Depart From: Depart the U.S.A.

Arrive to Nairobi, Kenya (Independent participants and group air participants).

Arrive To: Arrive in Nairobi, Kenya.
After concluding Immigration and Customs procedures, meet the Road Scholar representative (outside the secured area) and transfer to the hotel.

Note: This is an international travel day; no meals or program activities are scheduled on this day. Hotel check-in usually begins at 3 p.m.

Lodging: Sarova Panafric

Nairobi -
Giraffe Center/Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage/Karen Blixen House

Breakfast: Breakfast at hotel.

Morning: Program orientation and introductory lecture on the Sheldrick Foundation.

Transfer to the Sheldrick Foundation (about a 30-minute drive) for your first encounter with African Elephants. Here, young orphaned elephants are nursed back to health and rehabilitated in preparation for their return to the wild. Enjoy outstanding photo opportunities.

Continue to the Giraffe Center for a site lecture on the successful breeding strategy used to increase the numbers of the endangered Rothschild's Giraffe. Interact with the giraffe eye to eye from a feeding platform.

Lunch: Enjoy a late lunch at a local restaurant.

Afternoon: Explore the house and gardens of Karen Blixen as you relive scenes from "Out of Africa."

The Karen Blixen House is a plantation house that was once the home of Baroness Karen von Blixen-Finecke, who ran a coffee plantation in Kenya. Her struggles are immortalized in her autobiography, "Out of Africa," which she composed under the pen name of Isak Dinesen. The museum is set in the Ngong Hills.

Return to the hotel for an evening lecture ("Overview of Kenya"). Following your lecture, you will be invited to join a table-talk session with local women, representing a diverse cross-section of Kenyan society.

Dinner: Dinner at hotel.

Lodging: Sarova Panafric

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Amboseli National Park - Target Species Game Drive/Views of Mt. Kilimanjaro - Photo Opportunities

Breakfast: Breakfast at hotel.

Morning: Transfer to Amboseli, the oldest national park in Kenya, with stunning views of Mount Kilimanjaro — Africa's highest mountain.

Amboseli National Park lies within the shadow of Mount Kilimanjaro near the Tanzanian border. Kilimanjaro is literally the lifeblood of the park--its snow and glaciers feed two large swamps, providing water to this semi-arid region. The swamps are the congregation point for a wide variety of animals including lions, giraffe, zebra, wildebeest, buffalo and 420 bird species.

Arrive to Amboseli in time for lunch.

Lunch: Lunch at lodge.

Afternoon: Time at leisure.
Game drive focusing on elephant as target species.

Amboseli is synonymous with large elephant herds. Because of local drought and varying feeding patterns, the traditional feeding ground and migration routes of the elephants are changing. The plight of the Amboseli elephants will be a hot topic during game drives in the park.

Orientation to next day’s activities.

Dinner: Dinner at lodge.

Lodging: Ol Tukai Lodge

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Early morning game drive to search for some of the lesser-known animals of the park. Amboseli is particularly good for photo opportunities.
Breakfast at lodge.

Morning: Time at leisure.

Lunch: Lunch at lodge.

Afternoon: After lunch, enjoy a lecture on the history of Amboseli National Park and its ongoing Elephant Research Project.

Founded in 1972, the Amboseli Elephant Research Project monitors and collects information about the elephant population in Amboseli National Park. Their research includes short- and long-term behavioral and ecological studies, as well as census surveys.

Target species game drive field trip with site lecture.
Orientation to next day’s activities.

Dinner: Dinner at lodge.

Lodging: Ol Tukai Lodge

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast at lodge.

Morning: Target species game drive field trip with site lecture.

Lunch: Lunch at lodge.

Afternoon: Time at leisure.
Lecture: "Current Issues Affecting Kenya."

Video Presentation: "Family of Echo, The Story of the Elephant"

Dinner: Dinner at lodge.

