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INSTINCT BIRDING TOUR

7 days Kilimanjaro & Lushoto

DESTINATIONS

West Kilimanjaro, Lushoto, West Usambaras (highlands), Lushoto-East Usambaras (highlands), Ngorongoro, Ndutu

DURATION

4  Days

ACTIVITIES & EXTENTIONS

Game Drive, Cultural Activities (Optional)Visit Olduvai Gorge (Optional)

Overview

In this tour, you will have the opportunity to visit the most iconic parks of the northern safari circuit of Tanzania – Kilimanjaro, Lushoto, West Usambara

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Itinirerary

Pickup and drive to Kambi ya Tembo Conservancy at West Kilimanjaro via custom control at Namanga border with birding activities enroute, upon arrival, check-in and proceed with birding activities Meals and overnight at the hotel.

Breakfast. Full day of game activities, Meals and overnight in lodge.  West Kilimanjaro is a private concession of more than 75.000 acres, bordering Kenya’s Amboseli National Park, the offers spectacular landscapes, excellent game viewing and close interaction with the local Maasai. Mixed woodlands and grassland and rocky peaks dominate the area. The areas wildlife and bird life are representative of the Somali Maasai biome and offer a unique chance to see the gerenuk antelope, Yellow baboon or a lesser kudu and at night striped hyena is a real possibility. It is the home to a population of huge elephant males carrying some of the largest tusks left in Africa, these peaceful animals are a real treat to observe.

Drive east from Arusha to the area surrounding Mkomazi Game Reserve, birding at strategic stops en-route. Nestling in the rain-shadow of the Usambaras and Pare, the dry, arid woodlands and savannahs of Mkomazi offer a wonderful range of typical arid savanna species of the north-east, very similar to the birds of Kenya’s Tsavo area. After settling in at the rustic Elephant Hills Motel and lunch proceed to drive south of Same where we will explore the rich woodlands and dry savanna. Target species include Hildebrandt’s Starling, Straw-tailed Whydah, Black-throated Barbet, Von der Decken’s Hornbill, White-headed Buffalo-weaver, Rufous Chatterer, Beautiful Sunbird, Purple Granadier, Spotted Morning Thrush, White-bellied Go-away Bird, Pygmy Batis, Orange-bellied Parrot, Red-fronted Cricket Warbler, Rosy-patch Bush-shrike, Sulphur-breasted Bushshrike, Somali Golden-breasted Bunting, Blue-capped Cordon blue and a plethora of others. Return for Dinner and overnight to the Simple Elephant Hills Motel. Depending on energy we might head out for a night drive searching for Genets and perhaps Donaldson-Smith’s Nightjar. Dinner and overnight at Elephant Hills Motel.

Breakfast. Depart with picnic lunch en-route to Lushoto. According to the time and time of the year an optional stop at Lake Kalimawe south of the road for some birding, we might see African Skimmer, Spur-winged Plover, Pink-backed Pelican, African Openbill, Black Heron and Hottentot Teal. We will arrive at the west Usambara in the evening, hopefully with time for some late birding at the Mkuzu forest reserve, prior to arrival at Muller’s mountain lodge. New introductions might be Forest Batis, Mountain Wagtail, Crowned Eagle and more. Dinner and overnight at the Lodge. 

The West Usambara Mountains, supporting good stands of forest support a species on it that is found nowhere else in the world, the Usambara Akalat; it is also home to the very localized Usambara Weaver. Other rare forest gems we shall be looking for include Oriole Finch, Spot-throat Modulatrix, Usambara (Mountain) Greenbul, Fulleborn’s Boubou, Red-capped Tailorbird and many others. Overnights in the quaint Muller’s lodge which offers great birding with home made meals and colonial atmosphere accommodation. Dinner and overnight at the Lodge.

This day we make our way to the western extension of the ancient to Irente escarpment with the breathtaking view of the lowland. Although these mountains are geographically very close to the West Usambaras, the avifauna is dramatically different hinting of an age when Asia and Africa were joined. These mountains are an incredibly exciting birding destination.. We are also likely to find the gracious Angola Pied Colobus monkeys leaping from tree to tree. Dinner and overnight at the Lodge.

East Usambaras (highlands): After breakfast. Collect picnic lunches. Drive down the East Usambara Mountains with last stops for birding in the forest and in view points above forest streams, proceed to drive towards Kilimanjaro Airport for returning home arriving on time for checking in at late afternoon.
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INCLUSIONS

  • Crater fee
  • Park fees
  • Camping Fees
  • Conservation Fees
  • All activities (unless labeled as optional)
  • All accommodation as stated in the itinerary
  • A professional driver/guide
  • All transportation (unless labeled as optional)
  • All Meals (as specified in the day-by-day section)
  • Roundtrip airport transfer

EXCLUSIONS

  • International flights (from/to home)
  • Additional accommodation before and at the end of the tour
  • Tips 
  • Personal items (souvenirs, travel insurance, visa fees, etc.)
  • Services not mentioned in the program
  • Travel insurance and medical repatriation
  • Items of a personal nature
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SAFARIS

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