Staying Healthy: Food and Water on Safari

Nothing spoils a safari faster than a bad stomach. You have travelled a long way and paid a great deal to be out among wildlife at dawn, and spending those precious mornings close to the bathroom instead is a miserable waste. The good news is that most cases of traveller's tummy are preventable with a few simple habits around what you drink and eat, and the vast majority of safari camps take hygiene seriously precisely because they cannot afford sick guests. This guide covers the practical essentials: how to handle drinking water when the tap is not safe, what to trust and what to skip at buffet meals, the classic traps of fruit, salad and ice, and how to stay properly hydrated in a hot, dry climate. It also explains what to pack, how to tell an ordinary upset from something that needs attention, and when a simple self-treatment is enough versus when you should see a doctor. A little knowledge goes a long way toward keeping you well and out on the game drives where you belong.

Key things to know

• ➜ Most traveller's tummy is preventable with simple water and food habits
• ➜ Drink bottled, filtered or properly treated water and avoid tap water
• ➜ Skip ice, and use treated water even for brushing your teeth
• ➜ At buffets favour hot, freshly cooked food and busy, high-turnover dishes
• ➜ Be cautious with raw salads, unpeeled fruit and anything lukewarm
• ➜ Dehydration is a real risk in heat; drink steadily through the day
• ➜ Pack oral rehydration salts and basic medication for mild cases
• ➜ Know the red-flag symptoms that mean you should see a doctor

Water: what is safe to drink

Water is the single biggest source of traveller's tummy, so treat it with respect. In most safari regions you should assume tap water is not safe to drink and stick to sealed bottled water, checking that the seal is intact, or water that has been properly filtered, boiled or purified. Many good camps now provide filtered or treated water in refillable bottles to cut plastic waste; ask whether their drinking water is safe, and they will tell you honestly.

The traps are the things people forget. Ice is often made from tap water, so skip it in drinks unless you know it is made from safe water. Use bottled or treated water even for brushing your teeth, and keep your mouth closed in the shower. Be a little wary of very cold drinks and juices that may have been diluted with tap water. None of this needs to make you anxious; once you are in the habit of reaching only for safe water and refusing ice, it becomes automatic and you can relax and enjoy your trip.

• ➜ Assume tap water is unsafe unless told otherwise
• ➜ Drink sealed bottled water or properly filtered and treated water
• ➜ Refuse ice unless it is made from safe water
• ➜ Brush your teeth with treated water, not from the tap
• ➜ Be cautious with diluted juices and keep your mouth closed in the shower

Food hygiene at camps and buffets

Safari meals are often buffets, which are perfectly safe when handled well but can be a risk when food sits lukewarm for hours. The simplest rule is to favour food that is piping hot and freshly cooked, and to be more cautious with anything that has been sitting at room temperature. Busy dishes with high turnover are safer than obscure items that may have lingered, and a well-run camp keeps hot food genuinely hot and cold food genuinely cold.

Beyond temperature, a few habits help. Wash or sanitise your hands before eating, since many stomach bugs come from hands rather than food itself; carrying a small bottle of hand sanitiser is worth it in the bush. Trust busy, reputable kitchens, and if a place looks poorly run or food smells off, skip it. Most established safari lodges have excellent standards and feed thousands of guests without incident, so you can generally eat well and enjoy the food; the caution is for the occasional weak link rather than the norm.

• ➜ Favour piping hot, freshly cooked food over lukewarm dishes
• ➜ Choose busy, high-turnover items over food that may have lingered
• ➜ Wash or sanitise hands before every meal
• ➜ Carry hand sanitiser for the bush and drives
• ➜ Trust reputable kitchens and skip anything that smells or looks off

Fruit, salad and the classic traps

Raw fruit and vegetables are healthy at home but a common source of trouble abroad, because they may have been washed in tap water or handled with unwashed hands. The old traveller's rule still holds well: peel it, cook it, boil it, or forget it. Fruit you peel yourself, like bananas and oranges, is low risk, while pre-cut fruit platters and unpeeled fruit washed in unsafe water carry more. Salads are riskier still, since the leaves are raw, hard to clean and often washed in tap water.

This does not mean you must live on bread and cooked food for two weeks. Good lodges wash produce in treated water and many salads are perfectly fine; if in doubt, ask how the kitchen prepares them. The sensible approach is to be a little more cautious early in the trip while your system adjusts, favour peeled and cooked options when you are unsure, and relax where you trust the camp. Judge each situation rather than applying a blanket ban, and you can enjoy fresh food without inviting trouble.

• ➜ Follow the rule: peel it, cook it, boil it, or forget it
• ➜ Fruit you peel yourself is low risk
• ➜ Pre-cut platters and unpeeled washed fruit carry more risk
• ➜ Raw salads are among the higher-risk items
• ➜ Ask how the kitchen washes produce if you are unsure

Staying hydrated in the heat

Safari climates are often hot and dry, and dehydration is a genuine risk that can leave you headachy, tired and more prone to feeling unwell, quite apart from any stomach bug. The dry air and long hours in an open vehicle pull moisture from you faster than you notice, so drink steadily through the day rather than waiting until you are thirsty. A good sign you are keeping up is pale, plentiful urine; dark urine means you need to drink more.

Carry water on every game drive and sip regularly, especially in the heat of midday and on long transfers. In very hot conditions, plain water alone may not be enough, and adding oral rehydration salts or an electrolyte mix helps replace what you lose through sweat. Go easy on alcohol and lots of caffeine, which are mildly dehydrating, particularly at altitude or in extreme heat. Staying well hydrated not only prevents its own problems but also helps your body cope if you do pick up a mild stomach upset.

• ➜ Drink steadily through the day, not only when thirsty
• ➜ Pale, plentiful urine is a good sign; dark urine means drink more
• ➜ Carry water on every drive and sip regularly in the heat
• ➜ Add oral rehydration salts or electrolytes in very hot conditions
• ➜ Go easy on alcohol and excess caffeine, which are dehydrating

When to self-treat and when to worry

Despite precautions, mild stomach upsets happen, and most settle by themselves within a day or two. The mainstay of self-treatment is rehydration: drink plenty of safe fluids and use oral rehydration salts to replace lost water and minerals, which matters far more than any pill. Rest, eat bland food as your appetite returns, and let it pass. Simple anti-diarrhoeal medication like loperamide can help on a long travel day, but it treats the symptom rather than the cause, so use it sparingly.

Know the red flags that mean it is time to seek medical help rather than tough it out. High fever, blood in the stool, severe or persistent abdominal pain, relentless vomiting that prevents you keeping fluids down, or symptoms lasting more than a couple of days all warrant a doctor, as does any sign of significant dehydration such as dizziness and very little urine. Carry a small kit with rehydration salts and basic medication, check what your travel insurance covers, and do not hesitate to use your camp's contacts or the trip medical support if you are genuinely unwell.

• ➜ Rehydration with oral rehydration salts is the mainstay of self-treatment
• ➜ Rest and eat bland food as your appetite returns
• ➜ Use anti-diarrhoeal medication sparingly, as it treats only the symptom
• ➜ See a doctor for fever, blood in stool or severe, persistent pain
• ➜ Seek help for relentless vomiting, dehydration or symptoms beyond a couple of days

References & further reading

1. Sinclair, A. R. E., et al. (Eds.) (2015). Serengeti IV. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
2. Estes, R. D. (2012). The Behavior Guide to African Mammals. Berkeley: University of California Press.
3. Kingdon, J. (2015). The Kingdon Field Guide to African Mammals (2nd ed.). London: Bloomsbury.
4. IUCN (2024). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, Version 2024-1. www.iucnredlist.org.