How often do you hear the words: “not like it used to be”? More to the point, what emotions and memories does that sort of phrase invoke? For, in our modern world, life races by at speed and the basics are forgotten . The children’s day is full of school, after school clubs, extra lessons, swimming, Stagecoach, music, riding or whatever their interests (or their parent’s interests!) may be.  The parents, too, are equally busy rushing around earning  a living or seeing friends. This may or may not be such a bad thing but there’s a question – how much time do we really get to spend together, properly, as a family unit and together experiencing the world in which we actually live? And how often do we get to do – and appreciate – real things in a world where the DS, TV, IPOD, PC and the good old phone are constantly-pervasive influences and distractions?

I allude to “connection”, not only with one’s family (although that has to be the ultimate point) but the actual world which spins beneath our feet. Not a world where everything is seen through a glazed window, on a screen or bought from a supermarket but a world where things are real – where the land, animals, culture and life all there to be lived, enjoyed and, crucially, experienced together at first hand and without barriers.  This is the joy of a Child Friendly African Safari – it brings families together in one, huge, ongoing and never-to-be-forgotten, life-enhancing adventure.

Enthralled - Child Friendly African Safari with Experts AfricanExplorations.com

Connection comes from simple things: The sigh of the wind through a whistling thorn bush; the roar of a lion; the stellar clarity of a Serengeti night; the smile of a child seeing his or her first giraffe; the complete assurance of a nomadic tribesman alone on vast plains; a game of cards in camp; messing about in a mudhole where no-one cares about being covered in mud; the smell of breakfast cooked over an open fire after an early morning walk; the determination of a dung beetle; a genuine grin of welcome; the midnight rustle of “something” moving through the bush just a few metres from your bed…….the list is endless but the theme is the same: simplicity, raw connection to the world around you and of which you are now truly a part.

Children naturally understand all this, of course. Preparation for adulthood erases much of the basic instict with which we are born but, if one takes children to Africa and allows them to free their sense of adventure and fun, and, at the same time, allows adults to reconnect with simple enjoyment and the instincts that live on in all of us what a holiday that becomes! What an experience! What a homecoming! What enormous fun! And how fabulously bonding the whole experience can be.

An Ol Malo Moment in Kenya - Child Friendly African Safari with Experts AfricanExplorations.com

A child friendly safari in Africa can achieve all this. However (or in whatever country) one might “do” Africa – and the possibilities are almost endless so long as one leaves electronics and preconceptions behind – the people you meet will be welcoming and fun, the places you see and stay will be awe inspiring and the experience will be real. This is magic for children and adults alike and is,  surely, not only how things should be – even if just for a short while – but also, perhaps, just a little, “like it used to be”…….

The ‘Big Five’ and the other lesser known – but just as important! – ‘Little Five’ are words synonymous with a safari to Africa. The Big Five are Buffalo, Lion, Elephant, Leopard and Rhino and can be found together in many national parks, game reserves and privately owned conservancies in Southern and Eastern Africa. In South Africa the best known park is, of course, the Kruger National Park. Nearly two million hectares in extent, the Kruger was gazetted in 1898 to protect the South African lowveld wildlife. A plethora of environmental techniques and policies makes the region an ongoing conservation success. There are also privately owned reserves contiguous with the Kruger which feature beautiful and often luxurious safari lodges and camps. Such areas include the well known Sabi Sands where seeing a huge variety of animals is almost guaranteed on an African Big Five Safari.

Elephants on the Chobe - African Big Five Safari With AfricanExplorations.com

Many of these properties accommodate children and offer specialist children’s programs, so an African Big Five Safari is not just for adults! Children’s guides keep children happy and enthralled, including trying to find the ‘Little Five’: buffalo weaver, elephant shrew, leopard tortoise, ant lion and rhino beetle as well as tracking and identifying animals, birds, and insects. Children are kept occupied for hours with short bush walks and spotting “creepy crawlies”, whilst other staff might teach them how to bake animal-themed cookies in the camp’s bush oven (for everyone’s afternoon tea!) whilst adults are busy on a game drive.

For those who like ‘lists’, how about the ‘Birding Six’? These include Ground Hornbill, Kori Bustard, Lappet-faced Vulture, Martial Eagle, Pel’s fishing Owl and Saddle-bill Stork. And then there are the “Little Six Antelope”: Grey Duiker, Sharpe’s Grysbok, Steenbok, Klipspringer, Livingstone Suni and Oribi.

The Rare Pels Fishing Owl - African Big Five Safari With AfricanExplorations.com

An African Big Five Safari is, surely, only possible on land? Not so! For those with a love of the sea and who visit South Africa’s gorgeous coastline there is also the ‘Marine Big Five’ which includes the Southern Right Whale, Cape Fur Seal, common Dolphin, Great White Shark and African Penguin. The best time for whale watching in South Africa is between July and November; several places on the Garden Route feature marine activities although the Walker Bay/Hermanus region is especially well known for easy access to marine wildlife with excellent guiding.

Cape Fur Seal - African Big Five Safari With AfricanExplorations.com

An African Trekking Safari would otherwise be known as a walking safari. These in my opinion are some of the finest ways of being on safari! On foot – one’s senses are heightened and one learns so much more – such as the medicinal properties of trees and plants, how to read the prints (or spoormarks) in the sand, which animals they are, which direction they are heading (pretty important!), as well as learning to walk downwind whilst keeping pace with an elephant herd!

African Trekking Safaris with AfricanExplorations.com

One also learns all about the insects and butterflies and the ecological role of the dung beetle – so many things and all so fascinating and vital to the continuation of this extraordinary continent!

Walking Safaris with AfricanExplorations.com

We offer walking safaris on the outskirts of the Masai Mara and in the Laikipia region of Kenya, in southern, western and Northern Tanzania, in Namibia and South Africa.  There is also walking on Mount Kenya. We have the most comprehensive range of walking safaris in Africa – contact us for specialist knowledge!