Safari Flight Baggage Limits and Soft Bags: What Operators Publish

Last reviewed 2 November 2026.

Light-aircraft safari flights have tight baggage rules because the cargo space is small and every kilo counts toward the aircraft's load. This guide reports only what each operator's own page states, as read on 2 November 2026. We do not give a "typical" limit, because the pages we read differ by operator, route and country. Whatever you read here, the rule that governs your trip is the one in the terms of the airline or camp you actually booked with.

What do the operators themselves say?

All figures below are per person. "Includes hand baggage" means the operator counts carry-on in the same total.

Kenya

• Safarilink: its baggage page says allowance is "strictly limited" to 15 kg per person, including hand baggage, in soft bags. The exceptions it lists, at 20 kg, are Zanzibar, Kisumu, Diani, Lamu, Malindi, Entebbe and Mombasa. The page gives no bag dimensions.
• AirKenya: its baggage policy page says that on all services the maximum is 15 kg in soft-sided bags, and that small carry-on items (up to 5 kg) are part of that 15 kg. Its terms and conditions page repeats "15 kilos in soft bags".
• Governors' Aviation: its baggage policy PDF (file metadata dated 4 September 2024) gives 15 kg including carry-on items, with soft bags up to 35 x 35 x 67 cm and small hard-shell suitcases up to 38 x 55 x 30 cm.

Tanzania

• Coastal Aviation: 15 kg (33 lb) including carry-on. Its page says soft bags are "strongly recommended but are not obligatory". It lists a soft duffel size of 40 x 40 x 80 cm and a small hard-shell size of 76 x 48 x 29 cm that must fit the cargo pod door.
• Auric Air: its baggage policy page gives a total of 20 kg (44 lb) per passenger, inclusive of hand luggage, cameras and personal items. It says all bag types are welcome, with soft-sided bags recommended, and a maximum size per piece of 90 x 65 x 35 cm.

Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia and Zambia

• Mack Air (Botswana): its 2023 Botswana terms and conditions state a 20 kg total, of which hand luggage may be 5 kg, in "strictly soft sided bags only, no wheels or frames or rigid sides", maximum checked size 30 x 35 x 70 cm. An older Mack Air traveller leaflet (dated October 2019) gives the same 20 kg and size but says all closed luggage is accepted and soft bags are "preferred". The two documents disagree, so treat the stricter, newer wording as the safer one and confirm at booking.
• Wilderness Air: the Wilderness website gives 20 kg including carry-on and camera equipment, maximum 30 x 35 x 70 cm. It says the rules differ by country: in Botswana and Zimbabwe, soft bags with a rigid base, wheels or a collapsible handle are accepted, as well as duffels; in Namibia and Zambia only soft duffels are accepted, with no frames or rigid structures.
• Proflight Zambia: a scheduled airline with a different rule set. Its baggage page gives 23 kg checked on domestic tickets and 30 kg on tickets that include an international Proflight flight, 5 kg hand luggage, and no more than 32 kg for a single piece. It states no soft-bag requirement.

South Africa

• Federal Airlines: its baggage page gives 20 kg in the hold, size 40 x 30 x 60 cm, and says only soft bags are accepted: soft luggage or duffels with "ONE flat side". Hand luggage is listed separately at 5 kg, one soft piece with one flat side.

Which rules cover excess baggage?

Every operator that publishes excess rules makes it conditional on space and payload.

• Safarilink carries excess "at the sole discretion of the captain", only if payload or space allows. It sells advance bundles up to 48 hours before departure and a "freight" seat at an adult rate that allows an extra 75 kg; it says freight seats are not permitted on non-safari routes. Its rate table is headed 2023/2024, so we do not quote prices.
• AirKenya also leaves excess to its discretion and sells a freight seat for an extra 75 kg. Its own pages disagree on the price: the baggage policy gives USD 5 per kilo, while the terms and conditions give USD 3 per kilo plus 16% VAT (USD 4 for Kilimanjaro and Entebbe). We cannot say which is current.
• Coastal Aviation says guests who need more can book a premium-class seat that carries 30 kg, subject to availability; other excess is charged at the prevailing freight rate and accepted at the company's decision.
• Auric Air sells excess in 10 kg slabs, up to four (40 kg), and a freight seat for an extra 75 kg beyond that.
• Mack Air says an additional seat, bought before departure, allows an extra 30 kg for additional camera equipment or overweight luggage.
• Wilderness Air says extra weight is charged per 20 kg per air transfer sector and that costs can change; confirm with your travel designer.
• Proflight sells prepaid 15 kg bundles (up to four, 60 kg per seated passenger) on a standby basis.
• Federal Airlines says anything over 20 kg must be pre-booked, and that it might not be able to help otherwise. Up to 10 kg extra and a 40 kg freight seat are both listed, subject to payload.

Are passengers weighed, and what about camera gear?

Mack Air's terms say passengers over 115 kg may have to buy an extra seat and should say so when booking. AirKenya's FAQ states there are "no specific weight limits for passengers"; the test is fitting a seat and fastening the seatbelt, and it advises booking an adjacent seat in advance if needed. The other pages we fetched do not mention weighing.

On cameras, the pages say: Auric Air and Wilderness Air count camera equipment inside the 20 kg; AirKenya says equipment must fit within the allowance and larger professional gear should be declared to reservations or your agency in advance; Mack Air points to the extra-seat option above. Safarilink, Coastal and Federal Airlines do not mention cameras on the pages we read.

Where do these flights connect to?

In Tanzania, our Tanzania and Zanzibar guide covers the routes, and Kenya vs Tanzania and Masai Mara vs Serengeti compare the parks. Camp pages say how guests arrive: Camp Okavango is described as reached by light aircraft; Angama Mara has its own airstrip; Lamai Serengeti is about 30 minutes from Kogatende airstrip. For Botswana timing see best time for safari in Botswana, and for South Africa's private reserves see Kruger self-drive vs private reserve.

How should you use this?

• Find out which airline or camp-operated flight is actually on your voucher, then read that operator's current page.
• Pack to the lowest figure on your itinerary; one leg at 15 kg governs the whole trip if you cannot repack.
• Choose a soft duffel unless the operator explicitly accepts something else.
• Ask in advance about camera kit, a larger traveller or any excess, rather than at the airstrip.

What we could not verify

• Namibian and other Botswana operators (including Major Blue Air) and Airlink: no baggage page with a stated limit was fetched, so no figure is given.
• Any civil aviation authority rule on light-aircraft baggage: none was found that states a passenger limit; limits shown here are the operators' own.
• Current excess-baggage prices: published tables are dated or conflict, so none are quoted except where noted.
• Effective dates: most pages carry no date; the date given is when we read them.

Sources

• Safarilink, Baggage Allowance page, read 2 November 2026
• AirKenya, Baggage Policy page, Terms and Conditions page and FAQ, read 2 November 2026
• Governors' Aviation, Baggage Policy PDF (metadata 4 September 2024), read 2 November 2026
• Coastal Aviation, Baggage Policy page, read 2 November 2026
• Auric Air, Baggage Policy page, read 2 November 2026
• Mack Air, Reservations Terms and Conditions Botswana 2023 and Traveller Information (October 2019), read 2 November 2026
• Wilderness (Wilderness Air page), read 2 November 2026
• Proflight Zambia, Baggage page, read 2 November 2026
• Federal Airlines, Baggage page, read 2 November 2026