13 Day Kenya Safari & Uganda Gorilla Tracking Combo

Navigate the bustling streets of Nairobi with your private guide. Visit the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, a world-renowned rescue and rehabilitation center for orphaned elephants and rhinos that has been a leader in conservation since 1977. Watch as the baby elephants parade down the path for their morning feeding. Ask your Vaya specialist about ‘adopting’ one of these wee ones and we can arrange for a more private foster parent visit instead.

Stop for lunch at the Karen Blixen house and coffee gardens, a lush oasis of calm, and visit the neighboring Kazuri Women’s Beading Collective. Make friends with a giraffe at the Giraffe Center or visit the National Museum in the afternoon. Your time in Nairobi can be curated to suit your interests.

Fly to Kenya’s spectacular northern rangelands, heading for Samburu. Overlooking the vast Kalama Conservancy, your lodge here allows you exclusive access to 200,000 acres of pristine private wilderness. This area is home to huge herds of elephants following ancient migration routes, leopards on rocky outcrops, and rare wild dogs. It is also one of the only places on earth to spot the rare endemic wildlife that only lives north of the equator, like Grevy’s zebra, the reticulated giraffe, Beisa oryx, Somali ostrich, and the long-necked gerenuk.

Set out with a Samburu warrior who will expertly guide you through the bush while sharing their authentic local knowledge, ancient traditions, and customs from one of the oldest remaining tribes in Africa. You have a range of activities on offer during your stay here, from exceptional safari game drives to bush walks and exploring nearby caves.

You may also choose to relax and soak in the views from your luxury villa or the infinity pool, visit the nearby Reteti Elephant Sanctuary, snap photos in the photographic hide perfectly situated on the edge of a waterhole, or stargaze at night with a guided tour of the skies.

Watch the sunrise over the bush as you prepare for another day on safari. You have the power to tailor your experience and activities here to suit your interests perfectly.

Take a safari flight to the Maasai Mara. This famed reserve is situated in the southwest of Kenya and is separated from the Serengeti by the mighty Mara River. Home to an incredible concentration of game year-round, this reserve also plays host to the millions of wildebeest, zebra, and other antelope that comprise the Great Migration in late summer and early fall. Situated along the Great Rift Valley, the Maasai Mara is a land of breathtaking views, endless plains, and abundant wildlife.

Rise before the dawn, with fresh coffee or tea delivered to your room, and before you know it you are whisked away on the safari vehicle and ready for what the morning might bring. This is the best time of day to see wildlife as it wakes for the day or settles down after a night of hunting. Awaken your senses with the sights and sounds of the bush as the bird calls swell with the rising of the sun.

Twice daily game drives with an expert safari guide and a range of optional lodge activities are at your disposal during your stay in this exceptional reserve.

Get your camera ready for another day of safari. With your knowledgeable guide, you will explore new and varied areas of the reserve each day, heading further afield in search of warthogs, topis, giraffe, elephants, zebras, impalas, buffalo, and other grazing herbivores. Home to a variety of prey animals, the Maasai Mara is a haven for large predators like lions, cheetahs, leopards, crocodiles, and other stealthy, powerful hunters. The area also hosts more than 450 winged species, including 57 birds of prey.

Leisure time at your safari camp can be spent relaxing on your private deck, making use of the comfortable main areas, heading out for a fascinating bush walk with your ranger, and, depending on your lodge, taking a dip in the pool or booking a spa treatment.

Take an early morning game drive and enjoy breakfast back in camp, then board your flight to Uganda. Your private driver will be waiting in Uganda to take you to your stylish boutique hotel, set in the leafy suburbs of Entebbe.

Board your charter flight south toward the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, with views of lush rainforest greeting you as you land. Transfer you to your lodge for the evening, where you have time at leisure to relax and enjoy the view.

Meet the mountain gorillas of Uganda. Heading to the park, meet with your team of Uganda Wildlife Authority guides and trackers for a quick briefing on the etiquette of gorilla trekking. Hiking stick in hand, venture into the forest to find the gorillas. The hike can take from 1 to 6 hours and can climb to altitudes of 7,500 feet. Although it is physically demanding at times, the beauty of the forest and surrounding scenery make it worthwhile.

Once the gorillas are located, all fatigue is forgotten. Observation of the gorillas has been described as one of the most profound natural experiences in the world. You will spend up to an hour with these gentle giants, glimpsing intimate moments of their daily lives.

Country: Uganda

Today you may wish to embark on a second gorilla trek to spend time with a different family group for a more in-depth experience. You also have the option to relax at your lodge and take in the spectacular views, or visit a local tea processing plant and learn more about this ancient drink, hike to a secret waterfall, or spend some time in the local village interacting with friendly locals.

This morning head back through the forest to board your plane to Entebbe, where you can catch your connecting flight home or onward to your next destination. Should you have a long layover we are happy to arrange for lunch and a day room so you can relax and freshen up before your long flight home.