Arrival
Arrival
Day 1
Maun - Nxai Pans
Maun - Nxai Pans
We will pick you up from your hotel/pre-arranged meeting point this morning. Thereafter, we head southwards to Nxai Pan National Park for a two (2) night stay.
Nxai Pan National Park, set on the northern fringe of the Makgadikgadi basin, includes several larger pans – Nxai Pan itself, Kgama-Kgama Pan and Kudiakam which were once ancient salt lakes. These larger pans are now grassed and scattered with islands of acacia trees.
At roughly 2 580 square kilometres this incredible destination offers stark contrasts between its dry and wet seasons. Once the rains start, Nxai Pan becomes a breeding ground for large herds of zebra, wildebeest, gemsbok, eland, etc. making it an important nature reserve for any African wildlife enthusiast.
During the dry season, visitors to the Nxai Pan National Park will be treated to sightings of wildebeest, springbok, impala, gemsbok, hartebeest, giraffe, lion, cheetah, wild dog, brown hyena, bat-eared fox, elephant, etc.
- Main Destination:
- Nxai Pan National Park
- Accommodation:
- Budget camping
Wildlife in Nxai Pan NP
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 2
Exploring Nxai Pans
Exploring Nxai Pans
Throughout your stay each day will follow a similar pattern. You rise just before daybreak for a light breakfast and set off at dawn to discover what promise Nxai Pan holds for the new day.
Nxai Pan has great bird watching opportunities, especially in the wet months. There are many raptors in the area and Kori bustards, Korhanns and Red necked falcons can all be spotted.
Nxai Pan is one of the best places in Botswana for excellent cheetah sightings. The flat expansive landscape is perfectly suited to these swift animals which can outrun any prey in these conditions. There are regular good sightings all year around, but cheetah activity also reaches a peak during the green season.
During your stay at Nxai Pan you will also go for afternoon safari drives. You will always come back to a campfire under the river of stars and a delicious campfire cooked dinner. Go to bed listening to the song of barking geckos and, in the distance, the roar of the lion reverberating across the night.
- Main Destination:
- Nxai Pan National Park
- Accommodation:
- Budget camping
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 3
Nxai Pan - Makgadikgadi Salt Pans
Nxai Pan - Makgadikgadi Salt Pans
Today after breakfast you will drive through Nxai Pan. This drive is actually meant to be a game drive that provides farewell to the area’s magnificent landscapes and mammals. Eventually, you will head further southwards to Makgadikgadi Salt Pans for a one (1) night stay.
These salt pans span over 16,000 square kilometers in the Kalahari Basin and are the largest network of salt pans in the world. For the true lover of remote experiences, by standing in the middle of these vast, flat, dusty, endless and salt-encrusted pans, you will experience true remoteness and pure isolation.
At night the vast Makgadikgadi landscape feels like a planetarium. You will have a 360-degree view of both the pans and star-filled skies. The endless horizon and dramatic lunar expanse that stretches as far as the eye can see simply create an amazing and unforgettable experience!
Look out for the stars, as they utterly dominate the land and their brilliance and immediacy are totally arresting.
- Main Destination:
- Makgadikgadi Pans National Park
- Accommodation:
- Budget camping
Wildlife in Makgadikgadi Pans NP
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 4
Makgadikgadi Salt Pans - Maun
Makgadikgadi Salt Pans - Maun
You wake up this morning to a hearty breakfast. Afterwards, you will leave the great Makgadikgadi landscape and head to Maun for a one (1) night stay at a comfortable lodge.
The afternoon is left for you to spend at leisure or to go shopping for curios. You can also take an optional scenic flight over the Okavango Delta (at an extra cost). This activity offers an aerial view of the Okavango Delta, giving you the opportunity to see the Delta's unique water system from a different perspective. It is even possible to spot large game animals such as elephants, hippos, etc. from high above during the scenic flight.
- Main Destination:
- Maun (City)
- Accommodation:
- Sedia Hotel
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 5
Maun - Moremi Game Reserve
Maun - Moremi Game Reserve
Today, we will pick you up in the morning and journey with you northwards to Moremi Game Reserve for a two (2) night stay.
