Flying safari not only saves a considerable amount of time, but provides the traveler with the added benefit of viewing some of the most spectacular regions of Masai Mara from an air perspective. Some parts of Masai Mara are best accessed by light aircraft - in fact, many camps in the Masai Mara are best accessed by flying in to a safari lodge. Air safaris in Masai Mara are becoming increasingly popular in Kenya, with daily scheduled flights direct Nairobi Wilson airport onto the bush strips of the private lodges around Masai Mara. Travelers can also air charter into Maasai Mara .the most widely used aircraft and charter runs by Air Kenya and Safari Link are the Cessna 206, 210 and the 208 Caravan, but twin engine Kingairs or Islanders, as well as a variety of small jets, are all available to travelers prepared to pay more for the experience or added speed. Aircraft all adhere to stringent safety regulations and servicing, while the "bush pilots" are some of the most skilled aviators in the world.
Welcome to the most luxurious way to tour Kenya at a discounted safari price. The Flying Safari will introduce your family to the wonders of two of Africa's greatest game reserves, with a host of other natural excursions and sporting pastimes thrown in. And with all transport provided by Kenya's flying charter airlines, you'll spend very little time shuttling between destinations and much more visiting the animals and the people that make Kenya the ultimate safari destination. Tailor-made flying package to include Heritage Hotels & Lodge' two properties at the coast: the lively
Voyager Beach Resort just north of Mombassa, or the exclusive five-star hideaway of Kipungani on the northern island of Lamu Island can be arranged on request. The Air Safari includes meet and greet service, airport transfers, 1 night in Nairobi on a bed and breakfast basis, 6 nights on a flying safari including all meals, light aircraft transfers Nairobi-Samburu-Great Rift Valley Lodge-Maasai Mara-Nairobi, 4 game drives in Samburu and 6 game drives in the Maasai Mara, a nature walk, boat trip and half day excursion to Lake Nakuru National Park during your Naivasha stay, Adventurers Club activities for children (Samburu, Naivasha and the Maasai Mara), park fees. Price excludes: Visas, health requirements, travel insurance, drinks, gratuities, optional extra activities, all items of a personal nature and any service not specified.
Note:
There is a maximum luggage limit of 15kgs per person on light aircraft transfers - soft bags please. Rates for additional children or ages 12-16 years available on request (depending on sharing/own room requirement)
Day 1
Depart to Nairobi, arriving mid afternoon. On arrival you will be met and transferred to the Holiday Inn Nairobi, or similar, for overnight on a bed and breakfast basis.
Day 2-3
This morning you will be picked from your hotel and transferred to Wilson Airport for your flight to Buffalo Springs. The flight will take you close to the spectacular snowcapped peaks of Mount Kenya and over the lush plains of the Laikipia Plateau, home to one of the last great unfenced wildlife populations in Africa. After a 1 hour 15 minute flight, you will land in the desert wilderness of Buffalo Springs, where one of our four-wheel drive vehicles will be waiting to drive you to Samburu Intrepids tented camp. After checking into your riverside tent, you'll have lunch and a short siesta before heading back for the plains - and a variety of close encounters with Samburu's unique and endangered wildlife. Samburu is famous as being home to the rare 'northern species' of Beisa Oryx, reticulated giraffe, Grevy's zebra, Somali ostrich and the graceful giraffe-necked generuk antelope. The acclaimed Adventurers' Club at Samburu Intrepids will introduce your children to a host of unusual species in the safety of the camp grounds, including the alternative 'small five' of leopard tortoise, elephant shrew, buffalo weaver, lion ant and rhinoceros beetle. Our qualified teams of naturalists are assisted by a highly trained children's animator, who is responsible for the care and wellbeing of younger Adventurers. The Adventurers' Club is dedicated to providing a lasting natural education for teenagers and school groups allowing the adults to enjoy their holiday too! For families, we've a range of thrilling activities, including camel walks, treks up sacred Mount Ololokwe and trips to neighboring Samburu communities, where the pastoralist
way of life has remained unchanged for centuries.
Day 4-5
From Samburu we've arranged a noontime departure for the spectacular 45 minute flight south to the bird-fringed shores of Lake Naivasha. The flight will take you over the lush slopes of the Aberdare Mountains, where ancient rainforests and bamboo groves are divided by meandering streams and towering waterfalls, before you descend into the ethereal expanse of the world's largest valley. Landing at our own airstrip, we'll take you straight to the lodge for lunch, followed by an afternoon at leisure on the links of Kenya's most spectacular championship golf course, playing tennis, or lounging by one of the world's most panoramic swimming pools. These two days offer a host of unique activities centered on the string of lakes that line the Rift Valley - Nakuru, Elementeita, Bogoria and Baringo - home to bubbling steam vents, kudu and other antelope, and the greatest diversity of water birds on the planet. Closer to home, there are horseback trails through the ancient Eburu Forest, you can walk among the game of the protected sanctuaries at Hell's Gate and Crater Lake, or fish for bass among the hippos and otters on Lake Naivasha. For history buffs, there's a host of evocative trips down memory lane, including the 'gin palaces' where the likes of Lord Errol and Lady Diana Dalamere gambolled away their Happy Valley days, and the lush lawns of Elsemere, where Joy Adamson lived out her later years after releasing the famous Born Free lions. And all this within a stone's throw of the Great Rift Valley Lodge, where our stunning, split-level guestrooms offer some of the latest luxuries on the edge of the oldest landscape known to man. Adventurers' Club activities included for children.
