Day 1 – Australia- NairobiDepart for Nairobi, Kenya today on an overnight flight.Day 2 Nairobi Hotel: The Eka hotel

On arrival and after clearing with Customs and Immigrations, you are met by your expeditions driver & guide and driven to The Eka hotel for overnight. Eka Hotel is ideally located along Mombasa Road in Nairobi the capital city of Kenya. It is situated minutes away from the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, 5km from Wilson Airport and 5km from the bustling central business district. Your stay here will be a treat! The evening is yours at leisure.

Day 3 Nairobi – Amboseli National Park Hotel: Amboseli Sopa Lodge (B,L,D)

After breakfast, depart to the Amboseli National Park. Arrive at the Amboseli Sopa Lodge in time for lunch. Set in 200 acres of private land, and with a rustic charm all of its own, the lodge nestles in the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro which, at almost six thousand metres, is Africa’s highest and most famous snowcapped mountain. It was this region of Kenya that, in the 1930’s, inspired Ernest Hemingway’s unforgettable stories ‘The Snows of Kilimanjaro’ and ‘The Short, Happy Life of Francis Macomber’ which were turned into more than successful feature films in the late 1940’s due to their renowned actors. All forms of wildlife still abound in this wilderness which continues all the way to the Amboseli National Park, an easy twenty minute drive away from the lodge. While the park conserves over six hundred breeding spe-cies of birds as well a host of rare and wonderful wildlife, this is also home to the Maasai peo-ple, perhaps the world’s most renowned African tribe.

Day 4 Amboseli National ParkHotel: Amboseli Sopa Lodge (B,L,D)

Today we have a full day at Amboseli National Park. Amboseli is a top destination for a Kenya Safari. Indeed, one of the classic images of East Africa, let alone Kenya, is that of a herd of elephant strolling across the plains with the snow-capped peak of Kilimanjaro in the back-ground. It is to catch this sight on memory - and on film - that people flood to Amboseli Na-

Kenya & Tanzania Lodge Safari Tour

14 Days

tional Park.While Kilimanjaro is actually across the border in Tanzania, Amboseli has a perfect view of this world’s tallest freestanding mountain, rising an impressive 5 kilometres above the plains. The best time to view the majestic mountain is at dawn and sunset, when the clouds lift and the light is both clear and soft.The park is one of the smaller game parks in Kenya, but it offers you the best opportunity of seeing the critically endangered black rhino, along with a spectacular range of wildlife. The area’s low and well-munched vegetation also ensures that animals are easy to spot. Lions can easily be found and can occasionally be watched stalking their prey. Buffalo, cheetah, gazelle, hyena, jackal, wildebeest, zebra, and baboon are just some of the animals that can be en-countered at Amboseli. Dinner and overnight at Amboseli Sopa Lodge.

Day 5 Amboseli National Park - Ngorongoro National ParkHotel: Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge (B,L,D)

After breakfast, drive to Namanga border and onto Arusha for lunch. After a delicious lunch we drive onwards to Ngorongoro National Park. Facing the always magnificent sunsets to the west, and located at the highest point on Ngorongoro crater’s entire rim, Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge stands well over half a kilometre above the crater floor and offers unparalleled views across this enormous caldera. Themed around traditionally circular African houses with coni-cal roofs, and decorated with examples of Africa’s rich tapestry of artistic traditions by way of rich woodcarvings and sculptures, the lodge harmonizes perfectly with its dramatic surround-ings. But the drama does not just stop with the great outdoors: it also flows through the split level interiors of the main building which all offer an unsurpassed generosity of space while somehow managing to combine an almost magically welcoming ambience of both warmth and cosiness.

