For an unparalleled safari adventure, embark on this 11-day luxury odyssey safari to Tanzania and Kenya, blending the best of both East African safari destinations. Immerse yourself in the iconic landscapes of Masai Mara National Reserve and Serengeti National Park, allowing ample time to witness the thrilling wildebeest migration. Encounter the Big Five in Ngorongoro and indulge in additional game drives in the captivating settings of Lake Manyara National Park and Amboseli National Park.
Upon arrival at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO) you will be met by Signature Safaris’ representative and drive you to your accommodation in Nairobi for overnight stay waiting for your adventures to start on the following day.
Destination: Nairobi City
Accommodation: Mövenpick Hotel & Residences Nairobi
Meal plan: Bed & Breakfast
Following breakfast, you'll set off from Nairobi, embarking on a scenic journey southward towards Masai Mara National Reserve. Pausing along the way to admire the breathtaking vista of the Great Rift Valley, you'll reach the reserve in time for a leisurely lunch at the lodge. An afternoon game drive awaits, offering you the opportunity to explore this iconic reserve. Renowned for being home to the entire Big Five, Masai Mara National Reserve also serves as the stage for the awe-inspiring annual wildebeest migration, providing a spectacular backdrop for your inaugural day on safari.
Destination: Masai Mara National Reserve
Accommodation: Ashnil Mara Camp
Meal plan: Full Board (Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner)
After breakfast, we embark on a full-day game drive with a packed lunch provided. The reserve is renowned for its black-maned lions and abundant resident wildlife, and it's one of the few places where you can spot the Big Five during a morning game drive. Many cheetahs in the reserve are so accustomed to vehicles that they often seek shade beneath them and occasionally climb onto the roofs for a better view of potential prey. Bird enthusiasts will be thrilled to know that almost 500 species have been recorded here, including 16 species of eagles, numerous hawks and falcons, 6 species of vultures, 8 species of storks, 4 species of bustards (including the Kori bustard, the world's heaviest flying bird), and 9 species of sunbirds.
Destination: Masai Mara National Reserve
Accommodation: Ashnil Mara Camp
Meal plan: Full Board (Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner)
After breakfast, you'll head to the Mara Serena Airstrip for your flight to Tanzania's Serengeti National Park. Upon landing in the park, a Signature Safaris’ driver will be there to greet you. From there, you'll embark on an afternoon game drive through the renowned park. The Serengeti, known for its expansive populations of wildebeest, zebras, and antelopes, offers picturesque landscapes and abundant wildlife. It's an ideal location to spot predators like lions, leopards, and cheetahs, as well as herbivores such as elephants, hippos, and giraffes.
Destination: Serengeti National Park
Accommodation: Embalakai Authentic Camps
Meal plan: Full Board (Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner)
As you crest the hillside, the vast Serengeti unfolds before you, stretching as far as the eye can see. Serengeti, meaning "endless plains" in Kiswahili, spans 6,900 square miles (18,000 square km) and is home to over two million large animals, including more than a million wildebeest, hundreds of thousands of plains zebras, and Thomson's gazelles. Large predators such as lions, cheetahs, and hyenas are drawn to the area by the abundance of prey migrating throughout the park. Numerous smaller animals, including rock hyraxes, bat-eared foxes, mongooses, honey badgers, jackals, monkeys, baboons, and African hares, also inhabit this diverse ecosystem, along with nearly 500 species of birds. You'll enjoy an afternoon game drive en route to the campsite. Dinner and your overnight stay will be at a public campsite or private tented camp/lodge.
Destination: Serengeti National Park
Accommodation: Embalakai Authentic Camps
Meal plan: Full Board (Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner)
Early morning after breakfast, you will drive straight from Northern Serengeti to Ngorongoro conservation area en-route whereby you will arrive in the late afternoon at your accommodation on the rim of the crater for relaxation, dinner and overnight before your game drive inside the crater on the following day.
Destination: Ngorongoro Conservation Area
Accommodation: Rhino Lodge
Meal plan: Full Board (Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner)
Early morning after breakfast at your accommodation, you will descend down the crater. The Ngorongoro Crater is the world’s largest intact volcanic caldera forming a spectacular bowl of about 265 square kilometres, with sides up to 600 metres deep and is home to approximately 30,000 mammals. The crater floor consists of a number of different habitats that include grassland, swamps, forests and Lakes filled by the Munge River. All these various environments attract wildlife to drink, wallow, graze, hide or climb. The crater offers a breathtakingly beautiful scenery and is the best place in East Africa to see the ‘Big Five’ (elephant, rhinoceros, buffalo, lion and rarely leopard). Any safari in northern Tanzania should ideally include a visit to the Ngorongoro Crater. It is one of the most beautiful nature safari locations in the world and an extraordinary place to meet people from the Massai tribe. The Ngorongoro Crater offers excellent birding, with over 500 species. You will have packed picnic lunch boxes with you and after having lunch at the picnic site, you will proceed with game drive until the late afternoon where you will ascend the crater and drive straight to your accommodation in Karatu for relaxation, dinner and overnight.
Destination: Ngorongoro crater
Accommodation: Marera Valley Lodge
Meal plan: Full Board (Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner)
In the early morning, following breakfast at your accommodation, your
journey continues towards Lake Manyara National Park. Though one of
Tanzania's smallest parks, spanning approximately 335 square kilometers with
a lake surface of about 230 square kilometers, it packs a punch in
biodiversity. Renowned as the realm of tree-climbing lions and a haven for
bird enthusiasts, the park hosts a plethora of avian species, including
thousands of flamingos during the wet season. Keep your binoculars handy for
sightings of great white pelicans, yellow-billed storks, Marabou storks,
grey herons, palm-nut vultures, hawks, and more. Wildlife abounds within
Lake Manyara, with elephants, wildebeest, zebra, Thomson's gazelle, and
Grant's gazelle among the many species to be spotted. Predators such as
lions, hyenas, and black-backed jackals add to the park's allure.
After Lunch, you will drive back to Arusha for dinner and overnight stay.
Destination: Lake Manyara National Park
Accommodation: Pazuri Inn
Meal plan: Full Board (Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner)
After breakfast, you'll leave Arusha and commence your journey back to Kenya. The drive itself offers scenic views, and you'll once again navigate immigration procedures, meeting your new driver before heading to the park. Amboseli National Park earns its moniker as the 'Royal Court of Kilimanjaro' for good reason, as you'll discover during the afternoon game drive. Amidst this expedition, you'll encounter herds of wildebeest and zebras, majestic lions, stealthy hyenas, a variety of antelopes, and some of Kenya's most substantial elephant herds—all framed against the striking backdrop of Mount Kilimanjaro.
Destination: Amboseli National Park
Accommodation: Ol Tukai Lodge
Meal plan: Full Board (B, L & D)
You'll rise early today for a chance to witness the majestic Mount Kilimanjaro at dawn. Known as the 'Roof of Africa,' this towering peak can be elusive, but the early morning light provides the optimal opportunity to behold the tallest mountain on the continent. Afterwards, you'll return to Nairobi, where you'll be transported to either the airport or your hotel.
Destination: Amboseli National Park
Meal plan: Breakfast & Lunch
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