Essential East Africa

Day 1 Nairobi    
Jambo! Welcome to Kenya. Your adventure begins with a welcome meeting at 6pm.    

Day 2 Nairobi to Loita Hills
Depart Nairobi, with a short stop in Narok for a spot of food shopping. Continue to Loita Hills (approximately 5–6 hours), then stop, chill out and get some lunch. Today's drive crosses the Great Rift Valley, Africa's huge great divide, takes you into the remote region of Loita Hills. You will visit the Maasai, who are known for their dazzling red dress and elaborate jewellery, and gain an insight into the culture and ancient ways of this proud East African community. After setting up your tent, meet your Maasai hosts. A local elder will deliver a fascinating talk about the Maasai and what they're about.

Day 3 Loita Hills to Masai Mara    
Travel from Loita to Masai Mara (approximately 1–2 hours). The Masai Mara is one of the classic African experiences – wide open plains, postcard-perfect skies and some of the world's great wild animals. After setting up camp, sit down to some lunch. Then it's time to jump back on board the truck and go for a game drive through the wilderness of the Mara. You campground tonight is located outside of the national reserve and has flush toilets and showers.  

Day 4 Masai Mara
Adventure into the reserve for a full day's game drive. You'll explore this diverse environment and most likely see a lots of different wildlife. An optional balloon ride over the Mara at sunrise is well worth considering.  

Day 5 Masai Mara to Lake Victoria    
Travel towards the Kenya-Tanzania border and to the shores of Lake Victoria (approximately 7–8 hours). This is not only Africa's biggest lake – it's the largest tropical lake in the world. You'll arrive late afternoon, in time to chill out lakeside with a cold drink and watch the sunset. You will camp on the shores of the lake tonight, at one of its least visited campgrounds, on the outskirts of a small town called Musoma.    

Day 6 Lake Victoria to Serengeti
Today you will travel from Lake Victoria to the gate of Serengeti National Park on a smooth road (approximately 3 hours) and enjoy a picnic lunch at the entrance to the park. Enter the Serengeti and take a game drive en route to your campsite. These plains – green after the rains, brown and burnt in the dry season – are home to thousands of hoofed animals and fierce predators, so see how many you can spot. Your campsite is right in the action, within the park itself, so listen out for the sounds of nocturnal animals as you drift off to sleep at night.

Day 7 Serengeti      
Start the day with a game drive at dawn. You will head out while the animals are at their most active, then head back to camp for brunch at around 11 am. After spending the warmer part of the day relaxing, as the animals do, depart again in the afternoon for another adventure through the wild. You'll return in time for dinner. There's the option of an early-morning balloon ride here too, so if you didn't take one in the Mara, tomorrow's your chance.    

Day 8 Serengeti to Karatu    
Get everything you possibly can out of the Serengeti with a final game drive on your way out of the park this morning. Stop for lunch and then continue to Karatu, entering the Ngorongoro Conservation Area as you drive. Including stops the journey to Karatu will take about 4 hours, plenty of time to do a little window gazing over the vast plains. On arrival set up camp and spend the rest of the day at your own pace.

Day 9 Karatu to Arusha    
If you can manage an early start, an optional visit to the Ngorongoro Crater is highly recommended. Gigantic, perfectly intact volcanic crater Ngorongoro is home to some 30,000 animals. Among these are endangered black rhinos, lions, leopards, elephants, impalas, zebras and hippos. The crater floor is great for game viewing all year round, and the photo-opportunities here are next level. If you don’t wish to visit the crater head on to Mto Wa Mbu wth your crew. Here you can participate in a guided village walk or bike ride around the farming areas. Join up with your other travellers at the craft market before continuing to the city of Arusha at the base of Mt Meru.    

Day 10 Arusha    
Your adventure comes to an end after breakfast today. A departure transfer can be booked, at an additional expense, to either Kilimanjaro Airport (JRO) or Arusha Airport (ARK). Alternatively, you can continue on with our crew to finish in Nairobi.