Gorillas, Game Parks & Beaches

27 Days | Adventure, wildlife and relaxation in East Africa

4.5 out of 5 based on 8 reviews submitted.
Overland
Wildlife
From
EUR €5,436
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Discover the astounding diversity of landscapes and wildlife in East Africa. Visit green-clad highlands, steamy rainforests, tropical beaches and epic grasslands in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Zanzibar, enjoying unrivalled opportunities to get close to gorillas, lions, elephants, buffaloes, hippos, giraffes, flamingos and chimpanzees. This tour gives you an awesome itinerary, gorilla trek permits, plenty of included game drives, and key cultural experiences. How you spend the rest of your time is up to you! It doesn’t matter if you’re relaxing in the wild or taking part in optional excursions, the wonders of East Africa will remain vivid in your memory long after this tour ends.

Trip overview

Map of Gorillas, Game Parks & Beaches including Kenya, Tanzania, United Republic Of and Uganda
Start
Nairobi, Kenya
Finish
Zanzibar, Africa
Theme
Overland, Wildlife
Destinations
Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya
Physical rating
Indicates how physically exerting a trip is, and how fit you will need to be to enjoy it. More info on physical ratings
Style
Basix
Ages
Min 15
Group size
Min 1 - Max 22
Trip code
YXOCC
This trip generates 20 kg of CO2-e per person per day.
We offset these emissions on your behalf. But we know that is not enough, so we also have a carbon reduction target.

Why you'll love this trip
  • Trek through Uganda's steamy forests with expert gorilla trackers and a local ranger to seek out rare mountain gorillas. Spend an unforgettable hour in their presence, watching how they play, laze in the sun and groom each other.
  • Head out on an early evening game drive in Lake Nakuru National Park, in the heart of the Great Rift Valley. This plat is famous for its rhino population, so you’ll have a good chance to snap a photo of these gorgeous beasts.
  • Explore Serengeti National Park – a wildlife arena like no other – and look for lions, leopards, elephants and giraffes during daily safari drives.
  • Embark on a hike through the Usambara Mountains in Tanzania, through mountains, rainforests and local villages, to the Irente viewpoint. Then, stop at a local farm on the way back for a picnic lunch with the locals.
  • See what it’s like living in Zanzibar with a walking and street food tour of Stone Town – visiting the markets and tasting some local fare.

Is this trip right for you?
  • Conditions in the forest where we track gorillas can sometimes be wet, muddy and hot. But the sheer thrill of coming across a habituated group of gorillas makes up for any difficulty. You need to be prepared and fit enough to walk for up to 4 hours – up and down hills. A top tip is to pack some gardening gloves to assist with any uphill climbs. See https://www.intrepidtravel.com/au/gorilla-trekking for more information.
  • We use our purpose-built overland vehicles for the duration of this trip. Please read the itinerary carefully for travel time estimates and see https://www.intrepidtravel.com/africa/overland for more info on this style of travel.
  • You’ll be camping a lot on this trip, giving you access to more remote destinations at close proximity, plus the joy of staying right in the heart of the action.
  • This is a participatory trip – a fancy way of saying you’re not just along for the ride, but you are part of a team! Be prepared to roll up your sleeves and help out with camp activities like food prep and washing up. It’s all about giving your new travel mates a hand, and everyone knows there’s nothing worse than trying to put up a tent on your own!
  • As the early bird catches the worm, so the early camper sights the animals. There will be many early starts on this trip, either to make better use of the safari time or to beat the morning traffic on long travel days.

Itinerary

This itinerary is valid for departures from 01 January 2024 to 31 December 2024.

View the itinerary for departures between 01 January 2025 - 31 December 2025

Map of Gorillas, Game Parks & Beaches including Kenya, Tanzania, United Republic Of and Uganda

Inclusions

Meals

25 breakfasts, 17 lunches, 21 dinners

Transport

Overland vehicle, 4x4 Safari Vehicle, Ferry, Minbus

Accommodation

Camping (with facilities) (18 nights), Camping (with basic facilities) (2 nights), Bungalow (2 nights), Hotel (3 nights), Hotel with shared facilities (1 night)

Activities
  • Lake Nakuru - Overland Vehicle Game Drive
  • Lake Nakuru - Morning Overland Vehicle Game Drive
  • Queen Elizabeth National Park - Overland Vehicle Game Drive
  • Bwindi National Park - Mountain Gorilla Permit & Trek
  • Kericho - Tea plantation visit
  • Masai Mara National Reserve - 4x4 Game Drive
  • Loita Hills - Maasai Village Visit
  • Masai Mara National Reserve - Full Day 4WD Safari
  • Ngorongoro Crater - 4x4 Game Drive
  • Serengeti National Park - Morning 4WD Safari
  • Mto Wa Mbu - Village walk & local dinner
  • Irente - Lushoto hike
  • Irente - Local lunch
Add on activities
  • Nairobi - City Experience Urban Adventure - USD55
  • Kalinzu Forest - Chimpanzee Trekking - USD205
  • Queen Elizabeth National Park - Kazinga Channel boat cruise - USD30
  • Kisoro - Golden Monkey Trekking - USD160
  • Kisoro - Rwanda Day Excursion - From - USD75
  • Kisoro - Batwa Village Visit - USD35
  • Kisoro - Coffee Farm Tour - USD35
  • Jinja - River Nile whitewater rafting (full day) - USD140
  • Jinja - Nile Boat Cruise - USD40
  • Jinja - Source of River Nile tour - USD45
  • Masai Mara National Reserve - Balloon ride (from price) - USD625
  • Serengeti National Park - Balloon Ride (from price) - USD745
  • Stone Town Tour - Dharajani Market, Joseph's Cathederal, Palace Museum, Forodhani Food Market - USD20
  • Zanzibar - Prison Island Tour - USD25
  • Stone Town - Handicraft & Music Urban Adventure - USD50
  • Zanzibar - Spice tour - USD25
  • Zanzibar - Snorkelling - USD50
  • Zanzibar - Dhow Trip - USD35

