A safari is a guided tour, often in Africa, that may convey you up near elephants, zebras, giraffes, lions, rhinos and extra. Typically, these adventures contain taking open-sided safari autos into nature and observing and photographing wild animals of their pure habitats. (Different safaris are for searching; right here, we’ll give attention to the previous.) In the event you’re planning your first safari, listed here are some ideas.
1. Work with a journey company that makes a speciality of planning safaris
Even in the event you’re an avid traveler, safari planning remains to be greatest left to the professionals. By utilizing a good safari planning journey company like Yellow Zebra, Abercrombie & Kent or Timbuktu, you will get a number of advantages:
Steerage on when and the place to go primarily based in your needs and wishes. Your safari planning knowledgeable will possible have related data on the place to go primarily based on climate, animal migrations and what you’re trying to get out of your safari. (For example, if you wish to see hordes of wildebeest in July, your safari adviser may information you to a distinct vacation spot than in the event you’re searching for rhino encounters.)
On-the-ground expertise about lodging. Some safari planners have visited the properties themselves or have colleagues who’ve, which helps offer you a greater concept of what to anticipate earlier than you guide a property.
Assist arranging transport through the safari. Even after you might have the property you’re staying at sorted out, relying on the place you’re happening safari, chances are you’ll profit from assist arranging transport. For example, in the event you’re flying to the northern Serengeti for a safari, you’ll possible fly into Kilimanjaro Worldwide Airport, however after that you could be have to take a couple of further, smaller flights to get nearer to your lodging (and even when you land on the airstrip nearer to your lodging, you’ll possible want a information to choose you up and take you to your closing vacation spot). In the event you use a journey company, it may arrange all the interior transportation for you — and also you’ll be grateful it did.
Recommendation about aspect journeys to enhance your safari. Even in the event you’re solely in happening safari, chances are you’ll need to speak to your safari journey adviser about close by non-safari locations to take a look at. For example, you possibly can add on some seashore time in Zanzibar after your Serengeti safari or in the event you’re happening safari in South Africa, you might contemplate a seashore journey to Mozambique afterward.
🤓Nerdy Tip
When you’ve got a good friend or member of the family who booked a safari via a journey company and loved their expertise, inform the safari company that you simply’ve been referred and it’ll generally give you a reduction in your reserving.
2. Purchase and convey the correct tools
There won’t be many shops close to your safari lodging, so you may need to be sure you purchase and convey the correct tools with you. Listed below are some gadgets that you simply may need to convey in your safari:
Binoculars. Bringing a very good pair of binoculars (we suggest both 8x, 10x or 12x magnification) will improve your journey expertise so you possibly can see animals which might be farther away, see birds higher and get a better view of your safari expertise. Observe that some safari lodging provide complimentary use of binoculars throughout visitors’ keep, so it is best to test along with your lodging earlier than buying binoculars.
Digital camera. Relatively than relying in your smartphone, contemplate buying or renting a digital camera with a telephoto lens so you possibly can seize animals from distant for the perfect safari footage. In the event you’re new to pictures, chances are you’ll need to take a couple of pictures lessons or watch tutorial movies so that you’re ready to get the perfect pictures of the animals and panorama throughout your safari.
Garments which might be acceptable on your safari. Basically, you need to put on pure colours that mix in with the atmosphere. Blue and black can appeal to tsetse flies, and attempt to steer clear of vibrant colours. Moreover, relying on the place you’re going, temperatures can fluctuate from chilly within the mornings to sizzling within the afternoons, so chances are you’ll need to contemplate safari pants that may be unzipped on the knee and become shorts.
Sunscreen and a wide-brimmed hat. There are days the place you may spend 10-plus hours on the street and also you need to be sure that your pores and skin is protected. Bringing sunscreen with you and sporting a wide-brimmed hat in your journey may also help to guard your pores and skin.
Bug spray. To assist stop mosquito and different insect bites, contemplate bringing bug spray similar to DDT. Earlier than deciding which bug spray to pack, test with native laws to see if any chemical compounds are banned within the nation you’re visiting.
Bringing the correct gear can improve your safari expertise.
3. Verify to see whether or not the planes that you simply’re flying to your safari have weight or different restrictions for baggage
Relying on the place you’re happening safari, chances are you’ll be in small planes which have baggage necessities that you could be not have needed to comply with for different journeys. For example, Coastal Aviation in Tanzania has the next baggage restrictions for gentle plane flights:
Weight allowance of 33 kilos (15 kilograms) per particular person, together with hand baggage.
All baggage should be in smooth baggage (i.e., duffel baggage).
🤓Nerdy Tip
In the event you’ll be away for per week or extra, test along with your safari lodging to see if it gives laundry providers, which may also help you pack lighter.
4. Embrace the expertise, and anticipate lodging which may be exterior of what you’re used to
Whereas there are some extra conventional resort choices you might guide on safari — similar to 4 Seasons Safari Lodge Serengeti and the JW Marriott Masai Mara Lodge — chances are you’ll end up reserving a safari the place the lodging are extra akin to tenting (albeit higher-end tenting) than a resort.
For example, Wayo Serengeti Inexperienced Camp in northern Tanzania is so near the animals that you’ll find zebras exterior your lodging, and you may even take strolling safaris, however the camp differs from typical resorts in some ways, together with:
“Bucket showers” as a substitute of typical showers. (A bucket bathe is principally when the employees warms water up upon request after which fills a bucket exterior of your tent that connects to the bathe in your tent.)
No Wi-Fi or electrical plugs in your room, with Wi-Fi and charging solely within the frequent space.
Set lunch and dinner occasions with no room service, though many camps will give you a bagged breakfast, lunch or dinner upon request.
You could have to be escorted to and out of your tent at evening to make sure your security, together with utilizing a flashlight to alert the employees whenever you’re able to be picked up out of your room.
In the event you’re reserving a safari camp as a substitute of a resort, it is best to embrace the expertise as a way to absolutely benefit from the tranquility as a substitute of specializing in how the camp differs from the kind of resort expertise you may usually guide.
5. Look into what pictures, medicines and visas chances are you’ll want on your journey
As quickly as you possibly can after reserving your journey, it is best to look into whether or not you want any particular pictures, medicines or visas on your safari. For example, you will need to have a yellow fever vaccination and certificates to enter Kenya, Uganda and the Republic of Congo. Moreover, Tanzania requires residents of the US to get a visa to enter the nation (be aware that you may pay for the visa on arrival).
We suggest reserving an appointment along with your physician or going to a journey clinic to debate pictures and medication and utilizing the U.S. Division of State’s web site to be taught concerning the visas chances are you’ll want.
Learn how to guide a safari on factors
Safaris may be costly, and a good way to economize in your safari is to make use of factors. There are a few methods that you may guide a safari on factors:
Ebook your flights utilizing factors. A round-trip ticket from Los Angeles to Kilimanjaro, Tanzania, from June 2 to June 16, 2025, presently prices $1,704 in money or you might use 139,000 Flying Blue miles and pay $441.10 in charges for a similar flights. American Specific, Chase, Capital One and Citi all allow you to switch factors to Air France’s Flying Blue program.
Ebook your lodging utilizing factors. You should use factors to guide your safari lodging both by reserving a resort just like the JW Marriott Masai Mara Lodge, which permits Marriott Bonvoy members to pay for the stick with factors, or by paying on your lodging with a bank card that allows you to use factors to offset the full stability owed, like Chase’s Pay Your self Again program.
Even in the event you’re solely in a position to offset a portion of your safari utilizing factors, it may assist scale back the general value of what may in any other case be an costly journey.