traskyuk

Thank you all Fodorites!! With the help of this forum, my tour company and various friends who have been on safari, I think that my wife and I are finally ready for our first safari which kicks off in two days in Tanzania!! We're really excited, but wanted to run our packing list by those out there with a bit more experience (which is everybody) and see if we forgot anything. I've already scoured all the postings on packing, but everybody's trip is a bit different with timings/locations. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I'll share a trip report after we get back in July.

Packing List (per person)

- backpack
- socks x4
- underwear x4
- pants (zip-off) x2
- t-shirts x3
- long sleeve x2
- sweater
- fleece jacket
- scarf/bandana x2
- thermal underwear
- flashlight
- hat
- sunglasses (blue tint)
- hiking boots
- sandals
- casual dinner shirts x2
- malaria meds. (Malarone)
- insect repellent (50% deet)
- mp3 player
- extra batteries
- plug converters/adapters
- kid's colorful pencils
- toiletries
- camera bag with lots of memory/film
- lots of one dollar bills
- ziploc baggies
- daypack

* We're going to Tanzania and working on the traditional circuit (i.e.- Tarangire, Ngorongoro, Serengeti) with an end of the trip light aircraft flight from Seronera to Arusha. Our baggage will need to be 33 lbs. each so we don't have much more room. We'll be staying in mostly lodges and ending with two nights at Kirawira tented camp.

Do you think this looks OK? Will we be warm enough, or have we overpacked? Chance of rain during this time of year?

Thanks for all the help!!

atravelynn

Toiletries may include your suntan lotion and sun protection lip balm.

Do your sunglasses have a neck strap?

Binocs?

Sports bra for wife due to bumpy travel?

It's only hours now!

tashak

Good list! Atravelynn added all the stuff I was thinking...except
*flipflops to wear for showers and in your tent/camp
*eye drops (to wash out grit) and perhaps doctor prescribed antibiotic eye drops in case you get scratched before you wash out grit...especially important for contact lense wearers

Also: give those colorful pencils to a school, not to kids on the road. Gifts like this train them to beg, a really really bad thing. In fact, re-selling these pencils becomes an alternative to school, so instead of encouraging kids in school you end up encouraging begging and truancy. (Think about it: the kids in schools aren't the ones by the road begging for pencils.)

There are several threads about this...personally, I'd leave the pencils home. With a very small amount of cash, schools can buy pencils locally. A really valuable gift for a school would be a paperback dictionary, small atlas or other such educational book. Unlike pencils, books are expensive and hard to get in these areas.

linjudy

Have you thought about bringing ear plugs? As thrilling as it may be to hear lions roar and elephants trumpet at night, after 1 or 2 nights of not being able to sleep due to noise, I was really glad I had earplugs.

nkh

I dont know if these go in toiletries as well, but.....

Two items really necessary to take and have on game drives are toilet paper and antibacterial handwash (the no-rinse kind. We found there was sometimes no tp at stops in parks, and also rarely running water to wash hands. Some tp in one pocket and small bottle of handwash in other made the experience much easier

also some basic first-aid stuff

small selection of bandaids
antibiotic cream (e.g. polysporin)
aspirin (also good to take on flight to avoid thrombosis)
imodium tablets (upset stomach/anti diarrhea)
travel packs of kleenex
some broad-spectrum cold medication tablets (you never know.....)
allergy/antihistamine medication tablets (just in case an allergy shows up!)


In general, there are few opportunities to find any of these things while in parks, although your guide will have a first aid kit - so a few precautionary meds are a good idea.

Leave all pills etc. at least in their (labeled!) blister packs, and preferably in clearly marked bottles or boxes to avoid any problems with customs.

Have a great trip, I am jealous!

napamatt

passports
tickets

just checking

Leely

Don't forget your sense of humor!

Have a wonderful time. I'm looking forward to hearing all about it.

Duck

Binoculars?

wallybrenda

*Travel packs of kleenex tissue are perfect for game drive bio breaks.
*Individual hand wash packets were also great to have.
Both of these items can go in your safari pants pockets easily.
*A wide brimmed hat that breathes is a must.
*Sunscreen
* Eye drops for sure..


I used the medium and large sized airlock travel bags for all my clothes. It helped reduce the size of the clothes making them fit in my duffel bags better. Plus they stayed dust free, made it easy to unpack and they worked great to repack dirty clothes in for the trip home.

Have a great trip!
Brenda

TravelMaster

Hi:

You may want to thow in some face cloths. Outside of the US or Canada they are a 'hit or miss' as to if the hotel/lodge will provide them. In Kenya they didn't but we'd packed a few just in case.

Z

mpkp

zip lock bags for soiled tp. It is better to pack it out and leave no trace.

cocco1

This is a great thread; I've copied the suggestions to a Word document for future reference (6 months to go).

As for additions to the list:
1. A beanbag on which to rest your camera lens
2. Proof of required immunizations for Tanzania
3. A photocopy of your passport in case original is lost, or otherwise

matnikstym

photocopies of credit cards and number to call if lost or stolen. have a great trip...4 more months for me!

jdbnola

If I'm not too late, take a small notebook to keep a journal. We still look back at ours (my husband and I each kept one and wrote in it evry afternoon or night.)
I also took a knitted ski cap to sleep when it's cold at night (we were in tents.)
Have a great trip.