What do you do when you are celebrating several milestone birthdays in the same year? DO IT BIG! Even before Avery was born, I knew I wanted to take him on safari when he turned 10. In the true spirit of being my child, as he got older, he too wanted to go to Africa (specifically Kenya) for his milestone 10th birthday. After I found a great deal on Qatar Airways to Kenya (with a return from Zanzibar) in BUSINESS class for about $2,500/person, I knew I had to book it for Avery’s birthday. Though I think my husband Will was more excited than Avery was 😉
There are a ton of places to go on safari in Kenya (Masai Mara, Lake Nakuru, Amboseli, Tsavo, Samburu, etc.) and Tanzania (Serengeti, Tarangire, Ngorongoro, Lake Manyara with the tree-climbing lions, etc.). Since we only had a limited number of days, I had to be strategic about how I would maximize that part of the trip. I knew I wanted to experience different types of safaris (boat safari, walking safari, biking safari, etc.) but also didn’t want to spend all of our time in one location (not my style…lol). After seeing that a couple of my favorite mommy travel bloggers used Natural World Kenya Safaris (an affordable East African safari tour operator) for their trip, I contacted them to execute my vision for the trip. Ready to see how it went and what we did? Read on!
We were originally supposed to be in the Q suite on Qatar Airways (i.e., adjoining middle suites that turn into a double bed so that the two Q suites seats turn into a mini-bedroom) which I was extremely excited for but at the last minute they changed our plane which did not have the Q suites. Not happy but oh well. I’d have to wait to experience it on the return flight back.
When we checked-in for the flight, they asked for the following (accurate as of February 2022):
- Passport
- Kenya visa: the visas are only good for 90 days so we wanted to book as close to the departure date as possible while also making sure we received them in time. The visas surprisingly took less than a week to get via email. The application for Kenya is here: evisa.go.ke | Republic of Kenya Electronic Visa System)
- PCR Covid test (carried out within 72 hours of arrival) and vaccination card
- QR code: we needed to complete a COVID-19 Travelers’ Health Surveillance Form to receive the QR code. The application is here: https://ears.health.go.ke/international_registration/
By the way, here are few more items you need if you are going to Zanzibar:
- Online visa: The application for Tanzania is here: https://eservices.immigration.go.tz/visa/
- Yellow fever vaccination (Zanzibar): Since we were coming from a malaria-endemic region in Kenya via safari, we needed this to enter Zanzibar (however, they didn’t ask for it). I already had it from Ghana but Will and Avery needed it so we got that about 3 months in advance.
After we were all checked in, we went to the American Airlines Flagship Lounge to relax. We were met at the door with champagne and they had a nice spread of food and a fully stocked bar. We are a sucker for lobster bisque so when we saw that, we couldn’t resist getting a bowl.
Before you know it, it was time to board our flight and head to our seats. I was still pinching myself that we were in business class. There were SO MANY AMENITIES! I love swag and they definitely had it in abundance. We were showered with a robe, slippers, an eye mask, toiletries, an extremely plush blanket, multiple pillows, and pajamas! Not to mention a completely lie flat seat that they made up into a bed when you were ready to sleep. And, let me not forget to mention the food! I think I must’ve ordered one of everything off of the menu, including multiple cocktails. Whoever said airplane food wasn’t good wasn’t flying business because everything I ordered was delicious. The pictures might not do it justice but I promise you, the food was GOOD.
Of course, I am rarely on a flight without some drama (don’t worry, I’m never the one that is starting it!). The aircraft we were supposed to take was switched out at the last minute so with that, the seating configuration for the flight also changed (in both business and economy). Clearly a woman in economy did not get the memo about rolling with the punches because she made a HUGE scene. I get it…she was travelling with her entire family, including kids (about 9 people in total) and because of the aircraft change, their seats were now scattered with no one sitting together (not even the little kids). The problem is that she made a huge commotion which resulted in her eventually getting kicked off the plane. In addition to her holding up the flight with her outburst, after the entire family was kicked off, we had to wait for their bags to be taken off as well. This resulted in us leaving 2 hours later than we were originally supposed to…sigh. We already had a tight connection in Doha so I was more than a little nervous about making our connecting flight to Nairobi.
