Best of Kenya and Tanzania Safari

Karibu (welcome)! Transfer from the airport to your hotel in Nairobi to check-in and rest for the start of your Best of Kenya and Tanzania Safari tomorrow.

After breakfast, you’ll transfer to the Wilson Airport for your scenic 45-minute flight to Maasai Mara National Reserve. Disembark from the plane to enjoy a colorful reception before it’s time to load into your personal 4x4 vehicle for your first of many safaris.

Once settled at camp, you have the additional options of planting a tree to be a part of the reforestation initiative as well as interacting with the mamas maasais to purchase handcrafted souvenirs.

This morning covers some ground on a safari of the game reserve, up to the Mara riverbanks not far from camp. The Mara River acts as a natural barrier wildlife cross each year. Hundreds of thousands of zebra and wildebeest create a spectacular show of survival as they make the crossing, known as The Great Migration.

You’ll have the pleasure of trekking to some of the major crossing points along the Mara River on a Bush Walking Safari. Keep a keen eye to spot the local wildlife, including crocodiles.

Today you’ll have the fun of boarding two separate quick flights. First from the Mara Serena Airport to Migori where you’ll then drive to Isibania at the Tanzania-Nairobi border to have your visa processed before crossing the border on foot into Tanzania. You’ll then drive to Tarime Goldmine Airstrip for a 30-minute flight to an airstrip near your camp in Serengeti National Park.

A natural extension of the Masaai Mara, Serengeti National Park’s borders are crossed annually by one and a half million wildebeest, 250,000 zebras and 500,000 gazelles between July and October, followed by the carnivores of mostly lions and hyenas. Relax in your luxury setting, far from civilization, and enjoy the 360-degree views of the Serengeti and all contained within.

As wildlife is most active at sunrise and sundown, you’ll have an early start to the day to seek out the “big 5” (lions, buffalo, elephants, rhinoceros, and leopards) as well as a second outing in the late afternoon.
In between safaris, relax at camp, set in the middle of the unending plain complete with infinite skies and innumerable stars.

Enjoy an early morning game drive on the way to Ngorongoro Conservation Area where you’ll get to visit another singularity of the Serengeti, the kopjes (islands of rock in a sea of grass where lions, leopards and cheetahs love to rest). Leaving behind the endless plain, and if time allows, you’ll have the option to visit the Olduvai Gorge, home to numerous fossils and artifacts of early hominids, before carrying on to a Maasai boma (Maasai village). Here you’ll experience the Maasai’s ancestral traditions and then continue to the day’s final destination, Pakulala Safari Camp.

Perched on the rim of the famous Ngorongoro Crater, Pakulala Safari Camp offers visitors sweeping vistas over the African landscape as well as a look into its relationship to the Maasai and flora and fauna through its sustainable tourism practices.

Today is yours to explore Ngorongoro, starting with a safari of the crater floor. At 600 meters deep and 20 km in diameter, Ngorongoro hosts the densest animal population in the whole of Africa with more than 40,000 Maasai farmers working the land. The crater acts like a natural cage keeping the incredible numbers of wildlife contained and provides a year-round source of water (so the animals are not forced to migrate). You’ll have excellent chances of spotting big game animals on your safari of the “Volcano of Eden.”

At first light, you’ll have another opportunity to climb into your 4x4 vehicle to venture into the Ngorongoro Crater for a game drive and for a second look at the magnificent landscape.
After the game drive, it’s time to make your way further east to your hotel in Arusha.

This morning you’ll transfer to the airport for your onward journey.