Adventure, wildlife and relaxation in East Africa
Discover the astounding diversity of landscapes and wildlife in East Africa on this 27-day Lonely Planet Experience, powered by Intrepid. Visit verdant highlands, steamy rainforests, tropical beaches and epic grasslands in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Zanzibar, enjoying unrivalled opportunity to get close to gorillas, lions, elephants, buffaloes, hippos, giraffes, flamingos and chimpanzees. This tour gives you a wicked itinerary, gorilla trek permits, plenty of included game drives and a few key cultural experiences. How you spend the rest of your time if 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.
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Lonely Planet and Intrepid Travel share the same philosophy: we help curious people explore the world.
With permits included in the price of the trip, take a trek through Uganda's steamy forests to seek out rare mountain gorillas and spend an unforgettable hour in their presence.
Head out on an early evening game drive in Lake Nakuru National Park, which is particularly famous for its rhino population.
Explore the Serengeti, a wildlife arena like no other, and look for lions, leopards, elephants and giraffes in this iconic park.
Embark on a hike through the Usambara Mountains to the Irente viewpoint, then stop at a farm on the way back for a picnic lunch.
Accompanied by a local crew — a leader, driver and cook – you'll be in excellent hands for the duration of your adventure.
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.
You may also want to check out our Gorillas to Vic Falls trip if you have more time to explore in Africa.
1.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.
2. A single supplement is available on all nights of this trip, subject to availability.
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 is a combination trip made up of three shorter trips. This means the composition of your group may change in Nairobi and Stone Town as some group members leave and new ones join you.
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. This trip finishes upon arrival at our finish point hotel in Stone Town on Day 27. Please do not book any flights until after 2 pm on this afternoon.
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.
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