You only have 18 summers with your children...

With the holiday season around the corner, my thoughts invariably turn to Africa, my home continent, and to the cherished moments spent there with loved ones. Although I am deeply grateful to have spent so many Thanksgiving holidays in America – my adopted home – I cannot help but think that Africa embodies the true ethos of the season more than anywhere else in the world: warmth, joy, the spirit of community, a gratitude for life. These values are woven into the fabric of Africa’s landscapes and traditions. For me, the sense of harmony between people, wildlife and environment, the very connection to the land and to one another, captures the essence of gratitude and togetherness that Thanksgiving aspires to honor.

With that in mind, I can think of nowhere better than Africa to spend time with loved ones, reflecting and reconnecting, inspired by the rhythms of the wild. You will find that being on safari is one of the most natural ways to spend time together as a family. There are no friends just around the block, no distractions, no better places to be and no hassle. Screens are swapped for the vast, all-encompassing savannah and nature becomes the playground. For many parents, the joy of being on safari is only eclipsed by the privilege of seeing small faces light up in the presence of the wild, imaginations sparked and hearts filled. In fact, to embark on a safari has the potential to transform and more deeply connect your family forever.

At ROAR AFRICA, we personally vet every property and safari lodge we recommend and can vouch for their unbridled comfort, safety, food, and service. We also know that the wealth of an experience is so often the freedom within it – the freedom to just be. When traveling with family, the freedom of knowing that everyone is safe and cared for is unparallelled, allowing you to fully immerse in every moment.

For families traveling with children or for large multi-generational trips, thoughtful, luxurious accommodation options are myriad across Africa. Private villas with dedicated chefs, butlers and guides offer the flexibility to customise your itinerary entirely to your needs, ensuring your precious time away is perfectly attuned to your hopes and dreams. In South Africa, the exclusive villas at Tswalu Tarkuni, Cheetah Plains and Singita Castleton, or Royal Malewane’s Africa House and Farmstead, for example, are ideal for families of all sizes looking for a completely private safari. In Kenya, Segera Retreat is one of the most awe-inspiring places on the planet. This rewilded 50,000-acre sanctuary offers a profound and engaging introduction for children to the issues of conservation. For families with older children or teenagers, Singita Kwitonda’s exclusive-use Kataza House, right on the edge of Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park, is exceptional. While only children aged 15 and older may trek with the critically-endangered mountain gorillas, there are dozens of fun, educational activities for younger children to enjoy, cared for by expert staff at Kataza as parents and older siblings enjoy their life-changing meeting with the gorillas in the rainforest.

From a childhood spent on the continent, I know that the wilderness is one of the greatest teachers, both for ourselves and for our children. Our singular ROAR AFRICA design and delivery is unprecedented, as is our insider access to experiences you won’t find anywhere else. We grew up here and we are sharing our home. These experiences are transcendent and bigger than just any vacation; they are life changing and full to the brim of everything I believe we as humans are in search of in our short time on this planet – joy, freedom and love. They are, in one word, priceless.

In South Africa, imagine observing the morning ritual of Tswalu’s meerkats as they climb out of their burrows and begin to forage, before encountering rare black-maned lions, desert black rhinos and even aardvarks and pangolins on a game drive? Or perhaps your family would like to paddle with a penguin colony in the cerulean waters around Cape Town before climbing Table Mountain? In East Africa, children can bead and dance with Maasai women and learn the ancient skills of tracking from a Maasai warrior, or meet orphaned baby elephants and giraffes in Nairobi. These experiences are as much about the joy of interacting with iconic wildlife as they are about fostering understanding and empathy for conservation issues and educating our children on the need to protect these fragile ecosystems. And of course, they are also about connection, awe and love.

As you gather around the table at Thanksgiving this year, I urge you to dream of Africa and give thanks for what remains of the last wild spaces on earth, places that can feed our souls with so much wealth. Time with your family amid these iconic spaces is a reset, a restoration of deep nurture, and will inspire future generations to leave an indelible mark of reverence on the natural world – and that is certainly something to celebrate.

If you would like to spend Thanksgiving in Africa in 2025, or are interested in embarking on a transformative journey with your family to the continent at any time of year, please kindly email welcome@roarafrica.com