2020/06/20 – Elephants’ Trails

• Starting and ending at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, in Nairobi
• Safari dates: June 20th 2020 to June 30th 2020
• 1 night in Nairobi, 2 nights at Ithumba, 3 nights in Tsavo East NP, 4 nights in Amboseli NP
• 6 participants on two vehicles (max 8 if two couples share a row of seats)
• Guided by Federico Veronesi

Two days at Ithumba, Tsavo East NP

Tsavo East is Kenya’s biggest national park, and together with Tsavo West, it hosts Kenya’s biggest population of Elephants. Here Elephants take on a characteristic red colouring from the soil of the area.

North of the Yatta Plateu and the Galana river in Tsavo East NP is Ithumba, where orphan elephants raised by the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust are gradually released into the wild.
Orphan elephants aged six years and above experience encounters with the wild elephants, spend time out in the bush, enjoy their mud-bath, and we will join them in their daily activities.
We will have a chance to photograph the elephants on foot, while their lives go on, in a stunning scenery of bush and rocky outcrops. An unfortgettable experience.

For more information and a preview of the experience, please visit the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust . Please keep in mind that all visitors participating in the tour should be foster parents of at least one Elephant with the SWT.

Three days in Tsavo East NP looking for the big tuskers

We will head south across the Galana river into the heart of Tsavo East NP, where large families of Elephants gather around the dry river beds and waterholes. We will visit the waterholes and wait for the herds to come to drink, and we will watch them cross the beautiful stark landscape of this true African wilderness. Our main target here will be trying to find and photograph some of the last remaining big tuskers in the world. Tsavo also hosts most other wildlife species, including good populations of Lions and Cheetahs.

Four days among the Elephants of Amboseli NP

Amboseli NP in southern Kenya is one of world’s best places to see and photograph African Elephants. We will follow the Elephants crossing majestic sceneries on their walk from the woodlands to the marshes. We will have many opportunities to photograph the Elephants’ behavior, calves playing alongside their mothers, bulls fighting, families feeding and spraying dust. All in the amazing habitat of flat and dusty plains with scattered acacias and the backdrop of Mt Kilimanjaro. Amboseli is also home to some of the last big tuskers in Africa, so we will try to find them.

Small group of keen photographers

This safari is for only a maximum of 6 guests on two vehicles (maximum of 8 guests if 2 couples decide to share the same row of seats). Federico will share the time equally between the two. Federico will be able to offer each guest a very personalized photographic support. Each guest will have plenty of space on the vehicles. Federico will constantly communicate to all guests via hand-held radio between the two vehicles.

Full row of seats on the vehicle

We believe it is crucial that every photographer on the tour has a full row of seats on the vehicle to him/herself. This provides ample space for the equipment, but most of all, allows everyone to photograph on both sides of the vehicle without overlapping with other guests. Couples can request to share a row of seats on the vehicle if one of the two members is not a keen photographer, for a maximum of one couple per vehicle.

Vehicles fully customised for photography

Our vehicles are fully customised to satisfy the needs of photographers. They have fully open sides for an interrupted field of view and supports at the right height to lean the big lenses on. We provide bean bags in plenty but we also supply supports to mount your tripod head on. Vehicles also have pop-up roof for photography from a higher angle when required.

Accommodation in the heart of the parks

At Ithumba we will sleep at the beautiful Ithumba Hills Camp. The Sheldrick Wildlife Trusts owns and manages the Ithumba rehabilitation centre. Ithumba Hill camp is the luxury camp adjacent to the centre. Located on a small rocky hill, the camp offers magnificent views on the surrounding wilderness. It is a self-catering camp which will be booked on exclusive use for our group.  A cook and other camp staff will be available to assist the group.  Tents are en-suite, with a beautiful balcony overlooking the savannah.

In Tsavo East NP, south of the Galana river, we will sleep in a beautiful luxury camp located in a remote area in the heart of Elephant country. The camp has a waterhole right in front, which attracts large herds of Elephants, Lions, Zebras and other animals day and night. The camp has beautiful en-suite tents and food is excellent.

In Amboseli NP we will be based in one of two lodges located inside the park, in a perfect central position to reach the swamps, the plains and the dry lake at the golden hours of sunrise and sunset. All rooms are en-suite and equipped with sockets for charging equipment.

All accommodation is on full-board basis, including breakfast, lunch and dinner. We will always have packed breakfast during our game drive, and depending on the situation, also lunch.

Photographer/guide with in-depth knowledge and experience of the parks

Federico Veronesi will be your guide and accompanying professional photographer for this trip. Elephants are one of Federico’s main photographic subjects. He has spent countless hours observing Elephants’ behavior in these parks. He will share his experience to ensure that you live an unforgettable experience and take extraordinary images.

Price for this safari is USD 5,975. Single supplement is USD 300.

The price includes:

• Accommodation in the parks for 10 nights on full board basis (drinks excluded) as per above itinerary. Picnic lunch on last day.
• Accommodation at Fairview Hotel in Nairobi (1 night B&B).
• Park fees for Tsavo East NP and Amboseli NP, currently 52 US$ pp p/night and 60 US$ pp p/night respectively.
• Total no. of 3 visits to the Ithumba Elephants as per the Sheldrick’s visiting hours. Unlimited game drives and activities in the park near Ithumba—within park hours— in a 4×4 Land Cruiser with 3 rows of seats.
• Guiding services by professional photographer and safari guide Federico Veronesi (Italian and English speaking) and professional Kenyan safari guide.
• Airport pick-up and drop-off in Nairobi for a total of 2 airport transfers.
• All road transfers as indicated in the itinerary.
• 1 lt complimentary bottled water per person per day in the vehicles during game drives.
• AMREF Flying Doctors emergency medical evacuation cover from safari locations to international standard hospital in Nairobi (does not include hospitalization and repatriation).
• Government taxes and VAT where applicable.

The price does not include:

• International flights to and from Kenya.
• Entry visa to Kenya (US$ 50 p/person – visa fees may change without notice).
• Personal travel and medical insurance.
• Eventual increase in park fees. These may change at a short notice and unfortunately may not be foreseen.
• Eventual fees to enter any of the private Conservancies adjacent to Amboseli NP (only in the case that good Elephant sightings are reported there).
• All drinks, laundry and extras at the lodges/camps in the parks.
• Tipping.
• Any other item not expressly mentioned in the inclusions.