jules39

PLEASE give your opinion on a possible trip we are looking at for Feb 2005.01/31/05

ARRIVE KILIMANJARO/ARUSHA [or Nairobi]

02/01/05
ARUSHA
TARANGIRE NATIONAL PARK

02/02/05
TARANGIRE NATIONAL PARK
GREAT RIFT VALLEY

02/03/05

LAKE MANYARA NATIONAL PARK

02/04/05
LAKE MANYARA NATIONAL PARK
NGORONGORO CONSERVATION AREA

02/05/05

NGORONGORO CONSERVATION AREA

02/06/05
NGORONGORO CONSERVATION AREA
SERENGETI NATIONAL PARK

02/07/05

SERENGETI NATIONAL PARK

02/08/05

SERENGETI NATIONAL PARK

02/09/05
SERENGETI NATIONAL PARK
ARUSHA

02/10/05
ARUSHA
AMBOSELI NATIONAL PARK

02/11/05

AMBOSELI NATIONAL PARK

02/12/05
AMBOSELI NATIONAL PARK
MOUNTAIN LODGE

02/13/05
MOUNTAIN LODGE
LAKE NAKURU NATIONAL PARK

02/14/05
LAKE NAKURU NATIONAL PARK
MASAI MARA NATIONAL PARK

02/15/05

MASAI MARA NATIONAL PARK

02/16/05

MASAI MARA NATIONAL PARK

02/17/05
MASAI MARA NATIONAL PARK
NAIROBI

Thank you so much for your opinions

J

SusanLynne

The itinerary looks good, but at what accommodations in Tarangire, Manyara, Ngorongoro, Serengeti, Amboseli, Nakuru and the Mara. I think it is great you are doing both the Serengeti and the Mara! Most people would do one or the other, but both? FANTASTIC!

tuskerdave

Hi there, maybe this would work?
Fly into NAIROBI
Drive to AMOSELI
Drive over to: TARENGIRE
Then: LAKE MANYARA
Then: SEREN.
Cross over to the MARA
Then to LAKE NAKURU
Fly or Drive to NAIROBI
Hope this helps.
David

SusanLynne

Tuskerdave: You cannot cross from the Serengeti into the Mara or vice versa. Used to be able to, but not anymore. Also, for the time of year, leaving to go home from the Mara is a great way to end a trip.

Jules39: I would suggest you fly into JRO instead of NBO for the start of the safari, and leave out of NBO.

sandi

Besides the fact, as SusanLynne mentions, that there is no official crossing point between the Serengeti and the Masai Mara - during February you shouldn't be staying that far north in the Serengeti to even consider being adjacent to the Mara. In February, your accommodations should be in the SE Serengeti (definitely not further north than the Central Serengeti). With luck you'll be in the SE Serengeti during the 3-week wildebeest calving season (occurs between Jan - Feb).

Your itinerary is good, but arriving JRO and departing NBO is the ideal airline routing.

Note that the drive from Amboseli (on 2/12) to Mountain Lodge will be a long drive (4-hrs to NBO, then another 2.5 to 3-hrs to the Mountain Lodge)suggest you arrange for lunch in NBO, then continue drive to Mountain Lodge; as will the drive from Lake Nakuru (on 2/14) to the Mara - at miminum 5-hrs, as will the return trip from the Mara to Nairobi (again at least 5-6 hrs.) I would suggest you consider a flight, at least from the Mara to NBO, which avoids the lousy road trip and provides some time to see some sights here, have lunch or dinner at The Carnivore Restaurat.

Whether you choose to fly or drive back to NBO, you'll have quite a number of hours before your late departure flight, so would suggest you consider a hotel day-room.

It would also be of interest which camps/lodges you are considering staying on this itinerary.

Jed

We did both the Serengeti and Mara in one trip and were glad we did.

katj232

Just a quick tip on the drive....as some have mentioned, the roads are terrible. The road to the Mara isn't much of a road these days at all. I just traveled last week. Do yourself a favor and get some small paper dust masks to wearto combat the dust.

tuskerdave

Hi everyone, I had mailed my tour op out in kenya about the in between the:
SEREN & MARA. Just a general ques. about it. Here is what she sent me.
Just thought I'd share.
Thanks, David


Hi David - technically it is still illegal but there is no actual border - so you do criss cross a little but if done a lot then you get nailed by the wardens!

all the best,

Melinda

freddy123

The route and the length of stays at each park look about right. The key thing is where you stay at the Serengeti - as sandi says, in Jan / Feb you should ideally be in the South Eastern part of the Serengeti to see the wildebeest calving. I would recommend a lodge such as Ndutu lodge in the Ngorongoro Conservation area (about 25 km from the Naabi hill entrance to the Serengeti) - I am told this is a really nice old-style safari lodge, but as it has few rooms, you need to book well in advance. I have also heard very good reports of the Olduvai Camp - this is again in the NCA, close to Olduvai gorge - the camp is run by Masai people, and I believe the experience is great.

