African Photography Tour

Pre Tour Itinerary:

Fly from NA to Europe and then Nairobi?  It is recommended that you consider flying through Amsterdam to find the most favorable connection times and flight fares.

Day 1:

Arrive Nairobi from Europe in the Evening.  The recommended option to fly to Nairobi from North America or Europe is to fly through Amsterdam. 

Contact Ihamba travel and adventures for a travel consultation session for assistance with booking flights to Nairobi from Europe or North America.  Book your travel planning appointment with Joseph here:

https://calendly.com/info-2355116/30min  

Panari Hotel in Nairobi

Contact Joseph for arrival and hotel transfer details.

Put Joseph’s contact link here.

Hotel is not included in Nairobi

Day 2:

Transfer from Panari Hotel in Nairobi to Lake Nakuru National Park – about a 3hour Drive

How long is the drive?

About 3 hours on a good, paved and scenic highway along the edge and then into the Great African Rift Valley.

When do we arrive in Nakuru?

Leave at 10am to allow for an early enough arrival in Nakuru for our first evening game drive and photo safari.  Are you excited!

Our goal is to get to Nakuru early in the afternoon so our evening game drive is longer.  We’re saving the best for the end of the day today!  

Evening – guided game drive. 

Black rhinos, white rhinos, Rothchild Giraffes are likely.

Lions are also commonly sighted along the route we take. 

Flamingos? Likely, but this evening is mainly a land safari.

And, lots of birds. 

There is also a chance for lions and leopards here too.  The Lions around here commonly climb tress, which is a somewhat uncommon behavior for Lions elsewhere.  

Hotel and meals in Nakuru included.

Day 3:

AM:  Boat safari on Lake Nakuru. 

Get closer to wildlife and photograph unique species like pink flamingos and many of the other 400 species of birds found here. 

PM:  Guided game drive with an expert local guide to explore Nakuru National Park.

Looking for Rhinos, Lions and Flamingos

Meals: B, L, D

Key activities:  Boat Safari, Game Drive.

Day 4:

Transfer by road from Lake Nakuru to the legendary Maisa Mara.  This drive will be about 4-5 hours to our lodge.  We need to get an early start to maximize our shooting time on the Savannah later this evening.

Our lodge is perfectly positioned a short drive outside of the Masai Mara National Park Gates.  It’s location will help us to maximize our shooting time during the soft golden early morning and evening light.  The African Sunsets on the Savannah are absolutely stunning!

Wildlife sightings and photo opportunities during your guided game drives in the Masai Mara are virtually guaranteed:

We’re almost certain to see and photograph:

• lions
• hyenas
• hippos
• elephants
• giraffes
• wildebeests
• buffalos
• impalas
• zebras
• and many of the 500+ species of birds recorded here. 

We also have a good chance to see leopards and cheetahs. 

If we find leopards and cheetahs then we’ll make a concerted effort to photograph them.

AM:  Drive from Lake Nakuru National Park to our lodge just outside of the Masai Mara National Park gates.  Arrive early afternoon.

PM:  Late afternoon/evening.  Game drive in the Masai Mara.

Highlights for today:

Looking for wildlife including: 

There is a good chance to encounter leopards and cheetahs and if we do we’ll make an effort to photograph them if the scout team spots them.

We’ll also photograph the vast savannah grasslands with plenty of flat topped acacia trees.

Meals: B, L, D

Accommodations:  Enkorok Mara Camp is in the Masia Mara National Park

Put a photo of the common area here

We’ve arrived at our home for the next few days.

Day 5, 6 and 7:

Key activities each day on the savannah in Masai Mara National Park: 

Each day we’ll have multiple or extended all day guided game drives in Masai Mara National Park.  The Wildlife movements will dictate our exact itinerary.  This flexibility is needed to ensure that our experienced local guides can deliver the absolute best tour possible while we’re here.

Our main goal each day is find and provide you with quality wildlife photography sessions with as much of the Masai Mara’s iconic wildlife as possible, which includes: 

• Mara’s big cats (lions with a good chance for leopards and cheetahs too)
• hippos
• elephants
• giraffes
• zebras
• buffalo
• impalas
• wildebeest*
• hyenas
• and many of the 500+ species of birds recorded on the Masai Mara

*  We’ve timed the tour to coincide with the usual presence of the wildebeest herds in this part of the Masai Mara as they begin to roam along the great migration route.  It is a near 100% certainty that you will see and photograph many, many wildebeest and their young.

Meals:  B, L, D

Accommodations:  Enkorok Mara Camp inside the Masia Mara National Park.

