I’m so glad you enjoyed it. My middle kid was only 10 when we visited (he’s 28 now) and he still remembers the name of the Cape Town restaurant where we ate.
Reviving this thread as we are going planning to do a safari for our anniversary next year. I have reached out to the company recommended by friends (they had a fabulous time) but would love to hear others’ experiences, recommendations, favorite experiences, etc. we are checking to see when the migrations are.
There are so many possibilities! I loved the private game preserves to the west of Kruger National Park. There are no fences in that area so the animals come and go freely. The advantage over KNP is that the guides can take you off road. You will get much closer to the animals. Sabi Sands has the larger number of leopards in the world.
The accommodations and food are top notch.
This was my favorite camp (I’ve stayed in several): Simbambili Game Lodge - Thornybush Game Reserve Kruger Park
I will say I would love to go to Botswana some day. 
Do you have specific questions?
A relative stayed at Notten’s Bush Camp. They said they were incredible. They are a third generation family business. Food to die for, two two hour animal drives a day and everyone has their own cottage. They abut Kruger National Park.
@MaineLonghorn this sounds like the type of park you are referring to.
Yes there are quite a few.
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My main advice is to stay as long as you can and go on every ride available. The one you skip might be the one where they see seven male lions drinking from a pond.
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Thanks. I am still in the data gathering stage but this is all very helpful! Talked at length tonight with a friend who has been to several parts of africa also helpful. so much to think through
I wouldn’t go during our winter when it’s summer there. It can be very hot.
And any other time of year, take a jacket, just in case. Early morning rides in an open vehicle can be chillier than you’d think.
We did an extended family trip about 11 years ago to Kenya. It was the trip of a lifetime. The person organizing our trip planned a 10 day safari for our group of 10. We did a mix of small lodges and ended at a tent camp in the Masai Mara. We flew from place to place by small plane which was great as we didn’t waste a lot of time driving and the roads weren’t great. We went during August and were able to see the wildebeest migration.
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That sounds awesome!
We went to Kenya also in that same time frame with our two daughters that were about 8 and 11. We stayed at a farm stay at the Kembu Cottages in Njoro to get over our jet lag first. While there, we took a day trip to Lake Nakuru. Then we moved on to the Laikipia Plateau staying at the Kicheche Tent Camp. There, we went on game drives, night drives, tracked a radio collared lion, took a walking safari, and visited a chimp sanctuary (only thing I’d skip as they were very mean), and another animal sanctuary that housed the last surviving white male rhino I believe (who has since died).
We next flew to the Masaai Mara and stayed outside the park at Acacia House which was associated at the time with Rekero homes. Another great experience with two Masaai guides who were the best hosts ever. We had a staff member who would greet us when we returned from the field to offer us cool drinks and snacks. Our girls thought that was the best thing ever to be able to walk in the door and be handed a Coke!
Finally we stayed at the Ocean Sports Hotel at the beach near Watamu. This was our least luxurious accommodation, but perfectly fine. We visited a snake park which housed most of the venomous snakes of Kenya and produced antivenin. My H hates snakes, so skipped it, but the girls enjoyed it. We also went on a snorkeling trip in the warm waters of the Indian Ocean. My youngest loved how warm it was.
I would highly recommend a Trip to Africa - everything was simply amazing and breathtaking (except traveling by car). I also recommend all of our accommodations which were very luxurious with the exception of the beach hotel. The farm stay was also a notch below the safari camps, but the service and food was still impeccable.
We had a travel agent in the UK make our arrangements but I can’t remember the name. Someone recommended using an African Safari travel specialist from the UK and we were glad we did.
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Some that we are looking at are on the equator which seems pretty temperate
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We didn’t go on a Safari, but we did go to a wonderful game park for a very long full day trip in Rwanda which is smack on the equator. But we also had a lot of other things to do while in Rwanda.
I will add, we also spent 8 days in Capetown, and also had a ton of things that we did there. We went right after Thanksgiving, and the weather was fine.
Have a wonderful time planning this trip. It’s really an amazing continent, with so many things to see.
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I meant to reply to Jym626 I think! Sorry.
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We had 4 younger travelers with us. They loved afternoon tea each afternoon, cake everyday and before dinner! They also loved the delivery each morning of a hot beverage and cookie to their room. Each night before bed they would ask everyone coffee, tea or hot chocolate and it would come with a light knock on the door and a soft spoken good morning.
All our lodging were high end. A favorite with everyone was Lewa Wilderness Lodge. We also love Ol Malo lodge. I can’t recall the name of the place we stayed near Lake Nakuru but it was our least favorite lodge. Three of the places we stayed had horses which was a treat for one of my daughters.
We met several groups that combined Kenya with the seeing the gorillas in Uganda.
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I forgot that one of our girls’ favorite memories of Kenya is having hot water bottles put in their beds! We were so pampered!
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I loved that. I had forgotten about that treat.
One to is make sure you have a good bra. I wish I had brought a sports bra as some of the drives were a bit uncomfortable and I’m not well endowed.
I haven’t been to Africa, but I have heard this advice given many times:
stay in the vehicle
I stayed at that hotel! We also visited the Cape of Good Hope. A motorcyclist drove in at the same time, having just completed his journey from somewhere in Scandinavia. It was pretty cool to watch him celebrate with a bottle of champagne he pulled out of his pannier.
We visited both the Paarl Valley and Stellenbosch. We did an amazing horseback ride through vineyards with a wine picnic.
We really wanted to swim at Boulders Beach. I can’t remember exactly what time of year we were there, but the weather was warm. It might have been May or June. The water, however, was absolutely frigid. We could barely stick a toe in. But if you’re a hardy sort, go for it.
Sadly, I have never done a safari but it’s on my list. I do agree that a guide is the way to go, based on lots of other people who have done similar. Sounds like a great trip, have fun!
Yes, and in the safari vehicles.
Once we came around a corner in the bush and there were tables covered with white table cloths and quite the lunch spread!
I may have mentioned it before, but large gratuities are the norm. They give you a guide. I was a little shocked but we have what was suggested. The ranger, tracker, and lodge staff are all tipped.