12-Day Group Joining - Maasai Mara · Lake Nakuru · Amboseli · Arusha · Tarangire · Ngorongoro Crater · Serengeti & Lake Manyara

Day by day

12 days in East Africa.

1. Day 1

   Nairobi – Maasai Mara

   Pick-up from your hotel between 7:30 and 8am, then depart for the Maasai Mara National Reserve via the Great Rift Valley viewpoint and Narok town for refuelling and lunch. Continue to the reserve, arriving at the lodge or camp at about 2pm. After a short siesta, set out in the 4x4 Land Cruiser for the first introductory game drive in the reserve, returning to camp for dinner and overnight.

   Overnight

   Miti Mingi Camp, Maasai MaraZebra Plains Mara Camp

   Meals

   Lunch and dinner

2. Day 2

   Maasai Mara National Reserve

   After breakfast, a full day of game viewing within the reserve. The scenery is savanna grassland over rolling hills, and the extensive road and track network lets the vehicle get close for viewing and photography, which is why the Mara is regarded as Kenya's best park for game. Break for a picnic lunch at the hippo pool, looking out for hippo and crocodile, then continue through the afternoon. Return for dinner and settle in for the evening.

   Overnight

   Miti Mingi Camp, Maasai MaraZebra Plains Mara Camp

   Meals

   Breakfast, picnic lunch and dinner

3. Day 3

   Maasai Mara – Nakuru

   An early pre-breakfast game drive while the predators are still active. After breakfast, depart the Mara region for Nakuru with lunch en route, with scenic views of Mount Longonot and Lake Naivasha in the distance from the main highway as it climbs through the Rift Valley. Arrive in the afternoon for dinner and the night.

   Overnight

   Buraha Zenoni, Lake NakuruLake Nakuru Sopa Lodge

   Meals

   Breakfast, lunch and dinner

   

4. Day 4

   Lake Nakuru – Amboseli

   After breakfast, a game drive in Lake Nakuru National Park, known for its prolific birdlife including flamingo and for its white rhino sanctuary, with buffalo and waterbuck near the shoreline. Then the long drive south via Nairobi to Amboseli National Park, arriving in the late evening with game viewing en route to camp, where elephant are often seen near the swamps in the last light. There is time to settle in before dinner and the night.

   Overnight

   Nyati Safari Camp, AmboseliKibo Safari Camp, Amboseli

   Meals

   Breakfast, lunch and dinner

5. Day 5

   Amboseli Full Day

   A day of game drives in Amboseli, a park of swamp grounds in which elephant and hippo bathe in abundance. A variety of plains game, antelope and birds share the drier ground, and Mount Kilimanjaro's peak shows above the park when the weather permits, usually early in the morning. Picnic lunches are provided so the day can be spent inside the park. Head back for the night when the day's game viewing is done.

   Overnight

   Nyati Safari Camp, AmboseliKibo Safari Camp, Amboseli

   Meals

   Breakfast, picnic lunch and dinner

6. Day 6

   Amboseli – Arusha

   Early morning game viewing, then return to camp for a full breakfast and check-out. Proceed to the Namanga border post, complete immigration formalities and board the shuttle bus to Arusha, passing Mount Meru on the way in. You are met on arrival and transferred to your hotel, booked on a bed-and-breakfast basis; dinner is on your own account.

   Overnight

   Charity Hotel, ArushaKibo Palace Hotel Arusha

   Meals

   Breakfast

   

7. Day 7

   Arusha – Tarangire National Park

   After breakfast, depart for Tarangire National Park, arriving in time for lunch and an afternoon of game viewing in the 4x4 Land Cruiser. The park is noted for its multitude of baobab trees and its tree-climbing lions, and lesser kudu, eland, gerenuk and lion can all be found here, along with the elephant herds that gather along the Tarangire River in the dry season. The day ends with dinner and time to unwind.

   Overnight

   Fanaka Campsite, TarangireTarangire Simba Lodge

   Meals

   Breakfast, lunch and dinner

8. Day 8

   Tarangire – Ngorongoro

   After breakfast, drive to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. In the afternoon, descend 2,000 feet (over 600 metres) to the crater floor for a crater tour with picnic lunches. Explore the forest areas inhabited by monkeys and elephant, the soda lake where flamingo may be seen, and the open savanna where the lions hunt, with hyena, buffalo and zebra never far away. Return after the day's game viewing for dinner and your overnight stay.

   Overnight

   Simba Campsite, NgorongoroNgorongoro Serena Safari Lodge

   Meals

   Breakfast, picnic lunch and dinner

9. Day 9

   Ngorongoro – Serengeti

   Drive to Serengeti National Park via Olduvai Gorge, the site of Louis and Mary Leakey's renowned archaeological discoveries; the museum, whose findings include some of the earliest known ancestral human remains, can be visited at extra cost. Lunch at Seronera camp, then an afternoon game drive on the endless plains for a chance to see the great herds of wildebeest, zebra and gazelle, or a pride of lions lounging in the shade. Dinner and overnight at camp.

   Overnight

   Seronera Camp, SerengetiSerengeti Serena Safari Lodge

   Meals

   Breakfast, lunch and dinner

10. Day 10

    Serengeti – Lake Manyara

    Enjoy an early morning game drive before breakfast, when the Serengeti's predators are most active, then return to camp for a late breakfast and a relaxed mid-morning. Depart for Lake Manyara with lunch en route, crossing the Ngorongoro highlands and descending the escarpment. On arrival, take an evening game drive in the park until sunset. Dinner and overnight at camp.

    Overnight

    Fanaka Campsite, Lake ManyaraLake Manyara Serena Safari Lodge

    Meals

    Breakfast, lunch and dinner

    

11. Day 11

    Lake Manyara – Arusha

    After breakfast, a morning game drive in Lake Manyara National Park, whose inhabitants include hippo, monkeys, tree-climbing lions, flamingo and a wide variety of other birdlife, in a setting of groundwater forest and lakeshore beneath the Rift Valley wall. Lunch at camp, then drive back to Arusha for drop-off at your hotel, where the evening is free.

    Overnight

    Charity Hotel, ArushaKibo Palace Hotel Arusha

    Meals

    Breakfast and lunch

12. Day 12

    Arusha – Nairobi / Airport

    After breakfast in Arusha, our partner takes you to the shuttle bus for Nairobi, where you are met and transferred to the airport or your Nairobi hotel. If you are flying out of Kilimanjaro or Arusha airport instead, you are transferred directly from the hotel for your flight home or to another destination. Tell us your flight details when booking so the correct transfer is arranged.

    Meals

    Breakfast

Your questions, answered.