10 Nights - 5th Annual Kenya African Safari

Day 1

December 7, 2022

Arrival & Transfer Nairobi

Crown Plaza Airport Hotel-Deluxe Double/Single

On arrival at Jomo Kenyatta international airport, you will got through customs and immigrations formalities and thereafter, you will be welcomed by an Abercrombie & Kent representative and transferred to Crowne Plaza Nairobi Airport Hotel where you will be assisted to check in (check in not guaranteed before 1200 hrs). Conveniently located at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, Crowne Plaza Nairobi Airport is Kenya's first airport hotel. It offers travelers the opportunity to rest in relaxing surroundings soon after stepping off the Arrival Terminal and the chance to effortlessly catch their flight on departure. Crowne Plaza Nairobi Airport comprises 144 guest rooms spread over four floors. All around the hotel are touches of contemporary art and from its ceiling hangs an exquisite solar-powered ring chandelier that lights up beautifully at night. Meals at Crowne Plaza Nairobi Airport are served at the Aroma and Kitchen 9 restaurants while guests can sip on the drink of their choice at the Velocity bar. For fitness buffs, there is a gym and an infinity swimming pool at the hotel and a spa for anyone wishing to work out those kinks after a long flight. Being less than five minutes away from the airport terminals, Crowne Plaza Nairobi Airport offers timely convenience in a comfortable setting.

Dinner included at the hotel for early arrivals.

Day 2

December 2, 2022

Road transfer to Ol Pejeta

Sweetwaters Serena Camp-Standard Double / Single B-L-D

After breakfast, join your driver guide for your journey to Ol Pejeta Conservancy (3 hours approximately.)
Check in and lunch at Serena Sweetwaters Camp. Sweetwaters is a deluxe tented camp on the 90,000-acre Ol Pejeta conservancy. Once the preserve of arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi – who used to land his 727 there – this is a millionaire’s playground that is now available to ordinary mortals. The game viewing at the conservancy is spectacular. Overlooked by Mount Kenya, the ranch has plenty of predators and elephants and some interesting extra treats. There is a chimpanzee sanctuary at Sweetwaters – the only one in Kenya. There are just 39 tents at Sweetwaters, all with en-suite bathrooms and views out over a waterhole. Decorated in tasteful safari style, they are properly luxurious without losing any of the under canvas experience. Since Ol Pejeta is a private conservancy, guests can do all sorts of extra activities, including bush walks and trekking with camels. There’s also a swimming pool and a treatment area where travelers can enjoy a wide variety of natural therapies and massages.

Afternoon game drive. The 24,000-acre Sweetwaters Reserve is situated within the sprawling Ol Pejeta ranch with magnificent views across the plains to the peaks of Mount Kenya. A variety of plains game is found within the reserve and the big cats may also be seen. As Sweetwaters is a private reserve, it is possible for visitors to enjoy activities such as escorted bush walks, night game drives and camel riding. Orphaned rhino and warthog (one of which was the model for Pumba, from the movie the Lion King), which have been reared by hand, provide a wonderful treat for children, as does the chimpanzee sanctuary. The sanctuary homes chimps mainly from the Jane Goodall Institute in Burundi, where a great many were placed after being rescued. The sanctuary is a non-profit venture, which aims not only to cover the investment and operating costs of the sanctuary for chimpanzees in the wild throughout Africa. Dinner is included at the camp.

SPECIAL NOTE: Upgrade your accommodation and experience to A&K’s NEW Private Ultra Luxury Sanctuary Tambare Tented Camp in Ol Pejeta Conservancy for only $250 per person more!

Day 3

December 3, 2022

Ol Pejeta

Sweetwaters Serena Camp Standard Double / Single B-L-D

Day spent t Ol Pejeta Conservency with morning and afternoon game drives. Dinner is included at the camp.

Day 4

December 4, 2022

Road transfer to Samburu Game Reserve

Elephant Bedroom Camp Standard Double / Single B-L-D

Breakfast at the lodge and thereafter, proceed to Samburu Game Reserve (3 hours approximately). Check in on arrival at respective camps Elephant Bedroom Camp. Set on the banks of the Ewaso Nyiro River in Samburu National Reserve surrounded by doum palms and other beautiful indigenous trees and shrubs sits this small and exclusive camp of 12 luxury tents - all furnished in rustic African style while offering all the comforts expected of a luxury Camp (hot & cold running water, electricity and herbal products).

