Itinerary

Day 1 - Ngong House, Nairobi

Arrive Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. After clearing customs and immigration formalities you’ll be welcomed by a representative and transferred to the leafy Karen area to Ngong House for check-in, dinner and overnight.
A unique and very peaceful residential retreat, Ngong House offers luxurious accommodation in five tree houses with beautiful sunset views of the Ngong Hills. Located only 30 minutes from downtown Nairobi, this lovely retreat feels a world away from the city’s bustle. The tree houses scattered through 10 acres of forested gardens are all beautifully furnished and feature unique glass and metalwork sculptures by local artists. The main house offers a luxurious living room, pool table and swimming pool. The hosts take pride in the artfully presented cuisine served in an open-fronted rondavel in the garden or on the lawn beneath the boughs of one of the blossoming trees.
This is the ideal place to rest up after your flight, maybe enjoy a swim, have an excellent meal and allow the attentive staff to look after you.
Ngong House is also conveniently close to the Daphne Sheldrick Orphanage. Both Daphne and her husband are to elephants what George and Joy Adamson were to lions. Daphne still today has a very successful elephant rescue and rehabilitation organization. You’ll be taken to visit this orphanage on the edge of Nairobi National Park when the orphanage is otherwise closed to the general public. You’ll be able to chatter to the orphans’ “wardens” and engage with the adorable little elephants themselves as they are being put to bed.

Day 2-4 - Lewa Safari Camp, Lewa Downs

Early this morning you’ll be transferred to Wilson Airport to catch your scheduled flight up to the northern bush airstrip to Lewa Downs.
The Laikipia region is a broad swathe of game rich grasslands and hills that reach Mount Kenya to one side and the wild deserts of the north to the other. Outside of the Maasai Mara, Laikipia can boast the greatest wildlife experiences in Kenya.
Lewa Downs are in the heart of the Laikipia region, a broad swathe of lava plateau that reaches the foothills of Mount Kenya on one side and in contrast, the wild deserts of the Northern Frontier District on the other. Outside of the Maasai Mara, Laikipia can boast the greatest wildlife experiences in Kenya.
Lewa Downs is probably East Africa’s finest conservancy and has been the home of the Craig family since the 1920’s. Delia, the grandmother, was awarded it in a post war colonial land lottery. She had qualified to enter the land hand out through her services as a nurse in the trenches. With a handsome chunk of Kenya to her name, she was soon married to David and they ran the area as a cattle ranch up in to the late 1980’s.
At this time and with the support of various benefactors, Royal and otherwise, they decided to concentrate on the conservation of game and are now one of the country’s great success stories. Having originally hunted out the rhino themselves, they now have over sixty, both black and white, on their property. They also have a thriving predator population and a plethora of plains game and smaller beasts.
You will stay at Lewa Tented Camp and will be looked after in fine style. Each tent is spacious, discreetly spaced from one another and has running hot and cold water and a flush lavatory. Before you arrive next year the camp will also have undergone a complete refurbishment so you will be amongst the first to enjoy the benefits of this.
It is an ideal base from which to explore the area on foot or safari vehicle, by day or night. We can also arrange to for you to horse ride if you are keen. Not only is the location exceptionally beautiful but the food is also excellent and every last morsel is an organic product of the farm.
Lewa lies in the shadow of the magnificent 17,000ft Mount Kenya and so one of your days it is possible, at extra cost, to fly by helicopter or fixed wing high up around the towering peaks of Nelion and Battian where you can see the most famous glaciers in Africa. Also high up on to the giant heather moor-land lies Lake Alice, a stunning glacial lake. You can have a delicious picnic there and explore the exquisitely beautiful area. There are even very sizeable trout living in the crystal waters and those that would like may have a go at fly-fishing.
(Excursion is at an extra cost)

