OCTOBER 25 - NOVEMBER 4, 2023 ITINERARY
eleven DAYS From $16,999
Day One ~ Arrival
Upon arrival, you will be met at the airport and taken by private vehicle to our beautiful hotel.
This afternoon, enjoy a welcome massage at the hotel.
Rwanda cooking party
Accommodations: The Retreat, Rwanda
Meals Included: Our Cooking Party
Day Two ~ Arrival at Virunga
Breakfast at the hotel
Morning transfer to Covid test (in preparation for meeting the gorillas) and then onto Virunga.
Day at leisure to enjoy Virunga Lodge
This evening, enjoy our welcome dinner at the lodge.
Accommodations: Virunga Lodge
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
Day Three ~ Mountain Gorilla Experience
Breakfast at the hotel
Morning transfer to the Volcanoes National Park offices. Briefing by the park's guides on how to behave in the forest and in the presence of mountain gorillas. From the trail head, there is a 10-20 minute walk through fields (cultivated land) to edge of forest. Here you enter the park for a gorilla trek, which will take you until around midday depending on where you find them.
Locating the gorillas is often described as being the most profound natural history experience in the world. A limited number of gorilla permits are issued each day, to maintain the harmonious relationship between trekkers and the gentle giants. It is important to take plenty of water. Good cameras and plenty of fast speed film or memory cards are recommended. It can rain at a few minutes’ notice, hence waterproof clothing is a good essential including zip lock bags for cameras and film.
After the trek, lunch and dinner will be at your hotel.
Accommodations: Virunga Lodge
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day Four ~ Golden Monkey Experience and Departure
Breakfast at the hotel
Today you will take part in a golden monkey tracking activity (additional permit required).
Transfer to the airport for our flight to Nairobi.
Arrival in Nairobi and transfer to Hemingways Hotel.
Welcome to Kenya! On arrival at Nairobi – Jomo Kenyatta International Airport you will be met by a Zoom Vacations representative and transferred to Hemingways Hotel in Nairobi.
Set between Nairobi National Park and the foot of the Ngong Hills, Hemingways Nairobi is an exclusive boutique hotel far from the bustle of central Nairobi. An all-suite property providing full butler service, gourmet restaurant, a brasserie and a bar, it is perfectly placed for trips to Nairobi National Park and the capital.
Hemingways has a sophisticated and tranquil ambiance. Each of the 45 suites is a generous size, all with walk-in dressing rooms and a terrace with magnificent views of the Ngong Hills.
Tonight, enjoy our beautiful welcome dinner at Hemingways.
Accommodations: Hemingways Hotel
Meals Included: Breakfast and Lunch
Day Five ~ Amboseli National Park
Breakfast at the hotel.
After breakfast, we will proceed to Wilson Airport, for our private flight to Amboseli National Park.
140km south of Nairobi, Amboseli National Park is the second most popular wildlife area in Kenya, famous for its large population of over 1000 resident elephants and for its scenic beauty with the backdrop of the world’s highest free-standing mountain, snow-capped Kilimanjaro.
Amboseli National Park covers 96,865 acres (392km²), which constitutes less than 5% of the entire 2 million acre ecosystem of the Amboseli basin crossing from Kenya into Tanzania. The lush green wetlands in this otherwise dry area make Amboseli National Park one of the best wildlife-viewing areas on the planet, attracting over 600 species of birds including pelicans, kingfishers, crakes, hammerkops, 47 types of raptors as well as the African elephant, cape buffalo, impala, hyena, giraffe, zebra, gazelle and wildebeest with lion and cheetah among the big cats that roam the area.
Amboseli opens your eyes to Africa’s vast space: a photographer’s paradise. Around camp the Acacia Tortilis forest is host to many bird species and literally thousands of weaver nests hang above the tents adding a rousing dawn chorus into the mix.
Tortilis Camp has unrivaled views of Kilimanjaro, rising out of the semi-arid bush studded plains – Africa’s highest mountain, and the highest free standing mountain in the world.
Winner of British Airways’ prestigious eco-tourism award, Tortilis pioneered low impact, high comfort tourism. Guests have access to a private 30,000 acre conservancy facing the mountain; and can enjoy walks with experienced Masai guides, bush breakfasts and sundowners.
Today, you will enjoy a full day of activities including game drives, a game walk, sundowners in the bush, a night game drive, and more.
Accommodations: Tortillis Camp
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, and domestic open bar
Day Six ~ Amboseli National Park
Breakfast at the hotel
After breakfast you will enjoy a full day of activities including game drives, a game walk, sundowners in the bush, a night game drive, and more.
There is no better way to up close and personal to the wild than to take a walking safari. Feel the ancient earth beneath every step you take as you tread on the tracks of animals that have walked the same path minutes before. In the company of an experienced guide, you will learn about the flora as well as the fauna, and begin to understand the true majesty of the indigenous peoples that live and thrive on the land.
Sundowner cocktails and dinner will be served.
Just after dusk, the night game drive will offer a rare opportunity to see how the bush ‘comes alive’ after dark. Driving with an experienced and qualified guide, the 1.5-hour drive provides an insight into the nocturnal wildlife that is often overlooked. With a keen eye and unbroken concentration, there is much to see and wonder at on a night game drive.
