Discover Moremi, Okavango, Chobe, and Victoria Falls
Botswana Wildlife Safari
Overview
Experience Botswana as few other safari-goers do—in private mobile camps that get you close to the wildlife and far from the lodge crowds. To have this incredible wildlife paradise almost all to yourself feels like a privilege. Our safari explores deep into the wildlife-rich Moremi Game Reserve, Okavango Delta, and Chobe National Park, with game drives in custom 4WD vehicles. By night, sleep in a comfortable bed in your own tent with a private bathroom, drifting off to the sounds of the African night. Real mobile camping is a rare safari experience—it’s pure magic!
Arrive: Maun, Botswana
Depart: Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
Highlights
- Mobile camps set up exclusively for our groups, away from the crowded lodges and located in prime spots for spectacular wildlife viewing
- Small groups—maximum 10—and two expert Trip Leaders with you the entire safari
- Two nights mid-trip in a beautiful lodge in the Okavango Delta for a change of pace
- Private riverboat and canoe journeys, two spectacular charter flights that eliminate long drives
- Custom-built 4WD vehicles for just 5 passengers—with guaranteed window seats
- Staff to guest ratio of 1:1 at our mobile camps
- Victoria Falls, one of the natural wonders of the world, and the world-famous Victoria Falls Hotel
Itinerary
Our private charter flight carries us right to the stunning Moremi Game Reserve (and avoids an all-day drive!). Here in the eastern Okavango, our campsite is at Xakanaxa, on the tip of a mopane “tongue” jutting into the Delta. The camp has a beautiful setting of secret pools, tall forest, and open grasslands—don’t be surprised if a grazing elephant passes through. Moremi is also an ornithologist’s paradise, with almost every species of central-southern African bird, including bee-eaters and colorful kingfishers.
The 800-mile-long Okavango is “the river that never finds the sea,” disappearing into a remarkable maze of lagoons and channels to create the Okavango Delta. We’ll take a scenic boat ride to our next setting: the remote western corner of the Delta, the perfect place to explore on foot and by motorboat and mokoro (a dugout canoe navigated by a skilled poler). We should see bushbucks, a rainbow of birdlife, the shy sitatungas and semi-aquatic lechwe antelopes, and perhaps even buffalos and elephants. We’ll appreciate the calm solitude of this quintessential Delta setting.
Leaving the Okavango ecosystem, we get a bird’s-eye view of the Delta as we fly by private charter to the southern section of Chobe National Park, where we explore the Savuti River Area, a vast grassland that attracts migrating herds of herbivores. This is one of the best places to find lions, leopards, and other predators and their prey—large herds of giraffe, kudu, vervet monkey, and baboon. At night, Chobe comes to life with the whooping calls of wild dogs and the rumbles of elephants, and if the skies are clear, it’s easy to see the Southern Cross. From our mobile camp in the Serondella area, with its photogenic baobab trees, we’ll take a private cruise on the Chobe River to see big herds of tuskers ambling down to the river at sunset.
Our safari ends with a tour of Victoria Falls, a World Heritage Site, and an overnight at the stately Victoria Falls Hotel. Depart on Day 11.
Accommodations
Scroll through our signature accommodations for this trip below. Although it is highly unlikely, we may make substitutions when necessary.
What the Trip is Like
This trip is rated Level 2, Easy to Moderate. It is a vehicle-based camping safari, with seven nights camping in our private mobile safari camps. It will enjoyed by anyone in reasonably good health. Although the trip is not rigorous, it does involve some long driving days over rough roads and game tracks—you will enjoy it more if you are in good shape and good health. (Note: Day 8 is an all-day game drive, with a picnic lunch in the field.) Any African safari is an adventure, and the traveler to Africa should bring along flexibility, a sense of humor, curiosity about new peoples and places, and an openness to the unexpected.
The best game viewing period is during the “dry” season, which runs from late March to October. Because of the minimal rainfall during this season, the bush turns golden brown and in many areas is beaten flat, so game viewing is easier and animals concentrate around major water sources. The Okavango Delta's water level starts to rise during these months.
