It’s one of the questions I’m asked most often, and the honest answer is: yes. For most of my career in the safari industry, however, the more truthful answer would have been: yes, with significant compromises.

I’ve worked in African travel for many years, and the uncomfortable reality is that the safari industry has historically done a poor job of catering for wheelchair users and guests with mobility impairments. Accessible lodges existed, and to their credit, some operators would attempt to accommodate wheelchair users. In practice, though, this often meant manually lifting guests into standard game drive vehicles — an approach that is undignified, often unsafe, and for many wheelchair users simply not a medical option. The game drive vehicle — the heart of any safari experience — was almost never adapted. So while the technical answer to the question has always been yes, the experience on offer was, in reality, often a compromised one. A version of safari, rather than the real thing.

That changed, however, when I discovered Endeavour Safaris in Botswana.

The Endeavour team

Mike and Silvia Hill have spent twenty years building what I genuinely believe is the most important product in accessible travel in Africa. Their adapted game drive vehicle — fitted with a hydraulic lift and four-point wheelchair restraints — is the only one of its kind on the continent. It means wheelchair users, including power chair users, can board and travel entirely in their own chair. You arrive at the vehicle, the lift lowers to meet you, and you drive into the African bush on exactly your own terms.

The mobile camp that accompanies the vehicle takes the same approach. Rather than a fixed lodge with its structural limitations, Endeavour Safaris set up the camp in the wilderness wherever the wildlife is — laying matting paths across the sand, fitting roll-in showers, raising the beds, installing grab rails, and designing turning space for wheelchair users from the ground up.

What about other destinations?

Botswana is not the only option for wheelchair users considering a safari. South Africa has made significant progress in recent years, and is generally the most accessible country on the continent in terms of infrastructure, medical facilities and operator awareness. Ximuwu Lodge in the Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, adjacent to the Greater Kruger National Park, is South Africa’s first and only lodge with a universal access level 3 rating — purpose-built for wheelchair users with adapted vehicles, pool lifts, accessible photography hides and step-free facilities throughout. It’s an exceptional property and well worth considering as part of a broader South Africa itinerary.

More broadly, South Africa has many lodges that describe themselves as wheelchair-friendly — but it’s worth pressing for specifics. A ground-floor room and a ramp to the dining area is not the same as a genuinely accessible experience. The same applies across the continent: Kenya, Tanzania and Zimbabwe all have operators working in this space, but the quality and authenticity of what’s on offer varies enormously.

We’re also working with a local operator in Kenya and hope to have accessible safaris on sale there soon.

What to ask before you book

If you’re researching accessible safaris, the questions you ask an operator will quickly reveal whether they genuinely understand your requirements or are simply hoping for the best. Ask them:

•  Do they have specific experience creating safaris for wheelchair users — not just guests with limited mobility, but wheelchair users specifically?

•  Have they personally visited and assessed the lodges they’re recommending for accessibility?

•  What is the boarding process for the game drive vehicle — does it require a transfer out of your chair?

•  Do they understand the specific requirements of your particular mobility situation — manual chair, power chair, personal care needs?

•  Who will be accompanying you, and what is their experience with disabled travellers?

Vague reassurances are not enough. The best operators will be able to answer these questions in specific, practical terms — because they’ve thought it through properly.

The real answer

I’ve now taken guests and safari industry colleagues to experience Endeavour Safaris firsthand. Among them was Sophie Morgan — BAFTA-nominated TV presenter and disability rights advocate. Sophie wrote about the experience for Adventure.com. What struck me most wasn’t the wildlife, extraordinary as it was. It was an evening around the campfire as elephants wandered past in the darkness. Lions called in the distance. These were moments wheelchair users had simply never been able to access before. Not in the actual wilderness, on their own terms.

So — can wheelchair users go on safari? Yes. Not just to a lodge with a ground-floor room. Into the actual wilderness. Under canvas. With the same lions, the same fire, the same sky.

In April 2027 I’m leading a small group to Botswana. The group is open to wheelchair users and guests with mobility impairments. I believe it is the most exciting accessible safari itinerary available anywhere. Six guests, ten nights, with the Endeavour adapted vehicle throughout. Places are limited. Please see more information here

The trip departs April 2027, priced from £8,980 per person. Get in touch to find out more.

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