Day 1 - Nairobi
You will arrive at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport early in the morning, where a Sporting Safaris representative will be waiting to escort you to your hotel, the Safari Park Hotel, on the outskirts of Nairobi.
The Safari Park Hotel is a spectacular new development boasting 7 restaurants, an international casino and gaming room, one of the largest swimming pools in Africa, floodlit tennis courts, a health club, shops, boutiques and magnificent accommodation. The remainder of the day is your own to explore the facilities of the hotel and acclimatise to your new surroundings. Mid-afternoon would be a good time to test the tennis courts and gauge how different the speed of the ball is at an altitude of 5,000 feet about sea level.
Day 2 - Nairobi
After a leisurely and hearty Kenyan breakfast, you will be collected from your hotel and driven to the quiet residential suburb, Karen, made famous by Karen Blixen after whom the area was named. An early settler in Kenya, she had a farm here in sight of the nearby Ngong Hills. Today the farm house is a museum in her honour, which you may visit before having lunch on the lawns of the nearby Karen Blixen restaurant. Your tennis match against Karen Country Club is no more than a minute away. Apart from 6 excellent tennis courts, the club also boasts a magnificent 18-hole golf course, squash courts and bowling green. An evening meal at the club's fine restaurant or snack bar is an ideal way to complete the day's acitivites.
Day 3 - Nairobi
Nairobi is unique amonst the world's capital cities in that a national park is situated within a couple of miles of the city centre. You will be collected from the hotel at 6.30am in order to arrive at Nairobi National Park when the gates open. The 60 square miles comprising the designated area of the park are home to lion, cheetah, leopard, giraffes, rhino, buffalo, antelope and a host of species of bird.
As with all areas of wilderness, you are never guaranteed of seeing all the animals but this is one of the best places in Kenya to see the endangered rhino in their natural habitat. A packed breakfast will be provided to be taken in the park before a late morning return to the hotel. Sporting Safaris Kenya Ltd Tennis Safari - 2 - Your second inter-club tennis match will be against Muthaiga Club, one of the oldest and most respected clubs in the country. You will be escorted to the club which is no more than a 10 minute drive from the hotel.
Day 4 - Masai Mara
Your two night wildlife safari to the Masai Mara will undoubtedly be one of the highlights of your trip to Kenya. The Masai Mara, a 600 square mile area of wilderness given over to the animals that have made Kenya famous, is one of the greatest wildlife spectacles on earth. Over the next two and a half days, you will go in search of elephant, lion, leopard, zebra, wildebeeste, hippo and a host of other animals and birds.
Day 5 - Masai Mara
Using your luxury lodge or tented camp as a base and in the safe hands of an expert driver/game spotter, your early morning and afternoon game drives will be experiences never to be forgotten. Well-appointed ensuite luxury accommodation, excellent cuisine and swimming pool will all ensure the best of both comfort and excitement.
One option worth considering is a hot air balloon flight as the sun rises over the African plains. After floating over the most breathtaking scenery, with a bird's eye view of the animals, you will land for a full champagne breakfast before a game drive takes you back to the lodge.
Day 6 - Nakuru
After breakfast, it is time to leave the Mara and drive north to the town of Nakuru for your next tennis match. You will stay at the Rift Valley Sports Club, a proud old club dating back to early colonial days. After your safari, an afternoon practice wlll prepare you for your match the following afternoon.
Day 7 - Nakuru
Kenya is immensely fortunate in possessing many outstanding natural features: scenery, game parks, mountains, deserts, beaches, to name but a few. You have already visited the Masai Mara and if fortunate, may even have seen the annual migration of over a million wildebeeste and zebra.
Nakuru, too, can claim to be home to one of the natural wonders of the world, for here on one of the Great Rift Valley's many saline lakes, a breathtaking phenomenon occurs. Huge numbers of lesser flamingo, bright pink in colour, live on the edge of Lake Nakuru, and provide a truly astonishing sight to the visitors who make the short, ten minute drive from the town centre.
The park is also a rhino sanctuary as well as being home to many other species of animals and birds, including hippo, giraffe, lion, bufffalo, antelope and even the elusive leopard. You can lunch at one of the park's two lodges or return to the Rift Valley Sports Club in prepartion for your afternoon tennis match.
Day 8 - Nairobi
After breakfast, it is time to return ot Nairobi, 160 kms away. The road is a good one and the journey very scenic, with the Aberdare Mountains, occasional glimpses of a snow-capped Mount Kenya, the dormant volcano Mount Longonot and the steady climb up the escarpment offering magnificent views down the Great Rift Valley.
You will be back in your hotel before lunch with ample time to relax before your afternoon tennis match against Parklands Club. Hospitality of its members is legendary. Nairobi has many excellent restaurants offering a wide range of international cuisines at reasonable prices. Our representative would be happy to advise and reserve you a table.
Day 9 - Nairobi
The morning is free to do as you please. A shopping trip to Nairobi with curio markets perhaps, or a morning making use of the hotel's many facilities before an afternoon match at Nairobi Club, the home of the Kenya Open tennis tournament.
Nairobi Club has a thriving tennis section and excellent facilities including the floodlit centre court. Another of the colonial dated clubs, its buildings and grounds are meticulously maintained. An evening meal at the nearby Carnivore restaurant, where a mouthwatering array of game and domestic meats is on offer, is a recommended conclusion to the day.
Day 10 - Mombasa
After breakfast, you will be collected and driven to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport for a one hour flight to Mombasa, Kenya's famous coastal town on the shores of the Indian Ocean.
Your hotel for the next three nights, Mombasa Serena, is one of the finest beach hotels in Kenya and is accredited as a "Leading Hotel of the World". The tasteful coastal architecture, based on the famous island town of Lamu, blends in perfectly with palm-treed lawns and the magnificent white sand beach which front the entire property. The service, cuisine, accommodation and amenities all befit the international reputation of the hotel.
Apart from the floodlit tennis courts, there are air-conditioned squash courts and a professionally administered water sports complex where windsurfing, scuba-diving, mini-sailing and deep sea fishing are all available to tempt you from your sun bed.
Day 11 -Mombasa
The day is free to do as you please until mid-afternoon when you will be collected for the 20 minute drive into Mombasa for your tennis match against Mombasa Sports Cub. There is a unique atmosphere at this delightful club in the heart of the town and the hospitality of the members is legendary.
Day 12- Mombasa
A free day on the beach will allow you the opportunity to totally relax or make use of the water sports facilities at the hotel. A visit to the Marine National Park to snorkel on the coral reef is worth considering. Both the coral itself and the myriads of tropical fish that live amidst the strange and silent shapes will provide a truly memorable experience.
One of Mombasa's many highlights is an evening dinner cruise around its harbour on the internationally famous Tamarind Dhow. A starlit seafood extravaganza whilst gently cruising to the music of the dhow's resident players, is a perfect way to spend your last evening in Mombasa.
Day 13 - Nairobi
After a morning at leisure on the beach and lunch at the Serena, you will be collected for a mid-afternoon flight back to Nairobi for your last night in Kenya at the Windsor Golf and Country Club. Apart from a magnificent golf course, the hotel also has tennis courts, squash courts, a health centre, heated swimming pool and three restaurants to keep you busy, or relaxed, until your departure the following day.
Day 14 - Nairobi
Packing and last minute shopping cannot be avoided before the drive to the airport for your flight home.