Accommodations: Tortillis Treetops
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, and domestic open bar
Day Seven ~ Amboseli National Park to Meru National Park
Breakfast at the Lodge
You will enjoy a morning game drive through Ambolseli National Park. Stop at leisure for a picnic lunch on your way to the airstrip to fly to Meru National Park.
350km from Nairobi. Meru forms part of a larger conservation area covering 370,000 acres including the adjoining Kora, Rahole and Bisanadi Reserves. The park also incorporates an 84km2 rhino sanctuary, making Meru one of the prime destinations to see rhino in their natural habitat. The birdlife is extraordinarily colorful and abundant with over 400 species of birds.
Rugged and remote, Meru National Park was rescued from oblivion thanks to Elsa’s Kopje, an environmental award-winning, boutique lodge. Visitors get the whole place to themselves: all 870 km2 of it, including a thriving rhino sanctuary inside the Park. Famous for large elephant herds, lion and birdlife, and more diversity of animal species
than any other park in East Africa. Activities include nature walks, fishing in the streams, shared game drives to Kora and Bisanadi National Reserves, and evening shared game drives back to camp.
Unashamedly romantic and beautifully styled, Elsa’s Kopje is sculpted into Mughwango Hill, above the site of George Adamson’s original camp where he raised and released orphan lions, long before conservation became fashionable. Each cottage is crafted around the rocks, with a large bedroom, open sitting room, veranda, rock-hewn bathroom, and breathtaking views.
Arrive at Elsa’s Kopje in time for Lunch, and then enjoy an afternoon Game Drive
Accommodations: Elsa’s Kopje
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, and domestic open bar
Day Eight ~ Meru National Park
After our morning game drive, enjoy an outdoor Breakfast in the bush
The later morning is free for relaxation at Elsa’s Kopje
Then, after lunch at Elsa’s Kopje, enjoy an afternoon Game Drive
We finish our day with sundowners in the bush and dinner at Elsa’s Kopje
Accommodations: Sand River Masai Mara
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, and domestic open bar
Day Nine ~ Meru National Park to Masai Mara Game Reserve After an informative Nature Walk, we will enjoy breakfast, morning a leisure, and lunch with a view at Elsa’s
We then head to the airstrip to take our flight to the world famous Masai Mara
The Masai Mara is famous for its astounding numbers of wildlife. With both resident and transient populations of lion, leopard, cheetah, hyena, giraffe, elephant, to name a few, as well as over 450 bird species, the vast fertile plains are dense with game. The area has been classified among the “Seven Wonders of the World” due to the
extraordinary annual migration from July to November when over 1.3 million wildebeest and zebra cross from the Serengeti to the Maasai Mara in search of greener pastures.
We will enjoy a game drive en-route to Sand River Masai Mara Camp
Located on the banks of a river from which it has taken its name, Sand River Masai Mara is located within the Masai Mara National Reserve, close to the Tanzanian border. Situated on a secluded and picturesque site, the Camp replicates the heyday of exclusive permanent tented camps of the late 1920’s. The interior fixtures and furnishings mirror this period perfectly, reminding all who visit of those countless Hollywood movies that have paid homage to a classic era of African adventure.
Dinner at Sand River Masai Mara
Accommodations: Sand River Masai Mara
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, and domestic open bar
Day Ten ~ Masai Mara Game Reserve
After our morning game drive, enjoy a big breakfast at our lodge
The later morning is free for relaxation at Sand River
Then, after lunch at Sand River, enjoy an afternoon Game Drive
We finish our day with sundowners in the bush and dinner at Sand River
Accommodations: Sand River Masai Mara
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, and domestic open bar
Day Eleven ~ Masai Mara Game Reserve to Nairobi
Breakfast at the lodge
Watch a spectacular sunrise at Sand River
We will enjoy one last game drive en route to the airstrip for our flight to Nairobi.
Meals Included: Breakfast
Air: International and domestic airfare not included. Cost of 4 internal flights approximately $1,799.
Safari Permits: Mountain Gorilla and Golden Monkey trek permits not included.
Passports: Your valid passport should have at least two blank visa pages and should be valid for at least six months after your planned departure from the country you are visiting.
Note: Passport pages titled "Endorsement Pages" are not visa pages.
Visas: Please note that currently US citizens must have a visa to enter Rwanda and Tanzania. Visa is available upon arrival to Rwanda and Tanzania. If you are not a US citizen, please click here to determine your visa requirements.
While Zoom Vacations will assist when possible, please note that passport, visa, and vaccination requirements vary from country to country and are the sole responsibility of the traveler. If you are a US resident, you may click here for more information on passport, visa, and vaccination requirements for various countries.
*Land only Introductory rate, based on double occupancy. Prices are subject to change. Need a roommate? Zoom Vacations® is happy to match you with someone, at no additional charge. Or, you may pay a single supplement and go as a single.
Please read Terms and Conditions prior to booking.
For more information on entry and exit requirements, see here.
