Monday, August 25, 2014

In Kenya, a Safari Program for Kids

Published on NY Times


Most safari camps don’t allow children, but at &Beyond’s new Kichwa Tembo Tented Camp in Kenya’s Masai Mara National Reserve, kids between the ages of 5 and 12 are welcome with the WildChild program.

The initiative includes a ranger at the camp giving young participants a different expedition plan for each day of their stay.

Mornings usually begin with a game drive in which rangers engage the entire family by giving them a chance to step out their vehicle to study wildlife tracks and letting them try to identify various kinds of animal dung.

And while parents enjoy an afternoon of relaxation or massages, kids can partake in a range of activities such as collecting colorful bugs in large jars, pressing seeds and pods in a scrapbook and tasting leaves and herbs that grow in the bush.

Culture excursions to nearby villages to see residents perform traditional dances are also possible, and all children leave with a backpack that includes a memory book and tools, like magnifying glasses and compasses, that they used during their visit.

Joss Kent, who is &Beyond’s chief executive, helped create WildChild because he has three young children of his own and wanted them to include them in the safari experience.

“There are few things as wonderful as a child’s face the first time they watch a dung beetle at work or put their small hands in the tracks where a lion recently passed,” he said. “We think this kind of adventure is the ultimate luxury a parent can give to their child.”

Rates start at $380 per person per night (children under 6 stay  free; 6 to 16 years old are half-price).


No comments:

Post a Comment