Safari Quick Facts

Leaving Eldoret we head for Uganda and our base at Jinja on the banks of the Nile River. Jinja is Uganda’s second largest city and is famous as the point where the Nile (officially the Victoria Nile) flows out of Lake Victoria and begins the 6695 kilometer journey to Egypt and the Mediterranean.

Two days of relaxation or the chance to enjoy the optional excursion of white water rafting on the Nile River, quad biking or volunteer at the Soft Power Education Project. There are some excellent walks either by the Nile or in the local villages

See day 4 for Itinerary

From Kampala we head out to the western part of the country where we see the gorillas. We set up camp at Lake Bunyoni and use this as a base for the gorilla visits. Lake Bunyoni is a great place to spend a few days swimming, walking, canoeing (in traditional dug out canoes, not as easy as it looks!) whilst looking forward to your trip to the gorillas or reflecting on the time you have spent with them. The fact that permits to see the gorillas are restricted can mean that it will take a few days for everyone with permits to see them.

From our base at Lake Bunyoni, passengers wishing to trek the Mountain Gorillas will transfer by small vehicle/minibus to the relevant national park. Please note that the transfers are not included in your gorilla permit or tour cost (cost U$50-100). Depending on the location of the trek, additional visas may also be required.
Gorilla permits allow visitors to spend up to one hour with a family of gorillas each day. In order to safeguard the gorillas, only 6-8 people may visit each day. In the interests of the gorillas, people with colds, flu or other contagious diseases will not be permitted to trek.
Gorilla trekking may be very strenuous and walking boots are recommended. The area is often shrouded in mist and frequent downpours are common at all times of year. A waterproof jacket can be very useful. Accompanied by your guides and trackers you will follow simple pathways into the cloud forest. The terrain is hilly and can be muddy and slippery, however the views of the Virunga mountain range are spectacular and more than make up for the tough inclines. As you walk, you may see signs and tracks of other animals as well as enjoying bird, monkey and insect sounds of the jungle.
Following their spore and night nests, your guides will lead you to the gorilla group. Some gorilla groups may be a 5 hour walk away from base camp, whilst other groups can be located within an hour. It is difficult to predict where the gorilla group might be and this adds to the excitement and unpredictability of the trek.
After encountering a gorilla family your guides will settle you down and enable you to watch the group interactions. Visitors are not allowed to get closer than 5 meters to the gorillas, but sometimes the gorillas themselves forget this and come very close indeed! Family groups are generally made up of several females, their playful young and one or two mature silverbacks. Young gorillas are extremely entertaining and enjoy showing off their climbing, tumbling and play-fighting antics. Mothers watch on and silverbacks generally maintain a respectful distance whilst keeping a protective eye on their family. Depending on their daily pattern, gorillas may be encountered resting in a sunny or shady spot or on the move as they travel from one feeding patch to another. Whatever else they are doing, gorillas are usually also eating and it is fascinating to watch them in the giant salad bowls which make up their habitat.
Photographing gorillas is allowed, but flash photography is prohibited. Anyone wishing to use a video camera must pay for a special permit. After your time with the gorilla group you will return to base camp and then rejoin the truck at Lake Bunyoni.
For up to date information regarding securing a permit and the current prices please contact your nearest Kumuka office.
Those who opt not to partake in the Gorilla trek will be based at Lake Bunyoni where, as noted on day 6 there are plenty of activities to keep you busy. As well as swimming, walking and canoeing there are village and craft center tours available, visits to the nearby Pygmy Island, and bird watching, time to soak up the sites and sounds of Uganda.

See day 7 for Itinerary

See day 7 for Itinerary

After enjoying peaceful Lake Bunyoni, we begin our drive back to Kampala. We cross the Equator for the second time and arrive in Kampala for a two night stay.

