Family Safaris - What Now?

Planning – unless you have a precise idea of what you would like, we will ask questions along the following lines to start the process:

• What ages will your children be when you intend to travel?
• Have you been to Africa before (either as a family or just the adults)?
• What did you do on that trip?
• What does your family like/dislike on holiday generally?
• What other countries have you visited?
• What style of holiday do you enjoy as a family?
• What time of year is your family thinking of travelling?
• Is there anything specific that you want to see (wildlife/birds/places)?
• What sort of accommodation do you want to stay in (hotel/lodge/tented camp)?
• Do you want connecting rooms?
• Are there any activities in which you want to participate (canoeing/walking/horse riding)?
• Do you want to add a beach holiday to your family safari?
• Do you have a budget in mind?

From here we can start to make initial suggestions which will be whittled down to a specific itinerary.

Typical Family Safari Day
Dawn – early morning wake up call and light breakfast followed by morning game activity (this can be game drive, walk, horse ride, boat trip, canoeing etc and will depend on where you are staying).

Mid-morning – arrive back into camp. Lunch is usually served once all guests are back.

Early afternoon – siesta, swimming or some activity in camp (depending on where you are staying)

Mid-afternoon – after tea and depart on an afternoon game activity .  Sundowners are usually served as dusk approaches. In some areas you will return straight to camp, or if somewhere were night drives are allowed you may take a longer route back to camp using a spotlight to pick out nocturnal species.

Early evening – return to camp. Drinks followed by dinner.

Practicalities

International flights
Southern Africa:  on the whole, flights to and from Southern Africa depart in the evening, arriving at your destination early the following morning. Johannesburg is the main hub airport with most onward flights connecting here.  
East Africa:  Both day and overnight flights are available to and from East Africa (Kenya and Tanzania).  

Internal flights
Many of our family safaris will necessitate internal flight transfers. Depending on the itinerary, these will either be private charters or scheduled light aircraft flights.  We will always try to minimise waiting time between an international arrival and an onward flight. Often these flights will be a highlight in themselves for children – flying low over the bush is a very exciting way to see the countryside.

Transfers
All of our clients are met on arrival at their destination. Your family will be transferred by a private vehicle to domestic airports for onward internal flights, or driven to your lodge or camp. All transfer arrangements will be made prior to your trip so you don’t have to worry about getting from place to place.

Meals
Most camps will be happy to provide early mealtimes for children. Special dietary requests can be catered for with a little advance warning.  Food, wherever you are, is likely to be superb. Camp staff have a wonderful knack of being able to produce the most delicious meals from even the simplest bush kitchen.

Health and visa requirements
Once you have confirmed your trip we will send you our ‘pre-departure information’ which lists any health and visa requirements that may be necessary for the country (or countries) you will be visiting.  We will also include a suggested family packing list, background information on the country you are visiting, reading lists etc.

Booking a family safari
Once we have agreed upon an itinerary we ask you for a 25% deposit in order to confirm the trip.  Final payment is due 10 weeks before departure.