Lodging: Ol Tukai Lodge

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Ol Pejeta Conservancy - Flight to Nanyuki via Nairobi/Weaving Cooperative/ Transfer to Ol Pejeta Conservancy

Breakfast: Breakfast at lodge.

Morning: Fly from Amboseli to Nairobi and connect with flight to Nanyuki.
Upon arrival to Nanyuki, enjoy an excursion to the Ol Pejeta Weavers Cooperative.

Ol Pejeta Weaving Cooperative (Nanyuki Spinners & Weavers) is a women’s self-help project registered under the Ministry of Culture and Social Services. The project was started to teach poor, widowed and single women living in the surrounding villages of Nanyuki town the craft of spinning, knitting and weaving with the main objective of making them self-reliant.

Transfer to Sweetwaters Tented Camp, located within the private Ol Pejeta Conservancy.

Lunch: Lunch at the tented camp.

Afternoon: Time at leisure.
Afternoon target species game drive. We will focus on eland, the largest species of antelope, during this game drive. In addition we will also try to find some of the rarer animals such as Jackson's hartebeest and Grevy's zebra. There are also over 300 bird species on the Conservancy.



Dinner: Dinner at the tented camp.

Lodging: Sweetwaters Tented Camp

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Ol Pejeta Conservancy -
Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary/Black Rhino Sanctuary

Breakfast: Early wake-up call with tea and coffee.

Morning expert-led safari walk around the camp to track wildlife and learn about local flora and fauna.

Breakfast at the camp.

Morning: Field trip to the Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary with site lecture.

The sanctuary was founded in 1993 in partnership with the Kenya Wildlife Service, Ol Pejeta Conservancy, and the Jane Goodall Institute as a refuge for orphaned and abused chimpanzees. Once the chimpanzees are nursed back to good health, they are given a permanent home in the sanctuary’s protected lands. Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary is a chartered member of the Pan African Sanctuary Alliance, a league that cares for hundreds of chimpanzees through its network of sanctuaries in 12 African countries.

On the way back to the tented camp, enjoy a target species game drive with a site lecture.

Lunch: Lunch at the tented camp.

Afternoon: Lecture by resident naturalist: History of Ol Pejeta Conservancy, Conservation Efforts and the Rhino Project.

Afternoon target species game drive with a focus on rhinos.
Before returning to the tented camp, visit the Morani Information Center.

The Morani Information Center educates visitors about the endangered Black rhino and explains about the ongoing work carried out by the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in protecting these animals. The center was named after a tame rhino that for many years acted as an educational embassador at that site. Sadly, he passed away in 2008. Since then, a new rhino has taken residence at the Morani complex. Baraka (which means blessings in Swahili) was transferred to the facility after blindness prevented him from being able to survive alone in the wild. Now, Baraka is continuing Morani's legacy, helping to teach visitors about the plight of the Black rhino.



Dinner: Dinner at lodge.

Lodging: Sweetwaters Tented Camp

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast at lodge.

Morning: Begin transfer from Sweetwaters Tented Camp to Lake Nakuru.

En route, stop for a water demonstration at the equator.

Excursion to local tea and coffee cooperative. After a short introduction by one of the plantation owners, enter the tea plantation for an explanation on how tea is grown. The plantation is part of a large cooperative. The logistics of how the cooperative works will be addressed during a site lecture.



Lunch: Lunch en route.

Afternoon: Late-afternoon arrival to Lake Nakuru.

Get settled in your accommodations and then enjoy the rest of the afternoon at your leisure. Take a dip in the pool, relax in a comfortable chair and enjoy views of the national park, or maybe use the time to catch up on your reading.

Lake Nakuru is most famous for the millions of flamingos that dot the lake. However, the national park is also home to a variety of game and plant species. The region surrounding Lake Nakuru contains several archaeological sites.



Dinner: Dinner at lodge.

Lodging: Lake Nakuru Lodge

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast at the lodge.

Morning: Morning target species game drive.
Your game drive will be followed by a visit to the Lake Nakuru lookout point and the Rhinoceros Rescue Base.