See day 10 for Itinerary

We spend the next two days travelling through Uganda back to the Kenya border and towards Lake Naivasha which was briefly Kenya’s airport as flying boats from southern Africa stopped to refuel on their way north

See day 12 for Itinerary

Here you may farewell some of your group who will be returning to Nairobi to end their journey. There will, however, be new faces and possibly a changeover of crew and truck to continue on to Victoria Falls.
For those of you continuing on, Lake Naivasha offers lots of optional excursions you can enjoy. You may wish to visit Elsamere, named after the lioness in "Born Free". This was the home of Joy Adamson who, along with her husband George, was the inspiration for the movie "Born Free".
You also have the option of going trekking or cycling in Hells Gate National Park, one of the few parks in Africa where it is possible to do walking safaris – this is an optional excursion and as such you will not be accompanied by your tour leader.
For the less energetic, Crescent Island (actually the rim of an old crater still attached to the mainland) is a much more leisurely walk and you are almost certain to come within meters of giraffe, wildebeest and several species of gazelle.

See day 14 for Itinerary

See day 14 for Itinerary

From Lake Naivasha we head into the Masai Mara, one of Africa’s premier game parks. The Masai Mara has large herds of plains game (gazelle, antelope, and giraffe) which in turn attract large numbers of carnivores (lion, cheetah, hyena and the ever elusive leopard). In the Masai Mara we do two game drives, one evening drive and one early the following morning. In most national parks it is forbidden to drive at night so all game viewing is done as early and as late as possible to get the best conditions. Looking for game in a National park is not always easy. This is one of the advantages of using a truck, which gives us superior height, making it easier to see over the surrounding terrain.

From the Masai Mara we pass back through Nairobi for an overnight stop.

We depart Nairobi and enter Tanzania and the town of Arusha. Our route to Arusha takes us through more Masai tribal lands and along the western slope of Mt Meru. On this route it is also possible to see Mt Kilimanjaro. Be warned, Kilimanjaro is regularly covered by cloud.
Arusha is situated on the southern slopes of Mt Meru and was originally a coffee town. Safaris have now taken over as the town’s big earner. We will camp in Arusha for the night to prepare for our 4 day excursion off the truck into the Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Crater.
NOTE: PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU CHARGE YOUR CAMERA BATTERIES TONIGHT AS THERE WILL NOT BE FACILITIES TO DO THIS OVER THE NEXT 3 NIGHTS.

Early this morning you will be collected from the campsite by our local operator to begin the 4 day excursion into the Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Crater. You will need to take any personal items you require with you as the truck stays behind in Arusha.
Leaving Arusha behind us, you will journey through the Tanzanian countryside to the Serengeti National Park, crossing vast plains in search of the Big 5 on our way to our bushcamp in the heart of the National Park where we will spend two nights listening to the sounds of Africa.

Enjoy morning and afternoon game drives in the Serengeti National park. Expect an early rise in the mornings which give us the best opportunity to view game as they start their day, an unforgettable experience to watch Africa wake up! Afternoon game drives offer their own beauty and give you some amazing photo opportunities.

One last early morning game drive in the Serengeti before returning to camp for brunch after which you will head for the Ngorongoro Crater escarpment where you will set up camp and prepare for an early start tomorrow morning

We descend onto the Crater floor for an early morning game drive in one of the most stunning natural wonders of the world. At 19Kms across and 600m deep this is the 5th largest crater in the world. It is a world heritage site and boasts a unique ecosystem. The crater itself reflects a mini rift valley. It has a soda lake with flamingos, fresh water, open plains, and a forest area. There is a high concentration of animals here, and it is also a home to a small population of black rhino. We spend around 4½ hours game driving around the crater.
After the excitement of the morning, settle back for the drive to Arusha where you will meet up with the truck and prepare for some well earned R&R on Zanzibar over the coming days.

From Arusha our journey takes us to Dar es Salaam (Swahili for "haven of peace") on the Indian Ocean. The trip will either be one big day on the truck or broken down into 2 shorter drives. Whichever way it is done, we get another chance to see Kilimanjaro and will also see a changing landscape en-route to the coast.

