martync

lovintravlin: we will be gorilla trekking with you on June 21st and we will trek on the 21st and 22. See ya then.

mstickle at mac dot com

sandi

23-days - Tanzania/Kenya

2-days Arusha
1-day Nairobi
3-days Desert Rose
2-days Shompole
2-days Finch Hatton's
1-day Richard's Camp
1.5-days Saruni Camp

... too short, as usualy; but not soon enough to be outta here!

joode

It's great to read where everyone's going and this surely must be some sort of record for one of the longest running threads!
Our first trip to SA and Kenya begins on September 22 when we leave Sydney/Australia with Qantas (FF miles)for Johannesburg. After spending 3 nts with friends there we fly to Nairobi and start our private safari with Eastern & Southern.
Sep 25 Nairobi - 1 nt
26 Samburu Serena - 2 nts
28 Serena Mountain Lodge - 1 nt
29 Lake Baringo Island Camp - 2 nts
Oct 2 Sarova Lion Hill Lake Nakuru 1n
3 Mara Serena - 3 nts
5 Nairobi to Johannesburg for another night or two. We then intend to hire a car and do a very relaxed trip down to Capetown taking about 17 days. This part is still very much in the planning stage and if ANYONE has suggestions re 'must see' places or the best route, I would love to hear from you. Thanks to all for previous help on Kenya itinerary and happy travelling!

sundowner

53 days to go. MalaMala for the first 5 nights and then 1 night in Johannesburg. There we meet up with my husband and some friends and their 2 kids and head over to Namibia for 9 nights. This is the first year I'm taking my little kids and I can't wait! I hope they fall in love with Africa as I have. (I've promised my 2 older kids that I'll take them when they both graduate from college - target date summer 2008.)

Calo

48 days until Kenya and Tanzania.

Visiting:
London - Aaran House Hotel
Arusha - Impala Hotel
Tarangire - Tarangire River Camp
Ngorongoro - Ngorongoro Serena
Serengeti - Kirawira, Lobo, Serena
Lk Manyara - Kirurumu
Nairobi - Fairview Hotel
Based on the posted itineraries on this thread alone, I have another 223 potential trips to make to Africa

susan300

26 days for us!! We can't wait. Here's our itinerary- we are "first-timers" to South Africa.
May 27th - leave Jfk to overnight
May 28th - jo'burg and transfer to Cape town.
May 29-June 1st - Cape Town..Portswood Hotel.
June 1st - Zambezi Sun Hotel Livingstone Zambia. Helicopter tour of falls.
June 2,3rd Savuti Camp
June 4,5 Chitabe Camp
June 6.7 Kwetsani Camp
June 8th overnight in Jo'burg
June 9th - 1/2 day tour of Soweto and flight home that evening.

We are very excited!!!

CarrieS

45 days!
Arusha Hotel (1 night)
Tarangire Safari Lodge (2 nights)
Ngorongoro Serena (1 night)
Serengeti Serena (1 night with balloon ride the next morning)
Kirawira (3 nights)
Tembo Hotel (1 night)
Matemwe Bungalows (2 nights)

I'm so excited to finally be able to participate in this thread!

OnlyMeOirish

Well here goes:

Depart July 20th from Shannon Ireland to LHR to NBO arriving early July 21st. Then we fly NBO to Kigali.
3 nights Kigali - 1 Gorilla treck
July 24th Kigali - NBO - half day Nairobi then Wilson - Masai Mara - 4 nights Mara Serena.
July 27th Masai Mara - Nairobi - 2 nights Nairobi Serena.
July 30th home.

Still second guessing our two days in Nairobi though!!

csuss

48 Days until Tanzania & Zanzibar!

LAX-LHR-Nairobi - over night
2 nights Kambi Ya Tembo
3 nights Tarangire - Olivers Camp (one night fly camping)
2 nights Ngorongoro (Serena)
4 nights Serengeti Sayari mobile tented camp
1 night Stone Town
3 Nights Ras Nungawi

LyndaS

OMIGOSH! ONLY 25 DAYS LEFT - CAN'T BELIEVE IT!

