Accommodation: Amboseli Sopa Lodge
Meal Plan: Full Board - Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Activity: Transfer to Amboseli National Park; enjoy an afternoon game drive.

After a delicious breakfast at the Eka Hotel, you will start to taste the real Africa on the rustic road to Amboseli National Park.  This park, located on the Tanzanian border, is considered the best place to see free-ranging elephants in all of Africa.  You will also see plenty of giraffes, lions, and cheetahs in a variety of habitats including marshes, plains, woodlands and more.  Mount Kilimanjaro, the world’s highest free-standing mountain, watches over this national treasure.  The afternoon game drive will show all these wonders to you and more.  It will be hard to tear yourself away from the park, but it will be well worth it to stay in the Amboseli Sopa Lodge, a truly authentic African lodge which features incredible views.  After a relaxing dinner, you will sleep well in huts that offer the ultimate in comfort.  Because the lodge is off the beaten track, you will be able to see a considerable amount of wildlife right outside your door.

Accommodation: Amboseli Sopa Lodge
Meal Plan: Full Board – Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Activity: Morning and afternoon game drives.
Optional: Visit to Tribal Village & Walking Safari

You will be glad to have a second day at Amboseli National Park as the morning and afternoon game drives offer completely different experiences.  The park is home to more than 400 bird species as well as wildebeests, zebras, white rhinos and other wildlife – there is no telling what you will see.  Every hour of the day is different, and every season of the year is different, which means that every game drive is different, so be sure to have your cameras prepped and ready for some stunning photos and videos in both the morning and afternoon.  At mid-day, when the heat drives all of East Africa into the shade, you can lounge in the Amboseli Sopa Lodge’s pool, take a siesta in your comfortable room or meet fellow travelers for a refreshing drink at the bar.  An optional visit to a tribal village or a walking safari is available.

Accommodation: Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge
Meal Plan: Full board – Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Activity: Cross border into Tanzania.  Transfer to Ngorongoro.

After breakfast we drive to the border town of Namanga and cross into Tanzania. We proceed to Ngorongoro Crater, a collapsed volcano and bucolic sanctuary supporting a wide array of wildlife, including the elusive black rhino. The Ngorongoro Crater itself is all that remains of a long-extinct volcano. The 2000-foot high crater rim encloses a depression measuring 100 square miles, which provides water and vegetation for wildlife, as well as the cattle of the Maasai people. You are very likely to witness Maasai herders and their cattle passing through the area. Stay the next two nights at the Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge, perched on the rim of the 2,000-foot-deep natural amphitheater, overlooking a landscape, where people and animals coexist in harmony.

Accommodation: Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge
Meal Plan: Full Board – Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Activity: Enjoy a full day of exploring the crater with picnic lunch and game viewing.

Today we shall pack a picnic lunch and spend the day within the crater. There are around 30,000 large animals within the crater, so you are bound to see lots of wildlife: large herds of wildebeest, antelope and zebras roam the landscape, often being pursued by hyenas, cheetahs or lions. The lake inside the crater is home to numerous colorful bird species, and you can see hippos lounging in the water. Every so often, visitors see impressive bull elephants passing through the crater area in search of water, though herds with cows and calves are rare. You can also visit a Maasai village to learn more about what living in this unique area is like, as well as getting acquainted with the Maasai culture. This is a key part of a safari in Tanzania.

Accommodations:  Serengeti Sopa Lodge
Meal Plan: Full board – Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Activity: Transfer by road to Serengeti with game viewing and stop at Olduvai Gorge en route.

After a hearty safari breakfast, you leave Ngorongoro and drive to Olduvai Gorge, the site where remains from prehistoric people were first found. You proceed to your final destination on this day, the Serengeti, one of the most diverse ecosystems in the world. All of the various animal and plant species are dependent on the sparse rainfall, as well as on each other. A variety of different vegetation zones make up the park. Grasslands with both short and tall grasses are in the dry south, which receives an average of 19 inches of rain per year. A savannah abounding with acacia trees is in the center, and the western area has more heavily wooded highland areas, complete with what is known as 'black cotton' soil. This last area follows a sweeping curve around the edge of Lake Victoria. There is wooded grassland to the north and tributaries from the Mara and Grumeti rivers flow through this region.

