Botswana Safaris – Safari in Botswana
Botswana Safaris – Botswana is one of the top destinations in Africa that is famous for its awesome beautiful Okavango delta and the sheer beauties of wildlife wonders in its exciting game reserves of Moremi game reserve, Chobe national park and Linyanti among others. Botswana is one of the best destinations in Africa where travelers can spot of all the African big five animals such as the lions, the elephants, the rhinos, the buffaloes and the leopards.
Botswana is a popular destination for the fascinating deserts such as the central Kalahari and Makgadikgadi salt plans. Although the arid and typically dry regions of the regions are visited by fewer tourists that come to country, Botswana is the incredible and wonderful exciting destinations for the unique and credited desert safaris atmosphere.
Unlike other African countries, Botswana safari destinations is divided into demarcated private reserves thus leading to high rates of the safari offers although the country is highly visited by a number of travelers throughout the year. The private reserves have a lot to offer to all travelers on a true African safari adventure and they are open for tourism throughout the year from time to time. The private reserve camps offers game drive activities dugout canoe safaris, boat cruise rides that will give travelers an insight to explore the Botswana wildlife destination private reserves and its amazing unique beauties.
Wildlife to view in Botswana is in abundance and it includes the beautiful and African elephants, the African caped buffaloes, the giraffes, hippos, the huge numbers of zebras and it is important to note that the big African big cats are not so common although there are some lions numbers that can be spotted, the reserves are home to endangered antelopes as the endangered wild dogs. Other animals that can be spotted include the red lechwe, sitatunga as well as the puku and these can easily be spotted in Okavango national park reserve.
Wild life viewing in Botswana is best done during the dry season in the months of May, June, July, august and October. During the dry season the vegetation cover in the reserves is short and thinner thus it becomes very easy to spot a lot of wildlife in the reserve plains compared to wet season when there is thick bushes and vegetation cover thus wildlife viewing becomes difficult. During the dry season animals walk to the waterholes and rivers to drink water therefore it becomes very easy travelers an opportunity to take closer photos on their safari.
Botswana has quite a number of safaris destinations that is highly visited by huge populations of travelers especially during the dry season to enjoy safari holidays such as Chobe national park reserve, Moremi game reserve, and Okavango Delta reserve, the central Kalahari game reserve, Nxai Pan national park Makgadikgadi pans national park.
Botswana Safari – Botswana Tours
Africa has a great deal of attractions including wildlife, landscape, people, archeology sites and weather among others. However, the southern and eastern parts of Africa have major destinations for adventure tourism activities of traveling to national parks, wildlife reserves and sanctuaries and this is how they have earned themselves the name “African safari countries.”
This is an article of information about among African safari countries, the safari tours, attractions, rates and information about some parks among others of Botswana.
Attractions and things to do in Botswana
Located in southern Africa, Botswana is endowed with magnificent attractions in its national parks, the beautiful sands of the desert, the water bodies and the exceptional weather in the desert land. Botswana is bordered by other safari countries; Zimbabwe in the northeast, South Africa in the south and east and Namibia in the west. A safari to Botswana can as well include visits to destinations in any other/others of these neighboring safari countries. They feature the attractions of Botswana with great relaxation experiences at beaches, landscape views and more amazing wildlife.
Chobe national park, one of Botswana’s major wildlife reserves and tourism destinations offers luxurious safaris. The park is a home to wild animals including lions, hyenas, elephants and several kinds of antelopes and also has open vegetation where wide spectacular views of the park are captured. Chobe national park is also popular because it is a home for the Bushmen. Other famous destinations you ought not miss out on a safari in Botswana are the Okavango Delta, the Central Kalahari Game reserve. It is very exciting to go through the flat lands of the Kalahari Desert, on the brown-gold sand. The country can be visited throughout the year since its climate is characterized with longer dry and hot periods than rainy season.
If you want to have remarkable experiences of an African safari, travel to Botswana and encounter the wilderness. Below are some of the major destinations that you could visit, the activities to do there and other things expected on the safari.
Chobe national park
Among the national parks in Botswana, Chobe is an exceptional destination for wildlife viewing because of the high concentration of wildlife including elephants, cape buffaloes, lions, antelopes, leopards, hyenas, wildebeests, primates such as baboons among others and many more animals. The park is also very lovely because of the river flowing through area from which the park’s name was derived, River Chobe. The areas around the river are good sites for birding and nature walks. Besides the beautiful scenery, cruising on the river offers opportunities of viewing other resident wildlife of the river; crocodiles and hippos.
Chobe national park has over 450 bird species, therefore bird lovers will always be impressed by the results of the safari. The best time for birding is during the wet season while wildlife viewing can be done all year throughout though May-September is much more rewarding with lots of sightings of mammals like giraffes, impalas, buffalos, wildebeest and more.
