Akelley

My husband, son (16) & I are planning a trip to East Africa. I would like to book an 8 - 10 day trip to Kenya and Tanzania. Of course I'm completely confused and was wondering if anyone has used Kensington Tours or what anyone recommends for a first time trip. We are trying to keep it to approx. $10,000 before flight for the three of us and would love to do some tented camps.

ShayTay

8 to 10 days would almost be too short a period of time in which to visit both Kenya and Tanzania. You might consider visiting just one country, focusing on when the Migration would be in either the Serengeti or the Masai Mara. What time of year were you thinking of going?

I would agree with you about the tented camps. They are my favorite accomodations while on safari.

Your price range seems doable for three people. Were you thinking of getting triple accommodations, with all three of you in the same room/tent, or two rooms/tents, which would probably trigger a single supplement fee?

atravelynn

Don't know Kensington.

Depending on when you are going either Kenya or Tanzania would work for 8-10 days. What months are you considering?

sandi

Kensington is an off-shoot of Gap Tours/Adventures. They have a 10/day combined Kenya/Tanzania that shows at $3,500/person, low season.

However, a quick look shows set itineraries, which might not be ideal for visiting when you'll experience the best game viewing.

They show travel from Amboseli to Ngorongoro in 1/day... ugh. Then next day from Ngorongoro to Grumeti (ok for July, but not August travel); then to the Mara with no indication whether to the Mara by air or via the Isebania border which can be another long long day of travel; only 2/days in the Mara before heading north to Lk. Naivasha. They spend alot of time traveling and insufficient time at particular parks/reserves.

Unless you want to see the Ngorongoro Crater which will be the busiest place you'll visit, I'd suggest you concentrate on Kenya only.

As mentioned above, when do you plan to travel? Suggest you request triples. Though some places offer a reduced price for child sharing, the cut-off is usually 16; some do have reduced rates to age 17. So ask.

To keep prices down for travel in peak season (assuming as this is when children are out of school), consider:

Day 1 - Arv. NBO - o/n
Day 2 - Sightseeing NBO: Giraffe Center, Blixen House, lunch at The Carnivore; drive north to Aberdares or Mt.Kenya - o/n The Ark or Serena Mountain
Day 3 - Drive to Samburu - o/n
Day 4 - Samburu - o/n
Day 5 - Drive to Mt.Kenya - o/n Sweetwater's, where there's the Goodall Chimp Sanctuary and night game drives
Day 6 - Drive to Lake Nakuru - o/n
Day 7 - Drive to Masai Mara - o/n
Days 8 & 9 - Masai Mara - o/n
Day 10 - Drive or Fly to Nairobi; day-room; evening transfer to airport for homebound flight.

That covers just about everything. You can probably get a "lodges only" itinerary at your budget. Staying in tent camps will be higher in price, so I'd save that for the Masai Mara where there are more choices that will keep you closer on budget.

You can send for itinerary requests, using the above, or leave it to the outfitter, to a few who receive good reviews here:

Southern Cross Safaris
Wildtrek Safaris
Eastern & Southern Safaris
Africapoint

Believe that should get you started.

atravelynn

When I looked up Kensington, it stated,

"Graduate Tours has changed its name to Kensington Tours"

2Afrika includes airfares in their pricing and has some good deals for group travel.

To see what countries and parks have peak wildlife viewing when, check this site
http://www.africa-adventure.com/dsp_besttime.html

For traditional summer vacation months in North America, I think you’ll find Kenya to work very well.

If you found Sandi’s comments helpful and are interested in the itinerary she offered, you can contact her at Africa Serendipity.

Whoever you go with, I suggest 3 nights in the Maasai Mara. Some budget trips offer only 2 nights, which is a shame because this place is a highlight of Kenya and Africa.

aucho53

Hi AKelly,

I have just started researching my first trip to Africa as well, and one site that I found to have well priced and interesting tours was 2afrika.com maybe you would wanna check it out?

Good luck and I hope you have a great trip!

Layla

Akelley

Thanks for all of your suggestions. I will look into them and let you know what I find.

Yes, we plan on all three staying in one room/tent. So far all tours we've looked at have quoted a discounted rate for our son. We plan on going in July '08. I guess we should decide on one or the other. So, does it matter which country you pick (Kenya/Tanzania)if it's your first visit to Africa? Everthing I look at seems so wonderful.

Angela

atravelynn

<i>&quot;So, does it matter which country you pick (Kenya/Tanzania)if it's your first visit to Africa?&quot;</i>

I would base the decision on the best wildlife viewing for the month you are going. See the link in my response above.

Tanzania has the World Heritage site-The Ngorongoro Crater. Of course that can be a bit crowded.

Tanzania can be a little more expensive than Kenya. Of course it depends on your accommodations.

In Kenya if you include places like Samburu &amp; Mt. Kenya, you can see unique species of zebra, giraffe, antelope, and ostrich that are not found in Tanzania or many other parts of Kenya.

The only place to see chimps in the typical Kenya and northern circuit Tanzania itineraries is Sweetwaters in Kenya. There is a Jane Goodall chimp sanctuary there that allows chimps rescued from bad situtations to live in a wild setting. In Southern Tanzania is Gombe, where Goodall researched and Mahale, but they take more time and $ to reach.

In August for example, the Maasai Mara is excellent for the migrating wildebeest &amp; zebra herds, and the predators that stalk them. It can be trickier to get in position for the migration in the Serengeti in Tanzania. But the Serengeti is usually less crowded.

All in all, I'd do a private family trip to Kenya with your own driver/vehicle.

Akelley

Thanks atravelynn....I'm going to concentrate on Kenya. I was leaning that way and your input helped me decide.

I just received yet more information from &quot;United Travel Group&quot; today. Has anyone heard or used them? I need to organize my thoughts here.....soooo much info! I'm going to take the long w/e to muddle through it and narrow it down.

Workin' on it-
Angela

Akelley

Sorry, a thanks to sandi also. Your info. also helped with my decision to stick with Kenya.

atravelynn

I saw lots of UTC vehicles around Kenya.