Kenya Tanzania Birding Safari Tour Adventure - 15 Days

Itinerary of the 15 Days Kenya Tanzania Birding Safari Tour Adventure: DAY 1 - Arrive in Nairobi - You will be met off your flight by a representative. The Jomo Kenyatta International Airport is located 20kms from the capital city, Nairobi. - The temperatures are warm and moderate. It is inhabited by more than 4,000,000 people of all races offering a wide variety of different cultures. - Overnight at the Nairobi Safari Club on bed and breakfast. DAY 2 - Nairobi - Mount Kenya National Park Safari - Commence your safari at 9:00 am and drive north to Mount Kenya National Park at the Mountain Lodge Serena in time for lunch. - The only ‘tree hotel’ ever to be built on the slopes of Kenya’s legendary Mount Kenya, Mountain Lodge offers a matchless game viewing opportunity whilst combining a glorious panorama of mountain vistas with the primordial splendors of an ancient rainforest. - Floating 2,195 m high on the flanks of Kenya’s highest mountain and secreted deep within her largest forest reserve, the lodge offers not only the champagne-clarity of mountain air, the tranquility of the forest and a colorful cavalcade of wildlife but also the chance of scaling the icy peaks of Africa’s second-highest mountain. - Afternoon forest walks, leisure, and overnight floodlit game viewing. - Dinner and overnight stay at Mountain Lodge Serena (BLD). DAY 3 - Mount Kenya National Park Safari - Samburu Game Reserve Holidays - After breakfast, it continues north to Samburu Game Reserve arriving in time for lunch. - Afternoon game drives in the area. Samburu Game Reserve lies in the lower curve of the dry northern Kenya region. The main water source, the Uaso Nyiro River, feeds the riverine forest and swamps. The patches of forest and doum palm dotting the landscape provide an ideal setting for primates, hippo, and crocodile. Elephant families visit the river’s shallows to immerse in the cool water. - Dinner and overnight at Samburu Sopa Lodge (BLD). DAY 4 - Samburu Game Reserve Holidays - Full day in Samburu with game drives in the morning and afternoon. - All meals and overnight at Samburu Sopa Lodge (BLD). - There have been more than 390 bird species recorded in Samburu and Buffalo Springs national reserves. The reserves protect a variety of habitats, home to different bird species including arid acacia savannah, scrub and gallery forest alongside the Uaso Nyiro River. The dry, open country offers very rewarding birding opportunities and boasts a number of northeast African dry-country species shared with Ethiopia and Somalia, such as vulturine guineafowl, Somali bee-eater, and golden-breasted starling. DAY 5 - Samburu Game Reserve Holidays - Sweetwaters Game Sanctuary Holidays - After breakfast depart to this private game sanctuary. - The afternoon is free for optional activities as game viewing, walking safaris or night game drives. Includes a visit to a chimpanzee sanctuary. - The sanctuary also boasts of “The Big Five” (lion, leopard, elephant, rhino, and buffalo) plus an exciting catalog of; giraffe, zebra, Eland, Oryx, waterbuck, Grant’s gazelle, Thompson’s gazelle, cheetah, silver-backed jackal, hartebeest, baboon, and several hundred bird species. - Sweetwaters Tented Camp is designed to offer a charming blend of under canvas ambiance and uncompromising luxury. One of only four private game reserves in Kenya, it also allows such unforgettable pleasures as night game drives, guided bush walks and both horse or camel riding across its game-teaming plains. - Lunch, dinner & overnight at Sweetwaters Tented Camp, B, L, D. DAY 6 - Sweetwaters Game Sanctuary Holidays - Lake Nakuru National Park Adventure - After breakfast we depart to Lake Nakuru National Park via Nyahururu Falls, arriving for lunch. In the afternoon proceed on a game drive along the lakeshores. - Lake Nakuru National Park was created in 1961, and since then the park has increased considerably in size and now covers an area of 200sq km. The lake lies in the park and has been given the conservation world’s Ramsar Site designation. It is a shallow soda lake, and is the most famous of the Great Rift Valley lakes with “the world’s greatest ornithological spectacle”. - There is the opportunity of viewing thousands of flamingos along with tens of thousands of other bird species. There are areas of grassland, bush, forest, and rocky cliffs and there are many other animals to be viewed: white rhino, the rare Rothchild’s giraffe, waterbucks, warthogs, large herds of buffalo, Thomson’s gazelle, leopard, hyrax, hippos and many more animals. - Return for dinner and overnight Flamingo Hill Camp or Lake Nakuru Lodge (BLD). DAY 7 - Lake Nakuru National Park Adventure - Masai Mara Game Reserve Adventure - Depart after breakfast and drive across the floor of the Great Rift Valley to Masai Mara Game Reserve. - Arrive for lunch and afternoon game drive. - Overnight at Mara Sopa Lodge (BLD). - Lake Nakuru is a great birding destination with more than 500 species recorded. The soda lake is a birding hotspot and supports a lot of birdlife, including large flocks of pelicans. Unfortunately, flamingos are no longer the drawcard here