East Africa

Tour members gather in Toronto for the overnight flights to Nairobi.

Welcome to Kenya! We’ll be greeted and transported to our hotel near the city centre. 

DoubleTree by Hilton - 2 nights 

 

Today begins at the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, where we’ll meet  orphaned elephants being raised for eventual return to the wild. At the Giraffe Centre, we hand-feed endangered Rothschild’s giraffes from a raised platform. More than 40 giraffes bred here have since been released into Kenya’s parks and reserves. After a relaxed lunch at the Karen Blixen Coffee Garden, we tour the author’s 1912 farmhouse, where she lived until 1931, and discover the furnishings, stories, and history connected to her life in Kenya. 

Heading north towards Central Kenya, we traverse a region of rolling farmlands and open plains. Near the base of Mount Kenya, we reach Ol Pejeta, home to the last two northern white rhinos on earth. After settling in, we embark on our first game drive. A standout feature of our stay awaits at the Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary, a special haven for about 40 orphaned and rescued chimpanzees, established through collaboration between the Ol Pejeta Conservancy, Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), and the Jane Goodall Institute. 

Sweetwaters Serena Camp - 2 nights 

Following an early breakfast, we set out into the conservancy for a full day of game drives. We travel deep into the reserve seeking out impala and elephants that move here in herds, and the lions and leopards that reward a patient eye. By late afternoon, we return to camp, where the day settles quietly over the surrounding plains.

Venture around the Aberdare Mountains and towards Lake Nakuru, a landscape of striking beauty and rich biodiversity. Lake Nakuru National Park hosts vibrant flocks of lesser flamingos and diverse game, including lions, leopards, rhinos, and hyenas. After lunch, indulge in a game drive around the lake before a comfortable overnight stay. 

Lake Nakuru Sopa Lodge - 1 night 

Travel down the valley into the core of the Masai Mara, the beating heart of Kenya’s safari experience. As the Great Migration is a year-round cycle event driven by rainfall, we may have a chance to witness herds of wildebeest and zebras begin drifting south, exiting Kenya back into Tanzania. Enjoy game drives as we travel through this exciting reserve. 

Mara Serena Safari Lodge - 3 nights (BLD)

Two full days of game drives follow at the Mara, home to the Big Five, as well as large herds of plains game and an incredible variety of bird species. Lions hold territory here in remarkable numbers, cheetahs favour the open plains where there is space to run, and leopards keep to the wooded riverbanks. Moving between them are buffalo, zebras and giraffes that graze here year-round, while hippos crowd the pools of the Mara River.  

Explore the park's abundance of game, blessed with permanent water.

Departing by air for Isibania, we cross into Tanzania before catching a connecting flight into the Serengeti. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is famous for hosting some of the oldest and most complex ecosystems on Earth. After touching down and meeting our local driving team, we head to our deluxe lodge to unpack and unwind amidst the iconic savanna.  

Kubu Kubu Tented Lodge - 3 nights 

Enjoy exhilarating 4x4 safari drives in vehicles featuring open tops for optimal game viewing. Seek out diverse wildlife, from predators like cheetahs and hyenas to the renowned Big Five: elephants, buffalo, lions, leopards, and perhaps even the occasional rhino. Relax by the pool during breaks between drives, immersing yourself in the captivating African ambiance. 

We leave the Serengeti after breakfast and drive east towards the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Ahead lies the world’s largest unbroken volcanic caldera, two thousand feet deep and a hundred square miles across, with some 25,000 large animals living inside its walls. Few places on earth gather wildlife so tightly. We spend time here on the crater floor, home to one of Africa’s densest populations of lions, as well as elephant bulls carrying impressive tusks, and a small, closely watched group of black rhinos. We continue to the Karatu area. 

Ngorongoro Farm House Lodge - 1 night (BLD)

We begin the morning in the company of the Iraqw, a people who have farmed these highlands for generations. Walking the local area with our hosts, we learn something of daily life here before lunch at Gibb’s Farm, a coffee plantation founded in the 1920s where much of what reaches the table is grown on the property. The afternoon takes us on to Tarangire, 1,100 square miles of baobab-dotted country threaded by the river that gives the park its name and draws wildlife through the dry months. The park is renowned for its large elephant herds. We take the drive in slowly, watching as we go. 

Tarangire Sopa Lodge - 2 nights 

Enjoy a full day exploring Tarangire National Park, renowned for its towering baobab trees, and rich diversity of wildlife.
 

We leave Tarangire behind and drive north, as farmland and the green foothills around Arusha replace the wild plains of safari country. Lunch awaits at Arusha Coffee Lodge, nestled within the peaceful surroundings of a coffee plantation. The afternoon begins at Shanga, a social enterprise where local artisans, many of them living with disabilities, create beautiful handmade crafts. At the Tanzanite Experience Museum, we discover the origins and heritage of Tanzania’s famous blue gemstone, found only in the Merelani Hills at the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro. We continue to Kilimanjaro International Airport for our overnight flights home.

Arriving in Toronto this afternoon, we make flight connections home across Canada.