For an African safari camping trip, choosing the right tent that’s suitable for the conditions you'll encounter is rather important as it will serve as your accommodation for several days, perhaps even weeks, if you plan a lengthy safari. This means you will be facing varying temperatures (heat and cold), possible rainstorms, insects, and potential wildlife encounters. Here are some tips to consider when selecting a tent for your African safari: |
1. Type of Tent
Canvas Tents
Safari tents are nearly always made of that good old-fashioned tried and tested fabric: canvas. Canvas is durable and robust and able to withstand harsh weather conditions. Canvas also provides fairly good insulation, which helps to regulate the temperature inside the tent.
Tent Shape
Gone are the days when you needed to grapple with tent poles and tangled guy ropes. These days, tents are far easier to erect and dome tents are definitely the most popular and practical for safari campers. They’re relatively easy to set up, generally lightweight, come with a fitted groundsheet to keep out the creepy crawlies, and are reasonably quick and easy to take down.
Canvas Tents
Safari tents are nearly always made of that good old-fashioned tried and tested fabric: canvas. Canvas is durable and robust and able to withstand harsh weather conditions. Canvas also provides fairly good insulation, which helps to regulate the temperature inside the tent.
Tent Shape
Gone are the days when you needed to grapple with tent poles and tangled guy ropes. These days, tents are far easier to erect and dome tents are definitely the most popular and practical for safari campers. They’re relatively easy to set up, generally lightweight, come with a fitted groundsheet to keep out the creepy crawlies, and are reasonably quick and easy to take down.
2. Size, Space & Height
What size of tent you should choose depends on your needs and the level of comfort you require. For example:
Space
Note: when you’re roughing it in the bush on safari, your tent is your home from home. A private space not only to sleep and get changed in but also a place to relax. It can be a much-needed private space to get away from the rest of the safari group when you feel like a little alone time. So, choosing a comfortably-sized tent is preferable to one of those crawl-in pup tents, even if you won’t be sharing with anyone else.
Height
Again, this depends on your preference – and the height of the people using the tent. Are you satisfied with crawling into a pup tent, or would you prefer a tent where you have room to move around and stand up straight to get dressed/undressed? The choice is yours.
3. Ease of Setup
The point of going on an African safari is to see the wildlife and enjoy the African wilderness. You don’t want to spend a huge amount of time grappling with (and cursing) a complex tent that takes forever to set up.
Choose a tent that is easy to erect as well as quick to take down and fold up. You’re going to be setting up your tent and striking your camp many times on safari as you will be moving from one campsite to another. So pick a tent that is easy to assemble and not too bulky when folded up as you’ll be taking a lot of camping gear and supplies with you and space in the vehicle may be limited.
4. Ventilation
You will need some ventilation for those hot African nights. Make sure your tent has mesh-covered windows for airflow while keeping the bugs (especially mosquitoes) out.
5. Waterproofing
African rainstorms can occur unexpectedly (and quickly!) and canvas is not waterproof. You will need an additional waterproof roof sheet to keep the rain from seeping into the tent. The last thing you want is to wake up with water dripping on your face or turning your sleeping bag into a sodden cocoon! Some tents come with an added layer of waterproof roof sheeting already attached. This is the best option as it saves you the hassle of having to clip on extra waterproof sheeting when erecting the tent.
6. Wildlife Safety
While rare, some areas may have wildlife around the campsites. Make sure your tent’s zip door works properly so that you can close it securely when you need to.
7. Portability
Depending on your mode of travel (e.g., vehicle-based safari or hiking safari), consider the weight and portability of the tent. Lightweight tents are obviously preferable if you need to carry them over long distances. However, if you’re on safari in a vehicle, the weight doesn’t matter – other than putting the tent in the vehicle and taking it out to set up.
8. Additional Factors
Color
Taking into account that you’ll be camping in the African wild, you don’t want to be using a tent with bright colors (as you might do on a hiking trip or local camping weekend). A suitable color for a safari tent is usually neutral colors such as beige, khaki, or olive green – or a combination of these colors.
These are colors that blend in well with the natural environment of the African bush. As an aside, the same goes for your clothes. When on safari, wear similar neutral colors to avoid startling the animals (and your fellow safari-goers!).
Groundsheet
Most, if not all, dome tents come as one big canvas “envelope”, which means it already has a sealed groundsheet attached. This is very useful to protect against ground moisture as well as keeping snakes and insects out.
If the ground is very wet or muddy, after a rainstorm, for example, you might want to lay an additional thick waterproof sheet on the ground and erect your tent on top of that. It’s important to always keep your sleeping bag and clothes dry.
Pegs
Don’t forget to hammer the tent pegs into the ground to anchor the tent in case of high winds. You don’t want your tent – and your belongings within – to blow away when you’re out on a game drive! Or worse still, have your tent blow into the campfire and catch alight.
