Safaris

Arabuko – Sukoke

Gede

Mida Creek

Chem Chem

Crocodile Farm - Snake Farm

Tsavo National Park

Mombasa

Lamu

Masai Mara

Amboseli National Park

Aberdares National Park





				The Malindi resort area is a fascinating place to explore. Start with the Arabuko – Sukoke Forest, the largest tract of indigenous forest left in East Africa. This forest offers us three forests in one: thick mixed costal forest, open woodland on white soil and low, dense thicket on red soil. The forest headquarters and visitor centre is 1,500 meters south of Watamu junction.



				Combine an early morning trip to the Forest with lunch in Watamu and an afternoon trip to Gede Historical Monument where a long deserted Swahili town nestles amongst the coral rag forest. There is still a lot to learn about Gede, as it was never mentioned in Portuguese and Arab writings of the period, although they were ensconced not 15 kilometres away in Malindi. The town was a medieval Swahili settlement, walled, covering about a quarter of a square kilometre.



				If you have time, include a cruise in your itinerary! An Arab dhow plies the waters of Mida Creek. You can have a long lunch cruise with a barbecue on a mangrove island, or a ‘sun-downer’ cruise in late afternoon until sunset. Until the advent of the engine, these ancient vessels were at the mercy of the tides and the Indian Ocean winds. Each year the benevolence of the north- easterly monsoon, or ‘Kazkazi’, filled their sails and brought them from the Gulf of Aden; bound for the spice isle of Zanzibar, or Dar-es-Salaam perhaps.



				Lake Chem Chem offers camel rides down the lake, and a barbeque lunch. Chem Chem is several kilometres into the bush, and is slowly acquiring animals for viewing, such as ostrich and crocodile. You must book one day ahead.



				Crocodile farm – snake farm is open everyday from 9:00am to 5:00pm, with special feeding of crocodiles on Wednesday and Friday at 4:00pm. View a variety of poisonous and non-poisonous snakes while learning more about their habits.



				Do a day trip or overnight safari at Tsavo National Park. Tsavo is the largest National Park in Kenya and only a couple of hours from Malindi. Clients in a day trip leave early in the morning to view the game at the best possible time, have lunch at a safari lodge, and return through the park late in the afternoon. Hot air safaris are also possible from Malindi.



				If you want to explore more of costal culture and history, take a day trip to Mombasa, which includes historic sites, the Bamburi Nature Trail, craft markets, and a lunch cruise on the ‘Tamarind Dhow’, which plies the water around Mombasa Island. Dhows have been sailing into the old harbour, at Mombasa, since trading first began, some 4,000 years ago and certainly since the time of King Solomon and the Queen on Sheba.



				Lamu is enchanting. As Kenya's oldest living town it has retained all the charm and character built up over centuries. There are no cars so donkeys are the main means of transport. Children play in the narrow streets, Muslim men chat on street corners and women in their black buibui eils busy themselves through doorways. Most houses have a rooftop which is used as a patio - indicative of a society where ‘hanging back’ and ‘catching the breeze’ is important.



					Often described as the greatest of nature’s stages, the Masai Mara, with its huge dramatic skies, is perhaps the most popular of all Kenya’s game parks. The landscape which is mostly savannah, hosts around 22 families of lions and 3,000 elephants and is one of the best places to see the ‘Big Five’ while the Mara river is one of the best places to observe crocodiles and hippos.



					Amboseli provides the classic Hollywood image of Africa: Vast herds of buffaloes and elephants ranging across the open plains and set against the glorious backdrop of snow-capped Mount Kilimanjaro. At 5,896 meters, the shining mountain is the highest freestanding mountain in the world and is topped by one fifth of all the ice in Africa.



					Gazetted in 1950 this park is one of the oldest in the country and famous as the place where Princess Elizabeth became Queen Elizabeth II of England whilst staying in the original Treetops lodge. Whilst its prize inhabitant is the Bingo Antelope, it is also home to the second largest population of indigenous black rhino and featuring miles of high mooring scenery, tumbling waterfalls and sensational views.