I slept on and off and before I knew it, we were in Doha 12 hours later. As soon as we left the aircraft, we saw someone from Qatar Airways with a sign to escort us to our connecting flight. He signaled us to follow him…which meant run! Our flight landed at 6:15pm and our connection was leaving at 6:50pm with doors closing 30 minutes before takeoff…you do the math! On top of that, we had to pass through another set of security. Running like bats out of hell, out of breath, sweaty, and huffing and puffing, we didn’t think we were going to make it but miraculously did. As soon as we got on the plane, they closed the door behind us (business class definitely has its perks!). And yes, we still had time for them to serve us welcome drinks…lol.
When we landed in Nairobi, we saw that our suitcases didn’t make the flight due to the tight connection (not that we expected them to since we barely made it ourselves!). Note: this is why I always pack an extra set of clothes in my carry-on bag (or for short trips, only bring a carry-on).
Our representative, Kamau from Natural World Kenya Safaris, met us outside and though we had to walk 10 minutes to get to his vehicle (in the middle of the night), we were just excited to finally be in Kenya! It was only about a 20-minute drive from the airport to the Serena Nairobi hotel but it was already well after midnight so we immediately tried to go to sleep to get on Nairobi time. We woke up around 6:30am and got ready for our full day ahead. The buffet breakfast at the hotel was plentiful, delicious, and kept us sustained until lunchtime.
Our driver arrived a few minutes after the scheduled pick-up time of 8:30am and before we knew it, we were at our first stop: The Giraffe Centre. There, we were able to interact with the world’s tallest species and feed the Rothschild giraffes. There were adult giraffes as well as baby ones. Upon entry, we were given small cups of food to feed them, and boy were they hungry! We had to feed them one pellet at a time while keeping the cup away from them otherwise they would eat it all at once!
I had seen pictures of people letting the giraffes take the food from their mouths but I wasn’t brave enough to do that. Honestly, the thought of it makes me want to gag so I happily passed.
We spent about 30 minutes walking around, feeding, and admiring them, and you really don’t need more time than that there.
Next up was the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust. Before we arrived, we made a quick stop at a market at the side of the road filled with super cute items: from fans to bookmarks to photo frames. The prices seemed a bit steep though so since this was the first market we encountered, we only window shopped as we wanted to compare prices at other places.
The Sheldrick Wildlife Trust was established 45 years ago and is the first and most successful elephant orphan rescue and rehabilitation program in the world. They only let in a certain number of people everyday so you need to make reservations beforehand to book your spot. We made sure to get a good spot in the front for when they released the first set of baby elephants at 11am. It was endearing to watch them drink milk from the bottles and play in the mud. They also released another set of baby elephants that were a little older. The caretakers introduced each elephant and explained a bit about how each one was rescued. It was heartbreaking hearing the stories about how the elephants became orphans, with the reasons ranging from drought, poaching, flood, or their mother dying. We decided to adopt a baby elephant named Esoit who seemed to have a lot in common with Avery and CJ: his birthday was in February and was described as naughty and playful (fits them perfectly!).
By this time, we were starving so we headed to Carnivore restaurant for lunch where meats are roasted on traditional Maasai swords over a huge charcoal pit. It reminded me of a Brazilian steakhouse because carvers moved from table to table serving cuts of meat and don’t stop until you lower the white paper flag. We stuffed ourselves with crocodile, chicken, ostrich meatballs, beef and pork ribs, lamb, and even bull testicles (definitely regretted trying that one)! If that wasn’t filling enough, we also were served soup, a selection of salads, vegetable side dishes, sauces, and a dessert. Not to mention the ‘dawa’ cocktail which was inspired by the Brazilian caipirinha so you know it was good!
