Botswana Travel Guide

The real bush vibe

Botswana is relatively unknown to tourists, yet provides all the wildlife and scenery you expect from a safari. When booking always ask for the possibility to stay inside the parks. There are private camping areas so it will be only you, the guide(s) and the wildlife. One night when sitting around the campfire in one of the parks a huge male elephant came rushing through the bushes and passed us within 10 meters. These kind of thrills are almost impossible in other African countries.
We stayed here with a guide and a cook on a private safari, while staying as much as possible inside the parks. As sidetrips we took a flight above the Okavanga Delta and spent two days in nearby Zambia to visit the Victoria Falls including a helicopter flight. Both were fantastic experiences well worth the money.
As the infrastructure inside the parks (and sometimes also outside the parks) is not always developed, do not try to attempt to book a self-drive unless you are very experienced in off-road driving.

A quiet, wild, marvellous country in the middle of nowhere

During our trip we had the opportunity to do many game safari which was our first activity, and we enjoied all of them. In particular we beloved the walking safari, the canooe safari and the boat safari in the okawango river, which is for sure our preferred place in botswana for kind of anumals and birds, scenery, sunsets on the river. Kalahari desert also is fantastic due to the fact that you feel really in an ancient world. On the other side, Chobe park had the biggest amount of animals but also of... tourists ! Accomodations where perfect in any place, even too much confortable. Highlights ? Leopard chasing during night in Moremi reserve,

The country appears to be English-speaking, tourist-friendly, well organized and well run. It's very close to Victoria Falls which is a big attraction on its own.

I would, and have, tell anyone and everyone to go to Botswana. I loved it there and would go back in a heartbeat.

Very diverse

We travelled in exceptionnally good conditions
Guides are very experienced and professional
Lucky with weather

A cornucopia of wild delights stimulating all of the senses.

I was a leadre on a World Challenge Expedition with 15 17-18 year old students from Monmouth in the Wales, U.K. We were lucky enough to go on several safaris and saw a huge amount of wildlife everywhere we went, especially in Chobe and on the Okavango Delta. We were blessed with good weather and really enjoyed camping out and eating delicious steak cooked on a mahogany BBQ. I particularly enjoyed the photographic opportunities, both on Safari and when visiting the Elephant Sanctuary at Livingstone and Victoria Falls. One of the highlights of our trip was the extremely rewarding voluntary work we did for the Bana Ba Metsi School for troubled boys on the Okavango Delta. I would recommend Botswana to pretty much anyone (especially the more adventurous!) as an exciting and beautiful destination.

Africa at its most unspoilt, its most beautiful and most thrilling.

Our experience in Botswana was unforgettable and far too short. One day we will return and see what else this wonderful country has to offer. We travelled with the UK company Explore (they supplied an overland truck with tents on board, a cook,a driver/guide and a UK tour leader) and combined the trip with Namibia. We spent three nights camping at the Xakanaxa site and had guides/drivers and smaller vehicles supplied by the operator Wilderness Dawning. We can not recommend them highly enough-particularly as they found us two leopards in one day, something we shall never forget. The campsite was basic but had a toilet and shower block; not be used at night as the site is completely unfenced and it's a bit of a walk. It is also in a super spot with acess to both Moremi and the delta. Bushbuck and vervet monkey and lots of birds could be spotted even around the campsite. During our stay we did four games drives in the reserve and spent the best part of day on a flat bottomed boat cruising through the delta and stopping to walk across one of the islands. The wildlife in the two areas is totally different. Moremi has the big cats and antelope, whereas on the delta we saw lots of birds, hippos and many more elephant. We travelled in January and hence did experience some very heavy rain showers but the animals were still around in abundance. Combined with Namibia I can say without hesitation this was our best holiday ever.

a lot of animals, good bush and beutifull view. Only few birds.

Botswana is an incredibly beautiful country with amazing wildlife and spectacular sunsets!

The wildlife viewing in the Okavango Delta was fantastic! Close views of Lions, Leopards, Elephants, Zebra...the list goes on. One of my favorite parts of the safari was the birds. There are so many beautiful birds!

The weather in June was great. During the days the temps ranged from the 70's to 80's(F). At night the temp dropped into the 40's or 50's, cold but not bad at all. Plus the cooler temperatures means not too many bugs!

I could not be pleased more with the guides incredible knowledge and tracking skills. Amazing!

Botswana has managed to preserve its wildlife - unlike so many other african nations.