Kilimanjaro to Mombasa

After a leisurely breakfast, depart Nairobi with a picnic lunch and head southeast towards Amboseli. Enjoy a game viewing en route and arrive at the lodge as the sun sets. Most of the park consists of a partially dry lake bed of evaporated salts and fragile grassland with patches of acacia woodland. You can see most types of game in the park, including rhinos, giraffes, gazelles, lions, cheetahs and leopards. Birdlife is prolific, too, especially around the swamp areas. This entire experience is carried out under the shadow of the majestic Mount Kilimanjaro, which rises some 5,000 metres above the national park. Lying in the shadow of Africa's highest mountain, Mount Kilimanjaro, Amboseli Serena Lodge is surrounded by a thick forest of acacia trees and exquisite gardens. Brightly decorated in an African motif, the lodge's 96 comfortable rooms emulate the architecture of a Maasai village with its manyattas or homes. In the late afternoons and evenings, relax on the beautiful lounge terrace adorned with gardens, pool and paths. From here, watch the nightly ritual of wildebeest, antelope, elephant and other animals coming into graze. In the evening, enjoy dinner at the lodge.

Overnight in Amboseli.

Following a morning game drive after an early breakfast, spend some time at leisure and indulge in a delicious lunch at the lodge. Afterwards, depart to Tsavo West driving across the spectacular Shetani lava flow, a harsh and forbidding lunar-like landscape created by the molten outpouring spewed down the scenic slopes of the nearby Chyulu Hills. A zigzagging road through scrub thorn and acacia leads to Tsavo West National Park, which when combined with Tsavo East National Park forms the largest of Kenya’s parks. The game can be spotted along the way, especially gerenuk as you drive towards Kilaguni Serena Safari Lodge. Superbly situated in the lee of Mount Kilimanjaro and sheltered by the volcanic splendour of the Chyulu Hills, this classic stone-built lodge overlooks its own water hole, which is visited daily by elephants, buffalos and a wide variety of plains game. One of the first lodges ever to be built in a national park, the lodge is cool, tranquil and hushed for optimum game-viewing. It is also ideally placed for visits to all the park’s prime attractions. Faced in volcanic stone and utilising the natural rocky outcrops of a valley known as ‘the place of the young rhino’, from which it takes its name, the lodge features a thatched central dining area and a rock-built bar, with a viewing terrace looking directly down to the waterhole. Finish the day with dinner at the lodge.

Overnight in Tsavo West.

After breakfast, there will be a game drive in the park and a visit to Mzima Springs, where a viewing chamber just below the waterline offers a fascinating insight into the waterborne wildlife of the park. Following lunch at the lodge, you will depart Tsavo West and continue to Taita Hills Wildlife Sanctuary. Arrive for check-in at Sarova Salt Lick Game Lodge at sunset. The lodge is located in the heart of the private sanctuary, which is adjacent to Tsavo West National Park. All rooms are built in two-storey blocks from a central pod and linked together by elevated platforms that overlook a salt lick and a small waterhole, which is floodlit at night. Rooms are spacious and have all the necessary modern conveniences. The restaurant, bar and main balconies have views over the waterhole and salt lick, which are constantly in use by the park’s wildlife. There is also an underground hide, allowing unbelievably close but safe encounters. In the evening, wrap the day up with dinner at the lodge.

Overnight in Taita Hills.

Enjoy a final breakfast before departing on a morning game drive in Taita Hills Wildlife Sanctuary. Return to the lodge for lunch and then head to Mombasa with the aim of reaching your northern or southern coast beach hotel or Moi International Airport at 05:30 pm. Flights to be booked from 07:30 pm onwards.