A family Botswana safari can be an excellent choice for a family vacation to Africa.  Families can enjoy the variety of activities offered from, traditional canoe (mokoro) rides to tracking wildlife with San Bushmen and easily skipping across the border to visit Victoria Falls in nearby Zambia/ Zimbabwe.  The overwhelming majority of lodge transfers are done by light aircraft thus eliminating those long car rides kids find boring.

With the exception of Chobe National Park, most camps in Botswana only cater for children age 10 or older.  Nevertheless, there are exceptions to the rule for a family Botswana safari with younger children wishing to visit camps located in the Okavango Delta.

A family Botswana safari  is great for children aged 7-12 and for teenagers.  The majority of camps and lodges offer safe, adventurous safaris for the whole family.  Many lodges also specially hire trained children’s guides who tailor program’s for your children – suiting their ages and interests.  These programs are brilliant and do a fabulous job at sparking curiosity and interest.  The guides interpret the African bush in a fun, easy way to understand and allow for hands-on experience which can include the tracking of animals.

The Perfect Family Botswana Safari

The Young Explorers chain of lodges caters to families with children ages 7-12.

This family Botswana safari program is exclusive.  Each family has the use of a private six-bedded camp, two professional guides, personal chef, waiter, housekeeper, and mokoro guides.  Families are there to explore the bush at your leisure.

The Young Explorers in the Okavango Delta is based at Footsteps Camp – an intimate 6 bedded camp in the Shinde private concession.  Each family books out exclusive use of the camp, ultimately overriding the normal walking program and the minimum age requirement.

The Young Explorers in the Kalahari is based at Edo’s Camp, a private 8 bedded camp on a game conservancy in the western Kalahari Desert.  Again, the family books out exclusive use of the camp, thereby overriding the normal safari experience with the specific family program.

The two camps can easily be combined as one overall family Botswana safari experience.

What topics will the program touch on?  The emphasis is on conservation, respect for the earth, culture, and learning bush survival skills.  The children’s guide explains how animals can be tracked using experience and a little detective work.

Family Botswana Safari Precautions

What about Malaria?  Should I be concerned for my children?

Malarone has now launched a children’s formula and is the first ever malaria tablet designed just for kids.  Generally, many families have held back their desire to safari Africa on account of fear of malaria or reluctance to expose their children to possible side-effects of medication.  The new formulation of Malarone will open new opportunities for families wishing to travel to Africa, enabling them to do so with much greater safety and peace of mind.