Definitely the western corridor is out for Jan / Feb (so that means lodges like the Serena, Grumeti River Camp, Kirawira and Ikoma are out) as also the Northern part (Lobo, Kleins etc.)

You could stay at the Seronera area, since it is central (Seronera Wildlife Lodge) or in the Sopa which is in the South West, but these would still require you to drive for an hour or so till you get to the game in the South East.

Otherwise your itinerary looks fine - how are you doing Serengeti to Arusha - by road? It is a long haul, but then again if you stay in the NCA then you could do it in 5 hrs. If you are staying in the Seronera, I would recommend you get a flight back to Arusha.

have a great trip

jules39

Hi I have been having trouble logging on but have been reading all your responses which have been encouraging.
In the Serengetti will be in Seronera Wildlife Lodge so I am willing to deal with an hours drive if that is the only problem!
I have been to Afrika before but many years ago but my hubby has not and is very excited so we were eager to extend our time as best we could and I think this itinerary covers it without being way over the top budget wise. We are prepared for some of the long drives this is in fact something we are looking forward to as we both enjoy this. I did my last Africa trip as an extended 9 month transcontinental trip overland. Much younger then so this length sonds great. We are contemplating flying Sereng - Arusha. We definately plan to fly into Kilimanjaro and out of NBO. Some people suggest not booking this until after Jan 1st but this makes me a little nervous!
I feel very keen to do the balloon ride either in Seren or Mara but have read a few negative thoughts on that here? I did do it in the Mara back in '89 and thought it was incredible so thought it would be a good thing to do now with my hubby????

Thanks so much for everyones valuable input.

J

Liz_Frazier

Jules-
Definately do the hot air balloon ride. It goes up from the Seronera area and it will be the ideal time to see the migration in that area. You'll also probably see lots more than that though. It is thrilling and although some of the comments have recently been made against it, I'm not sure all of the people actually did it. They mostly were commenting about the price. Sometimes that makes a difference. I personally would stay at a more reasonable spot and splurge on it though if I had to. Let us know now after you get back. Since you've experienced it and loved it, it will be every bit as good if not better because of the time of the year. I think the Serengeti would be an even better experience, although I too have done it only on the Mara. Given the chance I think doing it both on the Serengeti and the Mara wouldn't be too much for me. You see so much more than bumping around on the ground.
I stayed at the Seronera Wildlife Lodge a loooong time ago, but have heard more recently that its not in too good of repair. About a year ago someone commented here that they stayed there and didn't comment on the condition of it so maybe it has new owners by now and has improved. The location is the best on the Serengeti, and they have quite a few of resident rock hyraxes there. I say the best location because you can go in any direction on the plains from there depending where the animals are. Getting your airline tickets so late doesn't make sense to me, but did you hear why they wanted you to wait so long?
I wanted to go in February and stay at Ndutu Safari Lodge last year, but had to cancel.
One year we went just for the purpose of seeing the migration and we camped in the Ndutu area. That was the year the migration skipped the southern area altogether and went to the central area and had their calving season. So go figure, it depends on the rains entirely and although that is a rare happening, it did happen before. It may be a drive to get to Ndutu, but it will be filled with game. The migration spreads out quite a bit, so there will be plenty. Hope this helps you. Liz

sandi

The properties at Seronera were rather run down and with not much business. They were, however, taken over by Three Cities Group out of SA and plans were underway to refurbish the place. Hopefully this will have been done by the time you travel. Your tour operator should be able to advise whether this work has been started/finished.

jules39

Liz the info on waiting to book flights is that apparently after the nwe year KLM, BA etc knock their US-Europe portions way down. There is now way I or my hubby can wait that long we will be climbing the walls worried we won't get the flights we want! So we will book sooner than that. Thanks for your thoughts on the balooning the Serengetti is where we are keen to do it. I have been searching for info on Seronera and thus far have not come up with anything horrid would be good to hear from someone who has been there recently.

Thanks again J

Liz_Frazier

Jules-
I topped the Seronera thread I was thinking of. Its titled "Tanzania notes". Lots of discussion about the Seronera area being the best for animals at that time of year. Liz

sandi

jules39

The airfares go down on Jan 4 or 5, sometimes a day or two later. But sometimes, BA (into LHR) and KLM (into AMS) come down to similar prices sometimes in October, so just keep checking.

jules39

Liz Thanks for top posting that thread. I really appreciate all of the input you all have.

Thanks J