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Tsavo Safari & Tango Festival in Lamu, Kenya

NOTE: change of itinerary, details here will be updated shortly.
Please see—and respond to—facebook event.

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8 idyllic days (7 nights) in Kenya, mixing Safari, Indian Ocean, the World Heritage coastal island town of Lamu, and Tango!

Want to get away from the cold winter? Ever dreamt of dancing tango in a tropical paradise? Look no further than LamuLonga 2011, from Saturday 26 November to Sunday 4 December—from Nairobi across Tsavo East wildlife park, then 4 tango nights in Lamu! Dance under the big sky of Africa, along the Indian Ocean, basked in a warm see breeze, to the sound of great traditional tango music, with a different DJ each night, and meet the enthusiastic and growing tango community in Nairobi and other places in East and Central Africa.

Kicks off with a welcome openair Milonga in Nairobi, followed by a 3-day/2-night Safari (including 1 evening Milonga) through Tsavo East National Park, then an overnight stay on the Indian Ocean beach resort of Watamu, then 4 days in Lamu, where we will have a Milonga every evening, in Baires style, at multiple locations, including the The Fort just on the water's edge on Shela beach—in the picture below!

Optionally, you may start with an additional day trip to Nairobi National Park and/or choose to skip the Tsavo safari doing only the 4 days in Lamu. Number of participants is limited to a maximum of 37 for the Tsavo Safari and a maximum of 101 for the 4-day Tango Festival in Lamu.

LamuLonga 2011 is being organized con mucho gusto by The Patamango Association, a non-profit association of passionate volunteers with the mission of developing Argentine Tango culture in Kenya, in collaboration with Beyond Words for festival organization logistics and Satguru as travel agency.

Itinerary

Sat 26 Nov - Arrive Nairobi
• Nairobi day trip to include Nairobi National Park, Giraffe Manor and David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust.
• Welcome Openair Milonga at Tribe Hotel, Nairobi, from 18:30 onwards.
note: The Nairobi tango community will do their best to welcome all visiting tangueros, offering lodging in their own homes for while they are in Nairobi. Space is limited of course and preference will be given to those reserving earliest. Otherwise, lodging in Nairobi will need to be arranged independently, and our travel agent is available to assist you.

Sun 27 Nov - Wed 30 Nov - Safari across Tsavo East National Park / Watamu Beach
Early morning leave by vehicle to Tsavo East National Park, "Theatre of the wild", Kenya’s oldest and largest park covering circa 12,000 square km. Drive within the park (safari game drive) on to Tsavo Safari Camp, where we stay 2 nights, going on game drives and walks, having sundowners and relaxing by the pool, as well as having a Milonga on Monday evening. Tuesday morning game drive eastward, to leave camp and on towards Watamu beach resort on the Indian Ocean coast of Kenya (some 600km from Nairobi) for the 3rd night, lodging at various houses just footsteps away from the beach. Limited to a maximum of 37 participants.

Wed 30 Nov - Sun 4 Dec - LamuLonga!
Those on full Tsavo+LamuLonga package will take midday flight from Watamu (airport in Malindi, a short 200 km internal flight), while those on LamuLonga-only package will fly out from Nairobi, to arrive in Lamu on Wednesday afternoon. We will spend 4 nights in Lamu, a World Heritage Site, a centre of Swahili culture, an emerging artistic and creative base for artists from around the globe. Lamu’s charms need little introduction—the days are free to immerse yourself in Lamu town, Shela beach, Manda island, or choose to sail by traditional dhow around the Lamu archipelago. We will lodge at various houses and hotels (including The Fort itself) just footsteps away from the beach in Shela and we will have a Milonga at The Fort or other locations for each of the four evenings in Lamu. Flight back to Nairobi on Sunday, leaving Lamu at 15:00. Limited to a maximum of 101 participants.

Sun 4 Dec - Leave Nairobi
Farewell Milonga in Nairobi on Sunday evening on the terrace at Ole Sereni Hotel that is close to Nairobi International Airport. Everyone free to continue on with own itinerary or to return to respective home destination.

Key dates

• Mon 31 October 2011: Early bird deadline.
• Fri 11 November 2011: International Registration closes.
• Fri 11 November 2011: Cancellation after this date are not refunded.

