Trips & Tours: Best of East Africa

Leaving the hustle and bustle of Nairobi we head towards our first overnight stop at Lake Nakuru National Park, famous for the thousands of lesser and greater flamingos that flock to this soda lake’s edge. The numbers vary depending on the water level, and when it’s low, the lake almost turns pink. A truly spectacular sight! The park was established as a sanctuary for black and white rhino, which are often seen. We spend the afternoon searching for these pre-historic looking beasts as well as the elusive leopard, encountering buffalo, giraffe, various antelope and the occasional hippo along the way. We overnight at a campsite within the Park.

Moving south-east, we head to Lake Naivasha, home to a multitude of bird life, the most magnificent being the African Fish Eagle with his regal cry. At 1880 m, this is the highest of the Rift Valley lakes. Time permitting, we spend the afternoon enjoying optional excursions like Elsamere High Tea (home to Joy & George Adamson of Born Free fame), a boat ride to the Crescent Island Game Sanctuary or a bike ride around Hell’s Gate National Park. Tonight is spent in a lovely campsite on the edge of the lake.

After an early start, we enter Masai land where these habitual pastoralists are often seen tending their cattle from the side of the road. We pass through the town of Narok, before arriving at our campsite, Acacia Camp (a stone’s throw away from the reserve gate) in time to enjoy sunset over the Masai Mara.

We spend the day driving through nature as it was intended to be - huge plains, rolling hills and an abundance of game matched no where else on earth. We keep an eye open for the Big 5 - elephant, rhino, buffalo, lion & leopard. If travelling between July and October, we may get to witness the impressive herds of over 1 million wildebeest, zebra and Thomson’s Gazelles in their Annual Migration. Sitting around the camp fire, watching the sun set is the perfect way to finish a day’s game viewing in this “Garden of Eden.”

After breakfast we leave the Masai Mara and head to Kisii passing through the picturesque tea plantations in the area. This town is the main commercial centre in the Gusii Highlands, where cash crops like tea and coffee thrive because of its equatorial climate. We replenish our stocks before heading for Tanzania tomorrow.

We depart Kenya and head south into Tanzania. After border formalities, our drive takes us through the scenic granite landscapes adjacent to Africa’s largest lake – Lake Victoria. We spend the night at a camp in the Serengeti/Lake Victoria area.

The Serengeti (Masai for “endless plains”) is famous for its enormous concentration of game (especially the big cats) and for the annual migration of millions of wildebeest, zebra and Thomson’s gazelles. The abundance of plains game in this area is truly astounding. We enter the park through the lesser travelled western corridor and game drive en-route to our campsite in the centre of the park. Tonight we’re surrounded by the silence of the African bushveld, pierced only by the calls of the nocturnal wildlife.

After an early start we continue our game drive through the Serengeti National Park and afterward, enter the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. We pass by Olduvai Gorge on our ascent to our camp for the night, on the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater. We suggest you bring your winter woollies as it can get very cold at night.

The Ngorongoro Crater with its 600 m high walls and 20 km width is a natural marvel. The Crater’s rim offers spectacular views, but the true scale of this caldera is only appreciated from the floor itself where the abundance of its animal inhabitants becomes apparent. It is home to nearly every species of African animal and offers a chance to view an incredible concentration of East African mammals, such as elephant, rhino, buffalo, hippo, lion and plain’s game. After spending the morning in The Crater we return to our lovely campsite in Arusha for our last evening together.

After breakfast, we begin our journey back to Nairobi. On arrival in the late afternoon, we exchange addresses and part ways, having just experienced a trip of a lifetime!