Kenya birdwatching & game safari
| country: | Kenya |
| location: | Amboseli National Park, Masai Mara |
| departures: | Daily departures 1 Feb - 14 Dec |
| price: | From US $2590 - US $2920 (7 days) excluding flights. US $280 - US $470 single supplement. Price includes all transport from Nairobi, game drives and activities, park fees, all meals & accommodation. 25-40% discount for children |
the amazing things you'll be doing
Birds & big game safari, Kenya.
The highlights of this ‘Kenya Explorer’ trip includes visits to Porini Camp, Selenkay Conservancy, Amboseli National park, Lake Nakuru and Mara Porini Camp, Mara. Some of these camps are well off the beaten track allowing you a truly unique safari experience whereby a feast of beautiful animals and birds can be seen in their natural habitats.
Selenkay Conservation Area is well off the beaten track and has not been visited by tourists until now. It lies in the heart of Maasailand and the animals are truly wild and not yet habituated to the presence of vehicles. Within the conservation area the following animals have been seen recently: elephant, lion, leopard, cheetah, Thompson's and Grant's gazelles, gerenuk, impala, oryx, lesser kudu , zebra, wildebeest, giraffe, warthog, striped hyena, jackal, bat-eared fox, Caracal, African wild cat, serval cat, genet cat, honey badger, mongoose and ostrich. Birdlife is prolific, especially birds of prey.
The snow capped peak of Mount Kilimanjaro rising above the clouds dominates every aspect of Amboseli. Established as a national park in 1974 it covers 150sq miles and supports awide range of mammals (well over 50 of the larger species) and birds(over400 species). Years ago this was the locale around which such famous writers as Ernest Hemingway and Robert Ruark spun their stories of big game hunting in the wilds of Africa. Learn how to identify animal spoor and about the traditional use by the local people of medicinal properties of the many plant species in the conservancy. In addition to plains game like zebra, giraffe and antelopes, birdlife abounds and a walk along the river gives the opportunity to see hippo and maybe even a python! Lake Nakuru, a shallow alkaline lake, is world famous as the location of the greatest bird spectacle on earth - myriads of pink flamingo whose numbers are legion, often more than a million and which literally turn its shores pink. Large numbers of pelicans concentrate by the fresh water streams that flow into the lake and thousands of other birds may be seen including African fisheagles, white winged black terns, stilts, avocets, ducks and in the Europeanwinter, the migrant waders.
You are also likely to see both Black and White Rhinos here, plus giraffe, waterbuck, zebra and Cape buffalo. Leopard are also frequently sighted and Lake Nakuru National Park is one of the places where visitors have the best chance of seeing these elusive big cats. The bushlands offer eland, warthog, impala, Mountain Reedbuck and dik dik,whilst rock hyrax and klipspringer occupy the cliffs and escarpment.
Mara Porini Camp has recently been set up in the exclusive wildlife conservancy of Ol Kinyei, one of the most beautiful wilderness areas in the Serengeti-Mara eco-system. This is pristine wilderness with open savannah plains, riverine forest, springs, streams and rivers, rolling hills and spectacular views across the Mara. Ol Kinyei belongs to a Maasai community who have recently set aside the conservancy as a sanctuary for wildlife. The conservancy holds a wide variety of the animal species for which the Mara is famous including a large resident pride of lions
The highlights of this ‘Kenya Explorer’ trip includes visits to Porini Camp, Selenkay Conservancy, Amboseli National park, Lake Nakuru and Mara Porini Camp, Mara. Some of these camps are well off the beaten track allowing you a truly unique safari experience whereby a feast of beautiful animals and birds can be seen in their natural habitats.
Selenkay Conservation Area is well off the beaten track and has not been visited by tourists until now. It lies in the heart of Maasailand and the animals are truly wild and not yet habituated to the presence of vehicles. Within the conservation area the following animals have been seen recently: elephant, lion, leopard, cheetah, Thompson's and Grant's gazelles, gerenuk, impala, oryx, lesser kudu , zebra, wildebeest, giraffe, warthog, striped hyena, jackal, bat-eared fox, Caracal, African wild cat, serval cat, genet cat, honey badger, mongoose and ostrich. Birdlife is prolific, especially birds of prey.
The snow capped peak of Mount Kilimanjaro rising above the clouds dominates every aspect of Amboseli. Established as a national park in 1974 it covers 150sq miles and supports awide range of mammals (well over 50 of the larger species) and birds(over400 species). Years ago this was the locale around which such famous writers as Ernest Hemingway and Robert Ruark spun their stories of big game hunting in the wilds of Africa. Learn how to identify animal spoor and about the traditional use by the local people of medicinal properties of the many plant species in the conservancy. In addition to plains game like zebra, giraffe and antelopes, birdlife abounds and a walk along the river gives the opportunity to see hippo and maybe even a python! Lake Nakuru, a shallow alkaline lake, is world famous as the location of the greatest bird spectacle on earth - myriads of pink flamingo whose numbers are legion, often more than a million and which literally turn its shores pink. Large numbers of pelicans concentrate by the fresh water streams that flow into the lake and thousands of other birds may be seen including African fisheagles, white winged black terns, stilts, avocets, ducks and in the Europeanwinter, the migrant waders.You are also likely to see both Black and White Rhinos here, plus giraffe, waterbuck, zebra and Cape buffalo. Leopard are also frequently sighted and Lake Nakuru National Park is one of the places where visitors have the best chance of seeing these elusive big cats. The bushlands offer eland, warthog, impala, Mountain Reedbuck and dik dik,whilst rock hyrax and klipspringer occupy the cliffs and escarpment.
