Elephants treck through hotel while we were on safari in Africa
My wife and I love Africa and we couldn’t resist the temptation to visit our friends in Africa and visit the continent, when Juliette was nearly two years old we travelled from South Africa to Zimbabwe, Malawi, Zambia and Tanzania both the mainland and Zanzibar.
We had a marvellous safari and really had no difficulty with finding food for our daughter or cots in the hotels. In fact the whole trip was just perfect. We made sure that we used Mosquito nets , and to cover her with a strong mosquito repellant she wasn’t bitten once in the whole trip.
Children tend to love the wildlife and a safari is usually a wonderful experience for children of all ages. It can get a bit long and hot for children so we have some suggestions for you;
- take with you some animal spotting safari games
- learn the Swahili names for the animals which will help the children build a relationship with your driver and should provide fun.
- Download safari games available from the web at no charge, this will keep them busy. We have a FREE children’s activity pack which you can view or download and print free of charge and includes a safari animal check list with Swahili animal names, plus some other fun stuff.
An amazing experience that we had and would like to mention because it might be useful for other parents travelling with young children while on safari…
We went on a night drive in Zambia in an open vehicle with other guests from the lodge.This was so exciting and turned out to be one of the most amazing we have ever done. We discovered a young leopard where we later found ourselves right in the core of a herd of buffalo that was suddenly being ambushed by four hungry female lions. The lions prey escaped. In all the excitement our daughter began crying, it took seconds for the lions who characteristically think vehicles as just part of the landscape began to think the vehicle as a promising prey, like a small animal in distress. Fortunately our guide acknowledged the change in mood and drove us away quickly to safety with a pack of lions following us.
The food in safari lodges tends to be quite relaxed so no problems here either. There should be no problems keeping children interested in this new and stimulating world where they will face a different way of life and maybe poverty for the first time, but I think the lifestyle of Africa can play an essential part in the education of our sometimes pampered children.
Common sense is if the parents are sensible and make the children abide by the safari rules no danger will come to the children. Certainly the first thing to do is sit down with your children before departure and explain that Africa is a different world from the one they are used to, where there is danger around.
There is no need to overemphasize but camp rules are there for your protection and must be followed, because if they are not, the consequences can be serious. For very young children I propose you pick your camp carefully and make sure your travel advisor knows you are travelling with children so they can find the most suitable for children. We can guide you on this from personal experience as we have been on many safaris with our children. We also have a lot of information for going on safari & travelling in Africa
It is recommended that young children should not be vaccinated and are excused in most countries for yellow fever but truthfully I don’t feel this should be of concern. This is a rare disease which you should not meet in a safari lodge. Your focus of concern should be malaria which is a problem all over the tropics. The local population catch it repeatedly and it is generally deemed no worse than a bout of flu. However depending on the strain, it can be dangerous and the solution here is good prevention. Young children cannot take malaria tablets we advise you to get advice from your doctor. Before the sun goes down make sure that you put insect repellent all over their arms and legs making sure any exposed area is covered then check to make sure they are sleeping under mosquito nets. These safety measures will help you to reduce the risk of malaria to just about zero.
Don’t be scared about taking your children to Africa, it is a wonderful experience for them and we have been back with Juliette many times, but do cover them up well and no safaris in open vehicles for very small children
Note: The above information is advice given on the basis of the author’s experience at the time of writing and the author cannot take responsibility for any traveller choosing to take the advise above. Before travelling you should speak to your GP and take advice from the relevant authorities before travelling.
