Safari Babymoon

Ok, so this is not a post about baby-friendly travel. However I had to share our amazing babymoon last year to South Africa!

South Africa is probably not the first destination you think for a "Babymoon". However it definitely proved to be the perfect destination for ours. We wanted to go on a safari while we were still kid-free and before our lives become inundated with dirty nappies and temper tantrums. Unfortunately many of the larger game reserves are located in areas with malaria risk. However there are a few game reserves close to Cape Town which are malaria free.

We decided to do a two-week driving tour around the Western Cape. Our route took us from Cape Town in land to the Cape Winelands, across to Oudtshoorn which is the ostrich capital in the world, down to Mossel Bay to do a safari at Gondwana Game Reserve, along the Garden Route to Kynsna and finally back to Cape Town.

The Western Cape is a beautiful part of the world. There is so much to see and do! From lazing around on the beach, to going on hikes, to wine tasting, to feeding ostriches to going on a game drive. All of which (except maybe wine tasting), I could enjoy whilst being pregnant.

Lions Head Hike

This is a short and relatively easy hike to see magnificent views of Cape Town. The entire hike takes about 2 hours. It starts off quite easy and gentle, however towards the top there is a bit of scrambling to do. Not advisable for pregnant women or little ones. I only hiked midway up until the point it started to look a bit tricky. My husband went up all the way whilst I waited below. He said the views from the top were stunning and well worth the effort to go up.

Table Mountains Cable Car

The Table Mountains hike is much longer and takes at least half a day. We caught the cable car up instead. The cable car rotates 360 degrees as it ascends. As it is a flat top mountain, we could walk all along the top and get panoramic views of Cape Town from different angles. If you have little ones, it is best to bring a baby carrier.

Boulder's Beach

About an hour from Cape Town centre is Boulder's Beach, home to a colony of African Penguins. There broadwalk to view the penguins in their natural habitat. Occasionally a penguin may decide to come onto the broadwalk to meet with the visitors We got pretty close to one of the little guys, however we did not dare disturb them!

Groot Constantia Winery

Groot Constantia is one of the oldest wine estates in South Africa. We did the visitors route experience which included museum & cellar access, cellar tour and wine tasting 5 wines. I didn't participate in the wine tasting, so my husband stepped in and tried my share of wines too! In the end, he tried almost all the wines on the list!

Kirstenbosch Botanic Gardens

Away from the hustle of Cape Town Central is the tranquil Kirstenbosch Botanic Gardens. It is the perfect place to get some fresh air and admire the Table Mountains from below. We went for a walk in the Botanic Gardens after Groot Constantia. It was the ideal activity for my husband recovering from his 10 wines.

Cape Point

About 1.5 hours drive south of Cape Town is the south east point of the Cape Peninsula. The most popular thing to do is to visit the lighthouse which is located over 200meters above sea level. You can either walk up or take the funicular. It is an easy walk with steps.

Root44 Market

Halfway between Cape Town and the Cape Winelands is the Root 44 Market. This is a weekend food, vintage and crafts market with a lively atmosphere. There is also live music to entertain the crowd. It is a popular place for couples, friends, families to go to and chill out for the afternoon. We enjoyed our lunch in the sun there before driving on to the winelands.

Cape Winelands

Cape Winelands is actually very enjoyable even for a non-drinker. We joined the Franschhoek Wine Tram hop-on hop-off tour to visit a few wineries. This was a very relaxing way to explore the wine region. There are several tram lines to choose from with different wineries. The tram comes back to pick people up each hour. It is flexible how long to stay at each winery as long as we take the last tram back to Franschhoek. The maximum number of stops we can make is five.

We took the purple line and made 4 stops. This is because we chose to stay for 2 hours at

Babylonstoren to have lunch at Babel.

Babel is the main restaurant in Babylonstoren. It is in a converted cow shed with glass walls looking out into the court yard. As Babylonstoren is an operating farm, the restaurant operates on a farm to fork philosophy. The food is absolutely delicious and you can taste the freshness in the dishes.

Oudtshoorn Ostrich Farm

We continued to drive east inland to Oudtshoorn which is the Ostrich capital in the world. Years ago, we could have rode on the back of an Ostrich. However sadly some Ostriches have broken their legs as a result and the farm would then need to kill them off. Instead we got to feed the Ostriches and get Ostrich kisses.

Gondwana Game Reserve

This was the main highlight of the trip! However I must admit, I was a bit worried ahead of the trip. I spent a lot of time googling "safari whilst pregnant". Some sites were saying "don't do it", however others were more encouraging. In the end, my instincts told me it was fine to go on a safari.

I was 14 weeks pregnant when I went on the safari. As i was in my second trimester, my morning sickness and extreme tiredness was all behind me. I would definitely say the second trimester is the ideal time to go. The game drives are really bumpy and there are very early morning starts.

I was a bit worried about the bumpiness of the road. I told our ranger before we started our game drive. Our ranger took extra care and drove slowly (max speed was only 30kph). He would warn me ahead of any bumps and check on me every so often. Also I was able to reserve the best seat in the 4x4 for all the game drives, right behind the driver.

We stayed for 2 nights at Gondwana Game Reserve. During out stay, we went on 4 game drives. I think this would be the minimum amount of time to stay in order to see most the animals.

Gondwana Game Reserve: Zebras visiting our Private Huts

We stayed in the Kwena Lodge in Gondwana Game Reserve. Each of the circular hut was a large luxurious private suite. Occasionally we would have visitors such as zebras visit the lodge. In the evening, we had to be escorted back to our rooms by a member of staff in case an elephant or lion comes visiting.

Many game reserves do not accept babies and toddlers, however Gondwana Game Reserve is very family friendly. They have large villas which are suitable for family safaris. They also offer baby sitting, children's menu and family game drives so that children ages 2-6 can join in.

Gondwana Game Reserve: Morning Coffee with Giraffes

We went on two game drives a day. One in the morning before sunrise and one in the evening for sunset. The morning game drives start very early. We met each morning at 5am for coffee/tea and then we start the drive. Once we returned from the drive at around 9am, we would be treated to a lavish buffet breakfast. Between game drives and meals, there is plenty of time to rest and relax.

We saw different animals each game drive. Our mission was to look for the African Big 5. Our ranger was very experienced and knowledgeable. We managed to see giraffes, elephants, zebras, rhinos, hippos, lions and many more other animals.

During the evening game drive, we would stop to have a drink and enjoy the sunset. The sunsets in South Africa are absolutely stunning.

Top tips for going on a safari when pregnant:

Check with your GP ahead of the trip
Look for malaria free game reserves
Ideally go in the second trimester
Pack your medical notes with you
The long flight is tough, make sure you get the aisle seat so you can walk around a lot. Pregnant women are more susceptible to DVT
Compression socks! It helps with preventing DVT
Let the accommodation and also ranger know that you are pregnant
Claim the seat behind the driver on the 4x4, as it is less bumpy
Get plenty of rest between game drives

Tsitsikamma National Park

We continued along the Garden Route to visit Tsitsikamma National Park. There are several hiking tracks in the national park. The Mouth Trail is a short hike which leads to a suspension bridge over Storms River. It is an easy walk to the suspension bridge. The trail continues after the bridge to a look out point. I opted out at that point as the trail gets steeper, rockier and trickier.