Moremi is situated in the central and eastern areas of the Okavango Delta and covers about a third of the total land area of the Okavango Delta. At about 3900–square kilometres Moremi as a reserve is unfenced. This allows for free movement of animals within the Delta according to their seasonal migrations. Moremi boasts of diverse ecosystems ranging from floodplains, lagoons, grasslands and riverine to mophane woodland. Thus, with such a wide variety of vegetation comes a diverse spectrum of wildlife.
You will enjoy your breakfast at Moremi's south gate. This breakfast typically consists of coffee, tea, juice, cereals, rusks, fruits, etc.
Thereafter, you will enter into game drive mode and spend the day searching for the wide variety of wildlife and birds that this area is famous for before being taken to your camp to spend the night.
- Main Destination:
- Moremi Game Reserve (Okavango Delta)
- Accommodation:
- Budget camping
Wildlife in Moremi GR
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 6
Exploring Moremi Game Reserve
Exploring Moremi Game Reserve
Each day of your stay in Moremi will follow a similar pattern. You rise just before daybreak for a light breakfast and set off at dawn to discover what promise Moremi holds for the new day.
Therefore, on your safari drives you should look out for large herds of African elephants in the Mophane scrub, keep an eye on for the elusive African wild dogs, lions, leopards, etc.
You might also encounter birds of prey on these safari drives such as the mighty Martial Eagle, Tawny Eagle, the majestic African Fish Eagle and that incredible aviator–the Bateleur and many others.
We will return to our camp around noon for lunch and a much needed rest. In the afternoon we will set off once again in our safari vehicle for more birding and game viewing.
Come back to our camp just after sunset to have a shower and thereafter enjoy a campfire cooked dinner. We have two (2) nights at a wilderness campsite to marvel at this exceedingly diverse reserve that offers an untouched wildlife experience.
- Main Destination:
- Moremi Game Reserve (Okavango Delta)
- Accommodation:
- Budget camping
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 7
Moremi - Khwai Concession
Moremi - Khwai Concession
Today, after breakfast you will take a slow game drive through Moremi Game Reserve- a game drive that provides farewell to the area’s magnificent landscapes and mammals.
Finally, you will head northeast towards the Khwai Concession for a two (2) night stay.
At about 1800–square kilometres large, the Khwai is situated in the northeastern Okavango next to Moremi. It is a wildlife–prolific and varied ecosystem dominated by a patchwork of lagoons, grasslands, permanent flood plains and large areas of Mopane woodland forests. Khwai has a marvelous selection of predators such as lion, leopard, wild dog, cheetah, serval, African wild cat, etc.
In the afternoon you will go for your game drive and possibly watch the sunset unfold over the Khwai River.
- Main Destination:
- Khwai Concession (Okavango Delta)
- Accommodation:
- Budget camping
Wildlife in Okavango Delta
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 8
Exploring Khwai Concession
Exploring Khwai Concession
Once again each day of your stay in Khwai follows a similar pattern. You rise just before daybreak for breakfast and set off at dawn to discover what promise Khwai holds for the new day.
Your journey will follow the Khwai River’s watercourse weaving from the riverside and floodplains into the mophane veld and woodlands that make Khwai one of the most scenic areas of the Okavango Delta.
Khwai boasts an excellent population of African elephants, both solitary bulls and breeding herds. The swampy areas are home to red lechwe. Other resident species include the giraffe, zebra, tsessebe, kudu, impala, etc. Khwai is also one of Botswana’s birding meccas. As such the raptors and waterbirds are particularly abundant and make for some great photography.
Mokoro Excursion
The highlight on Day 8 is a mokoro excursion along the Khwai River-part of the Okavango Delta system. During this mokoro excursion you should have some great encounters with aquatic birds and several species of mammals.
- Main Destination:
- Khwai Concession (Okavango Delta)
- Accommodation:
- Budget camping
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 9
Khwai Concession - Savuti
Khwai Concession - Savuti
You will rise very early this morning and greet the fresh African morning with coffee and some light breakfast. Thereafter, you will head out on your last safari drive in the Khwai Concession.
Eventually, you will leave the Khwai Concession and travel northeastwards to Savuti for a two (2) night stay.
