13 Days Sensible Botswana Safari

Arrival

Upon arrival at OR Tambo (Johannesburg) International Airport you will be met by our representative who will hand your tickets to you and assist you with check-in for your scheduled flight to Livingstone. Check-in time for International flights is two hours before departure. This 212 bedroom Resort Hotel is situated on the banks of The Zambezi with views towards the Falls which are a short walk away. Part of the Sun International Group, renowned for their ‘themed’ resorts, The Zambian Sun has the feel of a walled city; centuries-old – despite the fact it was only opened in 2001. Rooms are low-slung and airy overlooking a cool landscaped pool area, while the restaurant and bar are focused around the central pool. Outside, the earth's colors are soothing and soft. Inside, the airy rooms are alive with ethnic reds, blues, and oranges.

Amenities in the rooms include independent air-conditioning, satellite TV, fold-out couches, safe, and telephone. The central reception area houses a family-friendly, high-quality buffet restaurant, a pool bar, and a lively alfresco grill and entertainment area. The Zambezi Sun is a place where friends and family can relax and enjoy Africa’s greatest natural wonder in true African style. The Resort complex also features a Casino, restaurants, and tourist shops, and Business Centre for the Conference Delegates for whom the Zambezi Sun and The Royal Livingstone Hotel are the ideal destinations. 2 x Overnights at the Zambezi Sun in a standard double room with private en-suite facilities on a bed and breakfast basis.

Victoria Falls

Enjoy some of the many activities on offer. We can pre-book this for you or you can book it upon arrival. Some activities like the Elephant Back Safaris and the Helicopter flights are very popular and I would advise that we pre-book this should these activities be of interest to you.

Chobe National Park

You will be collected from the Zambezi Sun by your driver and transferred to Muchenje Safari Lodge in Kasane. The transfer will take approximately two hours and will involve customs and immigration formalities out of Zambia and into Botswana. Situated on the Western side of The Chobe National Park, Muchenje Safari Lodge offers spectacular Game viewing away from the ‘crowds’ of Kasane. Privately owned and managed, this intimate Lodge accommodates a maximum of 20 Guests in comfortable Chalets overlooking the Chobe floodplains. Each Chalet has its en-suite facilities with a shower and mains electricity. The Chobe National Park is renowned for its concentration of buffalo and elephants and the late afternoon, in particular, provides spectacular viewing. Safari activities at Muchenje Safari Lodge include 4×4 Game Drives, Boat cruises along the Chobe River enabling excellent Game and Bird viewing, Night Drives, and cultural visits to local villages.

Muchenje Safari Lodge provides the most tranquil and hospitable atmosphere of all the Chobe Lodges. Facilities include a small swimming pool from which one can watch the wildlife grazing along the Chobe River. A pleasant lounge and dining area and bar and a Campfire around which the tallest of stories are told over late evening drinks. Muchenje Safari Lodge is our favorite Lodge in Chobe and is in the medium price range.3 x Overnights at Muchenje Safari Lodge in a standard double room with private en-suite facilities inclusive of all meals, all local brand drinks, teas, coffees, snacks, game-viewing, and laundry.

Mapula

This morning you will be transferred to Kasane Airport by your guide in time for your scheduled light aircraft charter flight to Mapula. Mapula Lodge is situated in the remote North Eastern area of the Okavango Delta, outside the Moremi Game Reserve. All the activities at this Botswana safari lodge, allow you to witness and experience the beauty of Africa, and guests have the added advantage of being able to able to enjoy game walks, and night drives, along with morning and afternoon drives, or mokoro excursions. Game viewing is particularly good in this area. Hippos live in the lagoon opposite the lodge, and the trees around the Lodge are home to a huge variety of birds.

Accommodation is in 10 well-appointed luxury Chalets, each with en-suite facilities (bath and shower). All chalets overlook a lagoon in front of the Lodge. The attention to detail and use of local craftsmanship in the construction of the Chalets is particularly impressive and attractive. Additional facilities include a small swimming pool and sun deck, and a well-stocked bar.

Being in a permanent water area, Mapula Lodge can generally offer year-round water activities, especially important during January – May when water levels in the Okavango can become too low in some areas, to allow the use of the traditional mokoro.3 x Overnights at Mapula in a standard twin chalet with private en-suite facilities inclusive of all meals, all local brand drinks, teas/coffees, snacks, game-viewing, and laundry.

Okavango Delta

A transfer today, to the airstrip in time for your scheduled light aircraft charter flight to Delta Airstrip where you will be met by your guide and transferred by mokoro to the camp for check-in. This intimate and informal safari camp nestles on a small Falcon close to the south-western edge of Chief’s Falcon, the heart of the Okavango Delta – the vast oasis of the Kgalagadi Desert, Botswana.

