What to Wear on Safari: The Ultimate Safari Apparel Guide
Heading to Africa for your first safari?
Well, before you do, you better be sure you’re dressed the right way; and it’s not just a matter of fashion, wearing the right type of clothing is extremely important when going out on safari, and can really make or break your trip!
To help you figure out the best way to dress on your next African wilderness adventure, we’re going to share with you the best type of apparel to bring on safari, from tops to bottoms and even some accessories that you definitely won’t regret having brought with you!
Let’s get started.
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Tops
The African climate can be unpredictable, and varies greatly depending on where you are on the continent, the season and even the time of day.
For this reason, it’s best you layer your tops to adapt to whatever the weather throws at you. Let’s go through each layer:
T-shirts
A comfortable and breathable t-shirt is an absolute must-have for a safari, as it will help wick moisture and sweat from your skin and keep you cool and dry.
If you have some good trekking shirts laying around they will definitely do, if not you might want to get either cotton, synthetic, linen or merino wool t-shirts, or models made out of a combination of these materials. Let’s look at the pros and cons of each:
Cotton: cotton shirts are very breathable, but are slow to dry.
Synthetic: synthetic shirts like polyester are cheap, fast drying, but also quickly gain a smell and are less breathable than cotton.
Merino Wool: a light and very breathable material, but also very expensive.
Linen: extremely durable, light and breathable fabric. For some, however, it might feel a little stiff, and it also tends to wrinkle easily.
We find cotton shirts to be our favourites for a classic safari, since it is a low-intensity activity that doesn’t strain you and make you sweat excessively.
Merino wool, on the other hand, is a prime choice for a walking safari, since it is a physical activity that can be moderately or heavily intense. The same goes for linen, since it also extremely breathable, durable and moisture wicking.
Finally, since synthetic shirts are usually very affordable, they are a good option if you normally don’t spend a lot of time in the outdoors and don’t wish to invest in more performant clothing.
Long-sleeve shirts
Light jumper
Most safaris start at dawn, since that’s one of the best moments to observe the amazing African wildlife in full activity before the heat of the day kicks in. That also means, however, that you might experience a few chilly mornings.
For this reason, it’s a good idea to have a light jumper or sweater with you to keep yourself toasty in the early morning hours, or in the evening if the temperature drops after sunset.
Waterproof jacket
Since the African climate is so incredibly variable, a perfectly sunny day can quickly get cast over. And since most safari vehicles are open on top, a durable, waterproof jacket is therefore a must-have to protect you from the rain, especially if you’re planning on going on safari during the rainy season.
Remember to choose a lightweight and breathable jacket. It also needs to have a good enough water-resistance rating to keep you dry in case you’re caught out in the rain.
To choose the best level of water resistance, take a look at this scale:
5000 mm: Will keep you dry, but it might not be enough for prolonged periods of time.
10.000 mm: Ideal for light rain and the occasional short downpour.
15.000 mm: Amazing protection from strong rain, and a good price balance.
20.000 mm and above: Excellent level of protection again even the strongest downpour. Might be a little overkill for a safari, but can always come in useful for trekking and camping!
Bottoms
The way you go about choosing the best pants for your safari needs to follow the same line of thought as for your tops.
You’ll need something lightweight, breathable, durable and fast drying. In this case, synthetic fabrics are an awesome choice, because they dry extremely fast, are very lightweight and rugged.
You’ll absolutely want to avoid cotton pants, such as jeans, because they will restrict your movement and also take an eternity to dry properly if they get wet with either sweat or rain.
Zip-off trekking pants
A rugged pair of zip-off nylon or polyamide trekking pants are an awesome choice for a safari. These models have a zipper at the knee-level that will allow you to remove the lower part of the leg cuffs, effectively converting your pants into shorts. This is another great way to adapt to the African weather.
In addition, they offer great durability, pretty good breathability and dry extremely fast in case you get caught out in the rain.
Shorts
Shorts are a no brainer in the African heat. As with your trekking pants, we recommend synthetic fabrics, since they’ll be lighter, more rugged and fast-drying. Just remember to bring some sunscreen to protect your legs and knees from the sun!
Linen pants
A pair of light and breathable linen pants is another great choice to bring on a safari, especially if you’re aiming for a classier look than the more outdoorsy style of trekking pants.
Footwear
While on most safaris you’ll spend the entire duration of the outing on the vehicle, on some you might be allowed off to have a meal or a drink out in the bush. Then you have walking safaris, where you’ll be trekking through the wilderness with a guide to observe the animals out of the confines of a vehicle.
The type of footwear you’ll need to to bring will depend primarily on what kind of distance you’ll or be covering on foot.
Sneakers or trail shoes
Closed, comfortable and breathable sneakers or trail shoes are a basic necessity for an African safari. They will protect your feet from stinging animals, thorns and branches if you’re allowed to get out during the safari excursion, or even just when walking to the vehicle before the tour begins.
Closed shoes are also an absolute necessity whenever you leave your room at night, as that’s when most stinging and biting creepy crawlies are out and about.
Hiking boots
If you’re planning on going on a walking safari, then a pair of reliable hiking boots is absolutely a must-have!
Ideally, choose a model with a tick rubber sole that provides you with an adequate level of traction, good ankle support for the rugged terrain and a made with a durable material such as leather to ensure they’ll resist the wear and tear. Since it is not a feature that is ideal for hot weather, we don’t recommend using Gore-Tex lined waterproof boots.
For more tips on how to choose your hiking footwear, don’t forget to check our in depth-guide!
Accessories
To complete your look and give you an extra edge of comfort and protection in the African wilderness, here are our recommendations for a few essential accessories.
Wide brim hat
While you could use a simple baseball cap to protect you from the unforgiving heat, a wide brim hat is the ideal choice, as it will also protect your neck and shelter your eyes from the sun.
Cotton scarf
Especially during the dry season, safari vehicles can really kick up a lot of dust. If this happens, a light and breathable cotton shemagh or scarf is a good choice to cover up your mouth and nose so that you avoid coughing for the following 5 minutes!
A light scarf is also another great way to protect your neck from the sun, or a great handkerchief to wipe the sweat off your brow on hot days.
The right colours for a safari
Before you run off to buy your new apparel, let’s talk a moment about the right colours to wear when on safari.
Avoid bright colours
Bright and flashy colours, such as reds, pinks and light blues are not natural to the African landscape, and are therefore more likely to be attract the attention of the animals. This will greatly increase the chance they’ll get spooked and take off.
Wear natural colours
More neutral and natural colours such as khaki, beige and brown blend more easily into the landscape. This will make the animals more comfortable and relaxed, providing you with a much better sight!
Don’t wear black and blue
Black and blue are colours known to attract tze-tze flies, a large species of horse-fly found in most of sub-Saharan Africa whose bite is the primary vector for trypanosomiasis, a potentially deadly parasitic infection.
Camo is trouble
Camouflaged clothing is usually not well seen in most of Africa because of its association with the military, and even illegal to wear for civilians in some countries. As such you should avoid packing any camo patterned clothing.
And there you go!
These are our tips for the best apparel to keep you dry, comfortable and protected during your next African Safari.
And if you haven’t decided on a destination yet, why don’t you head over to our list of the Top 7 Best Safari Destinations in Africa!
So, where are you off to next?
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