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SILVER AFRICA TOURS & SAFARIS

Airport North Rd, Nyayo Embakasi suite 88/13,
P.O.BOX 60854 code 00200 city square,
Nairobi, Kenya, East Africa
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http://www.silverafricatours.com

Classic Kenya Safari.

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TOUR CODE: SAT004
Validity: 01st March 2011? 15th December 2011
Minimum: 02 pax
Transportation: Seven (7) 4 x 4 Landcruiser with the services of an English speaking driver/guide
Start: Nairobi
End: Nairobi
Departures: Guaranteed daily departure

Trsf ? Transfer, BB ? Bed & Breakfast, L ? Lunch, D ? Dinner , LDBB ? Lunch, Dinner, Bed & Breakfast, E ? Early morning game drive, A ? Morning game drive, P ? Afternoon game drive, LE ? Leisure, CT ? Crater Tour, GV ? Game viewing from the lodge, FLT - Flight

DETAILED ITINERARY

DAY 01 ? ARRIVAL NAIROBI

Met upon arrival at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport by Silver Africa Tours Representative. Assistance and transfer to The Stanley Hotel. Rest of the day at leisure with the possibility of realizing optional excursions. Accommodation on bed and breakfast basis at The Stanley Hotel (BB).

Stanley was the hotel to stay or be seen at until the 1970s. In its heydays, the Stanley played host to famous royalty, politicians and stars. Situated in the city centre, it was also where the travellers, including Ernest Hemingway, gathered for a drink at the legendary Thorn Tree Café before or after a long safari. A message board on the acacia xanthophildea tree was used by travellers to make contact with fellow travellers. Today, the Stanley has lost much of its importance as a meeting place but a drink at the Thorn Tree Café is still a pleasant experience. Much of the hotel has been refurbished to a high standard and still retains the original Victorian charm. A revolving door leads to a lobby with marble floors, reproduction antique furniture and subdued lighting, recalling the graceful era of grand living. Bedrooms with private bathrooms, though small, are very comfortable while the restaurants at the Stanley serve excellent international cuisine. Several upscale galleries and artifact shops are located next to the hotel. The hotel has a pool and health club where guests can also relax.

DAY 02 ? NAIROBI/SHABA GAME RESERVE

After breakfast drive to Shaba Game Reserve arriving in time for lunch at Sarova Shaba Lodge. Afternoon game drive. Dinner and overnight at Sarova Shaba Lodge (LDBB).

DAY 03 ? SHABA GAME RESERVE

Early morning game drive returning to the lodge for breakfast. Rest of the morning at leisure. Lunch. Afternoon game drive. Dinner and overnight at Sarova Shaba Lodge (LDBB).

Shaba game reserve, made famous by the late Joy Adamson and her lioness Elsa, is often referred to as "Born Free Country". Located on the banks of the Uaso Nyiro river, Sarova Shaba offers a luxury seldom found in the African bush. There are 80 chalet rooms, or for those of you looking for a little extra luxury, Sarova Shaba has four junior suites and one honeymoon suite. Hardwoods, cane furniture and local textiles create a calm and pleasing ambience. The tranquil flow of sparkling spring water throughout the grounds creates an atmosphere of peace and serenity as it collects and cascades. Shaba boasts a unique collection of game only found in the region including reticulated giraffe, Grevy's zebra, gerenuk and beisa oryx, as well as 150 recorded bird species. For a close inspection of the game take a game drive with one of the experienced guides, returning to the resort for a hearty breakfast in the Surpelei Restaurant overlooking the Uaso Nyiro river. You might spend the rest of the day relaxing by the beautiful free-form swimming pool. When the heat goes out of the day, towards the end of the afternoon, another game drive is a good idea - the animals also wake up as it gets cooler. Return in time for a reviving sundowners and watch the crocodiles climb out of the river to be fed by the golden glow of the setting sun. Early evening entertainment is provided by local Samburu dancers who will delight you, followed by a delicious dinner in the Surpelei Restaurant.

The Shaba National Reserve is a rugged wilderness featuring bubbling hot springs, rolling savannah, miles of scrub & desert and the Ewaso Nyiro River which supports a diversity of wildlife. Shaba is part of three small adjoining savannah National Reserves that lie on either side of the Northern Ewaso Ngiro River, 340km North, North East of Nairobi (Samburu, Buffalo Springs and Shaba). They were established in 1948 as the Samburu Isiolo Game Reserve. Now they are managed by their respective county councils, Samburu and Isiolo. The reserve consists of a low lying, semi arid plain on the southern bank of the Northern Ewaso Ngiro river. It lies 9 km east of buffalo springs national reserve, from which it is separated by the main road from Isiolo to Marsabit. Its Northern section includes a 34km stretch of the Ewaso Ngiro river; here and elsewhere in the reserve are numerous springs and swampy areas, although some have bitter tasting water. Major attractions are Scenic landscape and riverine forest, Permanent Springs. Shaba has 17 springs at which animals congregate during the dry season, Reticulated giraffe, Somalia ostrich, Grevy's zebra, Joy Adamson's monument.

DAY 04 ? SHABA GAME RESERVE/LAKE NAKURU NATIONAL PARK

After breakfast drive to Lake Nakuru National Park arriving in time for lunch at Sarova Lion Hill Lodge. Afternoon game drive. Dinner and overnight at Sarova Lion Hill Lodge (LDBB).

Situated in the heart of the Rift Valley, Lake Nakuru is one of Kenya's most famous soda lakes. A major feature of this park is the wonderful bird life, particularly the thousands of flamingos, which create a shimmering pink hue over the lake. A rhino sanctuary also provides the opportunity to see the endangered black rhino. Sarova Lion Hill offers a unique vantage point. Each of the 64 superbly appointed chalets with private secluded veranda enjoys views over the lake and the distant hills. Even the glorious pool has a view!

