My wife and I are taking a two-week vacation in South Africa!
Our plans include a trip to a nature reserve to see wild animals, diving into the ocean with sharks, and sipping wine throughout the vineyards outside of Cape Town. Selecting the right clothes to bring on this trip is tricky, since we need to prepare for both urban exploration and trekking out on a safari.
Our main destinations in South Africa:
- Sabi Sand Game Reserve
- Cape Town
- Grootbos Nature Reserve
I found the following articles/blogs/websites very helpful:
Ultimate Safari Clothes Guide: What To Wear On Safari In Africa
What to Pack: African Safari Packing List
What to Pack: African Safari Packing List
And as always, Google is your friend.
General Guidelines
Stick to earth-tone colors
One of the keys to a successful safari in Africa is being able to see the big five game animals: lion, elephant, buffalo, leopard, and rhino. In order to maximize your chances, you need to blend in with the surrounding environment. This doesn't require full camouflage gear, but sticking to khaki, green, and beige will help you fit in better. Also, avoid blue and black, which attracts the tsetse fly. This bug can bite through clothing and put you at risk for something known as "sleeping sickness".
Pack lightly
It's obvious, but you always want to pack as little as you can get away with. Many of the camps on the nature reserves offer complimentary laundry service. This helps to keep you as clean as possible with what little attire you bring!
Prepare for cold weather, even in hot-climate areas
Sabi Sand in September can get hot during the day (80-degrees F), but safaris often include early-morning and late-night drives throughout the park. Naturally, it's colder during these times. Also, Cape Town can be rainy and cold this time of year. Having layers and long-sleeves not only keep you warm, but prevent bugs from biting.
Bring even the most common over-the-counter medications
Out on the nature reserves, the nearest town might be a plane-ride away. Even simple medications may be hard to find. Advil, Imodium, Tums, etc. are easy enough to get while at home, might as well bring them along for the trip.
The REI Lookout 40
This is my go-to 40-liter travel backpack. It's lasted me 4 years. Up to this point, I've used it as a daily-carry, a day-hiking pack, and travel bag (near or far). It was good enough for my four-week trip in Europe, I'm betting it'll be good enough for South Africa.
Tops
Long-sleeve tees, short-sleeve tees, and a single button-down. I generally like wool, but some of these are cotton or some kind of blend. Either way, they're all relatively thin and light, perfect for layering.
For the vineyards and urban wandering, some casual wear doesn't hurt.
Random Tees from Nordstrom
Bottoms
I decided against bringing hiking shorts. Tech pants are perfect for covering up, but being light and airy. I also opted for casual-looking pants rather than cargo, just to avoid sticking out too much as a safari tourist while in Cape Town (we'll see).
Basketball shorts and swimming trunks, for lounging around the lodges and diving with the sharks.
Footwear
Although it's tempting to bring my hiking boots along with me on the safaris, it might look a bit too touristy while exploring the streets of Cape Town. Instead of going full-on outdoors, I decided with a casual "office-to-trail" shoe. For lounging around and getting my feet wet, I also grabbed a pair of Teva slippers. Both are comfortable and very lightweight.
Accessories and Electronics
I generally don't like to bring too many accessories along, but if I have some extra space, I like to bring my sunglasses, a watch, and wallet. They don't take up much room and are very handy to have, even as a daily carry.
It can also be tricky packing electronics, since batteries, tablets, and laptops can take up valuable weight and space. I decided to bring my thin and light MacBook. I'm also bringing a charging pack, just in case we find ourselves without an outlet. With two long flights (14 hours and 8 hours respectively), some headphones are also an essential item to pack!
It can also be tricky packing electronics, since batteries, tablets, and laptops can take up valuable weight and space. I decided to bring my thin and light MacBook. I'm also bringing a charging pack, just in case we find ourselves without an outlet. With two long flights (14 hours and 8 hours respectively), some headphones are also an essential item to pack!
AmazonBasics Portable Charger
Conclusion
All of these items brought the weight of my bag to just about 15lbs, which is the limit for carry-on luggage for Emirates, our airline. Not bad for three destinations! Questions, comments, suggestions, let me know!
1 comment:
Thanks for the information! I am looking to travel to Cape Town. When I first heard about the drought in cape town I didn't want to go anymore! But now since that has died-down, I am ready to go!
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