How To Keep Your Children Safe On An African Safari – Top Ten Guidelines
Africa remains an exciting place to travel and a safari is one of the most memorable experiences families can share. But for those yet to experience it and maybe considering a trip for the first time, you will no doubt have several questions about child safety particularly when you are carrying children on the trip. These may include:
- ⇒ How safe are safaris in Africa?
- ⇒ Where in Africa is safe to travel?
- ⇒ What are the age restrictions for taking children on safari?
To answer these and many other questions we have compiled a list of child safety tips for families.
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Age Suitability:
Families interested for going on such African Safari Tours must be aware of the fact that almost all the safari camps and lodges greet children of all ages and some of them have a minimum age restriction of 4 & 12 years. In case, if you are booking through an African Safari Travel specialist, this will be one of the aspects taken into consideration when selecting asuitablelodging for your family especially when carrying kids. Please also remember that all safari activities are not available for kids such as gorilla trekking and white-water rafting if they are not fulfilling a minimum age requirement of 15 years.
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Vaccinate And Immunize:
If you are a first timer and also with your wife and kids then you must be worried about African jungles and forests and the diseases associated with it. Thus, the routine vaccines that can be given to your travelling children are measles-mumps-rubella (M.M.R) vaccine, diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis vaccine, polio vaccine and your yearly flu shot. Moreover, while giving vaccines such as Hepatitis A to your children, you must keep in your mind that such a vaccine is not given to children younger than one year. In such cases, you must consult your doctor or family doctor. As far as vaccinations for typhoid are concerned inject-able typhoid vaccines can be given to the children who are more than two years old. Oral typhoid vaccine can be given to the children who are more than six years old. For diseases like Malaria while on African Safari Tours, please consult the safari camp doctor for appropriate vaccines for children.
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Use An Experienced Family Safari Guide
While on a African Safari Tours with your kids, using an experienced family safari guide will be a good decision. They will help and advice you to take kids for safaris that are especially made for the little ones and where the kids will learn a lot about nature and will also start respecting it. Moreover, you can keep your kids or indulge them in some other activities like cubs clubs, junior ranger training, and butterfly/fish/insect catch and release and many more activities like that will keep your kids busy while you can hangout with your partner for a wildlife safari.
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Mosquito Protection:
While travelling with kids bites from Mosquitoes and catching Malaria is a big scare. In such a situation, taking malaria pills will be best solution and in case you are camping in the woods or safari parks then please also take anti- mosquito tents that can keep your children safe from mosquitoes at night.
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Protect Your Kids From The Sun:
There are many African Safari Destinations where you have to walk alongside your guide to see the beautiful animals in the Safari. On all such safaris, facing or combating the sun can be a cake in the walk for adults, but the same thing can’t be said about the kids. Thus, if you have your kids during such an African Safari Tours, please always place a good hat on their head to keep them away from the swirling heat of the sun. Also use various anti-sun creams and lotions on the skin of your children, in order to protect them skin burns because the sun and its heat wave is quite extreme in places like Africa.
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Be Careful Walking Around Camp Barefoot:
While walking around the camp barefoot with kids then please be careful about the ground because African Safaris have no shortage in poisonous snakes and scorpions. Thus while walking in the park or in the camp; please make sure that the legs and feet of your children are completely covered.
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Stay In The Vehicle While On Game Drives:
While going through a game drive or safari please always stay in the car or vehicle that can protect you and your kids from the attacks of an aggressive animal. You also have to make sure that you don’t have to go to loo in the middle of a safari trip by un-boarding the vehicle and if you do, please do it from a safe distance where you are completely sure that you or your kid will not be attacked. Moreover, please don’t let your kids to take their hands out from the vehicle. Such an action will definitely provoke animals like lions and leopards. Sometimes such an action or gesture will also look like someone is taking out his rifle or gun and it compels the animals of the Africa Safari to take a nasty and violent action.
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Always Be On The Lookout For Animals In The Bush:
While on a African Safari with kids, always be on the lookout for animals in the bush. Some animals are known for pouncing on their prey by hiding themselves behind the bushes. It is a highly clever tactic used by several wild animals like lion, tiger and leopard. Thus as much as possible, please keep out from bushes while on a safari trip. Many tourists get close to bushes in order to take a nice picture of lion or tiger hiding there.
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Be Careful Near Rivers Or Lakes:
While on safari, please don’t stay near river or lakes and if your kid also wants to go near a river or lake then please don’t let him/ her to go either because lakes and rivers of all such safari parks are filled with hippos and crocodiles who have a brute force of grabbing their prey with their powerful jaws.
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Night Time Supervision:
As a parent, you have to be extremely careful during the night time because kids sometimes get annoyed with the constant supervision of the parents and sneak out from the tents to have their own little naughty adventure. For such a scenario, please guide your kids that at nighttime most of the wild and carnivorous animals get prepared to hunt and it will be quite dangerous outside.
Finally, you should always make sure that your room is closed or locked at night or your tent properly zipped up. Don’t allow children to come out after dark – most safari camps will have a system – radio, whistle, air horn etc – to allow you to alert your guide or ranger in the event of an emergency. Please follow all these precautions and your kids will be safe during the entire African Safari Tour. For best and affordable African Safari packages, which cover the all famous destination and also fulfill your safari dream, contact to Silver Sky Travel today!
