Vegetarian Guide to survive on a safari in Africa
Being a vegetarian you may be thinking if you are going to be hungry or simply eat lettuce plus toasted sandwiches throughout your safari in Africa. However the answer is just no, you will not be fixed to junk or get starving.
Most of the vegetarian are certainly faced with the occasionally tiring and trying feat of having a nice veggie meal that usually involves a battle to pick ham out of your salad. Will eating a nice vegetarian diet be a problematic while on Safari in Africa?
Warning: Vegetarian Approaching
Inform them that you do not eat majority of the things they considered to be food! You will be surprised to discover that most of the places go an additional mile and offer creativity with prior caution.
The important thing is to reserve your safari and you are advised to inform your safari company or your lodges about your dietary requirements prior to your tour!
You will be astonished how accommodating the majority of the places may be, in case you just offer them earlier warning that you are a vegetarian. While on road I normally get meals that are the covet of my table! Then on the plane, I am served first and later, my meal is often the covet of the row -for plane food.
At the time of the safari reservation, the safari companies will do all the ground work given that you inform them earlier about your dietary requirements. They will make sure that they obtain the appropriate accommodation that can cater for you properly
Africa can cater for Vegetarians As well!
In many of the iconic tour nations, tourism is properly developed and tours have been operating for many years, therefore the catering machine is properly oiled to deal with a number of vegans. Most people in African nations cannot afford to buy a lot of meat for their diets, so this implies that their meals are normally completed with various vegetables plus fruits.
In several destinations particularly Botswana, South Africa, Kenya and Namibia, tour operators as well as restaurants can take care of the dietary needs of vegetarians as well. Particularly the large cities provide amazing ingredients since they are more diverse as well as cosmopolitan. Among these are Windhoek, Nairobi as well as Johannesburg
Request and you will certainly receive the vegetarian food
It assists to keep in mind that English is prevalently spoken nearly in all large cities and in many safari countries like Namibia, Botswana plus South Africa and many others, therefore language difficulties are not a big problem I assume you understand English if you can manage reading this. For those on a guided safari with a tour company, then communication won’t be a challenge.
Below is a traveler’s account of vegetarian food on a Zambia safari:
On one of my tours in Zambia one of the tourists was a vegan, gluten-intolerant as well as allergic to another thing. Despite The hotel not having an early caution got the chef to talk with her and for the whole week she was able to get her personal special foods that catered for her special dietary needs. It is good if the hotels are capable of handling, vegetarians as well as vegans and people having food allergies and for that reason please inform the management back at your hotel prior to your arrival.
Feed Indian- opt for spices
Various safari places have big Indian communities, along with Indian cookery with a lot of vegetarian dishes. Therefore if you like its peppery you will be spoilt with choice. There are very many soft and non spicy dishes as well.
Veggie plus Indian Places are:
• Wining and Dining at Durban in KwaZulu-Natal down in South Africa.
• Vegging Out plus Veggie Places – in Zanzibar Island off the Tanzania mainland.
• Happy Cow – found in Dar es Salaam.
Zanzibar as well offers various Vegetarian Options
• Radha Indian Vegetarian.
• Route Silk.
• Stone Town Café
• Mtoni Marine restaurant for nice veggie dishes
• Forodhani Market
Still concerned about going for safari when a Vegetarian?
• Check discussions for instance this one – Any vegetarians as well as vegan here?
• Take Omega 6, 9 and 3 (nice for veggies) or a protein supplement.
• pack snacks and some nuts for the road.
• Check with your Safari Company or tour provider.
• visit online guides for vegans meals plus restaurants
• Health stores normally store vegan foodstuffs plus ingredients so you can always check them out.
Finally the human body is flexible and can manage for sometime with a less protein diet. In case you are touring isolated areas or places with less meat you will certainly have to change for some time. I am not a doctor by profession; however my experience has exposed that with a creative approach you will be ok like as any vegan elsewhere. You should not worry or give call vegans bad name.
Vegetarians in South Africa
In the past 20 years living in South Africa as a Vegan, I can in safety say that food will not be a challenge on your safari here.
Usually many people say that being a vegan is something you consider on the braai however that is just as stupid joke, I have endured many of these and normally there’s a lot of salad and then I take my personal protein.
There have been alternatives offered for me as a vegan on my several trips to South Africa, even in the middle of Karoo – renowned for its lamb cuisines or in the center of the bush on a safari to Kruner Park. Pastries and pies in South Africa is normally appetizing, not like gossip that the pastry is bad on your safari. salads, Veggie pies, pastas and stews are as well easily found and very delicious
These South Africa Vegetarian Guides are useful:
Veggie Bunch
Vegan SA
Happy Cow
Most of the restaurants in South Africa, although not particularly vegetarian, are vegetarian-friendly so these Restaurant Guides will be of help:
Wining & Dining
Dining Out
Eat out
In conclusion don’t get bothered about this, you will enjoy your safari even as a vegetarian.