Kenya Bird-Watching Safari - 15 Days

Arrival at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in the morning. Transfer to Fairview Hotel. A morning to relax and wear off jet lag but not without an introduction of the Kenyan birds. A walk in the garden of our hotel will give our first count of African birds: Northern Pied Babbler, Holub’s Golden Weaver, Speckled Mousebird, Dusky Turtle Doves and numerous Sunbirds. After lunch we visit the Nairobi National Park, which despite being only a few kilometers from the city, is a home to big game. In its open grasslands scattered with acacia trees we will see the first game like Gazelles, Zebras, Giraffes and maybe some of the Cats. We also see Ostrich, Secretary Bird, Crowned Crane, Vulture, Cattle Egret, Great Egret, Tawny Eagle and a herd of Buffaloes should provide Red-billed Oxpecker perched on their backs. Black Kite, Marabou Stork, Pied Crow and African Palm Swift are also available in the park. Overnight at Fairview Hotel in Nairobi.

Breakfast at your hotel. Thereafter, leave for Kenya's rich agricultural central highlands through pineapple and coffee plantations. NB: People arriving in the morning can join this tour directly on arrival on this day. We will have a lunch birding stopover at Aberdare Country Club, where the endemic Hinde's Babbler can be seen. Our safari begins with the thrill of overnight game viewing in the comfort of a Tree Hotel. The lush hills of Aberdare National Park are covered by Kenya's densest forest and form the eastern flank of the Great Rift Valley. Aberdare National park boasts of an over 200 species bird checklist including the globally threatened Sharpe’s Longclaw, Aberdare Cisticola, Abbott’s Starling, and Jackson’s Widowbird. The range-restricted Aberdare Cisticola occurs locally in the tussock moorland, with densities of around 3.2 birds/ha in suitable habitat; more than 20,000 pairs are estimated to occur. The Red-tufted Sunbird is found on high peaks, foraging largely on lobelias while other montane Sunbirds are common at slightly lower altitudes. We spend a night at the tree hotel with night game-viewing included. Overnight at the The Ark Tree Lodge. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner.

In the morning we hope to have spectacular views towards jagged outline of Mount Kenya. There is also excellent bird watching from the lodge terrace into the surrounding trees. After breakfast, you will be transferred back to the base hotel, Aberdare Country Club where you have a birding experieence in the lush-green hotel grounds. Later we proceed further north to Naro Moru River Lodge. Narumoru is an excellent birding spot especially at the lodge's grounds and the small forest along the river. Here we will be looking for such species as Olive, Hartlaub's Turaco, Cinnamon-Chested Bee-eater, Crowned and Silvery-Cheeked Hornbills, Cape Wagtail, Black Saw-wing, Yellow-Whiskered, Slender-Billed and Mountain Greenbuls, White-Starred Robin, Cape and Ruppell's Robin Chats, African Dusky Flycatcher, Cinnamon Bracken Warbler, Hunter's Cisticola, Chestnut-Throated, Grey and Black-Throated Apalis, Grey-Capped Warbler, White-Browed Crombec, Montane White-Eye, White-Bellied Tit, Tropical Boubou, Grey Cuckoo-Shrike, Montane Oriole, White-Headed Wood Hoopoe, Eastern and Northern Double-Collared Sunbird (among other six species), Brown-Capped Weavers, Thick-Billed Seed-Eater and Yellow-Crowned Canary. Dinner and overnight at Naro Moru River Lodge (BLD).

