Explore East Africa with Beach Extension

Nairobi

Welcome to Kenya

Arrive at Nairobi’s international airport and transfer by road to your accommodation.

On arrival, meet your driver and transfer to your Nairobi accommodation. Allow for city traffic and take the rest of the day at an easy pace. Depending on your arrival time, you can relax in your room or spend a quiet afternoon around the hotel.

This overnight stay separates the international journey from the safari transfers ahead. Review the following morning’s collection time and baggage guidance before dinner. Nairobi sightseeing can be discussed separately when flight timings leave enough time, but it is not assumed to be part of this arrival day.

Maasai Mara

Arrive in the Mara

Transfer to Wilson Airport and take a light-aircraft flight to the Mara, followed by the camp’s vehicle transfer.

Meet your guide after the flight or road transfer and continue to camp, stopping for wildlife where practical. Following the camp welcome, enjoy time to settle before a first afternoon drive if the schedule allows. The open landscape makes a striking introduction even before a major sighting.

Discuss the available driving areas and your interests during the briefing. The Mara supports rewarding wildlife viewing beyond the migration period, so plans should follow current conditions rather than a fixed expectation of river crossings. Spend the first evening at camp ready for an early start tomorrow.

Maasai Mara

A full safari day in the Mara

Start with a morning drive through the habitats accessible from camp. Give your guide time to investigate tracks and listen to the landscape, and allow longer stops when animals are behaving naturally nearby. The aim is a rewarding sequence of encounters, not simply collecting names on a list.

Depending on the route, have a picnic or return for lunch and a rest. A second outing brings different light and fresh possibilities before dinner. Keep river crossings in perspective: they are seasonal, unpredictable events and are never promised as part of a particular day’s programme.

Maasai Mara

Explore further at your own pace

With another day available, choose a different focus with your guide: photographing the landscape, spending more time with a pride if encountered, or looking closely at the birds and smaller creatures often overlooked on a first drive. The route remains responsive to what the morning reveals.

A longer outing with lunch away from camp may be worthwhile, subject to the day’s arrangements. Optional ballooning or community experiences should be booked separately in advance and checked for additional costs. Return for your final evening in the Mara, allowing time to prepare for tomorrow’s transfer.

Serengeti seasonal migration area

Join the seasonal safari route

Continue from Kenya into Tanzania on the flight and border routing confirmed for your dates. Formalities and a possible change of aircraft make this a travel day.

Travel to the airstrip serving the camp’s confirmed seasonal location, then continue with your guide. Migration camps change their operating position, so the final flight and transfer details must match your dates. Settle into camp and head out for an introductory drive if time permits.

During the briefing, ask where the herds have been seen and how the recent weather is influencing the area. The itinerary follows the camp’s base, not a guaranteed wildlife event. Your guide will plan the following days around the conditions on the ground and the habitats accessible from camp.

Serengeti seasonal migration area

Follow the movement of the herds

Leave camp with time to explore slowly and respond to fresh sightings. When the herds are nearby, their grazing, resting and movement can be absorbing in their own right. Predators and other resident animals add interest, but neither a hunt nor a dramatic crossing is a scheduled event.

A picnic can make sense if the best viewing is farther from camp; otherwise return for a break between drives. Discuss the afternoon with your guide instead of assuming the morning’s sightings will remain in the same place. This flexible approach keeps the day focused on real wildlife activity.

Serengeti seasonal migration area

One more day in migration country

Begin with a different angle on the same ecosystem, perhaps spending longer with a herd or looking at the smaller animals and birds around it. Your guide can explain how grazing, rainfall and predators interact without reducing the migration to a single moment.

Leave time for a final afternoon drive and a relaxed return to camp. If you are considering an optional balloon flight, it must be checked against the camp’s current location and available departure points. Pack for tomorrow’s transfer after dinner, with the next airstrip and flight routing reconfirmed by the team.

Central Serengeti

Your first afternoon in the Serengeti

Continue to the central Serengeti on the inter-camp transfer confirmed in your proposal. The camp’s seasonal location determines the most practical route.

Meet your guide and travel through the central Serengeti towards camp, stopping for wildlife where the transfer schedule allows. After checking in, take time to settle and understand the camp routine. If daylight permits, a first game drive introduces the plains and rocky kopjes within reach.

The Serengeti is not a single unchanging scene. Your guide will explain where recent rain, grazing and resident animals are shaping the current viewing. Use the first evening to discuss your interests, whether photography, birds or simply watching animal behaviour, and plan tomorrow around those priorities.