Located close to the borders of Zambia, Zimbabwe and Namibia, Chobe national park was established in 1968 and hjas been a good destination to connect to or from with the tourism destinations in these neighboring countries. The park has safari lodges with the best accommodation facilities for safari travelers. Depending on your affordability and preferences, you can choose from the range of categories of lodges ranging from budget to luxury. Lodges there include Chobe bush lodge, Muchenje Campsite for budget travel facilitation, Kwalape safari lodge for mid-range travel facilitation, Chobe safari lodge for luxury lodging. During the low season, some of these lodges offer lower rates for their clients hence a good deal for travel during that season. While planning a Botswana Safari, make sure you include chobe.
Okavango delta
The delta whose size changes with season; larger in the wet season and smaller in the dry season covering areas of 22,000 sq km and 15,000sq km respectively is one of the most impressive sites to visit in Botswana. It is among the few unspoiled areas in Botswana and is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The delta is situated in the Northwest of Botswana in the Kalahari Basin.
Okavango Delta gets its water from River Okavango which sometimes floods the area even in the dry season. This place however remains a beautiful place to visit for watching wild animals and birds. Boat cruises are also conduced and the experience of the boat is really amazing. You’ll visit the delta and the Panhandle among other areas where you’ll encounter the best of the safari. The different drainages and vegetations in Okavango support wildlife that attract lots of tourists to the country. There are 64 reptile species, over 120 mammal species and 71 fish species. The Okavango Area boasts housing a big concentration of animals including elephants, the white and black rhino, lion, leopard, cheetah, wild dogs, giraffes, zebra, reedbucks, kudu and waterbucks among others.
The best time to visit this destination is from May to September. It is important to always make your bookings earlier so that we can secure for you places in the best lodges around this area.
Central Kalahari Game reserve
This game reserve is mainly covered by the sands of the famous Kalahari Desert which give beautiful views of a vast landscape. Visiting this reserve offers chances of seeing the wild animals that live in the different vegetations of the swamps, plain grasslands, the open plains. Other beautiful sites are those of the sand dunes, the river valleys and others. Covering an area of 52,800 sq km, this game reserve is a home to a variety of wildlife; zebra, wildebeest, hyena, yellow mangoose, rhinos, warthogs, elands, African elephant, buffaloes, foxes, giraffes, springsbok, red hartebeest among others. You’ll be surprised at how rich the reserve is with most of the rare wildlife in Africa.
The central Kalahari Game reserve is famous because of the annual migration of its animals that move through the rolling plains in search of food and water. Also referred to “the Zebra migration” the group of the thousands of normally animals is mainly dominated by Zebras and some wildebeests. This is one of the experiences you ought not to miss if you visit Botswana during the period of this migration.
Some parts of the Central Kalahari Game reserve are still occupied by people who are known to be the indigenous occupants of the area. They are known as Bushmen/San and used to be hunters and gatherers as well as nomadic pastoralists. Their communities are one of the most wonderful things to visit because they have an impressive culture which you’ll love to interact with endlessly.
Through Adventure in the wild safaris, you can find out more about Botswana Safari, its attractions, the best time to visit and make plans of your trip, book for your safari and other necessary facilities especially lodges. Some of the lodges that will provide great service are the Kalahari tented Camp, Dinaka Safari lodge, Kalahari Plains Camp, Deception Valley Lodge, Haina Kalahari Lodge and Kalahari Trail Blazers among others. The lodges are located in the best sites where you can spot different wildlife and spectacular views of the surrounding.
Moremi game reserve
This is a small game reserve covering 3,000 sq km on the eastern side of Okavango Delta. It was designated a game reserve in 1962to protect the vast variety of animals in the area and also allow the Bushmen to live there. The park was named after Chief Moremi of the BaTawana tribe.
Moremi game reserve has different beautiful landscapes including the locally famous Chiefs Island, Lagoons, the Moremi Tonfgue, Khawai River. The area has vegetation like woodlands, savannah grasslands which harbor lots of animals such as lions, elephants, hyena, Anoglan giraffe, wildebeest, cape buffalo, cheetah, black rhinos, hippos, crocodiles, zebra, jackal and many more mammals and retiles and about 500 species of birds.
The wildlife above that is found in the game reserve attracts a lot of travelers and the best is always offered on game drives and boat cruises. The best time to visit the reserve and watch these animals is during the dry season between July and October. It is normally difficult to drive in the reserve during the wet season.
Makgadikfgadi and Nxai Pan Nation al parks
The beauty of the wildlife in this area highly depends on the seasons of the climate. During the dry season, all seasonal water bodies dry up and animals gather around the remaining water sources and the semi-aquatic hippos will go deep into River Boteti. Makgadikgadi has some water pans which dry up when temperatures are high. It is therefore seen as a barren place during the dry season and when the wet season starts, the area regains its life and beauty. Rai9n fills the pans with water where many animals will be all over the park in large herds. You’ll spot many herds of the migrating zebras and wildebeest enjoying the tender grass and at the pools of water during this season.