Day 5-7 - Olonana Camp, Maasai Mara

After breakfast a morning-scheduled flight will fly you down to Maasai Mara Game Reserve. On arrival, met by camp driver/Olonana, your home for the next three nights. You may be rewarded with sightings of elephant, buffalo, giraffe and a host of other plains’ game.
Olonana is at the forefront of eco-tourism in Kenya with solar power, biodegradable products and an ingenious wetlands project which allows for all used water to be totally recycled. The camp comprises just 12 spacious and airy en suite accommodation tents (all with 2 queen size beds, floor to ceiling mosquito net ‘windows’ and verandah) located on the banks of the Mara River, where the resident hippo pods spend their days wallowing.
The afternoon is free for an afternoon game drive or another activity of your choice.
The wildlife is abundant and the swaying grasslands ensure that animals are never out of sight. Elephants browse amongst the large herds of wildebeest and topi, eland and buffalo, Thomson’s and Grant’s gazelle. The plains offer a rich variety of food for the dominant predators: lion; leopard; hyena and cheetah. In the Mara River, hippos submerge to snort and grumble while crocodiles sunbathe, mouths agape, on the riverbanks.
There are also options for a morning balloon safari [at an extra cost].
As the balloon is inflated against the first rays of sunrise your pilot will go through safety procedures.  It’s then time to climb aboard.  Once aloft, the balloon floats gently over the plains, giving a bird’s eye view of the game below as the sun creeps slowly over the horizon.  Spread beneath you is a panorama of Africa – elephants looking improbably small; giraffe browsing amongst the treetops; antelope grazing; a pair of lionesses stalking a herd of wildebeest; an eagle guarding his eerie; and cheetah glancing up as the shadow of the huge balloon crosses their paths.
After around one hour the balloon lands and nearby breakfast is already being prepared.  The smells of bacon, sausages and eggs drift on the breeze as you begin breakfast with platefuls of exotic Kenyan fruits and homemade pastries and, of course, glasses of bubbly to toast your flight in a tradition initiated by the Montgolfier brothers.

Day 8-10 - Little Shompole, Magadi

After breakfast you transfer to the airstrip for your scheduled flight to Nairobi. On arrival, connect your private charter and fly the short distance to Shompole.
Touted as one of the top lodges in Kenya by Tattler and Conde Nast magazines, Shompole Lodge, on the edge of the Great Rift Valley, is exquisite.  The lodge was designed with water as a central feature and it seems to flow throughout the lodge, with each room having its own private cool-pool as an escape from the outside green desert environment.  A great break from the hectic schedule of safari life, Shompole offers guests the opportunity to relax, swim and receive soothing beauty treatments.  For those who crave a more active stay, they can explore some of Shompole's 35,000-acre conservancy on foot, canoe, 4-wheel drive day and night game drives or mornings out on the shores of nearby Lake Natron amongst the flamingos.
You are at leisure to explore the ranch and enjoy game viewing activities of your choice or visit one of the community projects.

Day 11-13 - Manda Bay, Lamu Archipelago

A charter plane will collect you and fly you to Nairobi’s Wilson Airport where you will board a scheduled flight to the magic and beauty of the Indian Ocean.
After landing at the airstrip, it is a short 200-meter walk to the jetty where a speedboat awaits you to whisk you to your destination, the delightful Manda Bay.
Manda Bay is located on the North-Western tip of Manda Island, which forms one of the many unspoiled, idyllic islands found in the Lamu archipelago. It is run by good friends of ours. Surrounded by miles of soft white sand Manda Bay is the perfect retreat for honeymooners. The cottages are all in keeping with the local landscape and are constructed using local materials. Six of the rooms are set right on the seafront and five are set in-between and slightly behind on higher ground. All the cottages have large ceiling fans and en-suite bathrooms. They all have their own private veranda overlooking the Indian Ocean. The central dining and bar area is also crafted using Lamu furniture and overlooking the bay is a separate lounge area.
Manda Bay has its own completely fabulous, private 60ft traditional dhow “Utamaduni” which is excellent for use as a base for day sorties; perhaps you fancy visiting nearby Pate island which is steeped in the history of the coast and has an extraordinary atmosphere of times long past. Naturally it makes for the perfect sundowner sailing experience as well.
It is also well worth making the speedboat trip across to Lamu Island. Lamu is an incredible island that resulted through a combination of trade and Islam. Trade provided wealth; Islam the requirement of canon law that Friday noon prayer be held in a mosque of permanently settled location. All the elements were there to build up a small city-state. Monsoon winds supplied the energy and the building materials of coral and mangrove were available on the shore. Lamu’s economy today is still dominated by fishing, mangrove cutting and shipbuilding.
The town of Lamu is a world heritage sight. With only one car on the island, owned by the District Commissioner and only able to drive up and down the quayside, the only traffic you may come across is a donkey winding its way down a lane carrying produce of some description.
As with all good safaris, the personal attention to detail is both discreet and attentive.
All the food is delicious and of course most of it comes fresh out of the ocean - freshly caught Tuna, Mangrove Crab or Prawns are the order of the day, but individual needs and flexible mealtimes are designed to fit in with your requirements.
Take your days as they come and how the mood suits you. Exploring nearby mangrove creeks and long-left ruins, visiting the many islets or deep sea fishing for the elusive Marlin or Sailfish are just a few of the great options. Marine life abounds with regular sightings of Dolphins, Turtles & the occasional Humpback whale. One can also windsurf, water ski and kayak – options abound. Please see invoice as to what is included and excluded in the price.
There is easy, safe snorkeling and it being the Indian Ocean, the water is warm, gentle and clear.

Day 14 -Homeward Bound

You’ll get the afternoon flight back up to Nairobi where you’ll be met at Wilson Airport and transferred to Jomo Kenyatta Airport for your homeward flight.

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