October to April can be very hot, with most of the rainfall between December and February. This season characteristically has hot sunny days with afternoon thundershowers. This season is excellent for the viewing of newborn mammals, summer flowers, and the migration of rare birds. Predator viewing during this time remains quite good.
Our mobile tented camping safaris in Botswana provide a true bush experience without sacrificing comfort. Our comfortable walk-in tents feature cozy beds, linens, tent lamps, and have en suite bathrooms with a toilet, mirror, sink, and hot water shower. Our crew sets up camp and prepares all meals.
Delicious food is served in a comfortable dining tent. You'll find camping delightÂful and very comfortable, and you will appreciÂate how close to nature you feel.
We travel by Toyota 4WD Land Cruiser “go-anywhere” safari vehicles equipped with a refrigerator for cold drinks and a reference library on flora, fauna, and avifauna. They carry five trip members per vehicle, with guaranteed window seating. During drives and walks, we can at times get quite close to wild animals. Being very quiet improves everyone's chances of observation. In the interest of safety, your Trip Leaders explain limitations on movement while on game drives, in the safari vehicles, and around camp. Incidents with wild animals are extremely rare on safaris, but no trip can guarantee immunity from such incidents. Wilderness Travel is not to be held responsible for incidents involving the behavior of wildlife.
Client Testimonials
"It was a fantastic trip, a lifetime dream come true. I am so glad we chose Botswana and Wilderness Travel. We could see other trucks and groups and it was always clear we had some of the best guides and best 'in the bush' experiences. The camps were clearly traveled though at night by the animals and the sounds of hippos and lions and hyenas was a welcomed nightly chorus."
Aimee S.
Lagunitas, CA
"Quite possibly the best we have had in our seven trips with WT."
Alec and Cindy C.
Santa Barbara, CA
"Absolutely incredible. Exceeded expectations. Well planned, well designed and exquisitely operated and carried out. I never thought I would see so much wildlife."
Ari G.
Pacific Palisades, CA
"I can not strongly enough say enough good things about this wonderful, unforgettable trip. It was everything that I had hoped for, dreamed of, and more."
Arthur G.
Anchorage, AK
"The entire trip was first class. The service from the trip team was outstanding. I felt like I was at a five star hotel rather than out in the African Bush."
Brad G.
San Francisco, CA
"Fabulous, fantastic, once-in-a-lifetime adventure. We saw more wildlife in one day than I imagined we would see in the entire trip!"
Cathy B.
Ann Arbor, MI
"If a safari is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, this trip will ensure you don't miss out on anything. We saw animals galore, ate wonderful, fresh food at every meal, and were guided by experts who helped us really experience the wild and beautiful Botswana/Okavango environment."
Celes E.
Friday Harbor, WA
"The small number of participants with Wilderness Travel makes a much more intimate interaction with the areas visited. It was wonderful being in a small group of ten. Our guide's ability to spot things in the bush was pretty incredible—he found leopards for us (with their kills), lions we would never have seen, and every bird everywhere. Great personality, too!"
Danita H.
Bellevue, WA
"This trip was awesome. I would love to do it again."
Dawn E.
San Mateo, CA
"The crew and cook did an excellent job—all of our needs were met with a smile. It was a different experience for us, to be in a mobile camp, but one we thoroughly enjoyed."
Dianne R.
Edmond, OK
"Another first-class Wilderness Travel experience. The mobile camp itinerary made the trip so much more successful than just staying at lodges. We really got out into the bush, and on many mornings were the first jeeps to discover the animals in an area because of our quick start from camp."
Gregory J.
Santa Fe, NM
"Fabulous trip! Loved every minute of it. We were so well taken care of! Our camp staff was just great."
Jerri M.
Oakland, CA
"An extraordinary trip. The tent camping experience and the lodges were outstanding. The assurance that we were truly experiencing the world as the animals (and birds) do made it an intensely rewarding experience."
John M.