We were supposed to go to the Maasai market, a market with art vendors unique handicrafts, but it was only open on certain days (according to our guide) and today wasn’t one of those days unfortunately.
We also were scheduled to visit the Kibera slum, the poorest suburb in Kenya and the largest slum in Africa housing about a million people. Jetlag was starting to catch up to us so we decided to call it a day earlier than expected and relax at the hotel. We actually spent some time consolidating our suitcases because the “bush” flight that we would be taking a couple of days later, only allowed 33 pounds (including carryons!). We only brought what was necessary and stored the other bags at our tour company’s main office.
The next day, we drove to Lake Naivasha, about 2 hours from Nairobi. Our pickup was at 7:30am sharp so we ate the buffet breakfast at the hotel and then were on our way. On the way to Lake Naivasha, we stopped and admired the wide expanse of the Great Rift Valley.
We finally arrived at Lake Naivasha and went straight to Hell’s Gate National Park for our bicycle safari. After receiving our bikes, we began what we did not know was a 10-mile ride roundtrip…in the hot ass sun…and dusty as hell. The smiles we had in the beginning definitely didn’t last long.
Besides the heat and the dust, the ride had amazing scenery and abundant wildlife, including impala, zebra, baboons, and wildebeest.
We ended at Hell’s Gate Gorge but it was closed due to flash flooding in the area. Instead, we took a quick break (drinking the water and snacks we brought) and then started the 5-mile ride back.
We then headed to the hotel to check in and grab lunch. It was so cool to walk past zebras and giraffes on the way to our room just minding their own business.
After the buffet lunch (which was mediocre at best), we headed off to our boat safari where we saw hippos, various birds, water bucks, and zebras.
We had yet another buffet for dinner and as you probably guessed, it was still nothing to write home about. Since it was dark and there were wild animals around, we had an escort back to our room. On the way, we saw giraffes a few feet away which the guide said were sleeping near humans for protection from predators.
We only had a day in Lake Naivasha so the next day, we checked out and headed toward the Masai Mara…a 6 hour drive. It actually went by pretty quickly (probably because I slept most of the time). We passed the Maasai village of Narok and stopped for a tour. The Maasai are a warrior tribe whose lives revolve around their cattle. We walked around a typical Maasai home made of mud, sticks, grass, and cow poop; participated in the welcome dance; and, learned how to make a fire. Of course, the touristy part was next where they tried to sell us various souvenirs like a little magnet and elephant for $30. Crazy, right? I talked him down to $10 which honestly was still a bit overpriced. Pro tip: always negotiate! Start at about 50% of asking price and then meet somewhere in the middle.
The Maasai Mara National Reserve (where we were going to do our safari over the next couple of days) has six different “gates” to enter. We entered through the Sekenani Gate and before we entered, there were a ton of Maasai women trying to sell us various souvenir items…even trying to open the windows and doors of our jeep! They were being a bit too aggressive for my liking but definitely understand they are only trying to make a living.
Side note: since the Maasai Mara is in the malaria zone, we made sure to start taking our malaria pills a week before we entered the area and also while we were in the area. Better safe than sorry!
Specifically, we were staying in the Mara Triangle which has one of the highest densities of wild life in the world. The Mara Serena Safari Lodge is located at the very end so even after we entered the gate, it took another 2 hours to get to the hotel. Luckily, we saw a myriad of animals on the way: impala, giraffes, and hippos. The highlight was seeing a leopard up in a tree with its kill, a warthog. Can you spot the warthog?
After checking in and a(nother) buffet meal (seems to be the theme at these safari lodges), we did our Covid test with The Pumba Collection that I had pre-booked. We then headed back out for our final game drive of the evening and was able to see even more animals in their natural habitat.
After another blah buffet meal at dinner, we decided to have a nightcap at the bar with a “Johnny Walker Green Tea High Ball” that was soooooo good. Avery had a virgin pina colada (his go to drink).
