with Acacia Africa

Day 1 – 13 Nairobi - Masai Mara Volunteering Project
Upon your arrival in Nairobi you will be met by a project representative, who will escort you to your new ‘home’ in the Mara Naboisho Conservancy in the heart of the Masai Mara eco system. You will receive a full orientation, to the area that you will be living in, as well as be shown the areas that you will be volunteering in. Some of the duties you will be expected to carry our include:

• Lion research and monitoring
• Diverse data collection guided by experienced field staff. This is particularly exciting during the months of July-October during the Great Migration
• Learn from experienced Masai guides about life in the African bush
• Work alongside local Masai expert instructors in training and educating students from the surrounding Masai community to be safari guides
• Assist in efforts to empower the local Masai communities to value their environment through conservation education
• Be involved in helping and improving the facilities of a Masai school located on the edge of the Masai Mara ecosystem

Day 14 – 16 Masai Mara Game Drives

From your volunteering accommodation you are transferred to our camp on the edge of the ‘Mara’ to explore the park in search of lion, antelope, wildebeest, elephant, zebra, cheetah, amongst many others. This is the beginning of the safari part of your tour. From the ‘Mara’ we return briefly to Nairobi before travelling south into Tanzania.

Day 17 – 21 Nairobi - Arusha Serengeti National Park & Ngorongoro Crater

The first stop in Tanzania is the bustling city of Arusha. From our base just outside town there is an opportunity to visit a snake enclosure and a local Maasai village to learn something of traditional people. Switching to 4x4 vehicles, we then travel via the Olduvai Gorge to the renowned Serengeti National Park. The reserve covers some 15,000sq km, mainly of open plains. Camping on the African plain is an exhilarating experience, as much for the sounds at night as for the sights of the day! After the Serengeti, we descend the inner walls of Ngorongoro Crater, a World Heritage Site, containing one if the most concentrated populations of wildlife anywhere in Africa. This is Africa’s largest intact caldera and the view from crater rim to crater floor, 700m below, is staggering.

Day 22 – 26 Dar es Salaam, Zanzibar

We return to Arusha and head south to the balmy Indian Ocean and Tanzania’s main commercial port, Dar es Salaam (‘Haven of Peace’). We take the ferry to Zanzibar for three nights on the island. The influence of both African and Arab cultures is visible everywhere in the architecture and atmosphere - the old slave markets, ‘Prison Island’, Stone Town’s mosques, palaces, courtyards and coffee shops. But don’t forget to save time for the tropical northern beaches where snorkelling and diving are excellent. Returning to the mainland, our tour ends in Dar es Salaam.

• There is no additional information for this tour