Chobe from the water
Chobe National Park holds one of the densest elephant populations in Africa. Game-viewing boat cruises on the Chobe River put you level with the herds as they come down to drink, rather than looking at them from a vehicle.
Botswana safaris
Five Botswana safari packages from 4 to 10 nights — Chobe, the Okavango Delta, the Makgadikgadi Pans and the Kalahari, from US$1,127 per person sharing.
A Botswana safari is water and wilderness: game-viewing boat cruises on the Chobe River, mokoro trips through the channels of the Okavango Delta, and the zebra migration on the Makgadikgadi Pans. Chobe is a road transfer from Victoria Falls, so our Botswana safari packages start at US$1,127 per person sharing for four nights, and run to ten nights under canvas across Botswana and Zimbabwe.
About Botswana
Botswana borders Zimbabwe, Zambia, Namibia and South Africa. Its far north-east corner, at Kasane on the Chobe River, is where four countries meet, and it sits a short drive from Victoria Falls through the Kazungula border. That makes Chobe the easiest Botswana safari to add to a falls trip.
Further west the Okavango River spreads into the Kalahari sands to form the Okavango Delta, a permanent wetland of islands and channels with Moremi Game Reserve on its eastern edge. South of it lie the salt pans of Makgadikgadi and the open semi-desert of the Central Kalahari.
Most Delta camps have no road access, so safaris there are flown between airstrips by light aircraft, usually from Maun. We combine both: road transfers for Chobe from Victoria Falls, and fly-in circuits for the Delta, the pans and the Kalahari.
What makes Botswana different
Four reasons Botswana belongs on a Victoria Falls trip.
The Okavango by mokoro
In the permanent Delta there are no roads, so activities are on the water and on foot: mokoro trips through the channels, boat cruising, guided bush walks, fishing and birding from small island camps.
The Makgadikgadi migration
Makgadikgadi Pans National Park holds up to 30,000 zebra and wildebeest and the predators that follow them. From June to November the dry Boteti riverbed is a major migration route, watched from a raised hide.
Desert to Delta to the falls
One itinerary can cross the Central Kalahari, the Okavango Delta, the Chobe riverfront and Victoria Falls, mostly by light aircraft, finishing with a road transfer across the border to the falls.
Botswana safari packages
Five itineraries from 4 to 10 nights, by road from Victoria Falls or flown between camps, with published rates per person sharing.
5 days · 4 nights
Victoria Falls & Chobe
Two nights at the falls, two in Chobe, with game drives and boat cruises on the Chobe River.
From US$1,127 pp sharing
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7 days · 6 nights
Makgadikgadi Pans & Okavango Delta
The Boteti migration from Leroo La Tau, then Camp Okavango on an island in the Delta.
From US$4,030 pp sharing
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9 days · 8 nights
Best of Botswana & Victoria Falls
Central Kalahari with the San, mokoro on Chief’s Island, the Chobe riverfront and the falls.
From US$5,400 pp sharing
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10 days · 9 nights
Zambia & Botswana Guided
Both ends of Kafue, the falls from Livingstone, then two nights on the Chobe riverfront.
US$6,560 pp sharing
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11 days · 10 nights
Khwai, Savute & Hwange
Under canvas throughout: the Khwai River, the Ghoha Hills above Savute, then Hwange.
Rate on request
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Botswana safari questions
Can I do a Botswana safari from Victoria Falls?
Yes. Chobe National Park is a road transfer from Victoria Falls across the Kazungula border, so the shortest Botswana safari is two nights at the falls and two in Chobe. The Victoria Falls & Chobe package is four nights, from US$1,127 per person sharing.
How much does a Botswana safari cost?
Our Botswana safaris start at US$1,127 per person sharing for four nights combining Victoria Falls and Chobe. The six night Makgadikgadi and Okavango fly-in is from US$4,030 per person sharing in the green season, the eight night Best of Botswana & Victoria Falls is from US$5,400, and the nine night Zambia & Botswana guided safari is US$6,560. The ten night Khwai, Savute & Hwange safari is quoted against your dates.
When is the best time for a Botswana safari?
July to October is high season, when the Okavango flood peaks and game concentrates on the water — and also the most expensive time. December to March is the green season, with lower rates. On the Makgadikgadi itinerary the zebra and wildebeest migration along the Boteti River runs from June to November.
How do you get around on a Botswana safari?
The Okavango Delta has no roads into its permanent water, so most Delta safaris fly between camps by light aircraft, usually starting in Maun. Chobe is reached by road from Victoria Falls or Livingstone. Our Botswana itineraries include the charter flights and road transfers they need.
What is a mokoro?
A mokoro is a traditional dugout-style canoe poled through the shallow channels of the Okavango Delta. Mokoro trips, water level permitting, are part of the Okavango camps on our Makgadikgadi & Okavango, Best of Botswana and Khwai, Savute & Hwange itineraries.
Plan your Botswana safari
Chobe from the falls, or the Delta and the pans by light aircraft — tell us your dates and we route it around the season you are travelling in.