The new TUI holiday hotspot with 34C heat, amazing beaches and wild animal tours

“IF an elephant comes, they run,” our guide told us as we watched the local kids playing football dangerously close to the animal.

We certainly found this out for ourselves just a few days later when a huge male elephant tried to charge us off the road.

Kara Godfrey

But seeing creatures up this close is exactly the point of my trip — and it’s part of TUI’s recently launched safari-beach holidays in Kenya.

These new packages are an affordable way to see East African wildlife, complete with fully guided jeep tours.

And, if you book this weekend, you can bag a Kenyan getaway at an even cheaper price, with £150 off.

It’s safe to say our twice-daily safari rides left me in awe every time.

Early-morning drives meant bumping along bright red dirt tracks with glittering lakes, when the sun finally appeared.

It can take long hours of patience waiting to see any animal while standing on seats and popping your head out of the jeep’s open roof.

However, it’s our first evening drive in Tsavo East when the radio crackles with excitement.

“There’s lion cubs!” another ranger tells us through the radio, before we speed off to join his group, frantically holding on to the sides of the car.

It’s the first time they have been seen in six months, our driver tells us.

We kicked up dust after making our way over, only to slam on the brakes after spotting the pack walking in the road barely an arm’s length away.

They were worth the wait.

The tiny cubs wobbled along while meowing at their mum to wait, sounding more like tabby cats than fearsome animals.

The two mums lazily looked over at us, seemingly trying to work out whether we were food or an annoyance.

We were left in breathless silence apart from the odd camera click — speechless after being so close to these animals in their own habitat.

After what felt like just minutes, they eventually sauntered into the grass on the hunt for their next meal.

From that moment on, the animals came in their hoards as we explored Tsavo West and Amboseli National Park.

Big male elephants at the roadside, huffing and trying to intimidate.

Giraffes crossing the path on the lookout for their family, staring as they go past.

Huge groups of gazelles flicking their ears and tails to keep the annoying bugs away.

Skittishly skipping

Zebras with stripes that almost look painted on, skittishly skipping away as we get closer.

Then thousands of pink flamingos bobbing their heads up and down the lake.

Nothing was ever missed thanks to our driver, Jimmy, his keen eye spotting the speck of an animal in the distance.

And along the way, we stayed at beautiful lodges with one of the best being Amboseli Serena, in the middle of the park.

At the back of the hotel — more animals. At the front? The towering Mount Kilimanjaro, just a few miles from the Tanzania border.

Despite it being a cloudy day, the snow-capped top peeked out through the clouds, intimidatingly tall at 19,340ft compared to the nearby hills.

Kara Godfrey

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Another unmissable hotel is the famous Salt Lick Safari Lodge, with fairytale rooms overlooking the elephant-loved watering holes.

But this isn’t how a trip with TUI ends — as it includes a beach holiday near Mombasa, too.

We stayed at the Baobab Beach Resort & Spa with three swimming pools, including an infinity pool overlooking the sea.

Each room comes with its own balcony or patio, as well as a huge king-size bed and en-suite bathroom.

Don’t worry about leaving the wildlife behind — I was often wandering past huge troops of monkeys, hanging from the balconies with their babies.

The days flew by in a heady mix of sunbathing in the 34C heat while making the most of the free cocktails from the pool bar.

Cheeky waiters

And Kenyan cuisine is not to be missed.

My lunch plate was often piled high with githeri, a bean stew, alongside the spongy grain, ugali.

“You’re already sweet enough, eh?” one of the many cheeky waiters says to me after a black coffee request.

But when the sun goes down, that cheekiness continues with staff performing live shows, anything from The Lion King to Cirque du Soleil-style acrobats.

Make friends with them and they will even rope you into day-time aqua aerobics or a volleyball game.

But one thing I’m thankful for when returning home is being able sit back and watch the football — except without the elephants this time.