My memories of the Serengeti have receded over time, pushed into the distance by the demanding activities of daily life until they were lost to view. It is a place extended in time and space, of unexpected serenity and one of the loveliest sights on earth. Late November/early December of 2010 I will take this battered old soul back to Tanzania. With luck our arrival may coincide with that great spectacle that is the Holy Grail of all safari-seekers – The Migration. If not, we will be content to observe a variety of animals from Elephants to the Grass Mouse.

A friends will join us on this 10-day private, tented fly-in safari with one lodge in between. We plan a Serengeti focused trip with one camp in central Serengeti in the Seronera area; one camp in the west near the Grumeti area. We will also explore the Moru Kopjes which is particularly good for Rhino and Leopard at that time.

(For those who followed the saga of Cobbles and me, please note that I am recently married.) This will be my DH’s first safari; being a photographer, artist and geologist, he can’t wait. We would like to call upon the collective wisdom of this forum to help us plan a two or three day side trip just for the two of us at the end of the safari. We are not beach people, so we would like to concentrate on wildlife areas. We’d love to hear your ideas.
Thank you...
KhakiF

Edit (after the fact)...

A few friends will join us.

Sorry, I have no clue about a getaway for you but wanted to say Hooray! for planning a return visit. I'm sure the wise Africaphiles will have some good ideas. West Kilimanjaro?

West Kili was my thought too. Congrats!

Khakif, congratulations on the recent nuptials and plans for the upcoming trip.

<b>Comments:</b>
I was in West Kili last year (Hemingway's Camp). It was absolutely fabulous and I really look forward to returning on our next trip, however I might hesitate to recommend this region for the time of year you plan to be in Tz. Certainly the huge bull elephants that migrate into West Kili from Amboseli won't be there. This region does offer less common wildlife sightings including Lesser Kudu and Gerenuk.

10 days devoted to the Serengeti! I think that's about the longest I've read about. I hope this is going to include a stop at the Crater.

Have you considered any of the southern parks? Selous/Ruaha/Katavi? They'd require a fly-in and out so might not be feasible.

One of my favorite parks is Tarangire. Late Nov/early Dec should still be good (not excellent) game viewing.

Good suggestions from all – will research this weekend.

Katavi would be on my list, if not too expensive for a short hop. Tarangire is a lovely park; probably not the best time of year for birding, but still good for overall. I’m thinking after 10 days sharing our safari with others, my DH might like to get away from groups …something romantic, or an opportunity to walk about.

Any Wild Dog sightings in Tarangire or the Serengeti area recently? I know the odds would be against a sighting, but the possibility is intriguing.

Thanks,
Khakif

Does anyone have experience with American Express Platinum's two-for-one program flying to East Africa? Now that Continental is no longer in the KLM alliance, I'm looking for alternative travel methods.

The Amex IAP program requires the purchase of a full fare business class ticket. The companion pays taxes. It's been a few years since I priced it out but it was approx $10-11k for 2 passengers in business at that time. The current IAP site lists Delta as the participating airline to Nairobi which is obviously outdated. Under Africa, the airlines listed which operate to Nairobi are Emirates and Swiss. KLM is not an IAP participant and while Virgin is a participant, I don't believe it works with their Africa routes. The first passenger earns miles. The companion ticket is not supposed to. And while the fare basis is a full fare, there generally has to be available inventory in a more restrictive fare class (exact fare class varies by airline) in order to book.

https://www217.americanexpress.com/c..._c&benefitId=5

Hi Patty,
I've been trying to figure out this scenario....

With the Delta/NWA merger, and Delta's strong relationship with AmEx, why isn't there a DAL/NWA/KLM combo available with AmEx IAP? Have you heard any rumors regardign this in the future?

I haven't heard anything but the contracts are negotiated annually and carriers do change. Since you aren't going until 2010, there's always a possibility of KLM joining the program. However I'm not sure how much influence the DL/NW merger would have. AF/KL have been merged for 5 years but only AF participates.