"“A most meaningful and special trip to Kenya’s Sheldrick Elephant Orphanages”"

Planning at the height of covid and traveling in between variants, all 5 of us on this safari had some trepidation about procedures, tests, and online entrance/exit requirements, etc. Sangeeta of Chalo did an exceptional job of helping us through all the steps and lining up the covid tests so it all went without a hitch.

Five of us planned the trip together along with Sangeeta, so we had a lot of input on what we wanted to do. Sangeeta provided us with unique and interesting options that we might not have thought of ourselves. Some of these also were money-savers to keep the costs in check.

The trip itself was superb in all aspects and I have many safaris in my background for comparison. There were some unusual needs on this trip, such as credit cards that malfunctioned, a participant running out of money, a missed international flight and very dire health issues requiring sudden special accommodations. Sangeeta on the ground with us and Chalo members back in the office made sure everything was attended to so all of us could enjoy the trip to the utmost.

The Sheldrick facilities and nearby accommodations were tremendous and far exceeded our expectations, allowing time for both elephant and keeper interaction plus ample more traditional wildlife viewing safari activities. We ended with four nights in the Mara, for a 3-week trip. Some of us did our own thing for parts of this trip and another traveler joined us for just the Mara. So there were lots of moving parts that Chalo made sure flowed seamlessly.