Accommodation is in spacious ‘lethaka’ (reed) chalets with en-suite facilities. The amazing design of the Chalets is such that you enjoy the luxuries of a ‘top rate’ hotel, but without affecting the environment; you will find you share your chalet with the trees around which the chalets have been built rather than having been cut down during their construction.

The Okavango Delta is a shifting web of crystal-clear channels, lagoons, sweeping floodplains, and palm-studded Falcons. Home to over 450 bird and 1,000 plant species, crocodile, hippo, elephant, buffalo the full spectrum of African big-game and several species of antelope that are amongst the world’s rarest the Okavango has earned its reputation as one of the world’s premier wilderness areas. Your chalet at Delta Camp directly overlooks the waterways. Delta Camp is on the banks of the Boro, one of the primary watercourses of the Okavango. Excursions, by foot and mokoro – the traditional dug-out canoe – are conducted in the renowned Moremi Game Reserve. Dine in the elegant Dining Room overlooking the sweep of the Delta, or take a beautifully prepared picnic onto one of the many nearby Falcons for a secluded and intimate experience.

This unusual Camp engenders in its staff and guests alike, an acute awareness of the ecological sensitivity of this magnificent area. The accent is on peace and tranquillity and guests are actively encouraged to visit a local village, home to our guides, and to interact, should they wish to, with the people there. 2 x Overnights at Delta Camp in a standard double chalet with private en-suite facilities inclusive of all meals, all local brand drinks, teas/coffees, snacks, game-viewing, and laundry.

Kalahari Desert

You will be transferred to the airstrip in time for your scheduled light aircraft charter flight to Deception Valley Lodge. Discover an oasis in the Kalahari of Botswana not far from the famous Okavango Delta a luxury safari lodge called Deception Valley Lodge. The best African – Kalahari experience, with Bushman at hand, to share their knowledge, while you can relax in total luxury at this unique safari lodge. Combining your visit to the Kalahari with the well-known area of the Okavango Delta in the north and the famous Victoria Falls will ensure that your safari to Africa would remain a treasured memory. Interact with the Bushmen of the Kalahari on one of the Cultural walks with Bushmen at Deception Valley Lodge.

At Deception Valley Lodge you can experience the vastness of the Kalahari while enjoying some of the most prolific bird life or do some stargazing at night. Comfort set in vibrant and rustic-colored interiors, Deception Valley Lodge accommodates up to ten people on a sharing basis. The lodge is private and restful. Attention has been given to every detail ensuring a completely different experience, in an arid Kalahari bushland stretching for miles. Each unit stands separately, on stilts connected with the main lodge by wooden walkways.6 of the 8 units consist of luxury twin-bedded rooms with an en-suite Victorian style bathroom, an outside shower, and a private spacious lounge. There are also 2 inter-leading rooms. For your convenience a hairdryer, shaving plugs, and bathrobe are standard.

All units are fitted with ceiling fans and mosquito nets. A private mini-bar will ensure your comfort during an afternoon siesta. After a nightcap, turn in for a peaceful sleep nestled among the comfortable and safe surroundings of the lodge. The main complex boasts a dining room, lounge, and bar area decorated in warm Kalahari colors making use of Bushmen and other African artifacts. From the deck, you can view activities at the nearby water hole. A curio shop and small library form part of the complex. The lodge has an ethnic African theme and was build to fit into the surrounding bush without altering, damaging, or detracting from its ambiance and color. An inviting swimming pool situated close to the main complex, to enhance the enjoyment of our guests, as well as a Boma for nighttime meals, whilst gazing across a clear night sky with its abundance of stars and listen to the enthralling night calls of the wild completes the main complex area. What makes Deception Valley Lodge unique is the rare opportunity to meet and explore this remarkable environment with bushman Guides of the San peoples, one of the oldest cultures in Africa. Experience a tour with real Bushmen.

Exploring the bush on foot, learning of the hunting and survival skills, the culture and crafts of these “little yellow people” who over the centuries have adapted their lives to survive in the most inhospitable environment of them all. Other activities at Deception Valley Lodge include afternoon and night drives in custom-built game viewing vehicles with the chance to see the rare Kalahari lion, cheetah, leopard, giraffe, kudu and if lucky, the elusive brown hyena. The night drives in particular will reveal a fascinating world of nocturnal species. Deception Valley is a bird lover’s paradise. 2 x Overnights at Deception Valley Lodge in a standard twin chalet with private en-suite facilities inclusive of all meals, all local brand drinks, teas/coffees, snacks, game-viewing, and laundry.

Departure

Your Safari finishes today with a scheduled light aircraft charter flight to Maun Airport in time to connect with your Air Botswana flight to Johannesburg scheduled to depart at 15:00 and arriving at 16:40.