Age Policy, Wild Animals, On Safari & Guide Replacement

Age policy and children on safari

Families are very welcome. Lodges, camps, parks and activities each have their own age rules: some tented camps, walking safaris, canoe trips and gorilla treks have minimum ages, and children are often priced by age.

• Tell us the exact age of every traveller when you book, so we can choose family-friendly lodges and activities.
• Ages must be correct: if a lodge or activity refuses a child because an age was given wrongly, no refund can be made.
• Gorilla trekking in Uganda and Rwanda is for ages 15 and over. Kilimanjaro climbers must usually be at least 10 years old.

Read more on our family safaris page.

Wild animals

Travel in the wild means sharing space with large animals, as well as insects that sting and plants with sharp thorns. The parks, lodges and camps are not fenced, so animals can move freely. Attacks are very rare when everyone follows these rules:

• follow every instruction from your guide or ranger;
• never provoke, feed, touch, chase, try to rescue or walk close to any wild animal;
• never walk outside your camp or lodge at night without an escort;
• keep children supervised at all times;
• pets are not allowed on game drives.

Making the most of your game drives

• Spend more time in fewer parks. Tanzania has more than 30 protected areas and the distances are vast. Fewer, longer stays mean more sightings and less time on the road.
• Go out early and late. Animals are most active in the cool of the morning and late afternoon.
• Be patient. Waiting at a sighting is when the best moments happen.
• Stay quiet near animals and keep inside the vehicle's outline.
• Follow park rules: stay on the roads and respect the park's opening hours.

Guide replacement

Our team of trained, licensed driver-guides and mountain guides lead every trip. If your guide falls ill or cannot continue for any other reason, GIP Adventure Tours & Safaris takes full responsibility for replacing them with another qualified guide, at no extra cost to you.