Day 6-7
After lunch on the sixth day, we'll take you south on a 50 minute flight into the heart of the world's most famous game reserve. Passing over the lush forest of the Mau Escarpment and the sprawling wheat farms of Narok, your plane will descent into a natural Eden, where before you've even landed you'll begin to see the huge herds of elephant, buffalo, zebra and antelope that make the Maasai Mara the world's greatest living spectacle. Mara Intrepids Tented camp is situated on the banks of the Talek River in the heart of this great wilderness, where you're very likely to see wild animals from your own balcony. But the real aim of the game here is a proper wilderness immersion, and you'll be allocated your own highly trained guide to guide you on as many as three game drives each day. Game drives in the Mara's rolling hills, forests and grassy plains are always different - sometimes sitting amid a hundred-strong herd of elephant, other times tiptoeing past a pride of lions on a kill. The rains in March have nurtured the Mara's grasslands, providing plenty of food for its millions of grazers - and plenty of prey for its prowling predators. Our highly trained children's guides will take your young 'Adventurers' on a variety of educational excursions in the safety of our camp grounds.
Day 8
On the eighth day we'll fly you back to Nairobi. From Wilson Airport you will be taken to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport for your return flight.
Accommodation:
Mayfair Court Holiday Inn, Kenya - The Mayfair Court Holiday Inn Hotel is a three/four star luxury hotel, located in the suburbs of Nairobi, approximately 6 km from the city centre. Within easy walking distance of the hotel is the Westlands shopping centre with the largest and best variety of shops and restaurants in Nairobi. All hotel rooms have en-suite bathrooms as well as television. There is a casino, 2 outdoor swimming pools, a health club, hairdressing salon and a few shops.
Mara Porini Tented Camp, Kenya - 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- Masai Mara ecosystem and less than 18 kms from the Maasai Mara park boundary. The conservancy holds a wide variety of the animal species for which the Mara is famous, including a large resident pride of lion. Porini Camp Hotel has just 6 guest tents and is sited along the banks of the Laetoli, a permanently flowing watercourse. The tents are spacious, have solar electric lights, and an en suite bathroom with flush toilet and safari shower. Food is excellent with home baked bread, fresh salads and high quality meals prepared by the camp chef. Guests enjoy morning, evening and night game drives, sundowners at scenic viewing points and escorted walks with Maasai guides. Rates include park & conservancy fees, all game drives, walks, wine, beer and soft drinks. Camp closed 16 April to 31 May.
Mara Intrepids Camp Hotel Kenya - Mara Intrepids Camp straddles the animal migration corridor at the confluence of the Masai Mara main game-viewing areas, giving guests an unbeatable view of the world’s most famous wildlife spectacle. The Mara Intrepids Camp comprises 30 safari tents divided into four very private areas, each with its own elegant mess tent and secluded riverside viewpoints. The raised guest tents present a picture of old world elegance, with giant four-poster beds and handsome mahogany furniture offset by modern en suite bathrooms and luxurious amenities. Internationally trained chefs prepare delectable al fresco dishes to order. Activities include walking safaris outside the reserve, day and night game drives, or a visit to the local neighbours in their manyattas. Three game drives daily are included in the package price. Night game drives and visits to a Masai village attract an additional cost. Dawn balloon safaris can also be arranged.
Great Rift Valley Lodge Hotel & Golf Resort, Kenya - The Great Rift Valley Lodge is perched on the side of the Eburu Escarpment, overlooking Lake Naivasha and the sweeping floor of the world’s largest valley.
Each of the 30 rooms, all with private balconies, overlooks the spectacular valley and a large waterhole frequented by antelope, zebra and buffalo. The rooms are beautifully furnished with large four-poster beds, handmade wooden furniture, African prints, and modern en suite bathrooms. The social heart of the Great Rift Valley Lodge is the clubhouse building. As well as all the facilities you would expect of a professional golf club, the clubhouse offers a panoramic restaurant, 2 bars, and a luxurious lounge. Around the clubhouse, the lush fairways and sparkling lakes of the 6 580 yard 18 hole championship golf course fan out in different directions. Visitors can also take advantage of a wide variety of modern sports facilities, including a driving range and practice greens, 2 tennis courts, a bowling green and a freeform swimming pool as well as comprehensive corporate facilities including 3 conference rooms and a state of the art business centre. The Great Rift Valley Lodge Hotel & Golf Resort, is just one and a half hours drive from Nairobi or a 30 minute flight to its own all-weather airstrip. Its location midway between the Samburu and Maasai Mara Reserves makes the lodge the perfect stopover between the country’s top safari destinations. Tailor-made packages to include these areas are available on request.
The Great Rift Valley Lodge & Golf Resort is ideal for conferences, workshorps and corporate getaways or family vacations.
Samburu Intrepids Hotel , Kenya - The Samburu Intrepids Club is like a fantasy tree house with decks built around trees, wooden walkways leading from one area to another and high thatched roofs towering above. The space is breathtaking. The Samburu Intrepids Hotel stretches above sandy river banks. Shaded by thatch and trees, this soaring lodge is open to the air and river views. The decor is casual and high quality. You will have a sense of harmony with your surroundings. Beneath trees, high on the river banks are luxury tents. They are furnished in African mahogany, and have wooden decks with reclining chairs. There are four-poster beds, overhead fans and double sinks. Luxuriant vegetation has been trained into lovely gardens near the tents.