Prices (non-residents)

Kenyan residents please contact us or the travel agency directly for resident prices.

• DT: 26.11 - Nairobi day trip.
• FP: 27.11-4.12 - Full-package Tsavo Safari / Watamu + LamuLonga: 1410 USD (Early bird 1310 USD)
• HP: 30.11-4.12 - Half-package LamuLonga: 828 USD (Early bird 778 USD)

Included in the prices above: transport Nairobi-Watamu in Safari Minibus, including drive to Tsavo, game drives, transfer to Watamu, driver & professional tour guide, fuel; park fees for 2 days in Tsavo East National Park; 2 nights at Tsavo Safari Camp on full board; 1 night in Watamu on bed & breakfast; transfer to Malindi airport; internal flights Malindi-Lamu or Nairobi-Lamu, Lamu-Nairobi; boat transfers between Manda Airport and hotel in Shela; Manda airport taxes; 4 nights accommodation in Shela on bed and breakfast (accommodation at The Fort necessitates a supplement); entrance to all LamuLonga milongas.

Excluded in the prices above: all expenses of a personal nature, such as drinks and gratuities; any supplements e.g. luxurious accommodation such as The Fort, or for single-occupancy; any extras not mentioned.

All calculations above assume 2 persons sharing—single occupancy accommodation may require a supplement.

Early bird registrations—prior to end of October 2011—get 100 USD discount on full-package and 50 USD discount on half-package. Please note that registration is considered effective only on full payment of amount due.

For freelancers, arranging own transport and stay in Lamu, the cost to participate to LamuLonga milongas is either 5000 Kes for all 4 evenings or 2000 Kes per evening. This is however subject to LamuLonga space availability.

Do not hesitate to email us for any questions you may have. For any further personalization of above packages, or assistance with international travel arrangements from your home location to Kenya, our travel agency Satguru is available and very happy to assist you.

Registration

To register you must provide us with all requested information as well as complete payment—a registration is only completed on receipt of full payment of total amount due. Registration may be done as individuals, as a couple, or in groups.

Important note: in the interest of having gender-balanced milongas we reserve the right to wait-list and/or limit further individual registrations from either gender!

International registration (payment by international wire) is open until end of Friday 11 November 2011, after which payment must be done in person in Nairobi, via credit card (requiring an additional 5% surcharge) or cash. To register internationally please follow the following steps:

1. Please email us your intent to participate, specifying—per individual—all the following information:

• Your full name
• Your gender
• Your complete home postal address
• Your telephone number(s) (including country and area codes)
• Do you intend to participate to the Nairobi Day Trip (Sat 26 Nov 2011)?
• Do you intend to participate to the Full Package or the Half Package?
• While in Nairobi, would you wish to be lodged at a Nairobi tango community member's home? (may specify later)
• What are your Nairobi arrival and departure dates? (may specify later)
• Would you prefer single room lodging (supplements apply) or are you willing to share a twin room? (if individual)
• Approximately how long, in years, have you been dancing tango? (optional, background info only)

In the case of multiple individuals registering together, please indicate clearly—if any—all couples. If applying individually, but you will actually be participating as a couple (with your partner having registered separately) please also indicate this clearly. Should you have any additional specific questions or concerns please feel free to also include them in this email.

2. Wait for our confirmation, via email reply, of availability and total amount due, as well as the details of the destination bank account to wire payment to.

3. Pay the full amount due by international bank wire. Please note that all bank changes are the responsibility of the participant.

4. We will confirm registration, along with other remaining details, once payment has been received.

Terms and Conditions

All visiting participants are required to take travel insurance that includes health insurance. There are very limited facilities in Kenya's public hospitals.

Cancellations prior to end of Friday 11 November 2011 are refunded in the following way: 60% of the amount received net of all bank charges minus all bank changes for the return wire. There will be no refunds for cancellations after this date.

The organizers cannot assume any responsibility in damage, loss or theft of any of your belongings.

Tango DJ's, musicians, instructors

If you are a Tango DJ or Musician, and you believe you may be able to help us add depth and variety to our LamuLonga milongas, please do talk to us about the possibility to collaborate with you! Likewise for any experienced Tango Instructor coming over to Lamu—we may consider adding appropriate tango workshops to our program, for the benefit of the young but growing local tango community.