Ecorating 4.0

Mountain gorillas & safari in East Africa

You start your journey with five days on the savannah of the Masai Mara. where you experience this amazing area along with the Masai people. Subsequently, you ascend the Virunga Mountains, where you hike in the rainforest and meet mountain gorillas. After all the adventures and hardships, you can end your journey on a sandy beach by the Indian Ocean.

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Sample Itinerary

The experience

This program is a source of inspiration — each trip is unique and tailored to you.

Day 1 - 3

The journey starts by driving out to the area by car. The Masai Mara is large, and along the way you will see small villages and people sitting in the shade if it is hot. We say hello to our guide and continue the journey to the camp with him. You start by staying 2 nights at Wilderness Camp, a small tent camp in the wilderness, with its own bar out in nature and a chef who serves delicious three-course meals under the starry sky of Africa – luxury in the simple and perhaps best way. How your experiences during the stay here should be, you plan together with your guide. Hiking with the Masai – feel like one with nature when you hike with your new friends from the Masai tribe very early in the morning – a completely different dimension of safari.

Day 3-5

Check out for further travel to Eagle View, Mara Naboisho – a 26,000 acre area with unique wildlife. You live in a luxury safari tent. Eagle View is beautifully situated on a ridge down to a water hole and here you have the most beautiful view of one of the Masai Mara’s most exciting areas.

You plan your days here together with your guide, and this means that morning, evening or night safaris are arranged according to what you find most suitable.

Day 5-8

We say thank you and goodbye for this time to the Masai Mara for flying from Nairobi to Kigali in Rwanda. Further journey to the Virunga Mountains to meet mountain gorillas in the Volcanoes National Park. Your encounter with these giant (but often curious and friendly) animals is something you will remember for the rest of your life. You may also see some of the rare golden monkeys, and there is the opportunity to visit Dian Fossey’s tomb. Dian Fossey was an American ethnologist and primatologist. known for his work in the area.

Day 8

We leave the rainforest and Rwanda to fly back to Kenya and spend the night in Nairobi. Have a good dinner at the hotel, maybe you end the day with a gin & tonic on the hotel’s roof terrace.

Day 9-15

After breakfast at the hotel, check out and visit David Sheldrick’s Elephant Orphanage. before traveling again by plane to the coast and Ukunda – feel the scent of the Indian Ocean. Upon arrival at Kinondo Kwetu you can seriously relax and enjoy true barefoot luxury! Kinondo Kwetu is one of our personal favorite hotels! A small luxury resort with everything included, and the place is also owned by a Swedish family. In addition to the fine rooms, the exquisite kitchen and the good facilities, you can expect true luxury – luxury in the way that you will find peace, relaxation and enjoyment here. There is only room for 38 guests, so you can always find a private corner. Here are opportunities for snorkeling or diving in the nearby Kisite Marine Park, where you can often greet dolphins. On site there is a dive master and diving equipment to rent. Other activities include kitesurfing, fishing, sailing or kayaking. Enjoy life, practice yoga, relax and breathe at the pace that suits you.

Wilderness Camp

Two nights at Wilderness Camp

Eagle View Camp

Two nights at Eagle View Camp

Rwanda

Two nights in Virunga

Kinondo Kwetu

Six nights at Kinondo Kwetu

Details

Everything you need to know

Travel facts

Ecorating: 4.5

Airport: Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta (NBO)

Duration: 15 days

The price includes: International round trip flight, 1 night with breakfast at Best Western Hotel Nairobi as well as transfers in Nairobi, full board at Wilderness and Eagle View Camp in Mara, safaris with 4×4 Landcruisers, park tickets, activities according to the program, flight Nairobi – Mara – Ukunda. All transfers in Kigali, car trip to Virunga, 2 nights at lodge in Virunga with meals, gorilla trekking 1 day, Golden Monkey trekking 1 day, 1 night at hotel in Kigali with breakfast on arrival and 1 night at hotel in Kigali on departure. 6 nights at Kinondo Kwetu with full board, drinks and transfers.

