The Blonde in Pink

South Africa Travel Diaries Part 2: What To Wear On A Summer Safari

in Experiences, Life, Travel on

I’m not sure why this is, but when I was doing research for my trip to South Africa this December, typing “What To Wear on a Summer Safari” into Google provided me with literally nothing of use. Bring 4 khaki tee shirts and a windbreaker and a baseball cap? Like cool, thanks for the tip Karen. I want to be safari appropriate but also Instagram chic, duh!!! Why even go otherwise. (That is a joke). My family had spoken to several people who had previously gone on safaris around this time of year, which to reiterate is summer time for that part of the globe, and we had been told a list of do’s and don’ts that ended up being so not the case. It was difficult knowing what to pack, how cold it would be for the early morning drives, how hot it would get in the day, if there would be bugs, if there actually was a strict color palette to adhere by… Like I said, aesthetic was definitely a style motivator for me as a blogger, but I am sure that this would also be the case for a lot of non-bloggers as well. And guess what, you totally can have both— practicality and Pinterest-worthiness.

Every safari experience is different, depending on what time of year you go, what country you go to, and what company/lodge is taking you. I will be as specific as possible regarding the details of our experience, but I suggest spending some time doing research of your own, especially on the website of whomever you will be going on safari with, just to make sure you adhere to their recommendations.

Let’s get into it!

What To Wear On A Summer Safari

Before our trip, we were told the following things, which didn’t end up being true for us:

  • You can only wear khaki, tan, or camo
  • You can’t wear black because it will attract tsetse flies
  • You have to wear pants
  • It will be cold in the mornings, so you need lots of layers
  • Your shoes will be so dirty by the end of the trip you will want to throw them away

With all of this said, we didn’t really know what to expect and just hoped that what we packed would work out!

What I Packed

Outside of the two utility playsuits, which were purchased solely for the fact that they just ~screamed~ safari and therefore I needed them, every thing I brought was meant to be lightweight, non-fussy, and easy to mix and match to create maximum amount of looks. We were staying at Londolozi in South Africa (right by Kruger National Park) for a week, with two drives a day, which called for quite a few outfits. We arrived on December 21st, just at the start of South Africa’s summer season. It definitely was cooler at the beginning of the morning drives and at the end of the evening ones but it was hoooot! Well, for a least a few of the days (I think 104 degrees was the biggest scorcher). Fortunately it was a dry heat, and when you’re out for drives, you move quite fast and the wind helps keep you cool. Having my big hat every day was a lifesaver; it kept the sun off my face and really helped cool me down. Wearing light weight fabrics was also such a necessity for dealing with sweat, so all of the little tank top pieces as well as my linen short sleeve button down for definitely the most reached for. We would typically head out for our afternoon drives around 5 pm, and within about an hour or so it would be quite comfortable. Those were normally the times when I would wear the light weight pants I had packed.

Bugs? Dirt?

I mentioned that a lot of advice we were given didn’t end up being the case for us. We had bug nets set over our beds in our rooms, and had to load up on bugspray for dinner outside, but I didn’t end up encountering any bugs on safari. Well, unless you count the dung beetles lol. Truth be told, we dealt with our fair share of critters in our room (more on that in a post to follow), but nothing to worry about out on drives. We also were told our shoes would be filthy by the end of the trip, and maybe this would be the case if you did a walking based safari, but we were in the car 90% of the time. At the end of every morning drive we would park in the bush for coffees with amarula (a cream and amarula fruit liqueur, South Africa’s version of Bailey’s, literally so freaking delicious), and at the end of our evening drives we would park for sunset cocktail hour. We kind of just hung around in one area, so my shoes didn’t get dirty. I wore my brand new Nike Air Force 1’s and they looked totally fine at the end of our trip lol.

 

I hope this post was of help to any of you who may be going on an upcoming safari trip! Or just dreaming of going on one (I know I’m already plotting ways I can come back to Londolozi in my lifetime…) As always, feel free to shoot me an email at theblondeinpink@gmail.com or shoot me a DM on Instagram if you have any questions.

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