See animals in their natural habitat, watch a herd of elephants walk past your vehicle, spot a mother cheetah with her cubs, or listen to a pride of lions roaring at night – a family safari vacation is a magical experience you will never forget.
At Yellow Zebra we understand the importance of creating safaris holidays for families. Whether you’re traveling with teenagers or as part of a large multi-generational family group with parents, grandparents, and kids of all ages, we will design a trip to suit everyone.
The best family safari destinations for kids
To help you start planning your family safari vacation, here we recommend specific destinations, as well as family trips we've designed around the age of the children traveling:
Family Vacations with children under five
If you're traveling with very young children, the main priority is to travel to areas that have no malaria. As virtually all of Africa lies within the malaria belt, the only destination we would recommend for families with very young children is South Africa. There are a number of malaria-free vacation reserves in South Africa, which can easily be combined with Cape Town and the Garden Route, or even the beach destination of Mauritius – Africa’s most family-friendly beach destination.
Family Safari vacations for kids between 5 and 10
For families with children between the ages of 5 and 10, we would recommend a family safari vacation to either South Africa or Kenya. South Africa’s parks (both non-malarial and malarial areas such as the Kruger) are well set up for children, with a number of lodges offering excellent children’s programs that occupy the middle of the day during safaris. Kenya is also an extremely good destination for family safari vacations. The Maasai Mara offers superb big-game viewing, while the Laikipia and Lewa area offers a large range of activities, and also interaction with local cultures.
Family Safari vacations for older children and teens
The whole of Africa opens up for families with older children, especially as children of this age do not necessarily need the range of non-safari activities offered in the destinations we recommend for younger families.
One of our favorite destinations for families with older children is Tanzania, especially the north of the country where the Serengeti and Ngorongoro region have the perfect balance of big game and great lodges, as well as authenticity and adventure. Trips to Tanzania can also include a cultural element, as the Maasai tribe lives throughout the region. The beaches of the Zanzibar Archipelago are also a superb place to finish.Botswanais also a wonderful family safari destination, but it is expensive – you have to expect to pay Africa’s highest safari prices if you go there.
Adventure vacations for families
If you think your children are able to handle the kind of wild experiences Africa can offer, we really recommend that families with children over 10 consider a more adventurous trip.
Southern Tanzania is particularly ideal for adventurous families, as it has many small camps where the focus is on adventurous activities such as boating, fly camping, and walking.Climbing Kilimanjarois also an option for a family wishing to do something different during their safari-focused vacation.Zambiais our other recommendation. It is home to the most adventurous safari in Africa. Walking is the highlight here, while there are also a number of canoe safari options on theZambezi river.
“We had an absolutely fantastic holiday in Kenya and loved every minute of it. The safari exceeded our expectations and the beach break was wonderful. We’re so grateful to Jecca at Yellow Zebra for giving us great advice and finding wonderful places that suited our family.”
“Good things come to those that wait! We booked our family safari trip back in 2020, just before COVID struck. 2 years later and we have returned from an amazing trip to Tanzania. Yellow Zebra have been fantastic throughout the whole process and we always felt fully informed and up to date with their planning of our trip. The choices they made on our behalf truly exceeded our expectations. Thank you YZ for a life changing experience.”
Unfortunately, there are no results for this search. Please use a different filter combination or contact our experts to start planning your tailor-made safari.
"Yellow Zebra are genuine specialists; they know the African bush like the back of their hand."
Brian Jackman, safari expert for The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, Condé Nast, and the BBC
'Europe's Leading Safari Tour Operator' at the World Travel Awards
10 years in a row, since 2015
"Helpful, flexible, friendly service. I spoke to Eleanor who was very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about organising my special trip"
Gill Riley
"YellowZebra was able to help customize my itinerary to my asks, and built the perfect first timers itinerary to “build up the suspense” in the beginning of the trip, and perfectly unwind towards the end. Their communication was excellent and their attention to detail made the absolute perfect hon..."
Michael Cohn
"This was my first safari and I'm pleased I found YZ. They definitely are safari experts and provide a high quality product that manages to balance customer experience with wildlife conservation/sustainability, which is a big plus in my book!
Lauren Noakes really inspired me with her love & knowle..."
Rebecca
"What I really liked is that they got straight back to me when I asked any question and there was a personal contact. Organised a safari in Botswana and made informed suggestions to make our holiday "perfect"!"
Ron Hill
"James was great at listening and understanding what our group was looking for in our custom designed Safari. He put together a trip of a lifetime for 9 of us. He also found a way to do it within budget. The whole crew at Yellow Zebra was really easy to work with. One of our group members said "I..."
USA
UK / International
CA
Australia