Surfaced on the LAST DAY!! of taxes (can't believe our gov't says one extra day as April 30th was a Sunday - extend my torture or what) to see this thread -

May 26th 2006 to June 16, 2006
Kenya Tanzania, Zanzibar with Micato Tours (Stanley Wing Safari)

May 26 - leave Vancouver through LHR
May 28 - arrive Nairobi, wander around the city all day with Kennedy, hugging cheetahs, seeing orphaned elephants and other such stuff - Grand Regency for two nights
May 29 - Nairobi sightseeing with Micato; Kiambethu Tea Farm, Karen Blixen estate, Railway Museum and Giraffe Center, dinner at the Pinto's house
May 30 - fly to Amboseli, two nights Amboseli Serena
June 1 - drive to Arusha, fly to Tarangire, 1 night Sopa Lodge
June 2 - drive to Ngorongoro Crater, 2 nights Sopa Lodge
June 4 - drive to Serengeti, visit to Oldavai Gorge along the way, 2 nights at Sopa Lodge
June 6 - Fly to Arusha, Nairobi and the Mara. 2 nights at Kichwa Tembo Camp - early morning balloon ride on 2nd morning.
June 8 - Fly to Nairobi, drive to Mt Kenya Safari Club, 2 nights, includes visit to Ol Pejata Game Park and Jane Goodall Orphan Chimp Sanctuary, as well of course the Animal Orphanage at the MKSC.
June 10 - Fly to Nairobi, 1 night Grand Regency, free day, (I'll think of something). Carnivore Restaurant in evening
June 11 - Fly to Stometown, Zanzibar, 3 nights at the Serena Inn.
June 12 - OUR 30TH WEDDING ANNIVERSARY!!! Walking tour of Stonetown and market. Spice plantation tour in the afternoon.
June 13 - Out to see the Red Colubus monkeys in the Jozani Forest
June 14 - fly to Nairobi in afternoon, fly to London in evening.
June 15 - all day in London overnight at Shepiston Lodge in Hayes. A busy busy day here - the London Eye, Thames cruise (short version), visit the Sherlock Holmes Museum and dinner with Kavey and Julian!
June 16 - I think we should have a do nothing day, maybe lunch in Windsor, meet friends (from here) in Heathrow airport for evening flight home.
June 17 - write trip report for Fodorites.
June 19 - back to work at old job to earn money for next safari.....
June 26 - start new job

kfg

We leave 5/28 NYC to London via BA
& spend 3 nights in London

6/1 London to Capetown
4 nights at Cape Grace

Franschhoek
2 nights at Le Franschhoek

Victoria Falls
1 night at Victoria Falls Hotel

Botswana
2 nights at Chobe Chilwero
2 nights at Chiefs Camp

Johannesburg
1 night at the Grace Hotel in Rosebank

We're going with A & K. We went to a travel show in NYC last year and were very impressed with the A&K people we met and spoke to there. After spending many, many hours reading all of the great posts, I know we could have done this more cheaply, but it's our 25th wedding anniversary and we decided to live it up.

We are NOT flying business class, however, because we don't have enough miles and couldn't rationalize paying full freight. We are flying BA's next step up from coach so hopefully that will help. It's also the reason we decided to add on the time in London and 2 extra nights in Capetown before the actual tour begins. We'll get over our jet lag and have an extra week of vacation!

I have learned so much from all of you and can't wait to go. Aside from a trip to Israel in 2000, we have always traveled to Europe so this will be very, very different for us.

By the way, did anyone see the PBS special on Lions last night? It focused primarily on the problems the lions of East Africa are having...very difficult problems.

