![]() You arrive back in camp in time to freshen up, then it’s dinner and off to bed, before it all starts again very early the next morning. Just before sunset, you’ll stop for another safari institution, the ‘Sundowner’, when you’ll watch the sunset while nursing the drink of your choice. Afternoon tea, often known as High Tea in a nod to colonial-era safari traditions, happens around 3 PM or 3:30 PM, then it’s back out looking for wildlife until after dark. A few hours of relaxation, followed by lunch, then a few hours more doing very little occupies the hottest part of the day, when even animals retreat into the shade. You’ll return to the lodge or camp mid- to late morning for a proper sit-down breakfast. ![]() After dressing quickly, and having a coffee or tea, you head out for a few hours in a safari vehicle (with other guests, a driver, guide and sometimes a tracker) looking for wildlife – this time, and the last hours before sunset, are ideal for watching wildlife. “Most days out on safari begin with a quiet African voice waking you well before sunrise. What can I expect from a safari in Kenya? Particularly in tented camps, you’ll most likely need to recharge your devices not in your room but at a power station in the main public area.” 7 Most lodge rooms and tents of this kind have comfortable (not camp) beds, sometimes a desk and usually a private bathroom some even have an outdoor shower with no roof but walls that protect your modesty. Hopefully you won’t hear the sounds of your neighboring guests if the tents are nicely spaced. Canvas tents mean that you can hear the sounds of the African night. In tented camps, including mobile camps, you’ll sleep in large, walk-in tents – they’re like lodge rooms in terms of size but with canvas for walls and floor. Lodges are the mainstays of the Kenya safari scene and the quality varies considerably – many lodges within the reserves and national parks have excellent locations but are ageing and in need of renovation, while others are luxurious and recently overhauled. ![]() At the lower end, campsites are usually basic, sometimes crowded and not always in the best locations within the national parks or reserves, but they are well priced and often have ample facilities such as showers and toilets. “As a general rule, the higher your Kenya safari prices, the better you can expect your accommodation to be. › More about viewing Kenya's wildlife & Animals 4 At most of these conservancies, you can get off-road as well, meaning that you’ll get a lot closer to the animals than you will in a national park.” And a more exclusive Kenyan safari experience is possible in the conservancies of Laikipia – you pay more, but, with the exception of Ol Pejeta Conservancy, crowds are non-existent and wildlife watching is excellent. Other parks are more specialist – such as the birds and primates of Kakamega, and the sitatunga in Saiwa Swamp – allowing you to tick off a hard-to-find species, usually without the crowds. Dense wildlife populations in all of these parks make them good all-round safari destinations that enable you to see as many animals (and different species) as you can in a short period of time. Most of the more popular parks that you can visit on a Kenya tour – Amboseli, Masai Mara, Samburu and Lake Nakuru – have fabulous wildlife-watching opportunities. That said, prices are lower and I visited once in April and was lucky to find very few other visitors (except for local visitors around Easter) and clear skies.” 1 Most travelers avoid March to May because heavy rains are always possible and can transform safari trails into muddy bogs. Visiting from November to February also has its devotees – migrating birds arrive, the rains rarely disrupt travel, and the country is also transformed into a lovely shade of green. Crowds are also larger – in some parks, the queue of safari vehicles can take away something from your experience, and some areas of the Masai Mara can be completely overwhelmed with vehicles during the migration. One downside is that, apart from June (which is one of my favorite months to visit), high-season prices apply. This is the dry season, and as it progresses, water sources for animals tend to dry up and become fewer, drawing animals in numbers to those that remain. This also coincides with the wildebeest and zebra migration in the Masai Mara. During these months, the weather is generally dry (although it can get really hot in October and the tail-end of September) and most trails are open. “June to October is an excellent time for Kenya tours.
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