At the Lake Nakuru Rhinoceros Rescue Base, injured animals are cared for until they are released back into the wild. The National Park is declared a black rhino sanctuary; however, poaching still occurs.

Lecture: "The Great Rift Valley."

Lunch: Picnic lunch.

Afternoon: Lecture: "Lake Nakuru, Flamingos and the Rhinoceros Rescue Base."
In the late afternoon, enjoy a cultural interaction with a local women's group during a bead-making activity.

Dinner: Dinner at lodge.

Evening: Evening entertainment — Local music and dance.

Lodging: Lake Nakuru Lodge

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Masai Mara Game Reserve —
Kariandusi Archaeological Site/Maasai Village

Breakfast: Breakfast at lodge.

Morning: Morning transfer to Nyumbu camp in the Ngila Plains. The camp sits at the edge of the Maasai Mara Game reserve, overlooking magnificent view of hills and plains in a prime wildlife area near Talek Gate.

En route, visit to Kariandusi Archaeological site and its museum. Lecture: "Kariandusi, as Part of the Cradle of Civilization."

Dr. Louis Leakey, famed archaeologist and naturalist, discovered this Acheulean site near Lake Elementaita in 1928. Excavations (1929-1947) conducted at Kariandusi uncovered many Stone Age implements, including knives and hand axes. These tools provide important clues about the history of humankind, including biological and cultural evolutions. Interesting on-site exhibits showcase the archaeological finds.

Continue with transfer to Nyumbu Camp.

Lunch: Box lunch en route.

Afternoon: Lecture: "Maasai Culture," provided by the resident Maasai naturalist.

Interact with the Maasai during a visit to a local village. Learn about their way of life as their animals return to the kraal for the night and the evening rituals are carried out. The lifestyle of the Maasai is surprisingly simple. Witness how they strive to retain their culture and traditions in a world that is changing before their very eyes.

Dinner: Dinner at camp.

Evening: Feedback from the Maasai village visit while gathered around the camp fire with the naturalist.

Lodging: Nyumbu Camp

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast at camp.

Morning: Early morning game drive in the Maasai Mara.

The open savannah grasslands of the Mara is the favorite habitat of the big cats — the lion and the cheetah. Here the cheetah use their superior speed to run down antelope in a well-rehearsed hunting routine that you might be fortunate to witness.



Lunch: Picnic lunch.

Afternoon: Lecture: "The Ecosystems of the Mara and its Surrounding Areas."

Continue with game drive activities in the Mara.

Return to camp late in the afternoon



Dinner: Dinner at camp.

Lodging: Nyumbu Camp

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Masai Mara Game Reserve —
Maasai Guided Walk in Olare Olok Conservancy/Game Drive

Breakfast: Breakfast at camp.

Morning: Early morning expert-led walk in the conservancy. This walk will be accompanied by Maasai with their traditional spears. These warriors read the signs of the wild animals as we would a book. Being with them is being at one with nature.

Return to the camp, followed by time at leisure.

Lunch: Lunch at camp.

Afternoon: Afternoon game drive within the conservancy.

Celebrate the end of a full day with a sundowner, watching the sun as it sets over the Ngila Plains.



Dinner: Farewell dinner at camp.

Lodging: Nyumbu Camp

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Early morning game drive in the nature conservancy.
Breakfast at camp.

Morning: Transfer to airstrip.
Fly to Nairobi on the 11 a.m. flight, arriving at Wilson Airport in Nairobi at approximately 12:15 p.m.

Transfer to Panari Hotel (or similar) for day room accommodations. Participants will have the opportunity to freshen up, finish packing, and/or get some rest in preparation for tonight's flight back to the U.S.



Lunch: Lunch at the hotel.

Afternoon: Time at leisure at the hotel.
Enjoy some snacks at the hotel before transfering to the international airport.

Evening: Transfer to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport for flight to the U.S.

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch

Morning: Arrive to the U.S.A.