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Ontdek Kenya - Small Group Walking Safaris

Ontdek , established in 1996, is a specialist in walking tours, bird watching and wildlife safaris in Kenya offered in tailor-made and small groups' departures. As an owner operated company, we have made a deliberate decision to cater for the discerning nature travelers of all ages seeking nature journeys that combine guided walking, (or) bird watching and game viewing away from mass tourism.

Bird watching and walking tours are our forte and we use our personal experience of travel & extensive research in to design and deliver relaxed active and personalized safaris that go way beyond the vehicle-confined tour packages of "morning and afternoon game drives". An Ontdek Kenya holiday is not a competition of the number of lions seen: it is about a responsible approach to wildlife viewing in the company of our expert guides with enough time to look at the birds, explore the areas on foot, meet the local people and have an in-depth photo exploration. We create tours around your interest, desires and budget.

While we use vehicles to facilitate transfers we deliberately avoid long circuits that would turn our African safaris into exhausting road expeditions with endless hours of driving.

For total relaxation during the tour we stay in one of our selected lodges/tented camps for 2-3 nights thus giving us a base without the inconvenience of packing up every morning. These two items are very important factors to consider when comparing itineraries. Our promise to you is a holiday of a lifetime which you can't get if you are rushed and exhausted.

Our local naturalist's guides are competent and their views about are not limited to wildlife as is the norm in safari . They are enthusiastic outdoor people with a great interest in conservation.

For our unique approach of organizing nature tours coupled with first rate tour logistics, we are rewarded with a loyal following of independent nature travelers as well as a good portfolio of overseas tour operators whose clients we host in Kenya.

Eco-policies:

People protect what they love and here at Ontdek we love nature, and by nature we don't just mean the wildlife, we are particularly attracted to plants, birds, rivers etc. We hold with high esteem the local people who hold these things in custody for our enjoyment as well as that of future generations. We are aware that a business policy that is blind to conservation will with time put us out of business, so we run our tours with responsible duty to people, animals as well as the environment.

. We use local guides, who we treat in an ethical way and with fair wages. Our guides are involved in conservation in their own communities, so they bring to our tours a wealth of experience that goes further than wildlife identification. Expect discussions on issues ranging from health, education, charcoal burning, change of rainfall pattern etc - all from a local perspective and given in a informal but yet educative way.

. Birds remain one of the early warning systems that can be used to gauge the health of an environment. On all of our tours we are always on the look out for birds and we like to make our clients (even those who are non-birders) to be excited about birds. We question why a particular species is suddenly missing in an area and we are quick to applaud local communities when we see new species in newly conserved areas. We use the best practice in birding e.g. we don't play taped birds vocals as this causes trauma to birds and may expose them to unnecessary risks.

. As much as possible we base our activities in small national parks, private conservancies and community open spaces. These areas have low tourists numbers and environmental conservation is top priority. Here you can enjoy gameviewing walks and see zebras, giraffes and gazelles.

. We are members of local conservation groups e.g. Nature Kenya.

. Our tours have small groups 4-12 and this minimizes the impact on the environment in the areas we visit. Besides it gives people a genuine one-one contact with local leaders.

. You will drive less in an Ontdek's tour. Long road transfers do not just have an exhausting effect on you but they also mean that more pollution is added to the atmosphere. We design our tours around a circuit of nearby attractions, meaning that clients don't have to crisscross Kenya during their safari but they still get excellent gameviewing and walking opportunities.

 

 

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