National parks and private game reserves in Southern Africa that are ideal for family safaris with young children. The CDC Yellow Book page for South Africa shows which districts carry malaria risk.
Malaria-free safari areas can be found across much of South Africa, from the Eastern Cape to the Waterberg and the North West, as well as in Namibia’s Namib Desert and the Kalahari that South Africa shares with Botswana. Most of these areas are home to the Big Five and offer safari lodges or camps that cater to families with specific family-friendly activities. Closer to Cape Town, our 4-Day Cape Safari spends three nights at Aquila, a malaria-free Karoo reserve near Touwsrivier.
Addo
Addo Elephant National Park was proclaimed in 1931 to save the last 11 elephants in the region and has grown into one of South Africa’s largest national parks, at about 164,000 hectares. The park extends to the coast, and whale sightings are frequent, particularly between June and December when Southern Right and Humpback whales migrate to these waters. Great white sharks and southern right whales are the most frequent marine visitors. Critically endangered African penguins breed on St Croix Island in Algoa Bay, within the park’s marine protected area, while Cape gannets nest on nearby Bird Island and albatrosses and gulls fish the same waters. The park houses a vast and diverse variety of life. All big game on the usual list can be sighted here, including the critically endangered black rhino.
Shamwari
Shamwari is most notable for its consistent conservation efforts, and is regarded as a leading figure globally when it comes to conservation. The park prides itself in keeping the wilderness wild and preserving and even rehabilitating wildlife where necessary. The reserve’s strong support of conservation projects, like the “Born Free Foundation,” is reflected in the beautiful landscape and wildlife on show there for all guests and visitors to take in and enjoy. The reserve is privately managed, and the lodges found within 250 square kilometers are few, offering a tranquil atmosphere in which to relax, some 75 km from the nearest city buzz. For a family or small group, Sarili Private Villa on Shamwari has six bedrooms and its own game-drive vehicle, ranger and tracker.
Sossusvlei
Sossusvlei, from a distance, seems like a lifeless pan surrounded by the arid Namib Desert in the south of the Namib–Naukluft National Park in Namibia. However, looks can sometimes deceive more than we might anticipate. The area is surrounded by red dunes that seemingly go on forever in every direction. These dunes are among the most sought-after in Namibia for their height and shape, making them ideal for activities that will bring the daredevil out of you. In addition to the activities, the scenery in nearby Deadvlei and Sesriem Canyon are a photographer’s dream, with brilliant colors and a silent window into a world that has remained virtually unchanged for millions of years, an amazing contrast to the ever-shifting dunes.
Entabeni
Entabeni, meaning “place of the mountain”, may confuse you if you’ve laid eyes on some of the great mountain ranges of the world, but to the locals of the Waterberg area of Limpopo in South Africa, the area is considerably mountainous. This is yet another private reserve outside the areas pestered by malaria. The reserve is about three hours by road from the city hubs of Pretoria and Johannesburg, but is as wild as they come. Elephants are among the larger animals found here, along with leopards, cheetahs and buffalo. The reserve is another prime example of the power of conservation. For years this area was depleted of its natural diversity and beauty as farmlands edged ever deeper into the Limpopo region. The damage has clearly been undone in recent years.
Welgevonden
Welgevonden is the second private reserve on this list found in the Waterberg Biosphere Reserve. The reserve is home to the Big Five, a great variety of birds and a host of luxurious and extremely hospitable lodges and camps from which to take in and enjoy this beautifully conserved area in the north of South Africa. Like Entabeni, Welgevonden is about three hours by road from Gauteng’s cities and OR Tambo International Airport. That makes it popular with travelers who prefer to stay within easy reach of the city, and a good first stop on a longer journey through Southern Africa.
Madikwe
As conservation and environmental efforts by both governments and private owners grow, places like Madikwe Game Reserve are born. It is named after the Madikwe (Marico) River, which runs along its eastern side. The reserve is almost on South Africa’s border with Botswana, in and among many rural communities and areas of the North West province. The park sustains lots of bird and mammalian life, again not far from Johannesburg and its airport. Furthermore, the park is not far from the Pilanesberg, and long-term conservation visions aim to eventually link the two parks to create a massive, protected ecological corridor.
Kgalagadi
The Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park is one of Southern Africa’s largest and is shared between two conservation powerhouses, Botswana and South Africa. The park is one of few in Botswana that is malaria-free and includes a large portion of the Kalahari Desert, one of the oldest in the world alongside its neighbor the Namib. The idyllic scene of a clan of meerkats upright in the morning sun is a regular sighting during a Kalahari sunrise. Furthermore, some of the largest lions and antelope in the whole of Southern Africa can be found here, driven to their great size and stature by the harsh conditions here. The only other member of the Big Five that is present is the elusive leopard, while cheetahs and both brown and spotted hyenas make up the rest of the major predators. Birds of prey also call the area home, and thanks to the largely treeless terrain, are easier to encounter.
Pilanesberg
Pilanesberg Game Reserve ticks all the boxes in the run for an ecological dream and a great park for locals, city-goers and tourists alike to visit and enjoy. The park, as is customary for the bigger game reserves in South Africa, supports all five members of the Big Five. Black and white rhino are among the park's main attractions, along with the history, especially the human history, that the park protects alongside its wildlife. There are a few scattered sites dating back to the Stone and Iron Ages that serve as evidence of early man’s presence in the area. The area later formed part of Tswana communities and farmlands, the same people that today dominate nearby Botswana and have major populations in Gauteng.