Price does not include: Lunch and dinner at Best Western Hotell Nairobi, drinks if not specified, visa to Kenya 50 USD per person. pers., taxi from Ukunda airport to Kinondo Kwetu, lunch at Hotel Rwanda, visa to Rwanda 30 USD per. pers., extra activities or travel insurance.

Tips for your journey

Good to know about Kenya & Masai Mara: This is a large nature reserve in southwestern Kenya, and actually a continuation of the famous Serengeti National Park in Tanzania. The area got its name from the people who live in the area (Masai) and what they have for generations called the area: “Mara”, which in Masai language means “spotted”. A good description of a landscape where trees, shrubs, savannah and shadows from clouds form a “spotted” image.

Good to remember: In the Masai Mara, water is in short supply, so drink and use it with care and respect. The Masai are a proud people, always ask before you photograph. Bring notes in smaller denominations to be able to buy local crafts and the like in the small communities. How to greet the people you meet? In the same way that we in the Western world do – you take hands.

Mobile coverage and internet: The hotel has internet and mobile coverage is good. However, it is a wish of the management that you prefer to turn off the mobile, or use it discreetly.

Visa: Your passport must be valid for a minimum of 6 months after departure from Kenya. In the event that a visa is required for Scandinavian citizens, this will be stated in the information we send to you after you have booked. It is your own responsibility to provide a visa for all travelers in your company. You must apply for a visa before traveling online.

You can apply for a “Single entry visa” or “Transit visa” or a “Multiple Entry and East Africa Visas”
E-visa is mandatory and we recommend that you get it in place at least 14 days before departure. Go towww.ecitizen.go.keand have your passport, passport photo and credit card ready.

Click on “register”
Select “register as a visitor”. As part of the process, you will receive a confirmation email along the way.
After logging in, select the “Department of Immigration Services” section
Select “Submit Application” and “Visa – Kenya ”
Choose the type of visa that suits you best, read the instructions and fill out the form. You will need to scan your passport along the way, and if you do not fill in all the required information, you will be denied a visa and have lost the fee paid.
Pay by credit card (Visa / Mastercard accepted)
Wait for message from the authority. The process can take up to 7-10 business days.
After receiving the message, log in to your account again, download and print your visa.
Present your visa on arrival in Kenya in passport control.

Time zone: GMT + 3

Vaccinations: Read more about which vaccinations to use, for example hereStatens Serum Institut

Packing: On safaris in the Masai Mara you are often 1,300 – 1,500 meters above sea level, and both in the morning, in the evening and at night it can be quite cold. Bring a good sweater and windbreaker, good shoes for walking in

Bring a small backpack to be able to bring water, binoculars, camera or other personal belongings on the excursions. We recommend soft rather than hard travel bags – they are easier to transport along the way, so a backpack or similar is a good choice. Mosquito nets are available on site, but feel free to bring mosquito spray or similar.

Local currency: Kenyan Shilling

Observer: Kenya has banned plastic bags and this is checked by customs. If you bring a plastic bag, this can mean a fine.

Weather right now: Weather Masai Mara

Water: Clean water is available in the camp.

Security: The Masai Mara is an extremely safe area. In the capital Nairobi, however, do not go alone in some places – this is especially true in the city center.

More information can be found hereRejsevejledninger på um.dk

Good to know about Rwanda:Rwanda is located in the middle of Africa and has approx. 10 million inhabitants. About 1/3 of the world’s mountain gorillas live here, but there is also much else to see and experience here. The country is often called the “Land of the Thousand Mountains” and borders Uganda in the north, Tanzania in the east, Burundi in the south and the Democratic Republic of Congo in the west. In Rwanda, Kinyarwanda is spoken – a Bantu language almost everyone in the country speaks and perceives as its mother tongue. Most people speak English in Rwanda, but if you want to say hello in kinyarwanda it is called “mwaramutse”. The country has temperate climates with two rainy periods: from February to April and from November to January.

Travel Ethics: Always ask before taking photos. Bring notes in smaller denominations to be able to buy local crafts and the like in the small communities. Take hands, this is how you greet each other with respect.

