Safari Etiquette
(or, how to avoid being thrown to the lions
by your travel partners)
- Be on time for game drives, (as well as for meals) and for group departure from one lodge en route to another. Staying on time gives us more time in the field.
- Tell your driver or group leader if you wish to stay back at the lodge for the day or during a game drive. Don’t assume they will go if you don’t show up.
- Let your group leader know if you are not feeling well so precautions or remedies can be discussed.
- Rotating seats in a vehicle on a day-by-day basis is a good courtesy. All seats and positions are not created equal. Don’t assume that if you get the front seat on the first day, that it is yours for the rest of the safari. If the wildlife being viewed is on your side of the vehicle, make sure the people behind you can see and have opportunities to take photos, too.
- Don’t be a complainer. If someone or something is aggravating you, don’t keep it to yourself and don’t complain to others. Tell the tour leader so constructive action can be taken to correct the problem in a tactful way.
- While most birders are not smokers, if someone does smoke, he or she needs to realize that it can be very offensive to some people, and especially so at close quarters like in vehicles or at meals. Any smoking should be done in private where it will not affect others on the trip.
- There is plenty of time to talk to your companions in the minivan while traveling from one location to another. However, when the vehicles stop to allow closeup opportunities for viewing and photographing wildlife, speak softly and only when necessary, avoid running conversations, and enjoy listening to the natural sounds of the birds and other wildlife.