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What vaccines do I need for an African safari?

Updated Sep 3, 20261 min readAnswer
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Short answer

Safari country usually means routine vaccines, hepatitis A, yellow fever, and malaria pills.

The CDC's Kenya page recommends hepatitis A for unvaccinated travelers, yellow fever vaccine for all travelers 9 months and older with limited exceptions, and prescription malaria medicine for certain areas, which covers most safari zones. Typhoid and rabies join for many itineraries. Keep the yellow fever certificate with your travel documents, and see a travel clinic or GP 4 to 6 weeks before departure, since malaria pills need a prescription and some vaccines need spacing.

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What to do

1Update routine vaccines and add hepatitis A.
2Get the yellow fever shot and carry the certificate.
3Get a malaria pill prescriptionfor safari areas; start and finish the course exactly.
4Book a travel clinic 4 to 6 weeks outwith your route and dates.

Common questions

What vaccines do I need for an African safari?

A safari stacks more vaccine requirements than a city trip. Using the CDC's Kenya page as the template for East and Southern Africa safari country: be up to date on routine vaccines; hepatitis A is recommended for unvaccinated travelers one year and older; and yellow fever vaccine is recommended for all travelers 9 months and older, with narrow exceptions such as travel limited to the city of Nairobi, and it is required for entry in some border-crossing itineraries. Typhoid vaccine is commonly advised too, since food and water hygiene varies on safari circuits. Then the big one that is not a vaccine: the CDC recommends prescription malaria medicine for travelers going to certain areas of Kenya, and most safari zones, including the Maasai Mara, fall in malaria country, so expect to start pills before the trip and continue after, exactly as prescribed. Add rabies consideration for remote itineraries and walking safaris. Two logistics: the yellow fever certificate must be in your travel documents, and everything should be arranged 4 to 6 weeks out, because some vaccines need spacing and malaria pills need a prescription from your GP or a travel clinic, which will also tailor the list to your exact route and season.

About this page. Written and maintained by the Pymander Health team. Last updated September 3, 2026.

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