How This Family Found Heart and Home on Safari

Sure, it’s a bucketlist vacation, but a safari in South Africa will send you home with much more than an overstuffed scrapbook of great photos. Our writer herded up her entire family for an Adventures by Disney journey that included perspective-changing game drives in search of the Big Five.

PLANNING A FAMILY VACATION can be difficult at the best of times, but now that I am the mother of three young adults, the challenge of finding a time that fits everyone’s hectic schedules is compounded by finding a vacation appealing enough for my “children” to prioritize family time over their competing interests. It is complicated and frustrating at best, a comparable situation might be herding cats—actually, in this case, let’s say lions.

I knew that an epic trip would be the enticement needed to get my entire family on board. We love animals and adventure, so I wanted to incorporate activities celebrating nature, but that still left many wonderful destinations. As a Black woman growing up in America, Africa has held a compelling allure. I have always wanted to go to Africa. So that narrowed the focus to an entire continent, but when the Adventures by Disney South Africa trip — including a safari — became available, I knew this was the trip of my dreams. This would be a special experience for us because none of us had ever traveled to any part of Africa. We were embarking upon a journey to bond and make memories. This trip offered something to meet all the our interests of my family of mostly animal fans. The only surprise was how impactful a little mouse would be to clearing everyone’s schedules, but Mickey worked his magic and we were headed to the bush.

From the moment we stepped foot in Cape Town and traveled to Kapama Private Game Reserve, I did not have to plan a single activity or lift any luggage. Our Adventure Guides, Jameel and Craig, served as our 24-hour concierges, including arranging for the “Tinkerbellmen” to have our bags waiting for us in our rooms upon our arrival. They organized everything, our meals which included a traditional braai (a South African barbecue) and afternoon teas before safari. With the necessities of life taken care of, we only had to focus on enjoying our vacation and family time. The trip offers a packed schedule, but we decided how active we wanted to be each day. My family left no stone unturned, if it was available, someone tried it, and we became fully immersed in the safari experience. From the moment we embarked on our first game drive we were ready to explore the bush in open air all-terrain vehicles.

Observing animals in their natural habitat was obviously one of my favorite things about safari. A close second, however, was the unexpected surprise of peace and serenity that we experienced as we watched the glorious sunrises across the horizon. Game drives begin early, so whether those quiet moments were engendered simply by awe or a mixture of awe and exhaustion is still a bit unclear to me, but regardless it was beautiful. I discovered that South Africa has some of the best sunrises and sunsets. My family is normally a chatty bunch but being outdoors we were in sync with nature, and the quiet that surrounded us was calming. I think our senses were heightened because we were so focused on the natural beauty and trying to find the Big Five: lions, elephants, buffalo, leopards and rhinos. One thing I learned early on during the safari is that we were not in control. The animals have their own rhythm and routines, so we had to be vigilant and humble as we tried to glimpse them in their world.

The only “hunting” we did was for the perfect photo of our favorite animals. You quickly learn to keep your cameras out because you never know what you are going to encounter. Having your camera at the ready to capture the perfect photo opportunity is part of the sport, but just enjoying the moment and making memories worked too. I knew that the animals were not going to pose for photos, but I was surprised by the number of animal backsides I encountered—it was a lot. A sense of humor and patience goes a long way on safari especially when you are focused, as I was on sharing my experience with others via my “perfect” photos. But that’s part of the fun, and thankfully, no two game drives were identical so the variety and the unexpected were our constant companions, too.

With all of that “hard work” trying to take the perfect photo, avoid branches, and stay in the all-terrain vehicle, we also happily had opportunities for breaks. I lived for sundowners, basically safari happy-hour cocktails in the middle of the bush. We basked in the setting sun and shared highlights from the game drives—whether it was watching a lion watch us as it strolled past our vehicle, baby elephants snuggling alongside their moms, zebras drinking from the watering hole or hippos swimming midday—all while sipping Savanna Ciders. This ability to decompress and share our impressions and favorite moments was quiet luxury at its best.

I was grateful to have seen so many magnificent creatures in their natural habitat. I am an educator from Pennsylvania who suddenly turned into an adventurer and wildlife photographer as the air whipped through my hair and I ducked branches searching for leopards during a night time game drive. The thrill of searching for and occasionally finding so many elusive animals who were often camouflaged by trees or meandering towards a watering hole was surreal. I remember being surprised several times as our vehicle approached a bend and a regal giraffe would be standing nonchalantly chewing on a tree branch. Each time I was left astounded wondering how I did not see the world’s tallest animal looming about until it was right in front of me. I am in awe of nature. Experiencing nature in such an authentic and vulnerable way was humbling. I felt so small in such a big world but at the same time I felt my unique place in the world.

I almost teared up when one of our guides said, “Welcome home!” I felt it so profoundly. Perhaps he was referring to the luxurious lodging proudly on display in the middle of the wilderness but to me it meant more than that. By this point, it was no longer an adventure about animals; it was a journey home for me. No, I have no knowledge of a familial connection to South Africa but I felt embraced by the people and the culture. I can see why people go back to South Africa over and over and why it is affectionately known as “Mother City.”cktk The country offered a vacation that I did not know I needed. And I think the same was true for my family, as well. It is not often that the five of us can travel and everyone is happy. We all agreed that our favorite moments of the trip happened on safari, but we each have a list of our other top five experiences—such as wine tasting, nature hikes, art galleries, animal sanctuaries and golf. South Africa offered something to feed each of our individual souls. We felt at home. 

Adventures by Disney South Africa vacations from US$11,099 per person for 10 days.

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