Central Serengeti

Plains, kopjes and resident wildlife

Leave camp early for a drive through the central Serengeti’s varied habitats. Scan the shade around rocks, watch grazing animals and allow time at sightings rather than moving on immediately. Predators may be active in the cooler hours, but the drive is guided by what is happening that morning.

Depending on the distance covered, return for lunch and rest or plan a picnic with the camp. An afternoon drive offers a different quality of light and another opportunity to study the landscape. Migration herds move with conditions; their presence is not assumed simply because the itinerary includes the Serengeti.

Central Serengeti

Time to follow the wildlife

A second full day gives your guide flexibility to revisit a sighting or explore another sector within a sensible driving distance. Discuss a particular interest over breakfast: a slower photographic morning, more time watching a herd, or attention to birds can make the day feel distinct.

Balance the safari with a midday break before a final afternoon outing. Optional balloon flights require separate reservations, suitable weather and additional payment unless expressly included. Whether you spend the afternoon out or partly at camp, finish by confirming departure arrangements without sacrificing the unhurried pace of the stay.

Ngorongoro highlands

Climb into the highlands

Leave the Serengeti for the Ngorongoro highlands using the confirmed safari transfer. Allow for park formalities and the approach to the lodge.

Travel into the Ngorongoro highlands, where the scenery and temperature change from the lower safari country. Allow for park formalities and the slower roads before reaching your lodge. The afternoon is kept relatively light so that an early start tomorrow feels comfortable.

Take in the setting, prepare a warm layer and discuss the plan for the crater visit. Your guide will confirm breakfast and lunch arrangements as well as the departure time. Any walk or community visit needs its own arrangement; the arrival day does not automatically include an additional excursion.

Ngorongoro highlands

A safari on the crater floor

Set off early and descend into the Ngorongoro Crater for a game drive. Explore the different habitats rather than concentrating solely on a species checklist, allowing time to observe grazers, birds and any predators encountered. Sightings, including rhino, remain a matter of conditions and luck.

Plan lunch with your guide and continue exploring within the time allowed by the park arrangements. Later, ascend to your highland accommodation for a quieter evening. The contrast between the crater floor and the cooler surroundings of the lodge is part of the day, so keep layers handy for the return.

Zanzibar

Arrive on the island

Leave the highlands for your confirmed airport connection to Zanzibar, followed by a road transfer to Breezes.

After the flight and arrival formalities, meet your driver and continue to your beach accommodation. The transfer is followed by a deliberately quiet afternoon: check in, unpack and settle into the slower pace after the safari. The exact time available depends on the confirmed flight schedule.

Explore the hotel setting and discuss any activities you might want over the next days. Water conditions, tides and operating schedules affect excursions, so keep the programme flexible. Dining arrangements follow the booked meal plan; beach stays should not be assumed to include every meal, drink or activity.

Zanzibar

A day beside the Indian Ocean

Enjoy an unhurried breakfast and a day with no transfer to make. Spend time by the pool or on the beach, taking account of tides and the hotel’s swimming guidance. This pause is intended to balance the early starts and full days of safari.

If you would like to be more active, ask about a separately booked marine excursion with an appropriate operator. Sea conditions and availability determine what is practical, and equipment or boat trips may cost extra. Return in time to enjoy a relaxed evening at the hotel.

Zanzibar

Choose your own island pace

Keep another day for rest or arrange an optional excursion that suits your interests. A cultural outing needs time for road travel as well as the visit itself, so avoid combining too many stops. Confirm the guide, transport and costs before setting out.

Alternatively, stay at the hotel and enjoy the final day without a schedule. Check tomorrow’s airport collection time and pack for the international journey. Leave room for traffic and airport formalities rather than using the last evening to squeeze in an activity far from your accommodation.

Zanzibar airport

Your onward journey

Leave the hotel at the agreed collection time for your road transfer to Zanzibar airport. The pickup is planned around traffic, check-in requirements and your confirmed flight.

Enjoy breakfast and a final look at the setting before your collection, subject to the departure time. A last wildlife activity is only possible when the transfer schedule genuinely leaves enough room; it is not automatically included on a flying day. Keep passports, medication and valuables in your hand luggage.

Before confirming international flights, let us check the complete connection, including any airport change, baggage collection and immigration requirements. If the timings are too tight, an additional overnight stop should be arranged rather than relying on a rushed transfer. No accommodation is scheduled for tonight in this itinerary.