2027 The Wonders of Kenya & Tanzania

Late this afternoon, we report to the airport and join the flight to Dubai.

We arrive in Dubai early this morning and after clearing Customs and Immigration formalities, we are met and transferred to our hotel for a two-night stay. There is time to rest up after the flight until mid-afternoon where we meet up to enjoy a visit to the Museum of the Future. One of Dubai’s most famous landmarks, the museum takes pride of place along the city’s superhighway, Sheikh Zayed Road. Founded by the Dubai Future Foundation and launched on 22 February 2022, the museum explores how society could evolve in the coming decades using science and technology. Termed a ‘living museum’, it incorporates elements of traditional exhibitions, immersive theatre and themed attractions, so visitors can look beyond the present and towards the future’s limitless possibilities. Visitors have the chance to engage with this game-changing technology. Each floor of the museum is designed like an expansive, interactive movie set, brought to life by expert storytellers, technologists and visionary artists. Early afternoon, we return to the hotel to relax. The remainder of the day is at leisure, until we meet up again for dinner this evening.

A morning transfer to the airport where we join the 5 hour flight to Nairobi. We are met on arrival at Jomo Kenyatta Airport and transferred to the Nairobi Serena Hotel, Nairobi’s finest hotel, for our overnight night stay.

After a leisurely morning, we then depart Nairobi and travel to our accommodation at Sweet Waters Tented Camp for a late lunch, with magnificent views across the plains to the snow-capped peaks of Mount Kenya. The lodge has a wonderful waterhole, floodlit at night, providing excellent and rarely seen game viewing. We have time this afternoon for our first game drive. We stay here for two nights.

This morning, we enjoy another game drive before returning to our lodge for breakfast. There is the opportunity for another game drive in the afternoon, or you can opt to relax and enjoy the facilities.

After breakfast, our drive takes us to the floor of the Great Rift Valley up the Mau Escarpment, destination Lake Nakuru National Park where the waters of the lake are often coloured shimmering Flamingo pink from thousands of birds lining the shore. We enjoy a hot lunch before proceeding on an afternoon game-viewing drive. We end the day at Soysambu Conservancy, where we can relax for 2 nights at our stunning accommodation, Lake Elmenteita Serena Luxury Camp.

After breakfast, the drive will take us to Lake Nakuru game reserve.  This is another famous lake that has a plentiful population of aquatic birds who enjoy the alkaline lake environment.

We drive to the Masai Mara National Reserve offering wonderful scenery and plenty of game. It is perhaps the only region left in Kenya where the visitor may see animals in the same super abundance as existed a century ago. We arrive at our camp in time for lunch and an afternoon game drive. Our accommodation is Ilkeliani Tented Camp. It is on this very terrain where the great annual migration takes place, when millions of wildebeest, zebra and gazelle traverse the landscape to feed on rich new grass and give birth to their young calves. The Masai Mara National Reserve is home to gazelle, wildebeest, zebra, giraffe, elephant, buffalo, cheetah, leopard, the legendary black-maned lion and many more. Our lodge is ideally located to enjoy this unique phenomenon.

Today we enjoy a full day here in the Mara. We have morning and afternoon game drives to make the most of witnessing the plentiful game in this part of the Mara.

Today we travel to our next lodge, Mara Entim Private Camp – nestled on the Mara River. Be immersed in the heart of the wilderness with an air of refined comfort and exclusivity.

Today, we can take some time out to relax and enjoy our surroundings. The early risers may wish to enjoy an optional balloon ride offering spectacular views over the region or you may wish to have another morning game drive. For some, just sitting by the wonderful elevated pool enjoying the most expansive view will suit just fine.

This morning we fly from the Mara to the Serengeti National Park, (with a stop at the border to clear customs) , undoubtedly the most famous wildlife sanctuary in the world, unequalled for its natural beauty and the greatest concentration of game anywhere. The exquisite Kirawira Tented Camp stands high on the bluff of a bush-cloaked ridge, commanding panoramic views over the endlessly rolling reaches and volcanic reefs of the Serengeti National Park. The tented camp is the epitome of colonially-styled safari luxury. We spend 4 nights at this lodge.

A full day in the Serengeti with game drives and the opportunity to relax. (Look out for the surprise breakfast today!).  It was 1913 and great stretches of Africa were still unknown to the white man when Stewart Edward White, an American hunter, set out from Nairobi. Pushing south, he recorded: “We walked for miles over burnt out country… Then I saw the green trees of the river, walked two miles more and found myself in paradise.” He had found Serengeti which has come to symbolize paradise to many, especially the Masai, who have grazed their cattle on the vast grassy plains for millennia. To them it was Siringitu – “the place where the land goes on forever.”

We spend another full day in the Serengeti, enjoying the surroundings and viewing wildlife. The wildlife is plentiful, the landscape is fascinating and our lodge is filled with all the comforts one could need.

Take time to enjoy this very special part of the Serengeti today. More game drives, or maybe time to sit and watch the landscape unfold before you.

We drive to the Ngorongoro Crater, the largest intact caldera in the world. Its endearing charm stems from its overwhelming physical beauty and the abundance of wildlife permanently resident on the crater floor. En route, we visit Olduvai Gorge, site of archeological findings where traces of pre-historic man dating back 3.5 million years have been discovered. We arrive at our lodge in time for lunch with the remainder of the day at leisure. We spend 2 nights at Serena Ngorongoro Lodge.

The jewel in Ngorongoro’s crown is the deep volcanic crater, the largest un-flooded and unbroken caldera in the world. About 20kms across, 600 meters deep and 300 square kms in area, the crater is a breath-taking natural wonder. It contains a huge number and variety of wildlife and fauna.  We have the full day to explore the crater. Tonight we enjoy our last dinner together in Africa overlooking the Crater.

Today we drive to Arusha for our last evening in Africa. Time to relax and enjoy our time here.

This morning we cross the border back into Kenya and on to Nairobi where we join our flight to Dubai. Arrival time is late evening and overnight accommodation is reserved at the airport.

Time for the last leg of our journey on our flight home.

Arrive Auckland mid morning.