The next day was the day I had been looking forward to. We had to wake up super early because we needed to leave the lodge at 4:45am for the hot air balloon ride! We drove about an hour to the site, and when we arrived, we were offered tea or coffee, briefed on how to land, and then we waited…and waited and waited. We watched them inflate the balloon…and then deflate it. For some reason, they couldn’t get the balloon blown up. We missed sunrise (which was the whole point of the early arrival) but we finally were able to take off in the hot air balloon around 7:30am (2 hours late). Regardless, we tried to make the best of it and I’m glad that we did because it was absolutely breathtaking seeing everything from a birds eye view!
We were supposed to be flying for about an hour but landed about 25 minutes later because the pilot said the wind was blowing in the wrong direction. After paying $400/person for the experience, we were NOT happy (again) about this. Those feelings quickly dissipated though when we arrived at the breakfast set-up. It was amazing. A full spread of my favorite breakfast foods in the middle of the savannah, complete with mimosas. What could be better than that?
On the way back to the hotel, I had to use the bathroom really really badly (I probably shouldn’t have drunk all of those mimosas!) so the driver pulled over to the “toilet”. Although it was labeled toilet, it shouldn’t have been because it was just a hole in the ground. Literally.
After a quick nap and lunch, we headed back out on our next game drive at 3pm. One interesting thing we learned is that the term “game drive” comes from the game of hide and seek but in this case humans seek and the animals try to hide from us!
On this game drive, we were on the hunt for lions!! And, we weren’t alone. There was a convoy of us looking for them.
At first, we saw hyenas, jackals, lots of birds, and herds of elephants…but no lions. Finally, our guide went off road (which can get you hefty fines) searching for the elusive cats and saw two lions deep in the bush. Their bellies were full so they were just laying basking in the sun. They barely moved but we were captivated watching them in all of their “king of the jungle” glory.
After we were able to tick seeing lions off of our big 5 list, we headed back to the lodge to rest a bit before dinner. For the most part, dinner was pretty bland (except for some oxtail broth that was utterly divine). Never mind the electricity going off briefly, the most exciting part was the surprise of the evening…a birthday cake and song for Avery! It was so much fun to see the servers singing and dancing while bringing out the cake. It was even better seeing Avery soooo surprised!! Since it was a big cake, Will went around to the different tables offering cake which made us lots of friends. Another great day in the bush!
Today was our last day in the bush…and I guess the porters at the hotel got the message because when we left our hotel room in the morning for breakfast, there were a ton of porters waiting right outside. Little did they know we weren’t leaving until the afternoon. Our flight from Nairobi to Zanzibar was late in the evening, so we were scheduled for an early afternoon bush flight to Nairobi. After breakfast, we headed out on our final game drive in search of rhinos…which actually turned into a search for more lions. We looked everywhere but since there were only a handful of rhinos in that area, we knew it would be a longshot.
One cool – and sneaky – thing we did was cross the border into the Serengeti in Tanzania. There are plaques throughout the park indicating where the border is so people don’t cross it. It is actually against the rules to do so and you could get fined, but luckily we were able to sneak in and out undetected.
Back to the lions! Our last day seemed to be the luckiest day for lions because we saw a pack of 4 lions and then another pack of 5 lions.
After a quick lunch back at the hotel, it was time to say goodbye to the Maasai Mara.
Our flight was supposed to leave at 2:45pm. Although our guide was saying that we didn’t need to be there until about 2:30pm, I was nervous about missing the flight (it was the last flight of the day). We headed to the airstrip at 1:45pm (super early) and then the plane didn’t actually arrive until a little after 3pm. I expected a small plane but boy was it TINY (only holds 14 passengers). No boarding pass, no flight attendant. The pilots came over to put our luggage on the plane and told us to find an open seat so we boarded and sat closest to the pilot (not by choice!). I am terrified of flying on tiny planes and when the pilot said we had to make one more stop at another airstrip before the 45 minute flight to Nairobi, I almost fell out. And then to top it off, it started raining really hard which made my nerves even worse.