Today we shall take a short excursion to the nearby Mount Kenya. Mount Kenya has a rich montane avifauna. The park has six of the eight Kenya Mountains Endemic Bird Area and 54 of the 70 Afrotropical Highlands biome species that occur in Kenya. Mountain Kenya area has records of globally and regionally threatened species, some with no recent records. They include Abbott’s Starling,Lesser Kestrel (a passage migrant on the moorland), Jackson’s widowbird (at up to 3,000 m), Sharpe’s Longclaw, Olive Ibis, Lammergeier, Ayres’s hawk-eagle, African Crowned Eagle, African Grass Owl, Cape Eagle-Owl, Purple-throated Cuckoo-shrike, Long-tailed Widowbird, Abyssinian Owl (very rare and poorly researched), Scarlet-tufted Sunbird, and Kenrick’s Starling which is confined to this area in Kenya. We have a picnic lunch on the slopes of this Kenya's highest mountain. Other wildlife, include Black-and-white Colobus Monkey, Sykes monkey, Bushbuck, Cape Buffalo, African Elephant, Olive Baboon, Waterbuck, Black Rhino, Leopard, Giant Forest Hog, Genet Cat, Bush Pig, Spotted Hyena and many more. Dinner and overnight at Naro Moru River Lodge (BLD).

Depart after breakfast via Thompson's Falls in Nyahururu Town and drive south-west on the floor of the world's greatest Valley viewing the beautiful landscape to arrive at Lake Nakuru National Park. Arrive in good time to do some birding before going for lunch at Lake Nakuru Lodge. Afternoon game and bird viewing at Lake Nakuru national Park. Dinner and overnight at Lake Nakuru Lodge. The park is also a Sanctuary for both black and white rhinos, famous for millions of greater and lesser flamingoes and other bird species such as Narina Trogon. Lake Nakuru National Park (Ramsar Site) boasts up to 450 species bird checklist, a record of 1,496,000 waterbirds record. Five globally threatened species have been recorded here, namely Madagascar Pond-Heron, Lesser Flamingo, Pallid Harrier, Greater Spotted Eagle, Grey-crested Helmet-shrike along with large congregations of Greater Flamingo, Black-necked Grebe, Little Grebe, Great White Pelican, Yellow-billed Stork, African Spoonbill, Black-winged Stilt, Grey-headed Gull and Gull-billed Tern. The lake is internationally famous for its healthy populations of the globally threatened Lesser Flamingo, numbers can reach 1.5 million at times, though drastic and unpredictable fluctuations occur. Undoubtedly Nakuru is a very important feeding site for this species; attempts by flamingos to breed here have not been successful. Other waterfowl have increased considerably in numbers and diversity since the introduction of fish in 1961. At times Nakuru is a major feeding ground for the Great White Pelican, which nests on rocky islets in nearby Lake Elmenteita and moves to Nakuru daily to feed. Large numbers of Palearctic waders winter at Nakuru or use the site on passage, and Nakuru has been a key site in the eastern Rift Valley flyway. This park is also a good area to see the leopard. Dinner & overnight at Lake Nakuru Lodge.

After breakfast we head further north to Lake Bogoria which without doubt is a one of the most interesting places for bird watching in Kenya because of the different habitats that are found with-in a small radius. This is an alkaline lake famous for its thousands of Flamingos and beautiful hot springs. Before breakfast on day 8 we will explore the surrounding countryside for Hemprich's and Eastern Yellow-billed Hornbill, White-crested Turaco, Madagascar Bee-eater, Rufous-crowned Roller, Gabar Goshawk, Cliff Chat and Verreaux's Eagle which feeds on the Rock Hyrax.While at Bogoria our safari detours to Lake Baringo on day 8. There is the fresh water lake with a slight degree of alkalinity, cliffs, open grasslands as well as scattered bushes. Over 400 Kenyan birds species have been recorded in this area. The woodlands by the lake are alive with White-browed Sparrow-Weavers, Jackson's and Red-billed Hornbills, Bristle-crowned Starlings, and the rare Northern Masked Weavers, there are several Hamerkops along the lake shore and with luck we should be able to see their nest, which a pair of Grey Kestrels have adopted as a home. Later on the day we make a boat ride over Lake Baringo, always on the lookout for new species. We will come close to the Goliath Heron, African Fish Eagle, Malachite Kingfisher, plus swimming hippo and crocodiles. We return to Lake Bogoria in the afternoon. There will be time to relax, enjoy the pool, and walk around the grounds of the lodge on the look out for the resident Spotted Eagle-owls, and Sunbirds such as the Beautiful, Hunter's and the Violet-breasted. Afternoon is spent birding leisurely in the garden of the lodge. All meals and & overnight at Lake Bogoria Spa.

