Family Safari in Kenya and Tanzania

Begin in Nairobi, a microcosm of the African continent and the capital of Kenya. It serves as your gateway to East Africa’s natural wonders. At your hotel, meet your Child Activity Coordinator, who may greet you with a friendly “jambo” (that’s Swahili for “hello”).

Visit the Giraffe Center to hand-feed Rothschild's giraffes. Next, at Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, watch young elephants at play with the keepers who help reintroduce them into the wild. Proceed to Oloolua Forest for an A&K-exclusive folklore experience, listening to a storyteller weave folktales handed down for generations. Tonight, enjoy a welcome dinner.

Depart for Amboseli National Park, home to prolific herds of elephants. Spanning 150 square miles of Kenyan savanna, woodlands, wetlands and ephemeral lakebed — with Mount Kilimanjaro’s distinctive profile as its centerpiece — this iconic park also harbors giraffes, zebras, cheetahs, lions and hundreds of bird species. After lunch at your lodge and perhaps a lesson in spear throwing with your Child Activity Coordinator, set out on a game drive in search of elephants, zebras and wildebeests.

Discover more of this spectacular wildlife haven on morning and afternoon game drives through acacia woodlands, lush marshes and open plains. You may spot a giraffe nibbling tree branches high overhead, cheetahs resting up for their next rapid pursuit of prey or incredible birds — some big, like the ostrich; some small, like the spike-heeled lark; and plenty in between, such as the stately and colorful grey-crowned crane. Have fun keeping count of all the winged friends you encounter.

Drive into Tanzania, stopping at Kafika House in Arusha, which provides transformative healthcare to local children living with disabilities, a project supported by A&K Philanthropy. Then eat lunch before flying to Manyara and continuing overland to your lodge, perched on the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater. This ancient, UNESCO-listed volcanic caldera encircles panoramic prairies with crater walls nearly 2,000 feet high. Inside them, a diverse profusion of wildlife roams freely through an authentic “Lost World,” where you can encounter every member of the Big Five in a single day.

This morning, descend into the crater, arriving ahead of most visitors — thanks to the ideal location of your accommodations on the crater’s rim — to view the resident wildlife at its most active time of day. Later, visit a Maasai village, where you meet with the village elder and learn how to make the tribal community’s unique beaded jewelry.

Depart for Serengeti National Park. Stop for a privately guided tour of Olduvai Gorge, a historic archaeological site where renowned paleontologists Mary and Louis Leakey made many notable finds. Visit the on-site museum, take in views from the lookout point, and examine the excavations, which revealed 3.7-million-year-old footprints of an early human. Arrive at your lodge and, time permitting, set out on a rousing game drive. Spanning 5,700 square miles of golden grassland, the park supports one of the world’s largest concentrations of wildlife, such as antelopes, hyenas, leopards, giraffes, lions and buffalo. During part of the year, it also hosts the awesome spectacle of the annual Great Migration.

Set out on thrilling morning and afternoon game drives, seeking out Africa’s Big Five (lions, leopards, rhinos, elephants and Cape buffalo) and observing other iconic species such as gazelles and wildebeests as they graze beneath the warm equatorial sun. Your driver-guide knows the park in depth, including the habits of the animals, and strives to always put you in the heart of the action.

Journey by air and overland to the Maasai Mara Game Reserve, Kenya’s finest wildlife experience, offering excellent game viewing year-round. The unending landscape hosts some 450 bird species, 95 animal species and the country’s largest lion population. After settling into your camp near the Mara River, set out on a game drive.

Set out on morning and afternoon game drives, keeping watch for any or all the members the fabled Big Five as well as giraffes, hippos, zebras and far more. Listen as your expert tracker explains how each animal lives and the role it plays in the circle of life. While in camp, join your Child Activity Coordinator on a bush treasure hunt, and watch your chef make a local dish. Some of the most memorable experiences on safari are those shared between young explorers who may make some lifelong friends.

On a final day of game drives, you may witness members of the colorful Maasai people going about their daily lives, as they have down through the centuries, passing pastoral from one generation to the next. You may also opt, for an additional fee, to lift off in a hot air balloon, gliding serenely over the grasslands at treetop level and observing the wildlife from a fresh new perspective. Tonight, savor a farewell dinner.

Fly to Nairobi and with a reserved dayroom available until you take your private transfer to the airport for your departing flight.