The Perfect Itinerary for African Safari with Little Kids
Last Updated on Sep 21, 2024
An African safari is one of the most incredible trips of a lifetime and the most memorable experience with little kids. When the kids are young their reactions to seeing animals in the wild are so precious, and it’s great to see it through their eyes.
Many lodges welcome babies, toddlers, and little kids with open arms and it’s not difficult to do safari with kids at all. As both my husband and I have been to many African countries before kids and done a few safaris, I opted for a multi-country experience to diversify the experience to satisfy kids’ attention span.
Our Africa trip remains a favorite memory for both my children, despite them visiting almost 40 countries on 6 continents.
Here’s our exact itinerary that starts in Victoria Falls, explores Zambia and Zimbabwe, and northern Botswana, and ends in Johannesburg in South Africa. You can stick to one area or country, but I feel like what we did was a perfect mix of various experiences and easy logistically.
Few Practical Tips for African Safari
I have a separate post about logistics and tips on what age is best to take your kids on a safari, but you might wonder how to pack for this trip as it’s visiting different countries.
You don’t need a lot of things and every single lodge we stayed at was offering laundry service that wasn’t pricy at all. We had 3 carry-on suitcases, two of which were MiaMilly ride-on ones so the kids were comfortable at the airport (and even crossed the border riding on it!).
This itinerary involves a rental car and pre-arranged shuttles. You can totally skip a rental car, but I thought it gave us more flexibility. I’ll explain it when I get to that part of this trip.
Day 1: Arrival in Zimbabwe
If you have the option to arrive directly at Victoria Falls, then it’s the preparable option. Our best option was to fly in and out of Johannesburg, as there’s a direct flight from Atlanta. We booked a separate connecting flight from Johannesburg in and out of Victoria Falls for the first part of the trip.
We had to spend the night at the airport, which was much needed honestly after a 16-hour flight arriving in the evening. There are a few good hotels just a short shuttle away from the airport and it gave us a chance to shower, sleep in a normal bed, and continue our journey in the morning.
Days 2-7: Zambia
Hotel: Avani Victoria Falls Resort in Livingstone
We spent 4 nights at Avani Victoria Falls Resort in Livingstone on the Zambian site. As all of our activities were on a Zambian site, this made things easier and cheaper in terms of visas. That way we didn’t need to KAZA visa, just a double entry visa to Zimbabwe since Zambia doesn’t require visas for US citizens and EU citizens.
NOTE: Technically, we could have avoided the double entry Zimbabwean visa and flown out of Kasane Airport in Botswana, but unfortunately their flights aren’t daily and it didn’t fit our itinerary. The flights out of Kasane were also slightly more expensive, so it was more convenient to get back to Victoria Falls Airport in Zimbabwe.
We didn’t pre-book any activities and decided what we wanted to do upon arrival through Avani. You absolutely don’t have to book everything beforehand, there were plenty of spots available.
Our kids enjoyed the hotel a lot, because the animals were walking everywhere so even hanging out at the property was an attraction. The zebras were coming to the pool frequently, which was insanely cool.
We did a game drive with the kids, we booked a dinner at the conjoined Royal Livingstone Hotel when an elephant decided to accompany us almost to the table. Another night we had a Boma dinner at the property, which is known in the area and the kids danced and got their faces painted.
You can walk to the falls through the hotel’s entrance, so we did some hiking with the kids.
As the kids were not old enough for some activities and enjoyed the on-site kids club, my husband and I were able to visit Devil’s Pool while they were cared for and played.
Days 8-11: Botswana
Hotel: Chobe Marina Lodge
You can absolutely take a day trip to Chobe National Park in Botswana, but I personally thought that a 3-hour drive both ways, a game drive, and a river cruise in one day was just too much for the little kids as it would have been a 14-hour long day. This is why I booked a lodge directly in Botswana for 2 nights, which was perfect.
We booked a shuttle from Avani to our next lodge: Chobe Marina Lodge in Kasane. We left around 11 am and arrived at our lodge directly at lunch.
The border crossing between Zambia and Botswana was quick, but remember that you must carry kids’ birth certificates with you – otherwise, they won’t let you in!
The lodge was all-inclusive in terms of meals and included one free activity a day. The day we arrived we opted for an afternoon cruise that lasted until sunset.
The next morning we did an early morning game drive and relaxed at the pool in the afternoon by the pool and watched the monkeys and warthogs.
Days 9-10: South Africa
Hotel: We Stayed at Shangri-La Hotel, but also recommend Castle de Wildt
We booked another shuttle from the lodge in Botswana to Victoria Falls Airport in Zimbabwe. We had enough time to explore the town of Victoria Falls as our flight got delayed. Upon arrival in Johannesburg around 4 pm we rented a car and started driving north to our next lodge.
You don’t have to rent a car, and the lodge can arrange a shuttle from the airport, but as we arrived late we would need to spend the night at the airport again, which didn’t seem appealing. Instead, we drove at our own pace and spent the night at the beautiful family-run lodge about 45 minutes from the Welgevonden Game Reserve gate where we could arrive on time at 11 am.
Driving in South Africa is very easy and safe unless you drive at night. You can leave the rental car at the safe and guarded location at the main gate, so you don’t have to worry about it getting stolen or broken into.
Days 11-14: South Africa
Hotel: Mhondoro Safari Lodge
Our final stop was Mhondoro Safari Lodge, which was an absolute highlight. It’s probably the best luxury hotel we’ve ever stayed at with the kids, as it catered perfectly to adults and children simultaneously. My kids want to move in permanently, so we will be returning there soon.
The property is absolutely beautiful and has limited villas. The highlight is of course a main pool where, if you’re lucky, you’ll spot elephants coming to drink. Every day we debated whether to have another game drive or stay in and wait to see what animals can come visit us by the pool.
We had our ranger who was engaging and understanding of the kids’ needs and the little ones were eager to do a 5 am drive for the whole 3 hours – that’s how good it was. We would have breakfast afterward and send the kids to a little on-site preschool where they could socialize with local kids while we had time to relax for a bit.
After lunch, the ranger would offer an activity for the kids, such as cookie making or fishing, and we would either stay by the pool or have another game drive until dinner (I’d say we alternated the days). The property also offered a Boma dinner for everyone, which was a little late for the kids, but we set them up with some chairs to sleep on after eating.
Did my post help you plan a trip? You can say thank you by buying me a coffee 🙂