The lounge and dining area offer vibrant safari colours with original oil paintings, soft intimate lighting designed to relax guests returning from an exciting game drive. Huge herds of elephant, prides of lion or the solitary leopard amongst other game are regular visitors around the camp providing excellent game viewing in spectacular scenic background of rugged rolling hills. Dining is a culinary experience with al-fresco breakfast, 3 course lunch and 4 course candle lit gourmet dinner set either under the African sky or inside the well-appointed dining area. Afternoon game viewing drive. Dinner at the Camp and respective camps.

Day 5

December 5, 2022

Full day Samburu Game Reserve

Elephant Bedroom Camp Standard Double / Single B-L-D

Spend full day in Samburu with morning and afternoon game viewing drives. Other options available at extra costs. Samburu National Reserve in the dry country in the north of Kenya, described by Ludwig Ritter von Höhnel, an Austrian explorer who visited the area in the 1860s as 'teeming with game'. Undoubtedly why it became renowned as big game country for famous hunters such as Arthur Henry Neumann who set up camp in the spot where the Samburu Game Lodge now sits, on the banks of the Ewaso Nyiro River. The river takes its name from the local dialect meaning "River of Brown". It rises from glaciers on Mount Kenya and flows through the reserve on its journey north. The river provides the lifeblood of this harsh wilderness, without which the game would not survive. You'll see animals here that you won't see in the south: the impressive Beisa oryx which stand a meter at the shoulder and thrive because of a physiological ability to store water, the reticulated giraffe, the thin-striped Grevy's zebra and the gerenuk antelope with its improbably long neck. This is also lion country - the Samburu was home to George and Joy Adamson who raised Elsa and brought us Born Free. Samburu's remoteness means it has clung too much of its appeal of yesteryear, it feels as untamed as it looks.

Together with neighboring Buffalo Springs and Shaba National Reserves, this area covers almost 1,000 square kilometers (386 square miles) of protected semi-desert land. It is the home of the Samburu tribe, cousins of the Maasai, who share the same nomadic, cattle-herding existence and staunchly observe age-old rites and customs. Breakfast, lunch and dinner included at the camp.

Day 6

December 6, 2022

Road transfer to Mt. Kenya Safari Club.

Fairmont Mt. Kenya Safari Club Deluxe Double / single B-L-D

One of Kenya's best known properties, Mount Kenya Safari Club is steeped in colonial history, with a past as colorful as its magnificent gardens. Originally built as a dream home by a wealthy New Yorker for her young French aviator husband, it quickly became a main focal point for the 'Happy Valley' set of the 1930s. In 1959 William Holden and two friends turned it into one of the most exclusive clubs in the world with founding members including Sir Winston Churchill, Lord Louis Mountbatten, Robert Ruark, Lyndon Johnson, Bob Hope and Bing Crosby. The Club still retains its gracious charm with manicured lawns sweeping to the foothills of Mount Kenya - an ideal stop-off for relaxation in between safaris. There is a variety of distractions for those staying at the Club - horseback riding, golf, trout fishing, tennis, visiting the adjacent wildlife sanctuary (base for the successful breeding program of endangered bongo antelope), or just walking in the beautiful grounds. For those seeking total repose there is a heated swimming pool and a health and beauty center. Afternoon at leisure. Dinner at the club.

Day 7

December 7, 2022

Fly to Masai Mara / afternoon game drive

Fairmont Masai Mara Camp Classic Tents Double / single B-L-D

After breakfast, transfer to the airstrip in club transport for flight to Masai Mara (10:30/11:30 approx.). Met on arrival by camp driver guide and proceed for check in and lunch at Fairmont Masai Mara. Overlooking the endless, game-filled grasslands of the Maasai Mara, Fairmont Masai Mara offers a series of spacious, stylish tents with stunning views across the world's greatest natural wilderness. The 48 tents are a picture of rustic sophistication, with comfortable Double beds, en suite showers and shady verandahs with sweeping views over the surrounding savannah. From your tent, it's possible to see large herds of elephant, prides of big cats, and the world's greatest wildlife spectacle - the migration of over a million wildebeest and zebra, which pass this way between July and September on their instinctive march to pastures new. The camp's expert Maasai guides are on hand to reveal more of this magical wilderness through game drives, bush walks and visits to the villages of the local Ilkarekeshe Maasai.