And don’t be complacent if it’s a still, balmy African day, as the weather may change at any moment. Storms can be sudden, bringing not only rain but high winds as well.
9. Storing Your Tent After the Safari
Canvas fabrics are susceptible to mold and rot if stored damp. So, after your safari, leave your tent out in the sun for a few days to air and dry out properly to avoid mold or the canvas rotting during storage.
Once dried out properly, fold the tent neatly and store it in a cool, dry place. After all, it might be months, or even years, before you use the tent again and you don’t want to unpack it just to find that it has rotted away in places.
If you’ve been storing your tent, check it first before going on safari to make sure it’s still in good condition.
What size of tent you should choose depends on your needs and the level of comfort you require. For example:
- How many people will be sharing the tent
- How much gear do you plan on storing in the tent
- Do you want a tent that’s comfortable to move around in (i.e. big enough and tall enough) or just a small tent large enough for one person to crawl in to sleep?
Space
Note: when you’re roughing it in the bush on safari, your tent is your home from home. A private space not only to sleep and get changed in but also a place to relax. It can be a much-needed private space to get away from the rest of the safari group when you feel like a little alone time. So, choosing a comfortably-sized tent is preferable to one of those crawl-in pup tents, even if you won’t be sharing with anyone else.
Height
Again, this depends on your preference – and the height of the people using the tent. Are you satisfied with crawling into a pup tent, or would you prefer a tent where you have room to move around and stand up straight to get dressed/undressed? The choice is yours.
3. Ease of Setup
The point of going on an African safari is to see the wildlife and enjoy the African wilderness. You don’t want to spend a huge amount of time grappling with (and cursing) a complex tent that takes forever to set up.
Choose a tent that is easy to erect as well as quick to take down and fold up. You’re going to be setting up your tent and striking your camp many times on safari as you will be moving from one campsite to another. So pick a tent that is easy to assemble and not too bulky when folded up as you’ll be taking a lot of camping gear and supplies with you and space in the vehicle may be limited.
4. Ventilation
You will need some ventilation for those hot African nights. Make sure your tent has mesh-covered windows for airflow while keeping the bugs (especially mosquitoes) out.
5. Waterproofing
African rainstorms can occur unexpectedly (and quickly!) and canvas is not waterproof. You will need an additional waterproof roof sheet to keep the rain from seeping into the tent. The last thing you want is to wake up with water dripping on your face or turning your sleeping bag into a sodden cocoon! Some tents come with an added layer of waterproof roof sheeting already attached. This is the best option as it saves you the hassle of having to clip on extra waterproof sheeting when erecting the tent.
6. Wildlife Safety
While rare, some areas may have wildlife around the campsites. Make sure your tent’s zip door works properly so that you can close it securely when you need to.
7. Portability
Depending on your mode of travel (e.g., vehicle-based safari or hiking safari), consider the weight and portability of the tent. Lightweight tents are obviously preferable if you need to carry them over long distances. However, if you’re on safari in a vehicle, the weight doesn’t matter – other than putting the tent in the vehicle and taking it out to set up.
8. Additional Factors
Color
Taking into account that you’ll be camping in the African wild, you don’t want to be using a tent with bright colors (as you might do on a hiking trip or local camping weekend). A suitable color for a safari tent is usually neutral colors such as beige, khaki, or olive green – or a combination of these colors.
These are colors that blend in well with the natural environment of the African bush. As an aside, the same goes for your clothes. When on safari, wear similar neutral colors to avoid startling the animals (and your fellow safari-goers!).
Groundsheet
Most, if not all, dome tents come as one big canvas “envelope”, which means it already has a sealed groundsheet attached. This is very useful to protect against ground moisture as well as keeping snakes and insects out.
If the ground is very wet or muddy, after a rainstorm, for example, you might want to lay an additional thick waterproof sheet on the ground and erect your tent on top of that. It’s important to always keep your sleeping bag and clothes dry.
Pegs
Don’t forget to hammer the tent pegs into the ground to anchor the tent in case of high winds. You don’t want your tent – and your belongings within – to blow away when you’re out on a game drive! Or worse still, have your tent blow into the campfire and catch alight.
And don’t be complacent if it’s a still, balmy African day, as the weather may change at any moment. Storms can be sudden, bringing not only rain but high winds as well.
9. Storing Your Tent After the Safari
Canvas fabrics are susceptible to mold and rot if stored damp. So, after your safari, leave your tent out in the sun for a few days to air and dry out properly to avoid mold or the canvas rotting during storage.
Once dried out properly, fold the tent neatly and store it in a cool, dry place. After all, it might be months, or even years, before you use the tent again and you don’t want to unpack it just to find that it has rotted away in places.
If you’ve been storing your tent, check it first before going on safari to make sure it’s still in good condition.