Day 6 Amboseli – Lake Naivasha Hotel: Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge (B,L,D)

After breakfast we pack a picnic lunch and descend to the crater floor for a half day game drive. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, it offers a unique biosphere, which has remained vir-tually unchanged since the dawn of time. Deep within the Crater, enclosed by towering walls, some 25,000 large mammals wander the plains, lakes and forests of ‘the land that time for-

got’, dominated by enormous bull elephants, rhinos and lions. The Ngorongoro Crater is often called ‘Africa’s Eden’ and the ‘8th Natural Wonder of the World,’ a visit to the crater is a main draw card for tourists coming to Tanzania and a definite world-class attraction. Within the crater rim, large herds of zebra and wildebeest graze nearby while sleeping lions laze in the sun. At dawn, the endangered black rhino returns to the thick cover of the crater forests after grazing on dew laden grass in the morning mist. Just outside the crater’s ridge, tall Maasai herd their cattle and goats over green pastures through the highland slopes, living alongside the wildlife as they have for centuriesThe Ngorongoro Crater and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area are without a doubt some of the most beautiful parts of Tanzania, steeped in history and teeming with wildlife. Return to the lodge for dinner and overnight.

Day 7 Lake Naivasha – Serengeti National ParkHotel: Serengeti Sopa Lodge (B,L,D)

After breakfast, drive to Serengeti National Park with a stop at The Olduvai Gorge. The gorge is one of the most important paleoanthropological sites in the world and has been instrumen-tal in furthering the understanding of early human evolution. This site was occupied by Homo habilis approximately 1.9 million years ago, Paranthropus boisei 1.8 million years ago, and Homo erectus 1.2 million years ago. Homo sapiens is dated to have occupied the site 17,000 years ago. Olduvai Gorge is a steep-sided ravine in the Great Rift Valley that stretches through eastern Africa. It is in the eastern Serengeti Plains in Arusha Region, Tanzania and is about 48 km (30 mi) long. It is located 45 km (28 mi) from the Laetoli archaeological site. This site is significant in showing increased developmental and social complexities in hominids. Evidence of this is shown in the production and use of stone tools, which indicates the increase in cog-nitive capacities. Evidence also indicates the practices of both scavenging and hunting, which are highlighted by the evidence of gnaw marks predating cut marks, and comparisons on percentages of meat versus plant in the early hominid diet. Furthermore, the collection of tools and animal remains in a central area is evidence of increases in social interaction and commu-nal activity.Arrive at Serengeti Sopa Safari for lunch. Located on the edge of the escarpment overlook-ing the plains of the south-western Serengeti National Park, home to many thousands of wild and rare animals, Serengeti Sopa Lodge lies within an area of out-standing natural beauty. An oasis of cool relaxation from the equatorial sun.

The lodge allows its guests to experience magnificent sights and enjoy interaction with the land and animals difficult to find elsewhere, whilst at the same time enjoying the highest level of cuisine and hospitality.Enjoy an afternoon game drive after lunch and later return to the lodge for dinner.

Day 8 Serengeti National ParkHotel: Serengeti Sopa Lodge (B,L,D)

Today we have a full day exploring the vast Serengeti National Park. The Serengeti region encompasses the Serengeti National Park itself, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Maswa Game Reserve, the Loliondo, Grumeti and Ikorongo Controlled Areas and the Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya. It’s unique ecosystem has inspired writers from Ernest Heming-way to Peter Mattheissen, filmakers like Hugo von Lawick and Alan Root as well as numerous photographers and scientists. The Serengeti ecosystem is one of the oldest on earth. The es-sential features of climate, vegetation and fauna have barely changed in the past million years. Early man himself made an appearance in Olduvai Gorge about two million years ago. Some patterns of life, death, adaptation and migration are as old as the hills themselves

Day 9 Serengeti – Lake VictoriaHotel: Speke Bay Lodge (B,L,D)

Speke Bay Lodge is located on the south-eastern shore of Lake Victoria in Tanzania, East Af-rica. It is 15 kilometres from the Serengeti National Park, and 125 kilometres north of Mwan-za. Speke Bay is part of Speke Gulf, named after the famous explorer John Hanning Speke, who, in 1858, discovered Lake Victoria to be the source of the Nile. Embraced by savannah, the Lodge looks like a small village, stretched out along the shores of the lake. The main buildings and luxury accommodation are round in form, built to perfection, painted white and thatched with a grass roof in the traditional style of the local tribe, the Sukuma.

Excursions in boats and on mountain bikes are offered, so you can truly experience Africa; you can fish from the beach for Tilapia, enjoy the peacefulness, or wander around on the Lodge’s 100 hectares of savannah, looking for birds.