We arrived at the domestic airport (Wilson airport) but since Zanzibar is another country, we had to go to the international airport (Jomo Kenyatta) which should only be about 20 minutes away. Of course, there was a ton of traffic, so it took us over an hour and a half to get there. We arrived around 6:30pm and our flight was scheduled for 7:20pm. We stopped at the food court for burgers (which were SO good) and went to the gate…only to find out there was a plane stuck on the runway! Why was this a problem? Well, because the airport only has ONE runway. Sigh, of course our plane never left Zanzibar so even once the plane was removed (2 hours after we were scheduled to leave), we had to wait another 2 hours for the airplane to arrive. We finally took off FIVE hours after we were scheduled to. The plane ride was a bit bumpy but we made it…at 1:30am. At that hour of the night, there was NO one at the airport so we went through immigration pretty quickly. We still did need to show our negative PCR test, passport, and online visa. Although it was also supposed to be required, they didn’t do a rapid test nor did they ask for the online health surveillance form or the yellow fever certificate. We grabbed our suitcases and proceeded outside…only to find that our driver from the hotel wasn’t there. Instead, there were about 30 men crowding around us, presumably offering their taxi services but at that ungodly hour of the morning, it was unsettling. Since it was late and we were tired, we ended up using one of the taxi drivers to take us to the Royal Zanzibar Beach Resort hotel (which we made the hotel reimburse us for). Nungwi is in the northern part of the island so it took about an hour and a half to get there. We finally arrived after 3am in the morning and promptly passed out.
After getting a couple hours of sleep, we started our day with the hotel’s buffet breakfast which was actually the best we had the entire trip. When I booked the hotel, I didn’t realize it was an all inclusive but it came in handy. The resort was huge, with several pools, including one with a swim up bar. Of course, Avery wanted to head straight to the pool so we spent a couple of hours exploring the different pools.
We had lunch at The Cliff restaurant at the hotel. The food was pretty good but the view overlooking the beach was even better.
For dinner, we took a taxi to Sexy Fish restaurant. Since the Nungwi area is very popular among tourists, the taxi rates reflected it. The taxi was $12 each way even though it was less than a 10 minute ride. Theoretically, it was close enough to walk but didn’t seem safe since the roads were really terrible and it was pitch black outside. I made reservations ahead of time so we were seated immediately at a table overlooking the water. Everything on the menu looked so good I wanted to order everything but we settled on the crab salad on ciabatta toast, spicy shrimp tacos, lobster lollipops, squid ink risotto with calamari, chicken teriyaki, and lobster thermidor. While we waited for our food, there were some local boys doing acrobatics in the sand. When the food arrived, it was incredible. To top off a great dinner, they brought Avery a birthday brownie and sung to him.
The next day (Avery’s actual birthday), I booked a last-minute snorkeling tour at Mnemba Atoll, off the northeast coast near Matemwe fishing village. It was $115 for all three of us and it included water, fruit, transportation to and from the hotel, snorkeling equipment, and a private boat. Although the driver and boat guide were pretty quiet, I didn’t really need them to talk. They got the job done well enough and provided everything they said they would. It was a short boat ride from the beach to the atoll, so we were in the water in no time. The current is moderately strong so I would highly recommend using a life jacket if you aren’t a strong swimmer. Fishing is forbidden near Mnemba Island which creates the perfect environment for a variety of sea animals in that area. We saw schools of different colorful tropical fish. Sometimes you can spot dolphins, but we didn’t.
Since it was only a half day tour, we were back at the hotel by early afternoon. One thing to note: always ask beforehand what form of payment is accepted (credit cards or just cash) especially if you didn’t already pre-pay online. Although I had confirmed that they accepted credit cards when I booked the trip via WhatsApp, that message somehow didn’t get relayed to the driver. In the end it worked out and his boss was able to send me a payment link for me to use a card, but we could’ve been in a tough spot.
