Kilimanjaro Airport is small and straightforward to land in, and you will be met on arrival for the drive of roughly 45 minutes to Rivertrees Country Inn. The inn sits in gardens along the Usa River, with cottages set back from the main house and views toward Mount Meru, which makes it a gentle place to reset after a long flight.

Nothing is scheduled today, so you can eat early and sleep well before the safari begins.

After breakfast there is a 45 minute transfer to Arusha Airport for the bush flight north, roughly 45 minutes in a small plane with long views over the Rift Valley and the plains. You land at Lamai Airstrip, in the heart of the crossing country, and the 30 minute drive to camp doubles as your first game drive.

The afternoon is usually spent close to camp, getting a feel for where the herds are sitting.

The day is shaped around the river. Your guide reads the movement of the herds early in the morning, then positions the vehicle near the banks where animals are massing.

Crossings happen on the animals' schedule, so this can mean a long, patient wait followed by a few very intense minutes. Between attempts there is excellent resident game to find, and lunch is often taken in the bush so you do not have to leave the action.

Today's activity depends on where the mobile camp is pitched. From December to March, when the camp sits on the southern plains, there is a pre-dawn pickup for a hot air balloon flight at first light, drifting low over the calving grounds before landing to breakfast in the bush.

From June to mid-November, when the camp is in the north, you head out on foot with an armed guide instead, walking at the pace of the landscape and reading tracks, dung, and birdsong that are easy to miss from a vehicle. Either way, the rest of the day stays open for game drives.

This is a travel day, but a scenic one. A short bush flight takes you from Kogatende to Migori, then a road transfer brings you to the Kenyan border, where you are assisted through immigration rather than left to work it out alone.

Back in the vehicle it is another 15 minutes to the airstrip for the flight into the Mara, then 20 minutes by road into Emboo. Total travel time is around 2.5 hours, and you are usually settled in time for an afternoon game drive.

Camp sits on the Talek River within easy reach of several crossing points, so mornings start early to be in position before the herds commit. The Talek confluence and the main Mara River crossings are both in range, and your guide will choose based on where the pressure is building.

Predator activity is high around the water, with lion, hyena, and crocodile all working the same stretch of river. The electric vehicles run almost silently, which lets you sit close to a nervous herd without adding to the noise.

The morning is spent on the property, walking the medicinal herb garden with a guide who explains how the plants are used locally, from wound treatment to everyday remedies. It is a slower, closer look at the landscape after several days of long drives.

The rest of the day is yours for game drives in the silent electric vehicles, with time to return to any favorite corner of the reserve, and a final evening on the river before the journey home.

Whether you wish to feed the rescued giraffes at the Giraffe Center or relax at the Karen Blixen Garden Restaurant (where Out of Africa was written), Nairobi has something for everyone.

You can also rest at an airport hotel before your flight home.