A Kenyan birdwatching tour is nearly incomplete without a visit to the Kakamega rain forest. This forest, in the heart of an intensively cultivated agricultural area, is a superb remainder of virgin tropical rain forest and is of course the home to a wide range of specialty birds, many which are not found anywhere else in Kenya. The forest is not only home to the rare De Brazza's monkey (only found in Kakamega Forest), but also to the Hammer-headed Fruit Bat, Flying Squirrel, 400 species of butterflies and no less than 330 species of birds. Yes, birding in a forest has its fair share of difficulties but this is easily forgotten when our count increases with hopeful sightings of the impressive Black-and-white-casqued Hornbill, Ross' and the Great Blue Turaco. Other notables are the Grey-headed Negro-finch, Red-headed Bluebill, Chestnut Wattle-eye, Mackinnon’s Shrike and many more. All meals and overnights in the Rondo Retreat in Kakamega forest.

After breakfast, set off for Lake Victoria with a brief lunch stop at Dunga Beach on the shores of Lake Victoria. Lake Victoria is a large freshwater lake, second largest in the world. The Papyrus swamps along the shoreline are home to several birds not easily found anywhere else, notably Papyrus Gonolek, Papyrus Yellow Warbler, Papyrus Canary, Carruther's Cisticola, Swamp Flycatcher, Blue-headed Coucal, White-winged Swamp Warbler, and Greater Swamp Warbler. The Dunga Beach area at Kisumu is an excellent place accessible by land. Other aquatic birds such as African Openbill are also found around the lake. The surrounding area outside Kisumu is scrub, bush, grassland, and cultivated habitat. A variety of specialty birds can be found there as well as around the Busia Grasslands not far to the northeast. Proceed to Rusinga Island Lodge for breezy evening of bird-watching on the island. The most common colourful bird is the Malachite kingfisher, also on or near the water you will find bright flamingos, hammerkops, plovers, and many others. Dinner and overnight at Rusinga Island Lodge.

We head to the famous Masai Mara National Reserve, which borders Serengeti in Tanzania. Masai Mara is know for its high concentration of the big game including the big five. Its excellent game viewing opportunities, over 450 species of birds recorded and the the fascinating Masai culture makes Masai Mara the climax of our tours. In the vast grasslands we expect to see Elephants; the large Cats - Lion, Leopard, and Cheetah; the herd animals - Zebra, Wildebeest, Thompson's and Grant's Gazelles; and specialties like the Hartebeest and the Topi. Expected species are the highly conspicuous Common Ostrich, the small but still conspicuous Cardinal Quelea, Sooty Chat, Ground Hornbill, Open-billed Stork, Temminck's Courser, Yellow-throated Sandgrouse and Denham's Bustard. Lilac-breasted Rollers are common. If we find a kill, we may see six species of vultures all dining together: Egyptian, Hooded, Griffon, Lappet-faced, White-backed and White-headed. It will be a double reward should a Hyena or a Jackal join in the scramble for the kill. In addition we will encounter numerous raptors such as Bateleur, Martial and Tawny Eagles, as well as Pale Chanting Goshawk, Augur Buzzards and Black-chested Snake Eagles. Along the Mara River we'll watch for African Finfoot, Schalow's and Ross' Turaco, Crested Guineafowl, Woodland Kingfisher, Yellow-billed Barbet, Black-billed Weaver, Violet-backed Starling, and perhaps with luck, Pel's Fishing Owl. Any tapping noise on the trees may be indicative of the relatively uncommon Woodpeckers (Golden-tailed and Fine-banded). Hopefully we will be lucky enough to see some of the more difficult to see mammals such as Bat-eared Fox, Hunting Dog, Serval and the delightful Banded Mongoose. All meals and overnights at Ashnil Mara Camp (BLD)