Since we still had the whole afternoon ahead of us and already had our water shoes on, we decided to go to Nungwi beach right in the back of our hotel. The water was beautiful. I had read that there may be sea urchins in the water so we kept on our water shoes but luckily didn’t run into any.
Of course, since we were travelling with a 10 year old, we ended up right back in the pool afterwards…and stayed there until the sun went down.
For dinner, we took a taxi for $20 round trip to Fisherman’s Grill (located a similar distance as Sexy Fish from our hotel). They don’t accept reservations but luckily, there was availability right on the beach. The drinks we ordered were refreshing and really good but unfortunately, the food was just mediocre. We ordered the crab cakes, coconut crab soup (which comes in an actual coconut shell), a seafood bisque soup, the shrimp, and the tuna ceviche. Out of everything, I only truly enjoyed the ceviche. Everything else was pretty “meh”. And to believe the restaurant was rated #2 in Nungwi on TripAdvisor! Maybe it was just an off day…
For our second to last day, we had a full day private custom tour to Stone Town and Prison Island, followed by lunch at The Rock restaurant. While I was looking through TripAdvisor, I found Omar who could provide the private tour so I arranged it with him through What’s App. For the 3 of us, it was $270. This may sound like a lot but keep in mind he was driving us from Nungwi to Stone Town (90 minutes), driving from Stone Town to The Rock restaurant which is another 90 minutes across the island (this time from east to west), and then heading back north for 90 minutes to drop us back to the hotel. Not to mention it included the actual tour, boat to Prison Island, and guide.
He picked us up promptly at 8am because we had reservations to get our Covid tests done at the Migombani Center between 9am and 10am. What we didn’t realize is that although the United States wants you to have a negative Covid test the day before departure in order to reenter, in Zanzibar, you have to get it done within 24 hours of departure…which means we were a few hours too early since our flight wasn’t until the evening the next day. Sigh! Luckily, there is a rapid Covid testing site at the airport.
We began our tour through Stone Town and the first thing I noticed were lots of beautiful doors reflecting Swahili, Indian, and Arabic influence. Doors belonging to the same tradition can be found in groups since Stone Town has been divided into ethnic districts.
We then went to Christ Church Cathedral, an Anglican Church that was built by British missionaries in 1879 on the location of the last permanent slave market in East Africa to celebrate the end of slavery.
We then went walking through the streets of Stone Town which are narrow because it gets really really HOT during the day so having the buildings close together attempts to provide some coolness (or so our guide said). I, on the other hand, was still melting under the relentless sun. You also need to watch where you are walking because there were bicycles and scooters flying down the street out of nowhere and they WILL run you over if you don’t move out of the way.
Next up was a stroll through Darajani Market, the main bazaar selling everything from fish, fresh produce, slabs of meat, mobile phones, spices, and sandals. There were also other shops scattered about where we were able to buy souvenirs as we were walking through the streets. Pro tip: As I mentioned before, never accept the first price vendors quote for an item. Definitely negotiate without undercutting them since this how they make their living. I usually countered at about 50% of the asking price and then met somewhere in the middle.
We walked to the Old Fort, one of the oldest buildings in Stone Town. The Fort was built by Omani Arabs rules after expelling the Portuguese in 1699. Around the 19th Century it was used as a garrison and prison, and during 1905-28 officially used as a terminal of the Zanzibar railways which was connecting Stone Town and Bububu village.
We also visited the Slave Market Memorial which is in the same location where enslaved people were gathered to be bought and sold. It is said to be the last slave market in East Africa which was closed in 1873.
There also was an exhibit focused on the height of the slave trade period from 1800 to 1909. During this time, two-thirds of the island was inhabited by slaves either living there or passing through.