Dates and availability

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Important notes

1. A single supplement is available if you’d prefer not to share a room on this trip. The single supplement applies to all nights of your trip and is subject to availability. Please speak to your booking agent for further information.
2.This trip requires a higher non-refundable deposit (AUD 1000, USD 1000, EUR 800, NZD 1250, GBP 650, CAD 1000, ZAR 8000, CHF 900) in order to secure the included gorilla permit. Please note that we need to confirm availability of a gorilla permit if you are booking within 45 days of departure. The additional deposit paid at time of booking will be credited to the final balance of your booking.
3. An optional sunrise balloon ride in the Serengeti National Park is possible on this itinerary. Please see the itinerary above for full details of this activity. As the balloon only holds 16 people, places are limited and we recommend you book in advance. Please inquire when booking your trip to book this optional activity.
4. This trip is a combination of YXOG YXOP and YXON our most popular itineraries. As such the make up of your group and your leader may change on days 16 and 24.
5. The Zanzibar portion of your itinerary may have a few more passengers than the maximum group size of 22 as we have a crossover of trips starting and finishing in Zanzibar.
6.Some governments currently have increased foreign travel advice around security in place for Queen Elizabeth National Park in Uganda. Please check your government’s foreign travel advice before departure and ensure your travel insurance covers all destinations and activities on your itinerary.

Essential Trip Information

Want an in-depth insight into this trip? Essential Trip Information provides a detailed itinerary, visa info, how to get to your hotel, what's included - pretty much everything you need to know about this adventure and more.

Read Essential Trip Information

Reviews

4.5 out of 5 based on 8 reviews submitted.
Reviews are from travellers who have completed their trip and want to share their experience. We show all reviews, but may remove any that include profanity or inappropriate content, are unrelated to the trip or reveal personal details.

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Anna · Traveled August 2024
Incredible trip - Rita, Sylvia and Ken were the absolute dream trip. I can’t fault them or Intrepid.
Review submitted 15 Sep 2024

B · Traveled August 2024
I have to be honest and say I'm surprised to see such high ratings for this trip. In comparison to other tour operators I've travelled with, I felt that the information shared by our tour leader was minimal ( when asked questions) and the quality of information shared by local guides was poor... It felt very much like a tick box exercise for them with the end goal being that they would receive a tip. On all of the local trips there were often additional guides accompanying the main guide, these extra guides did not do anything at all and it was uncomfortable for us as tourists .... We felt intimidated into giving a tip. Examples of this the gorilla treck ( driver, tracker, porters, guide ) Community walk ( driver, guide x 2 (1 guide did not speak for the entire activity) then locals were also asking for tips too) The tour itself could have been planned better in my opinion, maybe this is a new trip and it's in its infancy, but it showed. For the majority of the trip, there was no downtime and minimal time to enjoy the small stops along the way, we were constantly rushed and under pressure.. toilet breaks were minimal and on the 1st leg of the trip we had to ask , and even then we would have to wait for 30 mins to 1 hr....often we would reach camp just 20 mins before sundown, rarely having time to enjoy the facilities where we stayed .. I get that this is an overland trip and travel on the road is a huge part of it, but intrepid should consider better planning , maybe extend the duration of the trip to allow for this much needed down time The game park drives in masai mara and Serengeti in particular were extremely intrusive on the animals, with high speed driving to viewing points, tracking radios blaring, pushing and shoving between other vehicles, no management of the noise from the group , 20+ vehicles surrounding one animal with no respect for the fact that we were visitors to the animals natural habitat ... it was horrific and is verging on the brink of driving the animals out of the parks There is no governance in place surrounding the rule of max 5 vehicles per siting ... And intrepid certainly didn't follow this independently of the other groups either
Review submitted 10 Sep 2024

CATHY · Traveled July 2024
I waited 68 years for this trip of a lifetime, and it met all of my expectations. The Guide, Drivers, and Chefs were exceptional and went above and beyond for their customers. I was able to see the animals I only dreamed of seeing in their natural habitats. This is my 4th Intrepid trip and was the best by far. I realized, as an American, how lucky I am to have the lifestyle I worked hard for. I am a changed woman after this trip, and I have 2 missions that I will pursue when I return to the states. I will help a young man have a much-needed orthopedic surgery and I will support Helen with the schools she established to stop FGM.
Review submitted 06 Aug 2024

Cathy · Traveled August 2023
My intrepid trip, gorillas game parks and beaches is a one in a lifetime experience I’ll always remember fondly. Raymond the tour leader went out of his way to make the flow flawless. Sandy, the Chef with the best smile and positive attitude made many varied menus for us all. She loves her cooking and it is superb. Sandy too is a valuable asset to intrepid . Ben made our trip comfortable. He drove with expertise and safety in mind. Another intrepid asset. Thank you for an amazing east Africa adventure.
Review submitted 30 Aug 2023

Linda Hui · Traveled July 2023
sorry no time yet. will try to write review on google reviews or on intrepid tour
Review submitted 30 Jul 2023
Gorillas, Game Parks & Beaches
From
EUR €5,436