You can visit the park as a combination of destinations with the rest in the northeast of the country that is Chobe national park and the Okavango Delta. The best time to visit this wildlife reserve is between December and April.
Maun
Maun town is located close to most tourist destinations in the northern side of Botswana. It is located near Okavango Delta and it spreads along Thamalakane River. The town is growing over the years with many hotels where tourists have meals and spend their nights. Maun town is where you’ll find headquarters of a number of air-charter operations and safari operators. It also has shopping centers where they stopover as they travel to or return from the tourist destinations and other necessary services such as car hire services. For these reasons, the town is known as a ‘Tourism capital”.
A stay in Muan town will offer an opportunity to see some of the wildlife that roams around this area such as the Red Lechwe commonly found along the shores of Thamalakane River. People living around this area are mainly cattle keepers and you’ll learn more about their culture and lifestyle. Visiting Nhabbe museum gives more information about the history of the area. If you wish to spend your night at this town, it is advisable to book early enough.
Tuli Block
Tuli block is situated in the eastern part of Botswana between the northern and eastern border of Zimbabwe and the southern border of South Africa. It is popular because of the beautiful features there for example Solomon’s Wall which is located close to river Motloutse on the southern side of the Block. You can as well be able to link to the area where rivers Shashe and Limpompo meet, Tuli nature reserve and Mashatu game reserve on the same tour.
This area is famous being a habitat for the rare ‘Black manned lion”. It is also a home to wild animals like wildebeest, zebras, cheetah, leopards, elephants, kudus, giraffes and more where game viewing is an interesting activity. The area is covered with savannah pains, riverine forests and baobab trees. This are also has an interesting history to learn about. Much of the history is reflected by the historical sites such as the African Rock Art and the Tswapong. These paintings are believed to have been drawn by the ancestors of the indigenous people the San. As you visit these historical sites, you can as well go to the Stone Age sites which show what people of the earlier years used to do.
The Tsodilo Hills
These hills are considered sacred by the local people and were recognized as a UNESCO World Heritaage Site in 2002. It is believed that the Bushmen/San are the ones who stayed around this area who painted more than 4,000 stones. Besides the art paintings, this area also has caves which you ought to visit and see where these people lived. The Tsodilo hills are believed to be the world’s oldest historical sites.
When you visit this area, you will go on a guided walk through one of the trails that have been created and maintained. Some of the trails there are the lion trail, rhino trail and the cliff trail. After watching the caves and paintings, you can as well visit the communities around the hills for an opportunity to see their lifestyle. The experience takes you to the earlier period that you didn’t live in and it’s really amazing.
Close to the area are accommodations where visitors can have a comfortable stay.
Khama Rhino sanctuary
Khama Rhino Sanctuary is a community based project that was mainly started to protect the endangered rhinos. This sanctuary was established in 1992 to promote tourism and in turn be of importance to the local people. It covers about 8585 hectares and is apart from rhinos, it is also a home to other wildlife including zebras, wildebeest and more alongside 0ver 200 species of birds. The experience got on the activities of this sanctuary; game drives, and nature walk is remarkable.
Among the visitors hosted at the sanctuary are schools around the area that are given important information about conservation. Tourists who visit the sanctuary can stay at the campsites and the chalets at the destination.
Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park
This park is a large wildlife area extending to South Africa just like its name. Covering 38,000 sq km, the biggest part of the park lies in Botswana and has a vast array of wildlife. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park is situated on the Southwestern Part of Botswana.
The migrating animals of Botswana pass via this parks and you can be able to view them on game drives. These animals include zebras and wildebeest. Other animals of the park include hartebeest, the Kalahari lions, hyenas, cheetah, eland and many more. The best time to visit this park is after the rains from March to May. Many animals gather around the riverbeds in search for water and fresh grass and can easily be sighted. Book early for your trip and lodge and experience the best of Kgalagadi.
Gaborone
Gaborone is the capital city of Botswana but it is very famous internationally because of the thrilling attractions ranging from wildlife, busy town, monuments, museum and more in the town and in the nearby areas. One of the popular nearest wildlife destinations is Gaborone Game reserve, a habitat to zebras, red hartebeest, ververt monkeys, imkpals, kudu, wildebeest, warthogs and more. Much more interesting areas in this city such as the Kgale Hill, the National Museum, Thapong Visual Arts Centre among others. You can also visit Mokolodi Game reserve which is a short distance from the city. It is well known for magnificent game viewing experiences during game drives and nature walks.
The city was named after the leader of the Batlokwa people who was known as Kgosi Gaborone. This city entertains visitors with lots of games because of the friendly weather. Games such as tennis, rugby, horse riding, swimming, golf, football among others are common in the town.
Adventure in the wild safaris is tour operator specializing in Bwindi Gorilla and Uganda wildlife safaris. We offer a wide range of Gorilla trekking and wildlife safari packages at affordable rates with a focus on delivering high quality services for all travelers who book their trips with us.
