Family Safari Packing List

Dress children the way you dress yourself on safari: neutral colors, in layers. Early drives in open vehicles can be cold, especially from June to August in East and southern Africa, so pack a fleece, beanie and gloves for each child, then shorts and T-shirts for the afternoon. Skip bright white, which shows dust, and dark blue or black, which can attract tsetse flies in some areas. Leave camouflage at home; several African countries restrict civilians from wearing it.

Many camps include laundry, so three or four outfits per child is plenty. Give each child a small daypack for the vehicle with binoculars, a water bottle, a hat and a wildlife checklist. Our main safari packing list covers adult essentials in more detail.

Many safari areas carry malaria risk, so see your pediatrician or a travel clinic six to eight weeks before departure about antimalarials and vaccines for each child. Ask which insect repellent suits each child’s age. Our safari health guide explains the options by destination.

With young children, many families choose malaria-free reserves such as Madikwe in South Africa. Wherever you go, pack a child-sized first-aid kit and enough prescription medicine for the whole trip plus a few extra days.

Safari days start before dawn and pause in the midday heat, so pack quiet entertainment for the lodge: a kid-friendly field guide to African animals, a sketchbook and colored pencils, playing cards, a journal and downloaded audiobooks. An inexpensive camera or an old phone in airplane mode lets each child take their own photos.

Many family-friendly lodges run children’s activities, and a private vehicle lets you set the pace. Our family safari page explains how to choose camps and how minimum-age rules work.