Here is the itinerary of our educational safari. Contact us for more details via the booking form.
Amboseli, Great Rift Valley & Masai Mara – 10 days
Explore East Africa’s rich wildlife habitats. See large herds of wild animals and beautiful landscapes. See and learn about the Great Rift Valley and its natural wonders of volcanic mountains, deep gorges and lakes.
Day 1: Nairobi
Pick up from Nairobi airport in the morning and transfer to your hotel. There will be a day tour of Nairobi city. Visit the Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage, Giraffe Centre and finish off with the Bomas of Kenya cultural centre where there are numerous homesteads (bomas) that reflect the culture of the various tribes and this has created a living museum. Each boma has been built to the original traditional architecture of an African home, similar to that of their ancestors.
Accommodation: Hotel Boulevard
Meals: Dinner
Day 2: Amboseli
From Nairobi, drive south to Amboseli National Park for lunch and afternoon game drive. This is where you can see large herds of elephants and other plains game, lions, leopards etc roaming the plains against the backdrop of the snow-capped Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest mountain. This is a truly magical experience.
Accommodation: Permanent tented camp
Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Day 3: Amboseli
Full day of game drives in the Amboseli. Amboseli is renowned for its large herds of elephants, but there’s also lion, buffalo, giraffe, zebra, hippo and several others animals to spot along the way. Viewing wildlife against the backdrop of Mount Kilimanjaro is undeniably a magical experience.
Accommodation: Camp or lodge
Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Day 4: Lake Naivasha
Morning game drive then depart and drive for 5-6 hours to Naivasha. Lake Naivasha is famed for its birdlife. Covering over 140 square kilometres, Lake Naivasha — which derives its name from the local Maasai word Nai’posha meaning ‘receding waters’ — is a Ramsar world heritage site and home to some of the world’s rare birds, other wildlife and plants. Over 300 species of birds live around the Lake. The African fish eagle — one of the continent’s most loved birds, known for its graceful aerial skills and distinctive plumage — is among the birds that ot only nest in the woodlands around the lake, but are major tourist attractions. Others include Pelicans, Herons, Storks, Kingfishers, Hammerkop, Egrets, Cormorants, Ibis, Red knobbed Coots, etc. There are also hippos in the lake. Have picnic lunch at the Great Rift Valley escarpment.
Accommodation: Elsamere Field Study Centre
Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Day 5: Hell’s Gate
Morning game drive and walk in Hell’s Gate National Park. Hell’s Gate is famous for its natural hot geysers, and eagle and vulture breeding grounds. Zebras, baboons and gazelles are common sights and occasionally cheetahs, leopards and ostrich are encountered. Hell’s Gate is one of the few game reserves where visitors can explore by foot and walk amongst the elands, zebras and hartebeest. Fischer’s Tower, formerly a volcanic plug, is a column of volcanic rock named after a German explorer who explored the Hell’s Gate area in 1882.
In the afternoon we have a boat ride on Lake Naivasha, a freshwater Rift Valley lake famous for its variety of birds including the African fish eagle, herons, etc. Animals that can be found in or around the waters of Lake Naivasha include giraffes, buffalo and hippos with Colobus monkeys calling from the treetops.
Accommodation: Elsamere Field Study Centre
Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Day 6: Mount Longonot/Local school
Drive to the base of Mount Longonot (a dormant volcano in the Rift Valley) and climb up the mountain. The trek to the peak (2,800m above sea level) is about 9 km long and some sections of the trail are quite steep, so much so that the round trip from the park gate to the peak and back takes about 5 hours of hiking. Most hikers would be happy with going as far as the crater rim and descend back to the gate.
After lunch, visit a local school to interact with the teachers and children and learn something about Kenya’s education system.
Accommodation: Elsamere Field Study Centre
Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Day 7: Lake Nakuru
Drive to Lake Nakuru National Park for a whole day’s game drives. Lake Nakuru is a small park famous for the flamingoes and several other water birds. It is also home to a huge variety of wildlife including rhino, lion, leopard and giraffe. Late afternoon you drive back to Elsamere.
Accommodation: Elsamere Field Study Centre
Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Day 8: Masai Mara
After breakfast, depart for the Masai Mara Game Reserve via Narok. Lunch then afternoon game drive in the reserve that is famous for its large concentration of wildlife as well as bird life. It is the natural prolongation of Serengeti National Park in Tanzania.
Accommodation: Permanent tented camp.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Day 9: Masai Mara
Full day’s game drives in the Mara. An early morning start gives you the best opportunity to see the big 5 and the rest of the plains game.
Accommodation: Permanent tented camp.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Day 10: Nairobi
Morning visit to a Maasai village to learn about the local people’s culture. Depart and transfer to Nairobi.
Meals: Breakfast and lunch.