Africa Adventure Consultants Travel Expert Shares Top 10 Family Safari Tips for Traveling with Kids

Denver, Colorado – July 26, 2012 – Africa travel expert Kent Redding, president of Africa Adventure Consultants (AAC), designs travel experiences for a living, helping travelers with children arrange fun, adventurous family safaris. Recently Redding and his wife and AAC co-founder, Kelly McElroy, took their 7- and 8-year-old sons on a South Africa safari adventure. "There's nothing like doing it yourself to remind you what is really important when traveling with kids," wrote Redding in a recent AAC blog post offering his top 10 tips for taking a family on safari.

A selection of Redding's handy suggestions for family travel follows. Read his full list of 10 tips for trouble-free African safaris with kids on the Africa Adventure Consultants blog.

More Isn't Always Better: Don't try to do too much. Build in flex time for mood and energy level. For instance, "Letting our boys run like wild animals on the beach in the morning made afternoon drives bearable," says Redding.

Say Yes to the Game: Redding and McElroy limit video game playing time at home, but downloaded new games and eased rules while traveling to make "longer drives calmer and allow Mom and Dad some quiet time, especially on the 24-36 hour plane flights" says Redding.

Focus on Kid-culture: "Kids like to meet other kids," says Redding, who gave his boys "opportunities to interact with children from other cultures," including playing soccer with boys from the African mountain kingdom Lesotho.

Customize with Kid-Friendly Twists: Experienced travel planners like Africa Adventure Consultants can incorporate favorite family activities in any itinerary. South Africa offers myriad possibilities – Redding's family rode ostriches, built sandcastles and went spelunking. Even big-game safaris can be kid-friendly, says Redding, whose kids made plaster castings of lion prints, which became great souvenirs.

Africa Adventure Consultants is a leading safari company specializing in crafting custom itineraries to 13 countries in Africa, from classic photo safaris and adventure trekking to luxury honeymoons and family travel. The AAC staff has lived, worked and traveled throughout Africa for an insider's perspective on creating the best safaris in top destinations. AAC offers personalized tour planning to Botswana, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe and Zambia. In addition to customized private journeys, AAC offers more than 20 group trips, including gorilla safaris, Kilimanjaro climbs and migration safaris. For information, visit www.adventuresinafrica.com