“Can you really take children on safari?”

My answer is always yes.

In fact, I think safari can be one of the most incredible holidays you can experience as a family. Seeing an elephant in the wild, watching a pride of lions from a safari vehicle or spotting giraffes on the horizon is completely different to seeing these animals in a book or on television. Children tend to become very invested in the experience very quickly.

The key is choosing the right safari.

Not every lodge accepts younger children, some reserves have age restrictions on game drives, and spending hours in a vehicle every day is not necessarily the best introduction to safari for a five-year-old. But get the destination, lodge and pace right and there are brilliant options for toddlers, school-age children and teenagers.

South Africa

For a first family safari, South Africa is often where I start.

One of its biggest advantages is the choice of malaria-free reserves. This can be particularly reassuring for families travelling with younger children, and there are some fantastic lodges that really understand families.

A good family safari lodge is about much more than game drives. Look for junior ranger programmes, nature walks around the lodge, tracking activities and guides who know how to keep children interested. Some lodges also offer shorter or private game drives, which can make a huge difference when travelling with younger children.

South Africa is also very easy to combine with Cape Town, the Winelands or a few days on the coast, so the safari does not need to be the entire holiday.

Kenya

Kenya is another destination I love for families, particularly because it is relatively straightforward to reach from London.

This is the classic African safari many people picture when they first start dreaming about the experience: huge landscapes, lions, elephants, giraffes and, depending on when you travel, the Great Migration.

It can also work surprisingly well at different budgets. You do not necessarily need to stay in the most expensive luxury camps to have a fantastic safari experience.

After a few days in the bush, you can fly down to the Kenyan coast for some beach time. A few nights around Mombasa or one of the nearby beach resorts creates that lovely safari-and-beach combination without adding another country or lots of complicated logistics.

Tanzania

If you want a real bucket-list family adventure, Tanzania is hard to beat.

A safari in the Serengeti feels wonderfully wild, with vast open plains and extraordinary wildlife. Depending on your itinerary, you can also experience the Ngorongoro Crater and see Mount Kilimanjaro, making the journey itself as memorable as the game drives.

Then there is Zanzibar.

Flying from safari to Zanzibar for a few days on the beach is one of my favourite combinations for families. After early starts, dusty safari drives and days packed with excitement, suddenly you are swimming in the Indian Ocean and spending lazy afternoons by the pool.

It gives everyone a chance to slow down before flying home.

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka is not always the first destination that comes to mind when someone says safari, which is exactly why I like including it.

You can see wild elephants, crocodiles, monkeys, bears and, if you are lucky, leopards. Seeing elephants roaming freely in a national park can be every bit as exciting for children as an African safari.

The difference is that wildlife can form just one part of a much bigger journey. You might combine a safari with temples, tea country, train journeys, beaches and fantastic food.

For a family that wants wildlife but is not sure about committing to a traditional African safari holiday, Sri Lanka can be a brilliant alternative.

Making safari work with children

I would never recommend simply taking an adult safari itinerary and adding children to it. Family safaris need a little more thought.

The age of the children, how long they are happy sitting in a vehicle, whether you need a malaria-free destination and what you want to do afterwards all matter. The lodge matters enormously too.

But when it is planned properly, safari is so much more than a holiday where you see animals.

There is something very special about experiencing it together as a family. The early morning starts, the excitement when your guide spots something in the distance, the conversations over dinner about what everyone saw that day.

Those are the moments children remember. And they are exactly why I think safari deserves a place on the family travel wish list.