Mobile coverage and internet: Good coverage on the mobile network, internet primarily in hotels.

Visa: Your passport must be valid for at least 6 months after leaving Rwanda. It is your own responsibility to provide a visa for all travelers in your company. Visas can be purchased on arrival in Rwanda for USD 30 per person. person.

Time zone: GMT + 2

Vaccinations: Read more atStatens Serum Institut

Packing: It is extremely important to bring good boots to walk in, long trousers to be able to walk in the rainforest in, emergency provisions in the form of chocolate, energy bars or the like, a large water bottle and it all needs to be packed in a backpack you can carry for a whole day. Rainwear is a good idea to bring.

Local currency: Rwandan franc

Weather: Kigali

Water: Clean water is available at the camp.

Security: Your security is important. Follow the guide’s directions, but in general both Kenya and Rwanda are relatively safe destinations for foreigners.

4.0

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Travel with purpose

How does my trip contribute?

This product meets our requirements for Ecorating, a product that is good for humans and the environment.

Basecamp, Masai Mara & Naboisho, Kenya:

Your trip means that Basecamp Masai Mara can further invest in the best and most environmentally friendly and high-tech solutions. All electricity for heating, water technology, water heating and lighting comes from solar panels. Closed septic tanks are used for the toilets. All waste is sorted and materials are recycled and recycled from here as long as is practically possible. All organic waste is composted and used to improve the soil at the camp – including in Obama’s tree plantation. Water for the plantation comes from wastewater from baths, dishes and laundry. This water can easily be used for the purpose, as you only use environmentally friendly soap, dishwashing detergent and washing powder on site.

Basecamp offers experiences that are quite different, compared to other safari camps / hotels. In addition to classic jeep safaris, you can meet the women from BMB, which is a local art project, get to know the local community and hike with the local “Big Cat Scouts”.

Many of the adventures you will experience happen on foot along with guides from the Masai people. You will gain a deeper understanding of the conditions of life in this part of Africa, the culture and how to look at nature here.

Your trip contributes to the local economy, as 85% of the employees at Basecamp come from the local area. The camp invests in social programs to improve the area’s water supply, health, education, culture and then not least has started a shop where local women produce and sell traditional Masai jewelry.

Nature is the community’s greatest resource, so great emphasis is placed on preserving and protecting it. They work actively with tree erection, and run a nursery where over 50,000 new trees have been planted over the years – that is equivalent to about 20 hectares!

Your visit here also supports the camp’s project “Big Five”, a project focusing on nature, environment and health. Among other things, they have helped to drill for water, help residents with HIV / AIDS, they support the guide school Koiyiaki and “The Big Cat Conservation Program”.

The Mara Naboisho Conservancy has recently started a project that focuses on protecting a 26,000-hectare wilderness area, owned by a total of 500 owners. One will support a model where one jointly preserves and develops the area, so that tourism not only provides cash benefits now, but will continue to be a key part of the area’s economy – something that can only happen if one treats the area with respect for both nature and not least for the animals.

Volcanoes National Park, Virunga, Rwanda

Part of the money you spend in the area goes to protecting the gorilla flocks, both to remunerate the rangers who monitor the area, but also to engage the local community in this work. The IGCP (International Gorilla Conservation Program) is also active in the area. Virunga is a vital habitat for the endangered mountain gorillas. The region consists of three contiguous national parks in Rwanda, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Kinondo KwetuThe
charm of Kinondo Kwetu is largely based on its connection to the surrounding community and the village of Kinondo, where many of the staff live on site. The Kinondo Kwetu Foundation has therefore been established, which aims to provide medical assistance and also supports young people’s education and schooling from primary / secondary school and up to upper secondary school level. The foundation is currently working to establish a computer center for children, young adults and adults.

Kinondo Kwetu Clinic has been in operation since November 2008. The clinic offers basic health services at prices where most people in the local community can afford to have their health checked regularly. Since its inception, the focus has also been on HIV and TB prevention. It has also managed to establish a well-functioning laboratory.