Mara Porini Camp has recently been set up in the exclusive wildlife conservancy of Ol Kinyei, one of the most beautiful wilderness areas in the Serengeti-Mara eco-system. This is pristine wilderness with open savannah plains, riverine forest, springs, streams and rivers, rolling hills and spectacular views across the Mara. Ol Kinyei belongs to a Maasai community who have recently set aside the conservancy as a sanctuary for wildlife. The conservancy holds a wide variety of the animal species for which the Mara is famous including a large resident pride of lions
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | You will be met in Nairobi and transferred south to Selenkay Conservation Area, near Amboseli, arriving at Porini Camp before lunch (100 miles, 3 hours). Then you will return to Porini Camp for a rest and then go on a walk to a Maasai village, accompanied by Maasai trackers who will give you an insight into their culture and way of life ending with a sundowner on Olosinkiran Hill. Then take a game drive to explore the Conservation Area. Return to the camp for dinner and overnight. |
| Day 2: | After an early breakfast drive to Amboseli National Park for a morning game drive within the Park followed by a picnic lunch. Return to Porini Camp for dinner after which there will be a night game drive using a spotlight to seek out some of the nocturnal animals such as aardvarks (antbears), serval cats, bat eared foxes and possibly even the elusive leopard. Overnight Porini Camp. |
| Day 3: | Brief early morning game drive followed by breakfast and then transfer back to Nairobi arriving before 1 p.m where you will have lunch at a restaurant in the Village Market complex. After lunch at the Village Market, you will be transferred by minibus to Lake Nakuru National Park, arriving mid-afternoon at Lion Hill Lodge, your home for 2 nights, with its splendid views across the lake. After tea you will take a game drive to see the huge numbers of flamingo which are concentrated along the lake shore. In addition to the birdlife for which Nakuru is so well known, the park is home to many other species, including lion, leopard, both rhino species, buffalo, the rothschild's giraffe, zebra, impala and waterbuck. |
| Day 4: | An early morning game drive before breakfast to try to find leopard, which are frequently sighted in Lake Nakuru Park. Return to the lodge for breakfast. After breakfast you will take a further drive to seek out the 2 species of African rhino found in the park, returning before lunch. The afternoon is at your leisure, perhaps relaxing by the lodge swimming pool before an evening game drive in the park |
| Day 5: | After breakfast you will drive back to Nairobi, arriving for lunch at the Carnivore Restaurant, after which you will check in for the 50 minute flight to the Mara. The next 2 nights you stay at Mara Porini Camp. In the evening you will take a game drive to explore the area around the camp and to seek out the wildlife for which the Mara is famous. |
| Day 6: | A full day in the Mara with a picnic lunch, when you can expect to find lions as well as many of the other species found there, including leopard, cheetah, hyena, elephant, rhino, topi, eland, wildebeest, zebra, hippo and buffalo. |
| Day 7: | Final early morning game drive in the conservancy. Breakfast and transfer to the airstrip late morning for the 11.00 flight back to Nairobi, arriving around 12.15. |
how this holiday makes a difference
In May 1997, a Kenyan organisation called Porini Ecotourism agreed with the local Maasai community to set aside the areas as a reserve for wildlife so that the habitat could be protected and wildlife conserved. In return is receiving an income from tourism activities. This is used to fund community projects such as schools and water supplies. Employment opportunities have also been provided for the local Maasai people as game rangers, trackers, and camp staff. Apart from the management couple and Head Cook, all other staff in the camp and Conservation Area are members of the local community. All roads have been constructed using local labour so that the members of the community gain employment from the Conservation area.
In addition to the road maintenance team, Game Scouts have been employed to carry out patrols to see that the wildlife is protected. As a result of the establishment of the Conservation Area, wildlife numbers have recovered significantly in recent years and elephants are now seen frequently after an absence of nearly 20 years. Selenkay Conservation Area lies in the heart of Maasailand, well off the beaten track, and has not been visited by tourists until very recently. The animals are truly wild and tend to behave more naturally than those in the parks, which are often habituated to the presence of vehicles.
The new Ol Kinyei Conservancy in the Mara ecosystem is based on our very successful Porini Selenkay model. The local Maasai communities own the land and earn a direct monetary benefit from tourist visitors visiting the conservancy and staying at the Porini Camp. In addition, the Game Scouts and camp staff are employed from the various Maasai homesteads in the area.