Alexandria, VA
"Fabulous trip, which I wanted to be longer."
Jonathan R.
Brunswick, ME
"The camp crew was excellent. They went out of their way to make us comfortable and have a wonderful experience in the campsite. Everything was perfect!"
Julie D.
North Salem, NY
"Fantastic trip!"
Karen S.
Tesuque, NM
"Truly the trip of a lifetime!"
Kelly S.
San Jose, CA
"This trip was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. My wife and I travel around the world and this was a very special experience from the minute we arrived in Africa to the day we left."
Lawrence V.
Kailua Kona, HI
"It’s difficult to put into words how wonderful this trip was. It was a “bucket list” thing for me, and everyone involved at the WT office and on the trip itself went above and beyond to make sure it was fantastic. The food, the service, the accommodations, the planning and itinerary…all were amazing. This was our 3rd trip with WT, and it was as we have come to expect—all have been exceptional. I know I can go anywhere in the world on a WT trip and find the right people who love their jobs and meeting people, and who allow me to relax and not worry about a thing!"
Leslie N.
Allyn, WA
"We loved the trip! The design and flow of the itinerary was perfect. We spent just enough time in each area before it was time to move on. The staff was outstanding and made us feel welcome at all times."
Lydia O.
Round Rock, TX
"We were very excited to be going on safari and all of our expectations were met and exceeded. This was the adventure of a lifetime! Top quality in every way."
Maynard L.
Lafayette, CA
"I have traveled a fair bit and I’ve never experienced anything quite like this. It was by far the most amazing trip I’ve ever been on, and probably the most emotional. I’m still not sure I have the words to describe the experience, and it wouldn’t been the same without the amazing people had with us—each one went above and beyond to make it a very special trip."
Megan T.
Ellerslie, Auckland
"Marvelous experience, not to be missed!"
Melissa S.
Kailua Kona, HI
"Each day brought something new and exciting. It really did get better every day!"
Nancy P.
Los Angeles, CA
"This was one of our best trips ever. We are still on a high a month after the trip, having had wonderful guides, camp crew, and co-travelers. It was the right mix of comfort and authentic experience and we saw so much more than anticipated."
Noella L.
Los Altos, CA
"The accommodation was comfortable and everyone at camp was helpful and accommodating. The food was very good. We were all impressed by the cook's skills over an open fire—the breads were a big hit! We looked forward to our evening meal under the flickering oil lamps. The table was decorated with napkins that symbolized some of the animals we spotted each day. Our tent was always clean we had hot water every evening for showers. They washed our clothes! Every morning we were woken with a cup of coffee. No detail was missed, from the moment they greeted us until we said goodbye. We felt spoiled."
Pamela H.
Long Grove, IL
"This was our first guided trip—my husband and I are well traveled, but we've always perfered to go independently. This experience may have changed our minds."
Pamela H.
Long Grove, IL
"This trip was transforming for my husband and me—the beauty and power of nature was exhilarating! I will never forget the friendships we forged, the awesome beauty of the sunsets, and maybe most especially the haunting sounds of Africa at night in our tent. Thank you!"
Pamela H.
Long Grove, IL
"Great schedule with a focus on seeing every inch of the territory, animals, birds, learning about the terrain and the history of Botswana. A wonderful, well-run operation and very well planned and executed."
Paula E.
W. Newton, MA
"This trip truly exceeded our expectations and made it the trip of a lifetime. We saw far more wildlife, up front and personal, beyond our imagination."
Ronnie G.
Las Vegas, NV
"A phenomenal trip! Even better than we anticipated."
Scott B.
Brownsburg, IN
"The trip was way beyond expectations. I started missing Africa and the whole experience even before I left!"
Valerie D.
Prescott, AZ
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Itinerary
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Trip Levels
With more than 200 different adventures to choose from, we want to help you find the trip that’s right for you. Our Trip Level system ranks each trip in two ways: a number rating from 1 to 6 according to the activity, and general travel rigors. 1 is the easiest and 6+ the most difficult.