There is a common socializing tent in our Camp for lounging for socializing “a’ la Safari style.”  You’ll feel like you’re on a traditional English Safari from the last century, except for the fact we’ll be packing long lens hunting digital trophies that we’ll be shooting over and over again!

Key activities each day here: 

Game drives in the Masai Mara National Park in both the morning and evening.  We’ll tend to have a mid-day break after lunch during the harsh light under the mid-day sun.

Some flexibility in the daily scheduling is needed to ensure that we can assemble the best tour possible given the weather conditions and wildlife encounters that we have each day.  Our drivers, guides, and Toyota Land Cruisers are with us and working together 24/7 to deliver an amazing trip!

Day 8:

Everyone will…

Transfer by road from the Masai Mara to Jomo International Airport in Nairobi.  ~ 4-5 hour drive.

Then, Two options…

Kenya only participants: The tour ends here where it started at Jomo International Airport and we’ll see you off as you start your flight back home.

BUT the Gorilla crew will continue to Uganda…

PM: The Gorilla crew will Air transfer from Jomo International Airport to Entebbe International Airport in Uganda and then overnight at

https://kisubicottages.com

Kisubi Cottages is our African liaison’s lodge.  Joseph will host a dinner for us as we start the next leg of our journey.

The Gorilla and Golden Monkey Extension

Day 9:

AM:  Transfer by road from Entebbe ??or fly?? to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

PM:  Arrive at Lake Mulehe Safari Lodge which is close to both the Golden Monkeys and the Gorilla trek.  Over the next few days we’ll be:

• trekking endangered mountain gorillas and golden monkeys
• have a chance to see 10 other primates and 350 species of birds
• photograph the amazing background landscapes on and around the Virunga volcanos.  These volcanos and forests provide incredible African mountain scenery.
• Bwindi Impenitrable National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site

Day 10:

Early AM:

Gorilla Trekking to see the famous Mountain Gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park.

It’s time to get up close and personal with Mountain Gorillas that are used to humans being in close proximity.  These gorillas will be quite relaxed around us.  This softness helps to bring out their individual personalities! 

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park staff have worked with these gorilla families for years to build their trust so that we may have this opportunity.  Please respect this privilege. 

It is required that you follow the direction of the park staff at all times during the entire trekking session.  

Our Gorilla trekking permit allows us to photograph a mountain gorilla family group already habituated to humans.  We will likely be very close to individual gorillas at times.  Don’t leave your wide angle lens behind!

The park only allows a select few people to visit the gorillas each day.  Our Gorilla trekking permit counts us among those select few.  This will likely be a tour highlight for all of you. 

I include the Gorilla trekking permit fees for you in this leg of the tour.  Most other tours do not and charge extra for the permits.

Our Gorilla permits are purchased months in advance of our visit.  This day cannot be altered or refunded if you choose not to attend the gorilla trek, as with any other part of the tour.  We also travel at the schedule and pace set by the park staff.  They are experienced in setting a nice and reasonable pace for the group. Slow and steady wins the race!

In the afternoon: 

We’ll visit a community of Batwa hunter-gatherers known as the mountain forest dwelling pygmies.  These people are the traditional tribes that have evolved for centuries in this area with the gorillas.  They’ll tell us their story.

Day 11:

All day:  Photo trek/safari

Spend the day tracking and photographing the Endangered Golden Monkeys found in the bamboo forests on the slopes of the dormant Virunga Volcano within Mgahinga Gorilla National Park.

Meals:  B, L, D

Day 12:

AM – ?:

Transfer by road from our lodge to Entebbe and Kisubi Forest Cottages in the shoreline forest on Lake Victoria.  We’ll enjoy a scenic drive as we wind our way back to Entebbe dreaming about the once in a lifetime experience that we had yesterday with the gorillas who are so similar to us humans.

Meals:  B, L, D

Day 13:

Entebbe

AM: Birding by boat on Lake Victoria in Mabamba Swamp

PM:  Possible Chimpanzee island visit

Evening – Transfer by air from Entebbe to Jomo International Airport in Nairobi.  Arrive early evening.

or 

Stay overnight in Entebbe or Nairobi and continue your adventure with one of our tour add on excursions starting this morning.  Post tour excursions are in addition to the tour all inclusive fee.

Note to self: add a list of on excursions they can do (still designing the add on excursions):

For example: 

• extended Birding
• Murchison Falls Nat Park
• 4 day/3 night Coastal luxury beach resort in Mambassa