Originally declared a national park because of a superbly diverse bird population, which includes many migrants, the park is also a favourite place for travellers to seek the rare black rhino. However, it is for the flamingos that the lake is best known, and it was for their protection that the park was originally created. The level of the blue-green alkaline waters here varies and this, with other accompanying environmental changes, causes considerable variation in the flamingo population, but when they are present, en masse, the whole lake turns a gorgeous rosy pink. Although protection of the flamingo population on the lake was the original rationale for the inception of the national park, further land was included in the early seventies and it is now about 190 sq m. This expansion, which took in a large grassland area, has allowed the park to protect further species. Buffalo, zebra, antelope and both lion and leopard are to be found. The rather less ubiquitous reedbuck and waterbuck are also here as is the glamorously leggy Rothschild giraffe. Temptingly, the black rhino-breeding programme, started in the late eighties, has proved successful and this is an excellent place to view them.

DAY 05 ? LAKE NAKURU NATIONAL PARK/MASAI MARA GAME RESERVE

After breakfast drive to Masai Mara Game Reserve arriving in time for lunch at Mara Sarova Camp. Afternoon game drive. Dinner and overnight at Mara Sarova Camp (LDBB).

DAY 06 ? MASAI MARA GAME RESERVE

Very early in the morning, after a cup of coffee or tea in the lodge you will join your driver-guides and set out for an early morning game drive in the reserve. This is usually the best game viewing time as during the early hours, temperatures are low and the animals are the most active. The plains game roam the savannahs licking on the morning dew on the leaves, watching all the while for the predators. Back in the camp, enjoy your sumptuous buffet breakfast then it?s time to relax or swim in the camp?s pool. Mid morning game drive followed by lunch in the lodge. Afternoon game drive. Dinner and overnight at Mara Sarova Camp (LDBB).

Sarova Mara Tented Lodge has 75 tents and is located in the world-renowned Masai Mara; home to the greatest game show on earth ? the Wildebeest Migration. The lodge is situated on an elevation astride two streams, with extremely beautiful gardens. The luxurious tents all have permanent roofs, zip-up fronts, electricity and ensuite facilities. Relax outside your own tent listening to the orchestra of rasping Cicadas, croaking tree frogs. The intermittent call of birds and monkeys is a memorable symphony. The Isokon Restaurant offers a wide range of cuisine and with special barbecues are held by the swimming pool beneath the star filled skies. The restaurant has two sections, one internal and one external with a canopy. Breakfast and lunch are buffets, whilst dinner is Table D?hote. The capacity is 150 people. The Oloip Bar is located on the ground floor, it is perfect in the evenings with a cozy log fire is lit in the fireplace in the Bar. It has a capacity of 150 people and operates between the hours of 0700hrs-2300hrs. Complementing the simplicity of the camp is cozy log fire that is lit in the Oloip bar every night, when the temperature drops. This is where traditional Maasai performers with their rich cultural dances and music entertain guests.

Probably the most famous of the reserves, the Masai Mara, in Kenya's southwestern corner, boasts an astonishing amount of game. Unfenced, the Mara is bounded in the east by the Ngama Hills and in the west by the Oloololo or Siria Escarpment. Gazelle, wildebeest and zebra graze in large numbers and where prey is found so are predators. Not only is this a great place in which to find game, but also the wide greeny-gold savannahs spotted with thorn trees make it ideal for photography. The Mara, as it is known in Kenya, is ravishingly beautiful and also offers long, undisturbed views and utterly dramatic panoramas. The weather really means something here. The sun may beat down unforgiving, huge clouds in fabulous shapes may sweep across the widest of skies; the wind ripples the grasses as though a giant hand strokes them. The landscape is stunning. The famously black-manned Mara lions are possibly the stars of the Mara show, but cheetah, elephant, kongoni, topi, Thompson's gazelle, waterbuck, hyena, and primates are all here too. As with the rest of Kenya, the birding is good. There is no settlement within the reserve however, the Mara is in theory owned by the Masai, pastoralists and, in earlier times, renowned lion-killers. Lodges and hotels offer the opportunity to buy their beadwork, checked cloths and copies of their spears. It is said that if lions scent approaching Masai on the breeze they move swiftly in the opposite direction. Famously, the Mara is the northerly end of the Great Migration, that great primeval surge of wildebeest, zebra and antelope that sweeps in from Tanzania's Serengeti to Kenya's Masai Mara as the Tanzanian grass starts to fail. The large predators who pick off the weak, the stragglers and the young track them. The great herds, nearing their destination by July, mass along the Mara River, pushing, shoving and fantastically noisy, just waiting for the first animal to cross so that they can all follow, lemming-like, on the final leg of the journey. However, crocodiles lie in wait, sluggishly cruising the waters, fully prepared for their best meal of the year. Many fail in the life-and-death struggle - drowned, eaten by the crocodiles or, made careless or weak by their stressful swim, brought down by lions. The Masai Mara is terrible yet wonderful, and not to be missed.

DAY 07 ? MASAI MARA GAME RESERVE/NAIROBI/DEPARTURE

After breakfast drive to Nairobi, Kenya?s colourful capital city. Drop off at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport for your onward departure flight. End of our services. All prices indicated are in US$ and are net and non commissionable:

Easter supplement applicable on 10+11+12+13.04.10(inclusive) US$45.00 per person per night

Included:
? Accommodation and meals as indicated above
? Seven (7) seater minibus with English speaking driver/guide
? Game drives as indicated above
? All park fees
? One (1) litre bottle of mineral water per person per day on safari
? All transfers and assistance


Excluded:
? International flights, visas and airport taxes
? Personal expenses like drinks, tips, laundry etc
? Personal insurance and baggage insurance

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