner and overnight. Among its wide variety of wildlife, Lake Nakuru is especially famous for its vast flocks of flamingoes. In some months, these birds are so abundant that they seem to form a pink band along the lakeshore. Other notable inhabitants of the park include giraffe, buffalo, waterbuck, lion, and rhinoceros.

Overnight: Lake Nakuru Sopa Lodge| Meals: B/L/D

Setting out again after breakfast, we drive across the Great Rift Valley to the Maasai Mara, arriving in time for lunch at Mara Serena Safari Lodge.

Set high on a hilltop above the Mara, the lodge is blessed with sweeping views of the savannah below. In the distance you can see the meandering coils of the hippo-filled Mara river. The Maasai Mara Game Reserve is widely considered to be one of Africa’s greatest reserves, where the Maasai community co-exists in harmony with the local fauna. The co-existence of man and wildlife makes this one of the world’s most unique wilderness regions. The Mara is home to a breathtaking array of life. The vast grasslands are teeming with herds of zebra, giraffe, gazelle, and topi. The acacia forests abound with monkeys and bird life. Elephants and buffalo wallow in the wide Musiara Swamp while the Mara and Talek rivers brim with hippos and crocodiles. From July through October, the Mara plays host to one of the greatest spectacles on the planet as millions of wildebeest, zebra, gazelle and topi head north from Tanzania into Kenya. Those fortunate enough to witness The Great Migration are treated to spectacular viewing and photographic opportunities. Enjoy an afternoon game drive in this natural paradise, returning to the lodge for dinner, relaxation around the fire pit, and overnight.

Overnight: Mara Serena Safari Lodge | Meals: B/L/D

Enjoy the entire day exploring the splendors of the Mara with morning and afternoon game-viewing drives, returning to the lodge for lunch and dinner. Overnight again tonight at the Mara Serena Safari Lodge.

Overnight: Mara Serena Safari Lodge | Meals:B/L/D

BALLOON SAFARI ADD-ON
Amboseli National Park

A popular excursion among visitors, the Balloon Safari can be added to a safari that includes a night at any of the camps/lodges in the Mara. Meeting your pilot early this morning, you will receive a briefing and watch as the balloon is inflated. You lift-off at dawn, rising with the sun and gently float in whichever direction the winds of the morning take you. Below are the majestic plains of the African savannah, teeming with life. At times, your balloon will be piloted at treetop level, offering unique perspectives of the wildlife and many great photo opportunities. Other times, the pilot will ascend to nearly 1,000 feet, offering a breathtaking perspective of the Mara, allowing you to appreciate its profound size. On landing, enjoy a delicious champagne breakfast served in the bush under an acacia tree.

Overnight: Amboseli Serena Safari Lodge | Meals:B/L/D

We hit the road once again after breakfast for our drive back to Nairobi. Arrive in the afternoon where you will be transferred to the Carnivore Restaurant for a farewell lunch before heading to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport where you embark for home. Sadly, the adventure comes to an end, but the memories are forever.

The Carnivore Restaurant is renowned for its variety of exotic meats and famous “dawa” cocktails. A uniquely Kenyan take on the Brazilian churrascaria, an enormous variety of meat is roasted on huge metal spears over a hot coal fire and carved at your table onto piping hot plates. Fresh salads, unusual side dishes, and assorted sauces accompany beef, pork, lamb, goat, sausages, chicken, ostrich, and occasionally crocodile

Dayroom: If Needed | Meals: B/L