Accommodation: Serengeti Sopa Lodge
Meal Plan: Full board – Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Activity: Morning and afternoon game drives.

On this day we set out in search of cheetahs, lions and leopards in pursuit of prey. Take an optional hot air balloon ride over the Serengeti plains (at an additional cost), viewing wildlife — hippos, wildebeests and Thompson’s gazelle — from above. The Serengeti houses abundant life beyond its mammal population, including over 500 species of birds. Watch, too, for eagles, known to glide effortlessly over the Lobo Hills and sun-scorched landscape; lightning-fast cheetahs, who prowl the southeastern plains; and untold plains-grazers, who become unwitting prey. During down time, relax at the pool, pore over a good book in your room or absorb the warm, golden glow of African sunset.

Accommodation: Serenity on The Lake Retreat
Meal Plan: Full board – Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Activity: Leisurely drive to Lake Victoria; afternoon at leisure & optional activities.

After breakfast enjoy a morning game drive as we head toward western Serengeti and onwards to the shores of Lake Victoria.  Upon arrival we check into the Serenity on The Lake Retreat, a wonderful new property situated on the beautiful shores of Lake Victoria, the largest fresh water lake in Africa and the second largest in the world!  Here we rest and relax. We have the option to take a boat trip on the lake, enjoy a nature or bird walk if we choose.

Accommodation: Mara Sopa Lodge
Meal Plan: Full board – breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Activity: Cross border back into Kenya and proceed to Maasai Mara.

When those of us in the west hear the term “African Safari” the picture that comes to mind is the Maasai Mara Reserve, which is where you are going today.  Here is where you’ll find the grasslands, the lions, the jackals, the wildebeests and more.  This will also be your opportunity to get to know the Maasai, the semi-nomadic natives of Kenya.  These cattle-herding people have managed to preserve their way of life through the centuries; visiting them is an enriching experience. Tonight you’ll stay at the Mara Sopa Lodge, set in expansive and mature wooded gardens. The lodge has an ethnic design that incorporates traditional round buildings with thatched roofs for its guest rooms and public areas.

Accommodation: Mara Sopa Lodge
Meal Plan: Full board – breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Activity: Morning and afternoon game drives.
Optional: Visit to tribal village and walking safari.

Game drives are offered both in the morning and in the afternoon, to allow you the best chance of seeing some wildlife.  You are likely to see buffalo, prides of lions, zebra, hyenas, antelope, cheetahs, wildebeest, and giraffes.  If you would like an even closer look, you can take a walking safari with a local ranger.  You will also want to consider stopping by the tribal village to experience Maasai culture and learn more about their ways.  Relax and enjoy a nap in between game drives and other activities in your comfortable accommodations.  The lodge has a bar area with a pool, and the camp also has a pool.

Accommodation: Lake Naivasha Sopa Lodge
Meal Plan: Full Board – Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Activity: Morning and afternoon game drives.

Today leave the Mara enjoying a game drive enroute to Lake Naivasha.  Lake Naivasha and Lake Nakuru are both located in the Great Rift Valley which bisects much of Kenya.  The Rift Valley is an active continental rift zone where the African plate is busy splitting into two new plates - namely the Somali and Nubian Plates.  Lake Naivasha – which means ‘rough water’ in Masaai – is a freshwater lake just north of Nairobi and is easily accessible by road from the capital. Sitting at the highest point on the Kenyan Rift Valley, Lake Naivasha has amazing views of the escarpment and is a photographers dream. The lake is home to a sizeable hippo population that has flourished on the plentiful fish in its fresh waters. You can sign up for optional activities on-site.  Activities include Crescent Island boat tour, hiking and day trip excursions to Mt Longonot and Hell's Gate, or simply walk along the lakeshore and relax at your lodge.

Meal Plan: Breakfast.
Activity: Transfer by road to Nairobi and transfer to airport for your departure flight home.

You will start your last day at Lake Naivasha Sopa Lodge with your final breakfast. As you prepare to depart you reflect on a truly special experience.  When you’re ready, your host will transfer you to Nairobi. Upon arrival in Nairobi, your driver-guide will drive you to the airport and see that you get to your flight in plenty of time. We want the last hours of your Kenya Tanzania Select safari to be as relaxed and trouble-free as the rest of the trip has been.