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Odysseys: Classic Safari in Kenya & Tanzania
September 1 - 14, 2009
ITINERARY
Day 1
Depart U.S. for Nairobi, Kenya
Day 2
Arrive Nairobi
After arriving in Nairobi this evening, we transfer to our hotel.
Day 3
Nairobi We see highlights of Kenya's cosmopolitan capital city today, including the City Market, with produce, flowers, and handcrafts; and the house and museum of Danish writer Karen Blixen, who as Isak Dinesen wrote Out of Africa. Tonight we enjoy a welcome dinner at the hotel. B,D
Day 4
Nairobi/Masai Mara
This morning we drive via Narok to Masai Mara, Kenya's – and Africa's – premier game reserve rich with animal life and homeland of the native Maasai people. Known especially for its annual wildebeest migration, the Mara comprises 200 square miles of vast plains, acacia forests, grass-covered hills, and slow-flowing rivers. B,L,D
Day 5
Masai Mara
We spend today "on safari," venturing out on game drives during prime viewing hours to glimpse some of the lions, leopards, cheetahs, zebra, giraffe, gazelles, wildebeest, elephants, buffalo, hippo, rhino, and other wildlife that call the Mara home. When not out in the bush, we can enjoy the activities and amenities of our luxury tented camp including a spa and swimming pool, cultural and wildlife talks, and Maasi dance performances. B,L,D
Day 6
Masai Mara After a morning visit to a local school, again today we're on safari in this preserve that's almost the size of Rhode Island. As we explore we're sure to encounter native Maasai, the semi-nomadic people who have called the Mara home for millennia and whose deep-rooted culture dictates they live in harmony with the wildlife surrounding them; hence they rarely hunt. B,L,D
Day 7
Masai Mara/Amboseli
We fly today to Nairobi then drive to Amboseli National Park, in the shadow of snow-capped Mt. Kilimanjaro, the Maasi's "white mountain." Known for its large elephant population, Amboseli boasts wide dry plains teeming with herds of wildebeest, zebra, and impala – as we may see on this afternoon's game drive. Dinner tonight is at our lodge. B,L,D
Day 8
Amboseli Early this morning we visit a nearby Maasi village. Later: more game drives and time for relaxing at our lodge in the foothills of Kilimanjaro beneath a copse of feathered acacia trees. B,L,D
Day 9
Amboseli/Ngorongoro Conservation Area
Leaving Amboseli this morning, we cross the border into Tanzania at Namanga and continue onward to Arusha, where we stop for lunch. This afternoon we reach spectacular Ngorongoro, a UNESCO Conservation Area, International Biosphere Reserve, and site of Ngorongoro Crater, the world's largest intact volcanic caldera. On the crater's floor is Africa in microcosm: grassland, swamps, lakes, forests, mountains, and unparalleled wildlife, including the rare black rhino, hippos, wildebeest, zebra, eland, Grant's and Thomson's gazelles, and black-maned male lions count among its 25,000 creatures. And because they live within the confines of the steep-walled caldera, Ngorongoro's animals are less shy and more approachable than those at other reserves. B,L,D
Day 10
Ngorongoro Crater
On our morning tour of the 100-square-mile crater we have our only chance to see all of Africa's "Big Five" – elephant, buffalo, rhinoceros, lion, and leopard – in one place. We also may see semi-nomadic Maasai tribespeople engage in their age-old practice of grazing their cattle alongside the animals. This afternoon is at leisure to relax at our lodge on the crater's rim. B,L,D
Day 11
Ngorongoro Crater/Serengeti National Park We're bound this morning for the Serengeti, the Maasai's 5,700-square-mile "endless plain" considered Africa's finest park and one of the world's last great wildlife refuges. On the way we visit 31-mile Olduvai Gorge, where in 1959 anthropologist Mary Leakey discovered the 1.8 million-year-old skull of Australopithecus boisei – and revolutionized the study of human evolution. Reaching our Serengeti lodge, we embark on a game drive here this afternoon. B,L,D
Day 12
Serengeti
Twice a year (Nov-Dec and Mar-May), some 1.3 million wildebeest, 200,000 zebra, and 300,000 Thomson's gazelle migrate to new grazing lands between Masai Mara and the Serengeti, sparking one of nature's most spectacular sights. But the Serengeti's vast treeless plains teem with animal life year-round, and this is the best place to see lion and cheetah up close. Perhaps we will on today's two game drives. B,L,D
Day 13
Serengeti/Lake Manyara
Tanzania boasts some 13,000 square miles of protected national parkland, more than any other county. We travel today by minibus to peaceful Lake Manyara, one of Tanzania's smallest and most diverse national parks. Bordered by the dramatic Western Escarpment of the Great Rift Valley, Lake Manyara is notable for its abundant bird life (some 400 species, including masses of pink flamingoes), diverse vegetation, tree-climbing lions, and hippos. We take a game drive here this afternoon. B,L,D
Day 14
Lake Manyara On today's two game drives we're sure to see hippos, which we can get closer to here than anywhere else; as well as blue monkeys, lions, elephants, giraffes, impalas, zebras, and such bird life as the saddle-bill stork, knob-billed duck, and Hottentot teal. B,L,D
Day 15
Lake Manyara/Nairobi
Today we re-enter the urban world as we travel to Nairobi via Arusha. Tonight we celebrate our Africa adventure at a farewell dinner at a local restaurant. B,L,D
Day 16
Nairobi/Return to U.S.
After a day at leisure, we transfer to the Nairobi airport and board our connecting flight to the U.S. B
Day 17
Arrive U.S.
We reach New York this afternoon and connect with our flights home.
B=Breakfast Included L=Lunch Included D=Dinner Included
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We see highlights of Kenya's cosmopolitan capital city today, including the City Market, with produce, flowers, and handcrafts; and the house and museum of Danish writer Karen Blixen, who as Isak Dinesen wrote Out of Africa. Tonight we enjoy a welcome dinner at the hotel. B,D
After a morning visit to a local school, again today we're on safari in this preserve that's almost the size of Rhode Island. As we explore we're sure to encounter native Maasai, the semi-nomadic people who have called the Mara home for millennia and whose deep-rooted culture dictates they live in harmony with the wildlife surrounding them; hence they rarely hunt. B,L,D
We're bound this morning for the Serengeti, the Maasai's 5,700-square-mile "endless plain" considered Africa's finest park and one of the world's last great wildlife refuges. On the way we visit 31-mile Olduvai Gorge, where in 1959 anthropologist Mary Leakey discovered the 1.8 million-year-old skull of Australopithecus boisei – and revolutionized the study of human evolution. Reaching our Serengeti lodge, we embark on a game drive here this afternoon. B,L,D
On today's two game drives we're sure to see hippos, which we can get closer to here than anywhere else; as well as blue monkeys, lions, elephants, giraffes, impalas, zebras, and such bird life as the saddle-bill stork, knob-billed duck, and Hottentot teal. B,L,D
