Makgadikgadi Pans National Park

Getting There

Expert

Anthony is the author of the Lonely Planet guide to Botswana.

Most visitors on safari will enter Botswana through either Maun International Airport (MUB) or Kasane International Airport (BBK). It is also possible to fly into Victoria Falls International Airport (VFA) in Zimbabwe and begin the journey from there.

Makgadikgadi Pans National Park can be reached on a self-drive safari, an organized mobile camping safari or a fly-in safari.

If you’re traveling by road, Makgadikgadi Pans is 190km/118mi east of Maun and the drive takes about 3 hours*. Entry is either via the Phuduhudu Gate or Khumaga Gate. For the latter, you can drive across the Boteti River when water levels permit (otherwise, there’s a short ferry crossing). Roads in the Boteti area, including between the two gates and climbing and descending the riverbank, are generally corrugated, with deep sand in some sections.

Most lodges are on the west bank of the Boteti River and just outside the park, so they’re quite far from the actual pans. There are some campsites for mobile and self-drive safaris closer to the pans.

You can fly by chartered plane between parks, and from Maun or Kasane, into the airstrip at one of the lodges on the western boundary of the park. Charter flights are normally booked by tour operators as part of the safari package. There are no scheduled flights to Makgadikgadi Pans.

*Driving times are only a rough indication. You should always consider the possibility of significant delays.

28 Makgadikgadi Pans Safaris