Recommend June 2011 - (Page 77)

Opposite page: An Eagle Island Camp stay, part of Orient-Express, is included in Great Safaris’ The Great Wing Safari Botswana program. tour and an al fresco lunch, couples fly to Tarangire, for a 2-night stay in supreme luxury at Tarangire Treetops with views to Lake Manyara and the Rift Valley wall from the private balcony of a treehouse perched atop an age-old baobab or marula tree—again, a thoroughly African experience. The ecosystem here varies between dry and dusty, and green and swampy, and at each different landscape, couples experience that system’s own cast of creatures. In addition to a game drive, there’s a full slate of activities available from tracking game on foot to visiting the local Maasai people, plus a night game drive under a blanket of stars, before returning for a nightcap at the split-level lounge. After a couple of blissful nights and a gourmet lunch, the newlyweds fly to Lake Manyara and begin the scenic ascent through the wildlife wonderland of the Ngorongoro Crater, the unofficial “eighth wonder of the natural world.” It’s a huge crater serving as an ancient amphitheater forming a unique haven for wildlife with over 20,000 animals thriving in near-perfect conditions. “Home” here is the serene and solitary Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge, perched on the eastern rim of the crater with incredible views and from where the couple will descend 2,000 ft. into the crater, passing lush rainforest and thick vegetation, before arriving at the big show—the largest concentration of animals in Africa in a variety of environments, including grassland, swamps, forests and lakes. Here, they’ll view a seemingly infinite variety of animals—lions, zebras, buffaloes, rhinos, elephants, gazelles and wildebeests, just to name a few. Two nights pass by too quickly here, but there are more adventures waiting after a flight to the legendary Serengeti, a land brimming with wildlife. The base here is Migration Camp, alluringly set on a magnificent rock outcropping with spacious, richly furnished tents, all superbly secluded so they blend into their natural environment above the Grumeti River. In the famed Serengeti, couples can opt for a game drive, explore the area on a guided game walk, or just lounge beside the pool back at camp, where they’ll still be able to enjoy the ongoing drama of the bush before heading home. Contact: (800) MICATO-1; micato.com Or, book a honeymoon haven directly for your newlywed clients at Bilila Lodge Kempinski, offering the new Honeymooners package. It’s a truly romantic experience amidst one of the world’s most dramatic and inspiring settings, the famous Serengeti. Here, couples can spoil themselves African-style in a luxurious Terrace Suite on a full-board basis that includes an unforgettable daily game drive during their stay to experience the Serengeti, where they’ll experience first-hand Africa’s elusive “Big Five” and never forget sharing their first sightings of the incredible wildlife that roam the plains. After experiencing the bush magic on their exhilarating day on the plains, the couple relaxes and reconnects for their daily treatments at the Anantara Spa, before indulging in several dining options, including Pan-African specialties and “theater cooking” in the dining room overlooking the lodge’s nearby waterhole, or traditional community dining in the bush at The BOMA outdoor venue. The package also includes roundtrip airport transfers, as well as one complimentary bottle of champagne upon arrival. The offer is priced from $960 per suite, per night and valid until Dec. 31. Contact: kempinski.com/serengeti kenya Kenya Honeymoon Vacations has an affordable 16-day Serena Lodge Road Safari that combines exciting safari adventures with stays at five luxury Serena lodges and resorts—Samburu Serena Lodge, Mount Kenya Mountain Lodge Serena, Amboseli Serena Lodge, Lake Nakuru Lodge and Mara Serena Lodge in Maasai Mara—all in the richest game viewing regions of Kenya, with an exciting overnight train journey from Nairobi to Mombasa and a 4-day beach stay at Mombasa Serena Beach Hotel—now that’s romance. Couples start off from Nairobi in the morning and drive through rich farmlands on the shoulders of Mt. Kenya to the rugged semi-desert of Samburu for a 2-night stay at the Samburu Serena Lodge where they’ll find game rarely found elsewhere, including the liver red reticulated giraffe, Grevy’s zebra, beisa oryx, long neck gerenuk, blue flanked Somali ostrich, vulturine guinea fowl and also elephants, leopards in the trees, African buffaloes, cheetahs and lions lazing in the grass. Here, too, there’s time for visits to Samburu villages, an experience they’ll never forget. Then it’s on to Mt. Kenya for an overnight stay at Mount Kenya Mountain Lodge Serena that includes floodlit game viewing before heading south to Lake Nakuru, often referred to as the pink lake due to its great masses of pink flamingos, for still another overnight stay. On an afternoon game drive, newlyweds will see water buck, impala, buffalo, certainly rhinos, because it’s currently a rhino sanctuary, and if they’re lucky, the elusive leopard. The safari part of the program wraps up at two of Kenya’s most famous game parks—the Maasai Mara National Reserve, famous for its great herds of wild game—and Amboseli, located at the foot of Mt. Kilimanjaro. From the Mara Serena Lodge, honeymooners can enjoy afternoon and morning game drives, as well as visits to the nearby Maasai villages. En-route to the Amboseli Serena Lodge, they stop for lunch in Nairobi and then spend the next two nights at the foot of the snow-capped Mt. Kilimanjaro. Finally, it’s back to Nairobi for more game viewing along the way, where they’ll board their overnight train for Mombasa. In Mombasa, they’re picked up and delivered to the Mombasa Serena Beach Hotel for four relaxing days on the resort’s white sand beaches. The program is priced from $4,896 pp dbl with full board and in-country transport. Contact: kenyahoneymoonvacations.com egypt & kenya African Travel, Inc. has a doubleheader offering combining two of the most exotic destinations in Africa, making it probably one of the most unforgettable honeymoon experiences a newlywed couple could ever have—the 18-day Highlights of Egypt & Kenya. On this incredible itinerary, couples spend seven days in Egypt that includes a 4-night Nile cruise aboard Uniworld’s beautiful and luxurious River Tosca from Luxor to Aswan. There’s also guided touring of Kom Ombo, the Valley of the Kings, the Valley of the Queens and Karnak. In Cairo, couples will have a full day of private sightseeing at Memphis, Sakkara and Giza, as well as visits to the Citadel, the Mosque of Mohammed Ali and the incomparable treasures of the Cairo Museum. Accommodations in Cairo include the Marriott Cairo Hotel and the Fairmont Heliopolis Cairo. ÍÍ june 2011 77 http://www.micato.com http://www.kenyahoneymoonvacations.com http://www.kempinski.com/serengeti

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recommend June 2011

Editor's Notes/Agent Speak
Club Med Weddings by Imagine
A Perfect Honeymoon
Super-Sexy Voyages by Sea
Home-Based Happily Ever Afters
Kiss & Tell
Saying "I Do" on an Island
The Best Beach Honeymoons
Brazil Travel Planner
Say "I Do" to Central America
Steamy Love in South America
Finding Honeymoon Gems in Europe
Mesmerizing Retreats
Exotic Africa—The Perfect Honeymoon Haven
Five Fiery Honeymoons in Mexico
Mexico Says "I Do" to Destination Weddings

Recommend June 2011