We travel to Zanzibar by ferry from Dar es Salaam and this journey can take up to 3 or 4 hours. Conditions are usually smooth but beware the occasional day with rolling seas.
Zanzibar is known as the Spice Island, which comes from the many different spices that were grown there by the original Omani settlers. A lot of spices are still grown on the island and make up a large part of the economy of the island. The island does have a more sordid past in that it was once a major slave trading port; and it is still possible to visit the site of the old slave trading markets. The town center still shows a lot of its Arabic origins in its architecture. It’s fascinating to walk around the labyrinth of old buildings and walled streets. For the beach lovers you can go out of the town and spend some relaxing time on the isolated beaches. There are spice tours that take in all manners of exotic fruits and spices and you can sample many of the tastes and smells first hand. Just off the coast of the old town is Prison Island, where there is a population of giant land tortoises who are happy to share their stretch of beach. We will spend 4 days on the island, generally split between 1 night in Stone Town and 3 nights on the Coast where accommodation with breakfast is included however all other meals will be at your own expense during this time.
We recommend that you budget around U$200-$300 for your stay on Zanzibar to cover food, transport around the island, optional tours, accommodation upgrades, drinks and souvenirs. Please note that this is a recommendation only as different passengers have widely differing spending patterns.

See day 25 for Itinerary

See day 25 for Itinerary

See day 25 for Itinerary

Today the group will travel by ferry back to Dar es Salaam and rejoin the truck which will transfer you to the campsite on the outskirts of Dar es Salaam.

From Dar es Salaam we cross southern Tanzania into Malawi. The route takes us through the Mikumi National Park. This is not an excursion, but, fortunately for us, the road actually passes right through the center of the park, and it is possible to see numbers of giraffe, antelope and elephants. It is interesting to note that these elephants are very small in stature, which is attributed to the decimation of their gene pool due to poaching

Malawi is a small country in central southern Africa and is dominated by water and mountainous regions. More than 30% of the country’s landmass comprises of Lake Malawi. On our trip through Malawi we visit a number of the small bays along the lakeshore. Snorkelling and diving are available or people can just swim and laze about on the beaches. There is also ample time to visit local villages and the local markets which abound with woodcarvings, the most famous of these being large carved chairs. These chairs have proved very popular with our clients over the years, only to become a problematic purchase when the time comes to send such a large object home.

See day 31 for Itinerary

See day 31 for Itinerary

See day 31 for Itinerary

See day 31 for Itinerary

Leaving the beautiful beaches of Malawi behind we will head towards the Zambia border camping for the night before crossing into Zambia tomorrow. This is a driving day with no activities planned.

This period is spent travelling to Livingstone, stopping off in Lusaka, Zambia, en-route.
Livingstone is a small town on the Zambian side and not surprisingly was named after David Livingstone, the man who discovered Victoria Falls, known locally as "Mosi oa Tunya", "the smoke that thunders", is one of the world’s natural wonders, though they are neither the highest nor the widest of the world’s waterfalls. They do, however, create a visual spectacle as they cut a massive gorge in the earth and crash 111 meters to the river below. This gorge actually forms the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia and the initial part of our stay we spend on the Zambian side.

See day 37 for Itinerary

Today is yours free to partake in many of the activities available from the Zambian side of Victoria Falls. It is highly recommended that you take the time to view the "Falls" from this side of the border to gain a different perspective

Today the truck will cross into Zimbabwean side of Victoria Falls where we will be based for the next few days.

Victoria Falls. Time at leisure to enjoy the many activities available including the option to do an evening river cruise on the Upper (above the falls) Zambezi River, which takes about 3 hrs with drinks included.
On the Zimbabwe side there are a wide variety of optional activities, the most famous being White Water rafting on the Lower Zambezi. This excursion takes a full day and has 14 plus rapids none below grade 4 (rapids are graded from 1 to 6). Please note that at certain times of the year the rafting may be restricted or even closed due to high water levels (March – May). Bungy jumping is also an option for all those who wish to throw themselves 111 meters head first off a perfectly good bridge. Another optional activity is Jet Boating, imported and improved on from New Zealand. Various flights are on offer, including light fixed wing aircraft, helicopter, microlight and ultralight, all offering wonderful viewing of the falls. As well as these, there is horse riding, elephant riding and canoeing, not to mention a walk to the falls themselves. Videos and still photographs are available for purchase of most activities, and are a great reminder of your adrenaline filled visit to the mighty Victoria Falls and Zambezi River

The tour ends in Victoria Falls on day 42. No accommodation is included on this day.

NB Please note that entrance (approximately 20 USD) to Mosi oa Tunya (Victoria Falls) National Park is not included in your tour price.

The tour ends in Victoria Falls on day 42. No accommodation is included on this day.