13days Kenyan & Tanzania Adventure

13 Days Masai Mara/Lake Nakuru/Amboseli/Lake Manyara/Serengeti/Ngorongoro Camping Safari

Day 1:Arrival – Nairobi
Africa Joy Tours will pick you up at the airport and transfer you to the Boulevard Hotel for your overnight stay.

Day 2:Nairobi - Masai Mara National Park
We are picked up from the hotel at 07:30am for a safari briefing session with our tour consultant and we then drive to the Maasai Mara Game Reserve, the northern part of the Serengeti and one of Kenya's most favoured game-viewing areas. The reserve covers 700 square miles of magnificent wilderness. It is the Africa of the imagination with endless reaches of acacia-dotted grasslands studded with hazy hills. We embark on an afternoon game drive to see the sun set and hopefully to see large prides of lion, elephants, buffalos, zebras and numerous mammals. Our dinner and overnight stay is at the Mara Enchoro Camp.

Day 3 & 4:Maasai Mara
Two full days are spent exploring the park in search of the Big 5 with both morning and afternoon game drives on offer. An optional hot air balloon safari can be arranged at an extra cost of US$ 450 per person. We dine and overnight at the Mara Enchoro Camp.

Day 5:Masai Mara - Lake Nakuru National Park
We experience our last game run in the picturesque Maasai Mara in the morning through the Rift Valley and then drive to Lake Nakuru, a shallow alkaline lake in the Rift Valley renowned for its spectacular flamingo population as one of the world's greatest ornithological spectacles. Although Lake Nakuru is primarily a bird sanctuary, there are a considerable number of animals to be found such as zebras, elephants and gazelles. This is also one of our best chances of seeing rhinos. Lake Nakuru National Park was the first place in Kenya that was selected as a rhino reserve. This is one of the few places where we can see Rothschild's giraffes. Dinner and overnight is at the Lake Nakuru Guest House.

Day 6:Lake Nakuru – Amboseli National Park
We break camp and proceed to Amboseli National Park via Nairobi. Amboseli is the magnificent park at the foot hills of Mt. Kilimanjaro. Afternoon game drives are followed by dinner and our overnight stay at a campsite. This small park (at 392 sq km) is the second most popular park in Kenya after Maasai Mara mainly due to the spectacular backdrop of Mt. Kilimanjaro on the southern boundary.

Day 7:Amboseli National Park
Full day spent exploring the park. Optional visit to Maasai villages can be arranged with Africa Joy Tours guide between game drives. Overnight stay will be at a campsite. Amboseli National Park is one of the most popular wildlife sanctuaries in Kenya. The Park lies at the foot of Mt. Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa (5,896m) whose snow-capped summit presents a splendid view on clear days. Amboseli National Park is often referred to as "The home of elephants' some of the largest elephant herds are found here. The game park also contains vast groups of zebras, wildebeests, giraffes, buffalos, hippos and antelopes as well as lions, leopards, cheetahs, rhinos and many species of herbivores.

Day 8:Amboseli - Lake Manyara
After breakfast, we drive into Tanzania via the Namanga border. We also pass through Arusha to We travel to Lake Manyara National Park with lunch en route. Regardless of the direction we approach Manyara, the view is always fantastic. We proceed to a campsite for dinner and overnight stay. Lake Manyara is a shallow, alkaline lake that is part of the Rift Valley wall. The lake is at the base of this dramatic western escarpment giving it a beatific and serene setting. In addition to this Lake Manyara's main attractions is its rich bird life, tree climbing lions and hippos, which you can seen at a close range, better than many other places. Lake Manyara also hosts thousands of flamingos at certain times of the year and has diverse vegetation ranging from savannah, to marshes and acacia woodland, enabling a variety of wildlife habitats. This area is also known for the variety of butterflies that can be seen here.

Day 9:Lake Manyara - Serengeti National Park
After our morning game drive at Lake Manyara National Park we travel to the Serengeti National Park. Game is viewed as we proceed to the campsite for dinner and our overnight stay.

Day 10/11:Serengeti National Park
Full days spent exploring the park. Serengeti is Africa's most famous and Tanzania's largest park covering 14,736 sq km and is adjoining the Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya. With a wildebeest population of about 2 million and several other hoofed species which include zebra, Thomson's gazelle, impala, topi, Grants gazelle, Kongoni, eland, Kirk's dik dik, klipspringer, roan, Oryx, oribi, waterbuck, buffalo, giraffe and warthog. The Serengeti is sure to attract a string of prey such as lion, leopard, cheetah, hyena, golden jackals and bat eared foxes. Elephants are relatively scarce and the few remaining black rhinoceros are restricted to the Moru koppies area. Serengeti also offers rewarding bird viewing with ostrich and kori bustard being common. A variety of larks, finches, and raptors can be seen but the most distinctive small bird species is the lilac breasted roller.

Day 12:Ngorongoro via Olduvai Gorge
After an early breakfast, we drive south to the magnificent Ngorongoro Crater via the historic Olduvai Gorge. Game watching will only be interrupted by our picnic lunch en route. We stop and set camp at the Simba (Lion) Campsite. The Ngorongoro Crater is the world's biggest whole volcanic caldera at 8300 sq km and is arguably the most stunning arena. It is frequently described as one of the 8^th wonders of the world, not only because of its geological magnificence, but also because it serves as an extraordinary natural sanctuary for some of Africa's largest populations of large mammals.
The Olduvai Gorge cuts through rock beds layered in time in a sequence from 2 million years ago to the present. It is here where humanoid bones have been found dating back to over 1.75 million years including a direct ancestor of modern man. Fossil footprints (over three million years old) have also been found here and are the most ancient footprints yet discovered. There is an excellent site museum where you can explore the excavations.

Day 13:Ngorongoro- Arusha
Breakfast is at leisure. We then drive to Arusha arriving by 12:30. We board an afternoon shuttle bus to Nairobi departing at 14:00. Arrival at Nairobi should be at approximately 18:30. You will be dropped off at the airport to board your home bound flight.

Prices

2 persons sharing - US$ 2855

4 persons sharing - US$ 2580

6 persons sharing - US$ 2405

Tour price includes:
Transport in a custom made tour van in Kenya and 4x4 land cruiser in Tanzania
Start Nairobi – end the tour in Nairobi
1 night hotel accommodations in Nairobi before the safari on Bed & Breakfast basis
Crater service fees/conservation fees
Services of a professional English speaking guide
Game parks or national parks entry fees
Campsite fees: camping gear and foam mattresses
Use of our two/three person tents
Accommodations in self contained tents in Lake Nakuru/Masai Mara
Three meals per day whilst on safari, prepared by our cook
Arusha /Nairobi shuttle transfers
Dinner at the Carnivore Restaurant
1 litre mineral water per person per day