Our birding tour ends with a lunch at the Kiambethu Tea Farm on the way back to Nairobi. This is an old colonial home established by the early settlers and the pioneers of tea growing in Kenya. There will be a talk on tea: its arrival in Kenya, the growing, processing and up to when you put it into your cup. A short hike in the tea plantation and into a small remaining part of indigenous forest completes the tour. We might add to our list some Mannikins, Golden-winged, Double-collared and Amethyst Sunbirds, Grosbeak Weavers... We have a healthy farm lunch and thereafter transfer to Nairobi for the evening flight out. AfriChoice! representative will assist you to check out of your hotel and escort you to check-in for your onward flight. If needed, dayrooms before departure can be arranged at a city hotel on request. Distance/drive time: 265 km / 4½ hours. This marks the end of your African Bird-Watching adventure!

These items form the basic components of your tour / safari cost and MAY NOT be excluded / removed from the tour pacakge all-together. However, if you still like the tour without some of of the basic components, kindly request for customization of the tour. The tour cost includes;

· Airport Meet and Greet Services with assistance

· Complimentary baggage handling of two pieces per person

· Transport in a custom-built safari vehicle with window seat guarantee

· Express check-in with assistance in your city hotels and safari lodges

· 1 Meal a day / Bed and breakfast accommodation while in your City Hotels

· 2 Meals a day / Half-Board accommodation (if staying in coastal beach) Hotels

· 3 meals a day / Full-Board accommodation whilst on Safari Hotels, lodges or Camps

· All parks and game reserve entry gate fees including vehicle & driver fees

· Services of an English - speaking and professional safari driver/guide

· WIFI Internet Access (Where Available in Hotels, Camps & Lodges) - Non-Guaranteed*

· Unlimited Supply of Complimentary Bottled Drinking Water on safari

· Charging ports in the car for your phone, camera battery, or laptop

· At least a pair of standard Binoculars in every safari vehicle

· Access to AfriChoice 'manned' Call-Centre 24hrs a day, 7 days a week

· Guaranteed Departures with a minimum of just 2 travellers!

· ALL Government taxes and levies

These items are excluded from your tour cost / package. You are therefore expected to make own arrangement for some such as your International Flight Tickets, Travel Insurance and so on. Others are available as 'add-ons' to your tour and we shall be glad to include any extras you like at a reasonable cost. The tour cost excludes;

· International Air Fares to and from Africa

· Travel Insurance Cover, Personal or Baggage (Highly Recommended)

· Cost of Tourist or Business Visa to the country you are visiting

· International airport(s) departures taxes (if not included in your ticket)

· Optional excursions not mentioned in the inclusions and/or quoted separately

· Expenses of personal nature such as phone calls, internet, laundry etc

· Hot Air Balloon Ride (available in Masai Mara and Serengeti)

· All soft and hard drinks (alcoholic drinks, wines and spirits)

· Tips and gratuities to driver guides/lodge/hotel staff

· Cultural Village Visits, Bush Lunches, Bush Dinners or Bush Breakfasts

· All other extras not mentioned in the 'included'

When you book a tour with us, we want always want you to fee special. That is why we go the extra mile not only to make you smile but to ensure that your are taking home only the fondest of memories from our trips. Below are some of the special treatments you are unlikely to find with other tour operators;

· Special 'Welcome Package' for you from our senior tours director upon arrival

· Free upgrade to a 4x4 Safari Vehicle with UNLIMITED game drives on safari

· Illustrated Spectrum Guide® to Africa Wildlife Safaris and Animal Spotter®

· Free supply of UNLIMITED bottled mineral water whilst on safari

· Complimentary 'AfriChoice!® Authentic African Safari Sun Hat

· Free Membership to AMREF's Flying Doctors Emergency Evacuation Programme*

· Signed & Sealed 'Participation Certificate' (special adventure quests only*)

· Special 'Farewell Dinner' at the end of your trip (Time Permitting*)