Kenya and Tanzania are synonymous with safari and here is where the long tradition of a safari began. On this 13-day journey you'll experience the quintessential safari as you explore the highlights of both Kenya and Tanzania and see why East Africa is a top safari destination.

Your adventure begins in the bustling city of Nairobi where you'll learn about the colonial history of Kenya at the Karen Blixen Museum coffee estate before visiting the Giraffe Center and Daphne Sheldrick's Elephant Orphanage (where you can visit with many baby elephants).  From Nairobi you'll journey up the Great Rift Valley to Lake Elementaita.  Spend a day exploring Lake Nakuru National Park.  From here you'll make your way to the grasslands of the Masai Mara National Reserve for two days of game viewing.  The Mara is one of Africa's great game reserves with acacia-dotted plains and abundant wildlife.

From the Mara you'll head back to Nairobi for your connection to Arusha, Tanzania.  Your safari continues to the baobab studded plains of Tarangire National Park where you'll search for elephants in the forests and grasslands.  Continue on to the Serengeti National Park.  Arguably the world's most famous park, the Serengeti is famous for vast, open plains and the annual migration of millions of wildebeest and zebras.  Spend your days searching the park for lions, elephants, cheetah, hundreds of different birds.  You'll visit the Ngorongoro Crater, an enormous caldera some 2000 feet deep covering some 115 sq miles.  The high walls serve as a natural enclosure filled with wildlife (here's your best chance to see the rare black rhino).

Finally, your journey ends with a visit to Lake Manyara National Park along the edge of the Manyara Escarpment.  This small park protects a variety of habitats supporting an array of wildlife, including tree-climbing lions, elephants, buffalo and many birds.  You'll return to Arusha for your flight home.