Lastly, we walked by Forodhani Park, one of the best free places to chill and watch the sunset in Stone Town. Although we wouldn’t be there in the evening, there is a special Night Market with a variety of fresh cuisines like Zanzibar Pizza, Chapati, Grilled Lobsters, Octopus, Squid, Fish, etc.
After we finished the tour of Stone Town, we went to the pier to take a boat to Prison Island, also known as Changuu Island or Quarantine Island. The boat ride to the island was about 30 minutes and the water was beautiful and inviting the entire way. I wish I knew snorkeling was available because the water was truly breathtaking, and I was prepared to dive right in (fully clothed and all!).
The prison was built in 1893 and was originally intended to house sick people and violent prisoners from the mainland. The island also contains a large colony of giant tortoises imported from the Seychelles in the late 19th century. We spent some time feeding and petting the tortoises and actually saw one that was 196 years old (their age is written on their shell)!
After the boat ride back from Prison Island, we drove an hour across the island to The Rock restaurant in Michanwi, Pingwe Beach. On the drive there, we passed the Jozani forest (the only national park in Zanzibar) where they have the rare red colobus monkeys that can’t be seen anywhere else in the world. But unfortunately, we didn’t see any monkeys 😦
Seeing as how it was built on a rock in the ocean, you can probably guess how The Rock restaurant got its name! Depending on the tide, you can either just walk directly from the beach to the stairs up to the restaurant or take a boat from the beach to the stairs. When I was planning the trip, I researched tide times and timed it so that we would arrive at high tide (I really wanted to take the boat across). However, the guide/driver didn’t “remember” (i.e., pay attention to) the time I said I made reservations for so we arrived two hours late….at low tide instead of high tide. Yea, I was extremely pissed but made the best of it. No use crying over spilled milk! Even though we were two hours late for our reservation, thankfully they were still able to accommodate us. We were seated at a table on the balcony which had a wonderful view of the surrounding ocean. I had a passion mojito that was delicious but the food was just so so. We ordered the fish fingers, the fish carpaccio, fish filet, steak on a stick, and chicken skewers. While the fish carpaccio was tasty (though that is kind hard to mess up), the other fish was overcooked and my “steak on a stick” had an odd flavor. Maybe it was the caramelized onions which I usually love but just didn’t do the trick for me on this dish. Overall, I would recommend chilling at the beach in the area, taking pics, but not staying for dinner.
It was an hour and a half drive back to Nungwi which of course I slept the entire way for. I was ready to pass out in the bed since it was an extremely long day but when we arrived, there was a waiter at our door with (yet another) cake…LOL! By this time, Avery was thoroughly over all of the cakes, especially because he doesn’t even like cake!
For our final day, we were supposed to go to one of the aquariums (either Baraka Natural Aquarium or Mnarani Aquarium) that served as sanctuaries for rescued green sea turtles. At either one, you can see, feed, and swim with the turtles. However, Will and Avery wanted to go to the pool instead (insert side eye here) so that is what we did 🙂
Our flight that night was late in the evening (almost midnight!) but since it takes an hour to drive to the airport from our hotel AND we still needed to get our COVID test done AND we wanted to make sure we checked in with plenty of time, we arrived at the airport about 5 hours ahead of time. When we arrived, the first action item was getting the COVID test. There was actually an entire COVID testing set-up right before you check-in so we quickly took our tests and waited 30 minutes for the results. Tip: Make sure you have cash!
After we checked in, we went to the business class “lounge”. The real lounge must’ve been under construction because they took us here (see photo below) that had a couple of couches arranged by an old gate with a folding table with snacks they were heating up in the microwave. I guess it is better than nothing 😉
When we boarded the plane though, it made up for the subpar lounge. Can anyone say lobster? Between both flights, I had my fill of delicious food (including a lobster claw and avocado sandwich and lobster thermidor!) and didn’t want to depart the plane when we landed at JFK.
Overall, it was an AMAZING trip and I’m so glad I was able to finally visit Kenya and Zanzibar! Africa continues to steal more of my heart with every country I visit!
Toya's Travels 