Kenya Wildlife Week - 7 days

On arrival into Nairobi airport you will be met and briefed on your safari before being transferred to our hotel in the Karen suburbs.

Nairobi - Nakuru. This morning we visit the Giraffe Centre which offers the unique experience of hand-feeding these gentle giants at eye level from a raised platform, while watching the warthogs below snuffle around looking for titbits. Then we travel on to the Daphne Sheldrick’s Centre and visit the many baby elephants that have been rescued from threatening situations in Kenya’s various national parks and even get a chance to see the calves being fed and playing with the staff.

Next stop is the Karen Blixen Museum. Located in an area which was once part of Karen Blixen’s vast coffee estate, the museum was Karen’s home from 1917 until 1931.The house and grounds were made famous by the film ‘Out of Africa ’and have been restored by the Danish community of Kenya. Visitors have a glimpse of typical colonial life in Kenya at the turn of the twentieth century.

After lunch at the lovely Karen Blixen Coffee Gardens, we depart on the next part of our adventure that takes us from the hustle and bustle of Nairobi city to Nakuru.

Lake Nakuru is situated in the middle of the national park to which it gives its name and we spend the day exploring this remarkable park, on a morning and afternoon game drive. Teeming with wildlife the park has so much to offer. Sometimes, when the water levels are low, the entire lake is covered in flamingos, turning the whole area pink. Lions, buffalos as well as many rhinos call this corner of Kenya home and a game drive around the park is always rewarding. If you're lucky you may even spot a leopard relaxing in a tree beside the lake.

Lake Nakuru - Masai Mara. Leaving the Great Rift Valley behind we drive to Kenya's famous Masai Mara, the setting for the Great Migration and countless wildlife documentaries. The Masai Mara is the highlight of any safari. We arrive for lunch at our camp and spend the rest of the afternoon relaxing by the pool and waiting for the late afternoon when the temperature cools to head out on our first Mara game drive. Back at the camp, dinner is served and gives us the perfect opportunity to look back at our day and relive all those highlights.

After breakfast this morning we drive across the plains in search of the Big Five and other plains game. The early mornings are one of the best times to view the animals as this is when they are their most active before the heat of the day sets in and after a mid-morning of relaxation and lunch, head out into the reserve for a chance to tick off some more animals on your “must see” list. Keep your eyes peeled as you hunt for the last members on your list.

This morning, there is the opportunity to rise early and experience a game viewing adventure from an entirely different perspective! A hot air balloon safari across the Masai Mara (at additional cost) which takes off in the crisp morning air, and lasts for approximately an hour, allows for a beautifully peaceful experience floating silently high above plains, forests and rivers. Upon landing a fully cooked breakfast awaits. More game viewing opportunities arise later that morning en-route back to camp and in the afternoon. In addition to the abundance of spectacular game, there are also over 450 species of birds that have been identified in the Masai Mara Ecosystem.

Masai Mara - Nairobi. This morning we enjoy our last sunrise in the Masai Mara with tea or coffee on the veranda. After a great final breakfast we drive back to Nairobi stopping at the Great Rift Valley for one last photo opportunity before you're dropped off at the Jomo Kenyatta airport. Onward international flights should depart no earlier than 6pm or 5pm for domestic flights. As we say in Swahili - Safari Njema!