DAY 1 Arrive in NairobiWe meet you at the airport and transfer you to your hotel, where the rest of the day if free for you to relax after your flight and start exploring the local area.
OVERNIGHTNairobi hotel
EXTRASSingle Room Supplement, Extra night - pre-tour
DAY 2 Transfer to Lake NaivashaToday we will meander inland to Lake Naivasha for a relaxing day on the lakeshore. You can go hiking in the area and activities include game and bird watching. One of the more popular optional activities is to go game viewing from a bicycle. An alternative way to spend your afternoon is to take high tea at Elsamere, the former home of Joy Adams, best known for her autobiographical novel, Born Free. Optional Activities: Cycle hire, High Tea at Elsamere
OVERNIGHTFish Eagle Inn
MEALSBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner
DAY 3 Masai MaraOur day begins with a game drive through Hell’s Gate National Park, before we enter the huge area of spectacular game viewing to photograph some of Africa’s most abundant wildlife, the Masai Mara. The Masai Mara is known as Africa’s Greatest Wildlife Reserve, famous for the abundance of lion, the Great Wildebeest Migration and the Masaai people, well known for their distinctive custom and dress; it is without a doubt one of Africa’s most famous safari destination.
OVERNIGHTMasai Mara Camp
MEALSBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner
DAY 4 Lake NakuruLeaving the Masai Mara, we travel north to Lake Nakuru where we will spend the afternoon game driving. Originally created as a bird sanctuary, Lake Nakuru was upgraded to National Park status in 1968. White rhino inhabit the transitional savannah area surrounding the lake, with excellent photographic opportunities.
OVERNIGHTKembu Lodge
MEALSBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner
DAY 5 Lake Nakuru / EntebbeLeaving Lake Nakuru we head towards Uganda, briefly stopping for a photo at the equator. Entebbe is situated on the northern shores of Lake Victoria, Africa’s largest lake. During our stay in Entebbe, we will have the opportunity to visit the Uganda Wildlife Education Centre, which originally opened in 1952 as an animal orphanage, but today is the Wildlife Education Centre. Optional activity: Visit Wildlife Education Centre
OVERNIGHTUganda Wildlife Education Centre
MEALSBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner
DAY 6 EntebbeToday is set aside for everyone to explore the area. Most people take an optional day trip to the Chimpanzee Sanctuary of Ngamba Island. This non-profit eco-friendly project was set up in 1998 to care for orphaned chimpanzees. Optional Activities: Ngamba Chimpanzee Excursion, visit the Uganda Wildlife Education Centre, Dinner Out.
OVERNIGHTUganda Wildlife Education Centre
MEALSBreakfast
DAY 7 Entebbe / Lake BunyonyiLake Bunyonyi is a small but attractive lake with steep sides and abundant birdlife. Ringed by mountains, the lake is best known for its dense Otter population and stunning scenery. We make use of this beautiful spot to relax the night before the final drive to the gorillas.
OVERNIGHTLake Bunyonyi Overland Resort
MEALSBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner
DAY 8-9 Gorillas (Lake Bunyonyi)The mountain gorilla is extremely endangered and while exact numbers vary it is widely assumed that there are only around 650 left. Visiting the gorillas is a great way to support their future on earth as the money spent on permits is used for their protection. An extremely important part of the future conservation of the remaining gorillas rests in the community development work – as local communities change their attitudes towards wildlife and start to protect rather than poach, the future of the mountain gorilla is assured.
As permits granting permission to visit the gorillas are extremely limited we require flexibility in both the tour itinerary and where we actually visit them. The home of the mountain gorillas is completely at odds with man-made borders and so their range encompasses Uganda, Rwanda and the DRC (Democratic Republic of the Congo). Whenever possible we choose to make use of the National Park in Uganda, but this depends on the availability of permits. Should we not obtain permits to visit the mountain gorillas in Uganda then we will inform all passengers beforehand that the tour will travel to Rwanda or DRC.
On your free day in Bunyonyi you will have the opportunity to participate in certain optional activities. You can embark on a boat ride to the community of the Batwa (pygmies) who stay in the islands adjacent to the lake to observe their social lifestyle, behaviour and be entertained by their cultural performances. You can also go hiking or explore the area on a mountain bike. Optional activities: Visit to the Batwa (Pygmies) tribe, mountain biking, nature walk, hiking.
Please note: Although there are 2 days allocated to Gorilla Trekking you will only spend one day on the trek. The other day are there to provide a large enough window in which to obtain permits and to allow the entire group to trek if there are more than 6 of you on the tour.
OVERNIGHTLake Bunyonyi Overland Resort
MEALSBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner
DAY 10-11 Queen Elizabeth National ParkLeaving Lake Bunyoni, we venture to the Queen Elizabeth National Park, where we will spend the next 2 nights. Many game species can be found in this wetland park as well as the (elsewhere elusive) giant forest hog, and the legendary tree-climbing lions of the Ishasha Sector. We will enjoy an included 4x4 game drive on day 10 through the NP. Optional Activities: Kasinga Channel Sunset Cruise, Chimpanzee trekking at Lake George.
OVERNIGHTHippo Hill Lodge
MEALSBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner
DAY 12-13 JinjaJinja is Uganda’s second largest city and more famous as the point where the Nile (officially the Victoria Nile) flows out of Lake Victoria and begins the 6695 kilometre journey to Egypt and the Mediterranean. Optional Activities: White Water Rafting.
OVERNIGHTNile River Explorers Camp
MEALSBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner
DAY 14 Kenya / EldoretReturning to Kenya we visit Eldoret, the country’s 5th largest city. The Great Rift Valley is still the dominant geographical feature of this region and the altitude at Eldoret is 2100 metres above sea level.
OVERNIGHTNaiberi River Camp
MEALSBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner
DAY 15 NairobiReturning to Nairobi, the largest city in the East Africa region, there’s an optional dinner, where we can swap stories and exchange contact details. Optional Activities: Meal out in Nairobi.
OVERNIGHTNairobi hotel
MEALSBreakfast, Lunch
DAY 16 Nairobi / Departure transferFree time until your departure airport transfer.
OVERNIGHTNone
MEALSBreakfast
EXTRASExtra night - post-tour