16+1 THINGS YOU MUST PACK FOR YOUR SAFARI

Safari in Tanzania!

I was planning this trip for a long time, since I wanted so desperately to go for a safari! I tried to create below guide (hopefully useful) for anyone planning on going to a safari for the first time!

To begin with, I visited Tanzania and specifically Serengeti National Park during the month of October as it was the beginning of the summer in that area! A good choice with warm weather but not extremely hot! I will not go into the specifics of my trip in this article but I will focus on the must-pack items before your adventure begins! For details regarding the trip, check my other article: “Safari: an one in a lifetime experience.”

1. BINOCULARS. Even if the rest of your friends may have a pair with them, believe me you will need yours too! During the safari you are in the jeep and you watch & follow the animals in their natural environment. But they are not close to you all the time, actually the opposite I would say. Many times they are scared, they are too far or they just want to be left alone, consequently binoculars are necessary! Angel’s tip: I know it may sound crazy but i managed to take some great photos with my phone through the binoculars. Not the easiest way to focus and find the correct lens but the result was so cool!
2. A DSLR camera. I know it is expensive but if you don’t have any and you can borrow one, do it! Zooming in and out is soooo important during the safari in order to capture some great pictures of the wild animals and the end result from pictures taken with your smart phone may not always be the best. Angel’s tip: be prepared to have enough memory space available on your mobile & camera. I have an iPhone and due to lack of internet my photos were not moving to the icloud. All photos were stuck in the device storage & I couldn’t take any more photos until I deleted some old ones!
3. A SAFARI HAT. Ok, undoubtedly it is primarily adding up on your “safary look” and the photos are much better with the appropriate outfit but sun sometimes is getting pretty intense during noon hours, so it is serving a practical purpose as well!
4. DRESSING IN LAYERS. Casual neutral colored clothes in layers are ideal since you will be in the jeep for like 10-12 hours starting early in the morning with a jacket and only a t-shirt around noon. Ideally wear long trousers due to the mosquitoes and the flies. It is almost certain that at the end of the day your clothes will be covered in dust as the 4×4 is open in the most part of it. Angel’s tip: I was wearing a t-shirt, a cardigan and a jacket with trousers in order to be ok with the different temperatures during day and night.
5. COMFORTABLE SHOES. You can choose either sneakers or boots with the relevant socks to protect your ankles from the mosquitoes. As mentioned before, you spend many hours in the car, so good comfortable shoes are important.
6. SUNSGLASSES.
7. LIP BALM.
8. STRONG MOSQUITO REPELLENT. Prior to my arrival in Tanzania, I had a yellow fever vaccination. Despite that, you need to have with you and use every day a mosquito repellent to avoid getting infected mosquito bites and protect yourself from malaria and other diseases.
9. PILLS FOR MALARIA. I was advised from the Hellenic National Public Health Organization to take every day pills for Malaria. I started with 1 pill 1 day before my flight to Africa and continued for 7 days after my arrival back in Greece.
10. MEDS for headache, motion-sickness, fever, diarrhea, monquito bites.
11. HAND SANITIZER AND WET WIPES.
12. A FLASHLIGHT. This is maybe useful for the night and your transfer between lodges or if there are power outages.
13. SUNSCREEN. As I mentioned earlier, the sun is strong and you may need sunscreen especially if you are not used to it. After my safari I went to Zanzibar island in Tanzania and there it was absolutely necessary.
14. SWIMSUIT as many lodges have swimming pool. Sandals as well or flip-flops.
15. CLOTHES FOR THE NIGHT. No, I don’t mean an outfit for drinks or a crazy night out with the animals, haha. I mean clean outfit (as your clothes after the safari are full of dust) for the dinner time in the lodges. When you are back you will certainly have the desire for a nice bath and clean set of clothes for the dinner. This is something I almost forgot as I had in mind one outfit for each day.
16. SNACKS. I don’t know what type of person you are when it comes to food. If breakfast early in the morning around 06:00 and lunch is enough to keep you going till 19:00-20:00 at night that the next meal is available, for me it was not enough. That’s why I had brought some snacks with me to eat something extra during the day (preferably sealed snacks that can be preserved even in warm weather).

EXTRA: I am sure you have already thought about it but it is not exactly during the safari in the park but before or after. You may meet local people or kids in need. It will be great if you will have some extra snacks, gifts or clothes with you for them. From socks to toys, to t-shirts you don’t wear anymore. I did it and their happiness was priceless.

Pleased to hear your thoughts and tips if you went to a safari!

*For more Pictures check my posts and relevant highlight on Instagram*

IG: angeliki.a_