US
Email Gloria Tostado | 65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
A Land That Takes You Back in Time
Botswana is a landlocked country in southern Africa yet offers an array of opportunities to see wildlife in their natural habitat. It is mostly flat, with scruffy brush and occasional trees that often times have that windblown appearance. I learned that the country is approximately 70% in the Kalahari Desert, so the soil is very thick, loose, red sand, which makes it difficult to maneuver, which is why 4x4 wheel vehicles are optimum. It is beautiful in its own way, but life for both the local villagers and wild animals can be difficult, as water availability is dependent on rains coming from the north, mostly the highlands of Angola. Having said this, while some rivers were dry, others further north were not and we enjoyed seeing an abundance of elephants, zebras, buffaloes, impala, hippos, and even lions. Botswana is also home to Chobe National Park, located on the northeastern part of the country that borders Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Namibia, which is definitely worth visiting. We always felt safe in Botswana and the people were friendly and helpful. All children learn English in school so most speak both English and the national tribal language of Setswana.
NZ
Email Arlene Tyler | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
An upclose look at awesome wildlife and scenery
We loved our 3 day safari to Chobe. Our guide, Max was so informative and made so much effort to give us the best possible experience. We saw lions, elephants, giraffes, hippos, water buffalo and we were fortunate enough to even see a leopard. We were amazed how close we were to the wildlife but we never felt unsafe. We were very well looked after by our guide all thru. Wear a warm jacket for early mornings. Highly recommend Botswana.
DE
Email Anja Luecking | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Vast wilderness and wildlife
I went on a mobile safari to Savuti and Khwai (which I especially loved because of the scenery next to the river) and one day in Moremi.
I was a solo female traveler and felt well protected and looked after by the crew of my tour operator Xaa Safaris. I had a spacious tent with an en-suite bathroom and loved hearing the animals at night: lions roaring, hyaenas howling, elephants rumbling and hippos barking. I was great to watch the elephants strolling through the campsite in Khwai during the day, and I even encountered an elephant drinking out of a my wash basin while I was inside the tent! We saw lions a few times in Savuti and Moremi, came across a pack of wild dogs and a bat-eared fox couple and had a great leopard sighting where we spent quite some time with the animal. Apart from that we enjoyed spotting many gracious giraffes, a lot of hippos and elephants, but also saw also the rarer sable and roan antilopes and ground hornbill. It was good fun and excitement to track lion, leopard or hyaena.
After the safari I spent a few days in Maun and went on a one day trip to Okavango delta.
I can recommend Botswana as a travel destination for its vast wilderness and wildlife. Looking forward to return and see other areas like the salt pans and Kalahari.
Email Jess van Zeil | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Exceptional experience! Incredible guide and tour
We loved our trip to Chobe! Everything was seamless from the booking process, to the pickup and drop off. Our guide Opi was incredible, he has been working in Chobe for 18 years and his knowledge was phenomenal. We had incredible sightings, including 3 leopard and 12 lions! Camping in Chobe was an awesome experience! We will not hesitate to book again :) We highly recommend this trip :)