as unfavorable conditions have driven them to other Rift Valley lakes. Nakuru is also one of the best places in Kenya to see the striking, long-tailed widowbird. There is a good variety of raptors including Verreaux’s and long-crested eagle. DAY 8 - Masai Mara Game Reserve Tours - Spend the full day in the Masai Mara with morning and afternoon game drives. - Overnight at Mara Sopa Lodge (BLD). - The Masai Mara isn’t one of Kenya’s birding hotspots. However, with more than 500 bird species recorded, this isn’t a bad place to mark off a lot of Kenya’s savannah species from your bird list. The park is particularly rich in raptors with 57 species present. Bateleurs can often be seen soaring above the grassy plains and predator kills are a good place to find six species of vultures scavenging. Migratory birds are present from November to April. Optional activities: -Visit a local Maasai village for a Maasai cultural tour: US$25 per person. -Hot air balloon ride: US$450 per person. DAY 9 - Masai Mara - Lake Victoria, Speke Bay Tours - After an early breakfast, drive to Speke Bay Lodge on the shores of Lake Victoria via the Isebania border post with picnic lunch. - The afternoon is free for activities like bird watching, fishing, nature walks, and boating. - Overnight at Speke Bay Lodge (BLD). - There are several excellent birding areas around Lake Victoria. The Swamps are one of the last refuges of the endangered Papyrus Gonolek and Papyrus Yellow Warbler, while Ruma is the only place in Kenya where the migratory Blue Swallow has been sighted. DAY 10 - Lake Victoria - Serengeti National Park Tours - Drive from Speke Bay to Serengeti arriving in time for lunch. - Afternoon game drive. - Overnight at Serengeti Sopa Lodge (BLD). - The Serengeti has more than 500 bird species recorded, and the Serengeti-Mara ecosystem is one of Africa’s Endemic Bird Areas (land important for habitat-based bird conservation), hosting five bird species found nowhere else, half of which are confined to the Tanzanian portion of the ecosystem. DAY 11 - Serengeti National Park Travel - Full day in Serengeti with morning and afternoon game drives. - Overnight at Serengeti Sopa Lodge (BLD). Optional activities: -Visit a local Maasai village for a Maasai cultural tour: US$ 70 per group. -Hot air balloon ride: US$ 500 per person. DAY 12 - Serengeti National Park Travel - Ngorongoro Crater Travel - Morning game drives in Serengeti. After lunch drive to Ngorongoro Crater via the Olduvai Gorge. - Overnight at Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge (BLD). - Both the Ngorongoro highlands and the crater offer excellent birding, with over 500 species recorded. Birdlife in the highland forest is rich and interesting. Among the birds to be seen are white-eyed slaty flycatcher and Livingstone turaco. A number of specialized grassland birds are resident in the crater. Most noticeable are an ostrich, kori bustard, crowned crane, and the secretary bird. Migratory birds are present from November to April. DAY 13 - Ngorongoro Crater - Lake Manyara Travel - Half-day Ngorongoro crater tour with a picnic lunch. - to Lake Manyara National Park for an evening game drive. - Overnight at Lake Manyara Serena Lodge (BLD). - Manyara provides the perfect introduction to Tanzania’s birdlife. More than 400 species have been recorded. Even a first-time visitor to Africa can reasonably expect to observe 100 of these in one day. A big array of water-associated birds including pink-backed pelicans, herons and storks, sacred and glossy ibis, and black egret are easily seen around the hippo pool. When the water level is right, the lake is also home to thousands of pink-hued flamingo, but it isn’t usually possible to see the big flocks due to limited roads near the water’s edge. More than 50 birds-of-prey have been recorded including the crowned eagle and African hawk-eagle. Migratory birds are present from November to April. DAY 14 - Lake Manyara - Amboseli National Park Vacation - Drive to Arusha and continue to Namanga border with picnic lunch en route. - Immigration and change of vehicles. - Continue to drive to Amboseli National Park with spectacular views of Mt. Kilimanjaro, Africa’s tallest peak. - Afternoon game drives to see the largest herds of elephants in Kenya against the backdrop of Kilimanjaro. - Overnight at Amboseli Sopa Lodge (BLD). - Amboseli is a good birding destination and more than 420 species have been recorded here. The swamps are great for water-associated birds such as egrets, herons, pelicans, and crowned cranes. Large numbers of flamingos may be present in the Wet seasons (March to May and October to December). The grassland areas offer some interesting ground birds such as Hartlaub’s bustard and the localized Pangani longclaw. The acacia woodland holds some dry country specials such as steel-blue whydah, white-bellied go-away bird and the Von der Decken’s hornbill. DAY 15 - Amboseli - Nairobi - Take an early morning game viewing drive in Amboseli. After breakfast, transfer back to Nairobi for lunch at the famous Carnivore Restaurant before transfer for your outward flight home or consider adding on our Zanzibar beach holiday package (BL).