Afternoon game viewing drive. The Maasai Mara plays host to the most spectacular array of wildlife. 1,500 square kilometers (580 square miles) of broad biscuit-colored savannah sprawls as home to huge numbers of birds (almost 600 species) and animals and is adjacent to the enormous expanse of the Serenegeti; the two make up the most diverse ecosystem on the continent.

The word 'mara' comes from the local dialect, Maa, as spoken by the Maasai and means 'spotted'; certainly the vast grasslands here are dotted by the shadows of small clouds which scud across a huge sky above. Every year this special place witnesses the most incredible animal phenomenon on the planet - the wildebeest migration. The mass of plains game moving north from the Serengeti in search of fresh pasture returning south around October, a heaving line of grunting, snorting life that stretches for miles. At the Mara River they mass together nervously on the banks before plunging onwards; their pursuit of food overwhelming their fear of the crocodiles that lie in wait for the annual feast. This incredible spectacle involves the movement of over a million wildebeest and their fellow travelers, half a million Thomson's gazelle, half a million zebra as well as smaller herds of topi and eland all operating on the principle of safety in numbers. They are followed, inevitably, by predators, primarily lions and hyena. Dinner at the camp.

Day 8

December 8, 2022

Full day in Masai Mara Game Reserve

Fairmont Masai Mara Camp Classic Tents Double / single B-L-D

Spend two days exploring the Masai Mara with game viewing activities. This day, game drives will be in A&K vehicles and driver guides. Lion are found in abundance throughout the park as are elephant, giraffe, a variety of gazelle species and zebra. Cheetah and leopard are also regularly seen and, if lucky, you may also find rhino. Game viewing is never dull in the Mara, and patience is often rewarded with unique sightings: a pride of lion stalking their prey; a solitary leopard retrieving its kill from the high branches of an acacia tree; male wildebeest sparring to attract females into their harem; or even a herd of elephant protecting their young from opportunistic predators. The annual wildebeest migration traditionally is present in the Mara from July-September and at this time nature's dramas unfold before your very eyes at every turn. As well as wildlife, the Maasai Mara is also home to many members of the colorful Maasai tribe who may be seen around the borders of the park - morans (warriors) loping across the plains, young boys herding goats, or elders grouped under a tree discussing matters of the day.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner at the lodge.

Day 9

December 9, 2022

Full day in Masai Mara Game Reserve

Fairmont Masai Mara Camp Classic Tents Double / single B-L-D

Spend two days exploring the Masai Mara with game viewing activities. This day, game drives will be in A&K vehicles and driver guides. Lion are found in abundance throughout the park as are elephant, giraffe, a variety of gazelle species and zebra. Cheetah and leopard are also regularly seen and, if lucky, you may also find rhino. Game viewing is never dull in the Mara, and patience is often rewarded with unique sightings: a pride of lion stalking their prey; a solitary leopard retrieving its kill from the high branches of an acacia tree; male wildebeest sparring to attract females into their harem; or even a herd of elephant protecting their young from opportunistic predators. The annual wildebeest migration traditionally is present in the Mara from July-September and at this time nature's dramas unfold before your very eyes at every turn. As well as wildlife, the Maasai Mara is also home to many members of the colorful Maasai tribe who may be seen around the borders of the park - morans (warriors) loping across the plains, young boys herding goats, or elders grouped under a tree discussing matters of the day.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner at the lodge.

Day 10

December 10, 2022

Masai Mara / Nairobi /Depart

Crowne Plaza Nairobi Airport Hotel Day use room – Deluxe rooms double /single B-L

After breakfast, transfer to the airstrip for flight to Nairobi (1115/1245 approximately). On arrival, transferred to Crowne Plaza Nairobi Airport hotel for lunch. Day rooms included until 1800 hrs. Later in the evening, meet with your Abercrombie & Kent Representative at the hotel lobby for your departure transfer to the airport.