99mkw

<b>112 days to Uganda &amp; Kenya</b>

8/21 Flight from ATL to AMS via JFK
8/22 Flight to EBB, O/N in Kampala Uganda
8/23 Full day of driving to Kisoro, O/N Traveler’s Rest
8/24 AM golden monkey tracking in Mgahinga Park, PM drive to Bwindi
8/25 Tracking Bwindi’s M Group, continue to Savannah Hotel in Kihihi
8/26 Drive through Ishasha region of QENP, Kazinga channel cruise, then on to Kibale
8/27 Full day chimpanzee habituation experience, O/N Kanyanchu Tree House Banda
8/28 AM Bigodi swamp tour, then back to EBB for evening flight to NBO
8/29 AM drive to Lake Nakuru, afternoon game drive, night drive, O/N Mbweha
8/30 Drive to Mara, game drive along the way to Mara Serena
8/31 Balloon Flight over Mara, PM game drives, O/N Serena
9/1 Transfer to Mara Basecamp, night drive
9/2 AM walking safari, PM game drive, O/N Basecamp
9/3 Drive back to NBO, evening flight to JRO, then on to AMS via DAR
9/4 AMS to ATL direct, back to the real world

-Matt

girlpolo33

Great to read about everyone's upcoming travels.

I depart on May 20 for:

* a week at Horseback Safari (Macatoo Camp) in the Okavango Delta

* four days at King's Pool

I've been training hard, as the lions get faster every year ; )

Lin

39 days...after I planned everything, I tried my best to forget about it for as long as possible. Not any more! You know you're close when you confirm your seat assignments, pick up the malaria pills, pay the balance of the trip and pull out the good ole dusty bag for practice-packing...I also find myself looking at all and any photos of my camps online when I should be doing many other things.

11 June - Little Kulala (with balloon ride)
14 June - Palmwag Rhino Camp
16 June - Ongava Tented Camp
18 June - Savuti Camp (return visit!)
21 June - Stanley's Camp (including walking safari with the elephants)
24 June - Kwetsani Camp
26 June - The Grace in Rosebank shopping and massage

I'm going with my sister and our daughters aged 17 and 18. I had offered to take Maggie (my daughter) ANYWHERE she wanted for our last vacation before college, and she asked to return to Botswana (that's my girl). The Africa addiction is not age-related!

KayeN

I thought I had already done this, but it was for the trip last December.

I leave June 30 - so 59 days away! I am in Botswana first up, Nxageba for 4 nights, then Sandibe for 3 nights, then 6 nights at Matetsi in Zimbabwe then overnight in Johannesburg then 5 nights at each Pioneer and Founders Camps at Londolozi in South Africa. Probably longer than I want to be at Matetsi, but the other places in Botswana were already booked, as I did have a change quite late.

Kind regards,
Kaye

napamatt

38 days, then its 6 nights at Mombo, 4 at Vumbura Plains and 3 at Duma Tau, our longest safari yet and the first with zero time at Mala Mala. Good job we are already booked there for January 2007. Something to look forward to when this trip is over.

santharamhari

Jeez! I've got a loooooong wait in front of me.......leave August 15. 5 nights at Phinda followed by 10 nights at Kwando camps in Botswana. I am kept busy with the processing of my Botswana visa at this time (we Indians need a visa to go everywhere!!!).........after which time, i will book my International travel tickets. Then i will still be kept entertained as i need to plan my Joburg section of the trip. So, i guess my wait wont really be that bad........

Hari

Chris_GA_Atl

234 days ... seems like forever.

(1) Fly into Addis Ababa, spend a week in Ethiopia visiting Addis, Bahir Dar, Gonder, Axum, Lalibela, then back to Addis;
(2) Fly to Entebbe, spend the night on Ngamba Island and do the forest walk(s) with the chimps;
(3) fly to Kigali, do an 8-day gorilla trekking safari with 4 gorilla treks in PNV, Mgahinga and Bwindi (with Volcanoes Safaris);
(4) back home via Kigali, Nairobi, Addis, Rome, Dulles.

Tom Petty was definitely right: the waiting is the hardest part!

Chris

cooncat3

Chris - looks like you've got an itinerary worth waiting for!

Chris_GA_Atl

Thanks, we are really excited about it. At least we have plenty of time to get the remainder of the shots we need, and get the photographic and other equipment we will be using for the trip. Plus, we need to train to get in proper shape for those gorilla treks -- living at 1000 feet above sea level is not good preparation for hiking up a volcano at 8-10,000 feet!
Chris