Safari trip - where do I start!?

[VacationQueen]

We want to book a safari trip for 2027. Where do I start? So far, every website I click on takes me to a form to be completed with our details. This, and not recognising the websites has me worried! Some of the websites don’t even have details of where we would be staying.

We have been told to book Botswana and Mozambique, some have made comment about Zanzibar and it not being the nicest place and another family member mentioned going to the Seychelles and opting for an East African safari. It’s all added to the confusion. We’ve been told to budget £30-50k, does that sound about right? (2 adults)

If you want to see a gazillion elephants then Addo in South Africa is the place to go.

You could start in Cape Town and do the Garden Route to Addo (there’s lots to see on the way) and then head up to the Kruger and Vic Falls.

Vic Falls is a loooong way from Kruger? Why would you do this? It’s on the Zim/Zam border. Who would go all the way from the garden route to Vic falls in 10 days? Addo is ok but it’s not a national park. It’s a very different curated experience.

It’s Addo Elephant National Park and part of the SA National Park system - I guess you haven’t been there? Fantastic for elephants by the way. It’s not curated at all - and improving all the time as they add more land to it.

I added Kruger as it’s well known, but then you could just as easily go to Sun City for Pilanesberg / stay at the Black Rhino and then it’s an easy hop up to Vic Falls from there. If you’re going all the way from the UK why wouldn’t you?

And yes, been there and done it before you ask.

We booked through Saga Holidays.
We looked at other options but a majority didn’t offer the pick up from home and we had to find our own way to the airport which would have been a nightmare for us, and it didn’t work out anymore expensive using Saga x

Hi OP I’m looking into a safari for a family of three but am sadly tied to the school holidays so it’s really bumping the price up for me. I approached Yellow Zebra who are a Safari specialist. Spoke with the consultant who was a guide on a Safari lodge for 10 years. I don’t think they’re going to be able to help with our budget but they were lovely to deal with. ( much better than Trailfinders in my opinion). We have now switched to an African agent called Go2Africa mainly because they arranged our honeymoon to South Africa and extracted a lot more out the money we had then. You generally fill out an online form and book a FaceTime call with these guys.

( the lodge we stayed in was Simbavati which was on the Timbavati private game reserve which sits next to the Kruger. Someone like Yellow Zebra will prioritise the type of sightings you want obviously. I probably would go to them as a first port of call. )

Botswana is AMAZING, we didnt do Okevange which i think is what bumps thr price up so found it quite affordable. Saw loads of lion and elephants as well as hippos on thr Chobe river.

We also went to Zimbabwe (Vic falls) and saw rhino and did a helicopter flight (which I found too scary!). Did an amazing river cruise.

We went to Mauritius after and felt so "meh" because after the wonderful safari experience it just wasnt as enjoyable. I would rather have stayed and gone to another country to experience more wildlife. Driving along a dry river bed watching dawn break was just so much more magical than the (admittedly lovely) beach.

We went with trailfinders and found then knowledgeable and not too £££.

Safari are so varied OP. A usual organised park day starts super early (5 or 6am), with coffee and jump in the truck. Then 3-4 hours of viewing before it gets too hot. Back to camp, breakfast, nap, pool if there is one, then out again at 3-4pm before dinner at later in the evening.
Personally, a week is enough for me! If you think you are the same, consider a beach tag on - Seychelles, Zanzibar, Mombassa. If you would rather break up game viewing days with other activities and cultural / historical sights, perhaps S Africa or Namibia is more your vibe.

Apologies I haven’t got the name of the camps to hand at the moment - all recommended by Hayes and Jarvis. There is a wide range depending on budget … We went after GCSEs / a-levels at the end of June and feel so unbelievably privileged to have been there (with about 6 other jeeps) when the animals started to cross the river Mara. Our driver could not believe our luck (and there is some luck in what you see). As others have said, Amboselli was busy, but teeming with elephants, which as our first ever games drive we found amazing.

A good driver will get to know you and will adapt the drives to suit. The food was also unexpectedly good in the camps. Very lovely hosts.

it’s not the cheapest holiday, but was well worth the money for us.

@Pandersmum Balloon flights have operated over the Mara for decades. You would find them elsewhere. If it’s windy they don’t run though. River? Not sure I’d be going down the Mara River in full flow. It sweeps the animals away. It’s probably possible with lower water levels. There is Zambezi river rafting trips and canoes. Hippos are an issue! Or on the Okavango by mokoro. Never seen boat trips on the Luangwa but have at St Lucia wetlands in SA. All lodges have game drives. The Rift Valley lakes have boats or Lake Kariba. Fothergill island has lake cruises around Lake Kariba. These extra activities eat your budget.

I’m anti male hippo after we saw one kill a baby calf recently. Totally awful and the mum tried to fend him off. Lots of fighting. I’m not normally squeamish but….. not forgetting that.

Glad to see Expert Africa recommended up thread, as we're going to Namibia with the this summer. They've been a dream to deal with so far. It's costing us 25k for 4 people for 2 weeks, incl flights and some really lovely lodges, so your budget for 2 sounds very high!

Shamelessly jumping on this thread. I’ve been saving for a family trip, myself, DH, DD (will be 6) and DNephew (will be 11) for some time. We’ve started looking for next Easter, but I’m now becoming unsure about the driving distances and food options, hotels are all 4/5 star and my Nephew is very “plain beige” in what he will eat. Ideally we’d want buffet style, as then he’s unlikely to starve even if he eats the same thing every meal.
Has anyone done this with children this age, and can give me a recommendation? Pre DD we’ve done the garden route, plus eastern cape safari (driving time worry) and Tanzania (bloody amazing, but malaria risk). I’ve also been to Kenya a few times with work (again malaria risk).