Savuti is best known for its predators, both big cats (lion, leopard and cheetah) and birds of prey–raptors, vultures and all manner of birds of prey that soar over Savuti’s landscape in search of food. Perhaps the strangest phenomenon of all about Savuti is the 100 kilometres of Savuti Channel. At times, it will stop flowing and remain dry for years at a stretch. When the channel recommences its flow, it changes the entire ecosystem, transforming the Savuti Marsh and Mababe Depression into wetlands. This creates an oasis that provides water for thirsty wildlife herds and acts as a magnet for a profusion of water birds.
- Main Destination:
- Savuti (Chobe NP)
- Accommodation:
- Budget camping
Wildlife in Chobe NP
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 10
Exploring Savuti
Exploring Savuti
Each morning there will be a wake–up call. You will wake up to freshen up with some hot water that is provided in the face basin. This is followed by a light breakfast of some coffee, tea, rusks, cereals, bread, etc.
You will head out for your morning game drive after breakfast, to explore the Savuti and its marsh. The Savuti Marsh is a vast expanse of grasslands dotted with dead acacia trees, creating an intriguing, almost ghost-like landscape. You will return to camp at around midday for lunch and some siesta time.
Another point of interest in Savuti is the Bushman rock paintings, thought to be well over a thousand years old. These are paintings of giraffes, elephants and elands. If time permits, we will pay these rock paintings a visit.
In the afternoon, you'll head out again for your afternoon game drive and return to camp just before sunset. Dinner will follow before you turn in for the night to rest or as you hold some discussions about events of the day around the campfire.
- Main Destination:
- Savuti (Chobe NP)
- Accommodation:
- Budget camping
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 11
Savuti - Chobe National Park
Savuti - Chobe National Park
Wake up early morning for some breakfast. Shortly thereafter you leave in a slow game drive around Savuti, and travel northeastwards to Chobe National Park for a two (2) night stay and more game drives.
Tucked up in Botswana’s far northeastern border with Namibia, Chobe National Park is one of the great wildlife destinations of Africa. At approximately 11 900 square–kilometers Chobe is made up of rich ecosystems and pristine landscapes consisting of savanna plains, river, swamp and scrub.
With such varied environments and habitats, Chobe provides a magnificent array of wildlife. It is the ultimate haven for vast herds of elephant – as many as 120,000 of the animals depend on the Chobe River’s life–sustaining waterways when the dry season kicks in. Other resident game species are large herds of buffalo, zebra, wildebeest, the rare puku, roan and sable antelopes. These are normally trailed by the notoriously fearless lions of the Chobe, leopard and cheetah.
- Main Destination:
- Chobe National Park
- Accommodation:
- Budget camping
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 12
Exploring Chobe National Park
Exploring Chobe National Park
You wake up early in the morning to freshen up with some hot water in the face basin. This is followed by a light breakfast of some coffee, tea, rusks, cereals, bread, etc. before heading into Chobe National Park for your morning game drive.
Chobe is one of the best places to see and photograph Roan and Sable Antelopes. On the other hand the massive herds of African Buffalo that inhabit Chobe are constantly flanked by the ever–hungry lions of the Chobe.
You will return to your camp around noon for lunch. If desired, this is also the time to take a nap or to just sit and relax, or perhaps read a book and ready yourself for an afternoon safari drive.
Head out again into Chobe in the late afternoon for your afternoon game drive and return to your camp just after sunset.
- Main Destination:
- Chobe National Park
- Accommodation:
- Budget camping
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 13
Departure
Departure
You will go for your usual morning game drive after breakfast and finally leave Chobe National Park as you head out to Kasane.
Chobe River boat cruise
Today the highlight is a boat cruise in the Chobe River. This boat cruise gives you the chance to experience the animals of Chobe from a different perspective and therefore, you might get up close and personal with hippos, crocodiles and a mind–boggling array of water birds.
Your safari ends in Kasane immediately after the Chobe River cruise. You will be dropped off at your hotel or to Kasane Airport for your onward travel.
Note: Transfers to Victoria Falls can be arranged at an extra cost.
- Main Destination:
- Chobe River
- Accommodation:
- No accommodation (End of tour)
- Meals & Drinks:
