Chobe National Park

Chobe National Park lies in Botswana's Okavango Delta and covers four distinct eco-systems. The Savuti Marsh in particular offers some of the highest concentrations of wildlife in Africa year round. Chobe boasts around 120,000 elephants. The park's vast herds are best seen from the water on a sundown river cruise..

The best time to visit Chobe is between May and September when the weather is drier and cooler. Herds of zebra, eland, buffalo, giraffe, and wildebeest congregate here at this time of year. Chobe is accessible by car which makes it a little less expensive than some of Botswana's other parks. There's a wide variety of accommodation available to suit all budgets. You can even rent a houseboat.

9 NIGHTS / 10 DAYS – CKGR, MAKGADIKGADI, NXAI PAN


TOUR INFORMATION


DAY 1:

Early morning after breakfast, you will depart for Central Kalahari Game Reserve. Central Kalahari Game Reserve encompasses 52 000 square kilometers. The region of vast open plains, salt pans and ancient riverbeds is home to large herds of springbok and gemsbok. Made famous by Mark and Delia Owen in the book ‘Cry of the Kalahari’, we will spend 3 nights at Deception Valley and accommodation is tented camping. During our stay here we will track the black manned lion of the Kalahari. African wild dogs, cheetahs, brown hyenas can also be found following their prey in this untamed wilderness. The black manned lion of the Kalahari has a dominant colour, its adaptation is very high and therefore it can survive in harsh conditions.

The reserve has a variety of geological formations formed by changing climate over thousands of years. The Okwa River, now dry once fed the lake Makgadikgadi. Today this ancient fossil river forms a huge and beautiful valley in the southern part of the reserve, the open grasslands that spring of life with the coming of the rains support abundant game.

Deception Valley is the reserve’s most famous location. This is a long, broad inter-dune valley running roughly north–south; it's thought to be the bed of a fossil river. During and after good rains this is carpeted in luscious green grass that attracts dense concentrations of game. There will be an afternoon game drive and dinner will be served at the campsite prepared by the chef.

DAY 2:

Following an early breakfast we depart on a game drive. We will explore areas like Deception Valley, Passarge Valley, Sundays Pans and Letiahau. To get a better idea of this unique ecosystem we recommend you read “Cry of the Kalahari” by Mark and Delia Owens. A fiercely beautiful but hostile environment – the CKGR will creep into your soul and for many months after your visit you will yearn to return.

You will return to camp for lunch and a siesta before heading out in the afternoon for another game drive. Come back to the camp to shower with dinner following shortly.

DAY 3:

Wake up early for a light breakfast and a game drive through areas we did not get the chance to cover during the previous days. You will return to camp for lunch and a siesta before heading out in the afternoon for another game drive. Come back to the camp to shower with dinner following shortly.

DAY 4:

Wake up early and head for Lekhubu Island immediately after breakfast. Lekhubu Island is a rock outcrop which was submerged in the waters of the great Lake Makgadigkadi which was one of the largest lakes in Africa. Kubu is a Setswana name for hippopotamus, while Lekhubu means a rock outcrop.

About 10 000 years ago the Lake Makgadikgadi dried up and Lekhubu was left, an island surrounded by miles and miles of white salt. Research indicates that climatic changes and earth movements over thousands and thousands of years caused this dramatic change to take place. Low rock walls on the southern side of Lekhubu Island date back to the great Zimbabwean empire.

Packed lunch will be served along the way. Upon arrival, you will be taken for a game drive and later return to camp for a shower and dinner before heading to bed.

DAY 5:

We pack and move camp to the huge expansive grasslands of the Makgadikgadi Pans in search of the huge numbers of zebra (up to 25000 animals) that leave the Boteti river system and concentrate on the open grasslands in search of nutritious grasses to give birth to their young. Despite their numbers they can be elusive and we spend the next two nights in search of the herds and exploring this vast open landscape.

DAY 6:

Game drives in the Makgadikgadi Pans are unparalleled, featuring wild open plains that are stark and hypnotic, the closest thing on the earth to the rugged surface of the moon. Encounter especially adapted wildlife as they expertly navigate through the arid desert in search of food and moisture in this seemingly hostile environment. We may pass herds of springbok, gemsbok, and red hartebeest, while night drives brush by packs of the edgy brown hyena, bat eared foxes and the elusive black-maned Kalahari lion.

DAY 7:

After breakfast we will depart for Nxai Pan National Park. Upon arrival, we will set up camp, and there will be time for you to relax and refresh yourself after the trip. After the siesta, you will join your Professional Guide for a short game drive around the pan until sunset, coming back to camp in time for a shower before dinner under the African sky.

DAY 8:

Wake up early and have a light breakfast before your day trip - a game drive to explore Nxai Pan. We’ll expect to see elephants, giraffes, impalas, wildebeest, zebras, and some of the big predators. We’ll bring along packed lunches and snacks as we’ll be spending the whole day in the bush.

The game drive will include a trip to Baines Baobabs. Baines Baobabs were named after the famous 20th century painter and explorer who painted this unusual group of baobabs during his journey through southern Africa in 1862. The baobabs stand on the edge of a large salt pan that, although dry for most of the year, transforms into a massive sheet of water dotted with water lilies during the rainy season from December to March. During those wet months, water birds abound at the lagoon and create a spectacle of great beauty. We will drive back to camp in the evening, just in time to relax and take a shower before a superb dinner cooked over an open fire.

DAY 9:

Wake up early for a light breakfast and a game drive through areas we did not get the chance to cover during the previous days. You will return to camp for lunch and a siesta before heading out in the afternoon for another game drive. Come back to the camp to shower with dinner following shortly.

DAY 10:

Wake up early for a light breakfast. We will then break camp and depart from Nxai Pan to head for Maun, marking the end of the trip.

End of Trip

About

Botswana is a premier Southern African safari destination offering some of the best wildlife viewing on the planet, especially in and around the Chobe and Okavango Delta region. The Kalahari Desert with its San Bushman culture is another Botswana highlight that deserves a place on your itinerary.

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Information..

Valid passport for international travel.

Passports must be valid for at least six month.

Passengers travelling to Botswana with passports, which do not comply with these requirements, will either be stopped from boarding the aircraft or risk deportation on arrival in Botswana.

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