Hello from South Africa!  We are thrilled to be here again after 5 years!  We are currently in Hermanus, a lovely coastal town south of Cape Town and headed on Safari tomorrow.  I love when I get reader requests for packing lists and they happen to be something I’m packing for, too!

We traveled to South Africa with Natural World Safaris in the Spring of 2019 and dream of returning.  Africa will steal your heart!  If you’ve been, you know.  If not, put it at the TOP of your Travel Bucket List!  I shared my packing list and what I wore on Safari in South Africa when we went but wanted to update this to be a packing list for anywhere in Africa.

Safari Style

I packed all shades of ivory, tan, khaki, army green and navy for our trip.  We were traveling to two different places in South Africa prior to our safaris so I had to maximize my packing.  Being able to mix and match was key!  We went during their late Fall so it was cool in the mornings and when the sun went down but very pleasant in the day.  We did two game drives each day; one in the early morning and one in the late afternoon once we had afternoon tea.  This trip is the beginning of their Winter but I packed the same.

Here are a few safari looks and links to similar items.

Navy Tshirt / Similar Navy Cargo Pants / Tall Leather Boots / Similar baseball cap / Similar jacket / Gold Scarf

Early morning game drives can be beautiful and clear but a cool 55° or so. Even cooler when you are moving in an open truck.  Those mornings you’ll start in several layers like I have on: T-shirt, Sweater, Vest, and a quilted Barbour Jacket.  There were blankets in the truck to put over your legs first thing in the am.  The evenings didn’t get quite as cool so just took the Jacket and scarf.

 Tan Sweater / White Shirt / Green Cargo Pants (similar) / Boots / Gold Scarf / Similar Quilted Safari Jacket 

Baseball Cap (similar) / Tan Sweater / White Shirt / Green Cargo Pants / Boots 

Green T-Shirt / Green Cargo Pants / Boots / Gold Scarf / Hermes Belt / Baseball cap (similar)

Some days you’ll really use all the layers in different combinations and there were several times I wore all my layers at once!  It was even cooler when the truck was moving so I’m glad I did!  When it warmed up after an hour or so, I took off the coat, vest and scarf.

Navy Tshirt / Similar Navy Cargo Pants / Tall leather Boots / Similar baseball cap / Hermes Belt / Scarf (similar)

I brought cargo pants that held their shape well so it was easy to wear the pants several times.  The lodges also did laundry for us also. Many people sent me messages about these boots asking if they were comfortable and YES!  They have great padding in them and are very soft leather so wearing them most of the day and evening was not an issue.  The shaft collapses flat so they took up almost no room.

Green T-Shirt (similar) / White Shirt / Green Cargo Pants / Hermes Belt / tan sandals

For travel, I removed the sweater and used the white shirt as a “jacket” for our drive to the next lodge.  I reworked the combo for the Evening drive once we arrived and Sundowners at Royal Malewane.

 Quilted Safari Jacket / Gold Scarf / Canvas Utility Jacket (similar) 

A repeat of all my favorites and every layer for a chilly morning!

Dinner Looks

The places we stayed and from what I can tell a good bit of safari camps are dressier for dinner.  Here are a few things I wore for dinner to give you some ideas.  I have linked others for you below.

Similar Green Dress / Similar Sandals / Basket Bag

The color was perfect for the earthy tones of Africa.  I’ve linked several green and khaki dresses for you.  This is still one of my favorite dresses.  I took it to Italy with us also and I love wearing it.  Turned out to be a perfect choice as the staff surprised us with a special anniversary dinner in the wine room at Sabi Sabi!  So amazing!  This was extra special because we didn’t really do anything for our actual anniversary because we were packing for this trip!

I love packing dresses that take up almost no room in my suitcase.  I wore this pretty pink one and am linking a similar one here.    I brought this cape for the plane and wore it when it was cool at night.

I love to dress for dinner at home and when we travel.  Everyone did dress for dinner at Royal Malewane so this dress (similar linked) was perfect. The silk ikat seemed the perfect print to bring with me and the colors fit in perfectly with this gorgeous lodge.

I hope this gives you a good idea of what to pack for an African safari.  I’ll be updating this after our trip with other photos of the items from the boutique below that I wore on this trip.  I’ll also be doing a packing list for Tanzania when we go in July.  It will be slightly different.

Putting together these packing lists are one of my favorite posts to create.  Let me know where you are headed and I’ll create a packing list for you!

xo

Alicia

SHOP THE AFRICAN SAFARI PACKING LIST