Top Tips for Your Romantic African Honeymoon Safari

Congratulations! The rings have been exchanged, the speeches said, the dancing done, and the cake eaten, and now it’s time for you and your betrothed to relax on your honeymoon. This is the time that you want to spend together, preferably somewhere private and beautiful and, as a bonus, warm.

What you need is a romantic safari honeymoon in Africa. It is time to take romance to another level in the exquisite African bush. Think spectacular scenery, incredible game viewing, night skies that defy the imagination, warm hospitality, and as much privacy as any honeymooning couple could want. All without breaking the bank, because we know how much weddings cost.

Tips for Booking Your African Honeymoon Safari

A quick four-point checklist for you to consider when booking your African honeymoon trip or romantic safari.

1. Timing Your African Honeymoon

How long do you have to honeymoon? Don’t forget to factor in flights/travel. If you’ve only got a short time, pick African safaris that can easily be reached from major airports. Also, consider the safari seasons.

2. Budgeting for Your Romantic Safari Tour

Calculate your travel budget carefully. With African safari tours, most costs are included in the total price, which is a bonus, but there are often some meals for your own cost, so be sure to budget for those. There can be extra activities that you may wish to do that add on costs. Think hot air balloon ride over the savannahs at dawn. You can’t get more romantic than that, so you don’t want to miss these … include them in your safari budget.

3. Exclusivity and Privacy on Your African Honeymoon

Honeymooners don’t necessarily want to spend their time hanging out with the group, so when researching and booking, be sure to ask about group sizes, camp sizes, and the option to do activities alone. Some places offer private game drives, romantic ‘dinner for two’ in the bush, and ‘sleeping under the stars’ options.

4. Beach and/or Bush Honeymoon in Africa

Ask your spouse-to-be! You may have reached the ‘marriage point’, but maybe you haven’t – yet – travelled much together. Discuss what your ideal honeymoon is, before booking, so you can both have a wonderful time. The bonus of a safari honeymoon in Africa is that we have the bush and equally spectacular beaches and African islands, meaning everybody can be happy! Combine a beach holiday with your safari (Kruger and Cape Town or Mozambique, Kenya or Tanzania, and Zanzibar, Madagascar; the options are endless). See Best African Islands to Honeymoon on a budget for irresistible beach trip ideas.

Once you've got all those ducks in a row, it's time to go online and start swooning over all the wonderful options an African honeymoon offers. Start with the best African safari tours for couples, and contact ABS to book your romantic safari and beach honeymoon.

Added Honeymoon Bonus: Bubbles Galore

What's a celebration without bubbly? South Africa is not only the perfect spot for a romantic safari, but it also makes some of the best sparkling wines. You can even add a trip to Cape Town and its surroundings to visit the beautiful wine estates where they're made. There's nothing like doing a sparkling taste test! Whichever direction you drive out of Cape Town, you'll find a gorgeous place to visit and taste bubbly. J.C. le Roux in Stellenbosch, Krone in Tulbagh, Colmant in Franschhoek, and Graham Beck on the Robertson Wine Route are just four.

If you don't have the time to fit in a trip to the estates themselves, fret not; your safari camps are bound to have some bubbly in stock for the necessary toasting to your wedded bliss.

Now, onto your idyllic African honeymoon safari. We got together and decided on our favorites. Here they are:

Whirlwind Honeymoon Kruger Safaris

As mentioned above, when booking your African honeymoon safari, we advise you to consider a few things in the planning stages to help you decide where to go (the options are endless!) and when to ensure your honeymoon is totally stress-free and romance-filled.

Do you have five days or three weeks? This is an important consideration when booking a romantic safari for your honeymoon. Distances in Africa are large and travel times can be lengthy, depending on where you’re going, so do your research on travel times before deciding on an African honeymoon destination. You certainly don’t want to spend the majority of your honeymoon in an airport or on the road!

If your time is limited, we’d suggest a trip to the iconic Greater Kruger National Park, an easy 5-hour drive or 1-hour flight from Johannesburg. Our 4-Day Kruger Park Eco Camp Safari in the exclusive Klaserie Private Game Reserve is just the thing. With just five tree house-style chalets positioned to ensure privacy, this will be your own little love-nest amid the gorgeous African bush. A bonus here: they can organize a romantic dinner for two in the bush, under the African stars!

African Honeymoons on Botswana's Waterways

They say there’s nothing more relaxing than being on water and nothing more romantic than an African sunset. In Northern Botswana, both of these are served up in spades. The world-renowned Chobe National Park, with its namesake river running through it, is known for its spectacular game-viewing and ridiculously romantic sunset cruises.

Just a hop-and-a-skip to the West lies the Okavango Delta. It is impossible to describe the beauty of this area, with its winding waterways. Here, the only things that’ll interrupt your romantic reverie are the sounds of the prolific birdlife and the occasional splash and grunt of a hippo.

Our 7-Day Chobe, Okavango Delta & Moremi Lodge Safari offers two days in Chobe, two days in the Okavango Delta and two days in Moremi Game Reserve. If we were you, though, we’d add on an extra day in Chobe and incorporate a day trip to the breathtaking Victoria Falls. This is the honeymoon photo you’ll show your grandchildren on your 50^th wedding anniversary!

Romantic Safaris in Kenya

You can’t get more romantic than Meryl Streep and Robert Redford’s Kenyan romance in Out of Africa. And Kenya does not disappoint. There is something in the Kenyan air that just suits African safari honeymooning. We think it’s the vast, untouched plains, the incredible wildlife and the friendly people.

On our Fly-in Masai Mara Exclusive Camp Safari, we explore two private conservancies, ensuring that your trip is exclusive (maximum group size of nine people). Enjoy game drives during the day and sit by the fire in the evenings, marveling at the millions of stars in the African night sky.

Book a Romantic Safari for Your African Honeymoon 

One of our travel experts, Claire, took an African honeymoon and married at Victoria Falls. Why limit yourselves to just honeymooning here, Africa is the perfect wedding destination too! (see Best venues for small weddings in Africa (on a budget).

Your incredible African honeymoon is going to be something you remember for the rest of your lives together, and we'll make sure of it!

Feel free to contact our knowledgeable safari consultants if you have any questions, and they’ll happily help you. 

Briony Chisholm Wordsmith & Pharmacist

Briony is a qualified pharmacist, published author and travel blogger living in Cape Town. She writes her own blog about travel, the arts, music and the good things in life, with a focus on accessibility. She likes watching the world go by, and sometimes it makes her nose twitchy, but mostly it provides golden nuggets with which to light up the page.