A family safari in Africa makes for a memorable adventure-filled vacation. Amie covered luxury safaris for kids in Kenya and Tanzania after her trip last year. Botswana, in southern Africa, is also a great safari destination because its diverse landscape made up of desert, delta, grasslands and savannahs means the wildlife is among the most varied on the continent.

Botswana’s landscape also allows for game viewing by air, land or water, and on our recent vacation there, we were able to experience a bit of each.

A year ago today a baby elephant, Kainuk, was rescued next to her dead mother on a reserve in Kenya and was brought to the The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (DSWT) in Nairobi.

We fostered her just a week later when we were visiting the DSWT on the last day of our family safari in Africa. I just checked in on her status and photos on the Orphan’s Project website and Kainuk seems to be thriving. What a difference a year makes!

Marrakech is a well-known haven for incredible luxury boutique hotels. I was determined to find a kid-friendly version of one while planning our family trip to Morocco in October.

Boutique Souk, a popular upscale concierge and trip planning service, introduced us to the Beldi Country Club. We are forever grateful for this recommendation as this property is a gem for families who want an intimate hotel experience with a strong sense of place.

Ever since I watched (and re-watched) the movie English Patient, I’ve dreamed of seeing the Sahara Desert sand dunes in North Africa.

When I planned our family trip to Morocco in October, I was determined to include sand dunes in our itinerary. A task that proved challenging and ultimately, impacted every stop we made on our trip. I quickly realized that no matter how you organize sightseeing stops in Morocco, a trip to the dunes involves 10+ hours of driving through remote parts of the country.

When we travel to destinations in remote regions where day-to-day life for local people is a struggle, we try and select accommodations that support the communities around them.

Fortunately for all, Sustainable Tourism is fast-growing around the world. If your kids are old enough to process the shift in how people live versus what they are used to seeing at home, staying in accommodations that are deeply integrated …

The highlight of Marrakech for adults and kids alike is undoubtedly the medina (old city). Stepping into the medina is like landing on another planet — one where the same traditions have been in place for hundreds of years.

The medina is comprised of a network of souks — open-air markets — where anything and everything is on display. Many of the handicrafts are produced within the market and you can watch artisans at work. This is the only shopping experience we’ve encountered thus far in our travels that our 8-year-old has enjoyed.

Marrakech has experienced a huge tourist boom over the past several years and the hotel possibilities are endless, particularly for couples in search of a romantic retreat. For families, however, the list of optimal options is quite small.

Staying in a riad, a traditional Moroccan house or palace with an interior courtyard, seems appealing at first blush as many are in heart of the atmospheric old city (medina). The challenge of this accommodation category …

If you followed my recent trip to Morocco on Twitter or read Morocco Family Adventure on Mother of All Trips last week, you know our experience in this North African country was tremendous.

International trips that include multiple stops in remote locations, however, require meticulous planning. Add kids to the trip and there’s a new layer of vulnerability and complexity to consider. There are things …

I kicked off 10 day tour of Morocco with my family in Marrakech this week. We’ve had a marvelous stay at the new Four Seasons Marrakech, but otherwise the highlight here is without a doubt the exotic medina, the largest of its kind in North Africa. More on that soon!

As I begin my coverage of Morocco on the Ciao Bambino blog, I want to acknowledge that we are not impervious to feelings of uncertainty …

Every family trip has those truly memorable moments that you talk about forever. Sometimes it’s the travel nightmares that make an entertaining story (producing smiles only in the back end), sometimes it’s an extraordinary experience that sticks in our minds, while on other occasions what we remember is those funny moments that aren’t big bang experiences, but a time when we witness something simple yet utterly foreign.

Like this moment on our family safari in Africa.