1 Arrive Arusha, Tanzania
Tour begins: Rivertrees Country Inn. Transfers are included from Kilimanjaro International Airport to Rivertrees Country Inn near Arusha for an overnight stay in a Garden Room. Meet your fellow travelers in the morning. Stay: Rivertrees Country Inn
2 Arusha, Tanzania
Set out for a two-night safari to Ngorongoro Crater, once a gigantic volcano and today regarded as the largest intact caldera in the world where wildlife thrives. Stop en route for a visit at an Isoitik Village. Here, you'll have an opportunity to participate in a medicine walk and learn how the Masai people use the local vegetation for various medicinal cures. You'll also have the opportunity to visit a school followed by lunch in the bush. Continue on to your small, intimate lodge and spa set above a valley with stunning views, for a two-night stay. The surrounding Ngorongoro Conservation Area is home to some 30,000 large mammals. Join us for a welcome reception and dinner at the lodge. Stay Two Nights: Kitela Lodge (B/L/D)
3 Garden Of Eden In Ngorongoro Crater
Experience the Africa of bygone days when you go on a game drive in the “lost world” of Ngorongoro Crater, considered by many to have been Africa’s original “Garden of Eden.” From aboard your four-wheel-drive vehicle, you’ll have an opportunity to spot Africa’s renowned Big Five: buffalo, elephant, leopard, the lion and the endangered, rare black rhinoceros, as well as herds of zebras, wildebeest and gazelles roaming life-giving landscapes of grasslands, swamps and forests. Enjoy a picnic lunch in the crater before returning to your lodge for free time and dinner at leisure. (B/L/D)
4 Fly To The Serengeti
In Maasai, the word Serengeti means “the place where the land moves on forever.” See why when you fly to Serengeti National Park this morning where over a million wildebeest and some 200,000 zebras make a trek from the southern Serengeti to the Masai Mara and back again every year. In spite of the dangers they face from crocodiles or weather conditions, they are driven by a deeply held instinct to constantly search for food and water. Their annual trek takes them through a variety of parks, reserves and protected areas with different habitats. Check into your semi permanent mobile camp for a memorable three-night stay in the heart of the park, then join an expert tracker for an eye-opening afternoon game drive into the Serengeti wilderness. Dinner is served back at the camp this evening. Stay Three Nights: Legendary Serengeti Mobile Camp (B/L/D)
5 Game Drives In Serengeti Nat'l Park
Today, get ready for a game drive through Serengeti National Park (either in the morning or afternoon, depending on the migration of the animals). Look for lions, hyenas, leopards, cheetahs, jackals, gazelles, zebras, elephants, hippos and more as you traverse the park, all while experiencing unforgettable panoramic views of the passing landscape. The rest of the day is at your leisure and tonight, sleep to the sounds of nearby wildlife. (B/L/D)
6 More Game Drives In The Serengeti
Morning and afternoon game drives keep you on the move with the animals that pass through the Serengeti; on days when the migration is in full force, spend the entire day experiencing this amazing wildlife phenomenon as herds of wildebeest, gazelles and zebras thunder by... with a few hungry big cats tailing behind. (B/L/D)
7 Fly To Masai Mara
An early morning flight out of the Serengeti whisks you to the shores of Lake Victoria then onto Kenya where you land in the Masai Mara National Reserve for a two-night stay at a tented camp that looks out onto the Sabaringo River and the plains of the Masai Mara, one of the world’s richest wildlife reserves. Head out after lunch for a game drive that offers the opportunity to view an array of animals, including zebras, cheetahs, wildebeest, gazelles and the “Big Five,” up close. Stay Two Nights: &Beyond Kichwa Camp (B/L/D)
8 Experience The Wildlife Of The Masai Mara
Wake up early for a hot air balloon ride* at dawn this morning that takes you above the treetops for panoramic views of the wildlife herds that roam the Masai Mara Reserve. Descend to enjoy breakfast and champagne in the bush before a game drive en route back to your lodge. Enjoy some free time before a late afternoon game drive takes you once more through the Masai Mara. Tonight, join us for a farewell cocktail reception followed by dinner as your adventurous Africa journey comes to a close. (B/L/D)
9 Depart Nairobi, Kenya
Tour ends: Nairobi International Airport. Depart your tented camp after breakfast this morning for a flight to Nairobi and a drive to the quiet suburb of Karen, Kenya. Tauck has reserved day rooms at Hemingways hotel so you can relax and repack before your flight home. Have dinner at the hotel before your included transfer from Hemingways Nairobi to Nairobi International Airport. Allow a minimum of three hours for your flight check in. (B/L/D)