If you're keen on wildlife, how about Costa Rica rather than Africa? I haven't been to Africa before so can't comment really, but I've been to Costa Rica with kids and it was fabulous. Child friendly, distances not too bad, no malaria meds needed, incredible and very abundant wildlife plus other activities, and we did a guided holiday for less cost than self drive in Namibia will cost us. Our kids were older than yours, but it would have been great with younger kids too. Lots of v standard food options and buffets.

Madikwe in South Africa is malaria free and has a lot of child friendly camps who would probably cater for a fussy eater. We did it with a 6 and 9 year old and combined with Cape Town

As pp has said, generally game drives are early morning (like getting up at 5 am) and evening. Sometimes we went on a drive at lunchtime to see a pride of lions, lying around or a herd of cow elephants and calves have a bath. If we did a walk, it was either in the morning (before midday, when it’s getting hotter); or late afternoon (before dark).

We went out also on boat trips on the river Zambezi, Chobe or mokoros in the Okavango.

We never went on a game drive and saw nothing! We were never bored in the daytime in the lodges - swimming pools were nice! We could often watch animals coming to drink at a waterhole.

@Mummyslittlegiraffe I can only talk about Kruger.

I’ll be honest, sometimes it does get a bit repetitive at times. But we met an American couple who were staying 2 weeks in a place that we could only afford 3 nights. So it very much depends on your attention span.

I’ve never been bored in between drives during the day, just occasionally when we are staring at a buffalo in a waterhole again. I just get into a meditative zone and it’s all good.

Staying around Kruger, you will always have other things to do and see. Food wise you will have many plain beige foods on offer. But again, being honest, I wouldn’t take a 6yo unless I was certain they could keep quiet during sightings and not get bored or fractious. That age may also limit your accommodation options. Look up the ones with kids clubs (junior rangers),

You can’t easily whip an ipad out on a jeep iykwim (although I have no doubt it has happened).

When we took the kids to madikwe we did 4 nights there and 4 nights in Cape Town.

At the safari place there was a pool and the guide took them out to do plaster casts of lion prints and they had other activities. We had our own guide because of the kids and it meant we could take it at their pace. Dd6 slept through some of the drives and our 9 year old engaged fully on all the drives

I’ve been on safari in Botswana, South Africa and Namibia, all on separate trips. I liked Namibia so much I’ve been back twice again since. Of the three, I think Namibia offers the best experience in terms of scenery, animal and bird life, facilities, safety, and just the whole overall experience. We booked through a company based in Windhoek, and flew with KLM. We did two week trips each time, with say 12 days actually on the ground in each country. Cost under £10k each trip.

Not quite African wildlife though is it? I’ve been to CR and several African safaris and they are just very different.

We did a once in a lifetime safari to Sabi Sands South Africa.. crazy expensive £4k per night was a one off but unforgettable. We then went to the winelands and Cape Town. You don’t need to spend that much for a luxury lodge though.

Well it's different wildlife of course, but I don't think that makes it less impressive. And for younger kids in particular, I think there's something to be said for being immersed in constant wildlife all the time everywhere, as you are in CR, without even leaving your deckchair. Don't get me wrong, I'm very excited about going to see African wildlife for the first time this summer, but I'm not sure a big five animal is inherently more exciting than things like sloths, multiple types of monkey, snakes and tarantulas, whales, dolphins, anteaters, tree frogs, giant iguanas, tapirs, and absolutely incredible bird life, particularly when they're often only a few feet away. In terms of wow factor, standing on a beach at midnight watching a turtle laying eggs is pretty memorable. And for my slightly less patient child, the fact that he could watch a troop of squirrel monkeys
or a sloth or hummingbirds, toucans, macaws and king vultures while simultaneously sitting in the hotel pool, was a massive bonus. No, you're not going to see a big cat (unless you're astonishingly lucky and see a jaguar), but personally I found CR totally unforgettable. But maybe I'll change my tune after Africa!

Wait until you get to Africa 😁

In summer 2024 we did a family safari tour with Explore to South Africa and Eswatini with our teen boys. It was amazing! We started in SA and travelled around (didn't like Kruger - too commercial!). We loved Tschukudu - small family run reserve and did walking safari with cheetahs. We then went onto Eswatini (Swaziland) for completely different environment - wart hogs around the bonfire in the eve. Then went back down to St Lucia in SA - hippos wander the street at night. It was totally amazing! We are bird watchers too so there is always something new to see. I personally would skip much of the beach and focus on wildlife. You can do beach any time.

@clarrylove There are small camps in the concessions around Kruger. They are better and far more intimate. Kruger has quieter areas and is a nstional park, so available to everyone. Agree St Lucia is great as is nearby Hluhluwe Imfolozi.

I’d love to see Namibia. It’s definitely on the list.

We booked Safari through trailfinders. We went on honeymoon to SA and included Safari and then a week in Zanzibar. The whole 18 night trip was £10k in 2019. You can ask TF to put an itinerary together of what you want and you can keep changing it until you get what you want. I would suggest picking up a brochure to see what takes your fancy and go from there. We did 3days on safari which was plenty with 2 game drives per day.