Day 10 Lake Victoria – Maasai Mara Reserve

Hotel: Mara Sopa Lodge (B,L,D)

7.00 a.m. after breakfast at the Speke Bay Lodge, depart for the famous Masai Mara National Reserve via Isebania border. Arrive, check-in and lunch at Masai Mara Sopa Lodge. Located high on the slopes of the Oloolaimutia Hills, Masai Mara Sopa Lodge was one of the first sa-fari lodges to be built in the Maasai Mara Game Reserve, a reason why its gardens and trees are so lush and mature. All the buildings follow the design of traditional African round houses with conical roofs, and these stretch along the line of the hills with the impressively large pub-lic area buildings and the swimming pool at their centre.Enjoy an afternoon game drive and later return to the lodge for dinner and overnight.

Day 11 Maasai Mara ReserveHotel: Mara Sopa Lodge (B,L,D)

Spend the day exploring the Reserve! We will tailor your day to fit in with every moment at the Camp. The Masai Mara Game Reserve is Kenya’s finest wildlife reserve. Everything about this reserve is outstanding. The wildlife is abundant and the gentle rolling grasslands ensure that animals are never out of sight. Birds, too, are prolific. Including migrants, well over 450 species have been recorded, among them, 57 species of birds of prey. Amongst the list of easy-to-view species are: gazelle, elephant, topi, buffalo, lion (Kenya’s largest population), black rhino, hippo, hyena, giraffe, leopard and mongoose. The climate is gentle, rarely too hot and well-spread rainfall year round. Throughout the year the Masai Mara is a place of natural drama, a kaleidoscope of colour and life. Thomson’s and Grant’s gazelle, Topi and Eland and many more species of plains’ game offer a rich choice of food for the dominant predators; lion, leopard and cheetah which hunt in this pristine wilderness. Here the great herds of shuf-fling elephants browse among the rich tree-studded grasslands with an occasional sighting of a solitary and ill-tempered rhino. In the Mara River, Hippo and Crocodile are commonly found.

Day 12 Maasai Mara – NairobiHotel: The Eka Hotel (B,D)

After breakfast we drive back to Nairobi and arrive approximately at 1.00 p.m to check in at The Eka Hotel. In the evening, visit the Daphne Sheldrick Animal orphanage located in the Nairobi Game Park, Kenya. It was originally started by David Sheldrick, and the work was tak-

en over by his wife after his death. The park itself is too small to sustain any adult elephants, but they take in orphaned baby elephants from all over Kenya. Unfortunately, due to the rise in ivory poaching, most of the elephants are there because their mothers have been killed by hunters, but some have just got separated from their mothers for some reason. The elephants are raised with the intention of gradually re-integrating them into the wild. The age range of the elephants can vary from a few months up to three years. Each elephant is assigned its own keeper, who acts as a surrogate mother and will stay with the elephant until it is released back into the wild. Being orphaned is obviously a very traumatic experience, so the keeper spends as much time as possible with the elephant in the first few days to lavish attention on it. Your visit is scheduled between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. to see the elephants being fed and play-ing. In addition, there is a keeper there who will give a talk about the elephants, where they came from, how they are getting on, and how some of the previous orphans are progress-ing. The evening visit is for foster parents and usually there are no more than 25 to 30 people there, so you can get really close to the elephants. After the visit, drive to The Carnivore Restaurant for a farewell dinner and overnight. The Carnivore is the ultimate ‘Beast of a Feast’ A variety of meat including ostrich, crocodile and camel, is roasted over charcoal and carved at your table. Delicious side dishes and an excep-tional array of sauces complement this fixed price feast that also includes soup, a selection of desserts and Kenyan coffee. Set in attractive tropical gardens, the service and the décor are outstanding.The Carnivore is also home of the Simba Saloon, a delicious a la carte restaurant by day and Nairobi’s most popular nightclub. The informal indoor/outdoor atmosphere, exceptional snacks and the pulsating rhythms of Africa combine to ensure an exciting ambiance.After dinner, you are transferred back to the The Eka Hotel.

Day 13 Nairobi - AustraliaAfter breakfast, you are transferred to the Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport for your departure flight.

Day 14 AustraliaArrive home in Australia today.