Botswana

With unparalleled landscapes, wildlife and historical treasures, the only difficult thing about planning a trip to Botswana is figuring out what you’re going to have to put off until next time. Here are some suggestions for possible itineraries to enable you to maximise your time. Watery classic  (10 days) Maun >> Okavango Delta >> Chobe National Park Day 1 Fly into Maun and stock up on any last minute items you may have forgotten to pack. If everything is...

In the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development, Carrie Hampton has a look at how to give back when you travel to Botswana, and how to ensure that your funds are going into the right hands I want my holiday spend to matter,” stated Celsea Jenkins from California on safari at Great Plains Conservation’s Selinda Camp in the Okavango Delta. Her resolve was fuelled by unethical wildlife encounters she and husband Wyatt had experienced in Asia. From then...

Iain Wallace visits Deception Valley in the wild and immense Central Kalahari Game Reserve, and learns survival skills from Bushman trackers Once upon a time there was a mighty river, slap bang in the middle of Botswana. Millions of years ago, it may have flowed into what is now the glittering salt pans of the Makgadikgadi, but today, save for a few old maps, there is very little sign of any water course. In fact, there is not a...

Like most countries across Africa, Botswana is vast, with too many attractions to feasibly fit into one holiday. So where do you begin? To set you on your way we have compiled a list of Botswana’s key attractions and offered some advice on the practicalities. Our trade partners listed will be able to help with further advice and personal planning. Okavango Delta The jewel in Botswana’s crown, this vast wetland flexes between 6000 and 15,000 square kilometres as annual...

To celebrate the country’s 50th anniversary since independence, we asked experts to reveal their tips for planning the most extraordinary trip. Deciding which to publish in the magazine was very difficult, due to space restrictions, , so here are those that didn’t quite make the cut… 1 Stay at Jack’s Camp In the bleached-out Makgadikgadi, where the silence is even stronger than the sun, there’s only one man to know: Ralph Bousfield. Out of nothing, Ralph has carved one...

To celebrate the country’s 50th anniversary since independence, we asked experts for their insight and advice to help you plan an extraordinary trip. Compiled by Laura Griffith-Jones and Jessica Mayhall Why Botswana? His Excellency The President of the Republic of Botswana, Lieutenant General Dr Seretse Khama Ian Khama tells us what makes his country so special: Botswana has been named Lonely Planet’s top country to visit in 2016. While we very much appreciate and agree with this accolade, we...

James Gifford takes you to six of Botswana’s greatest natural landscapes and speaks of the classic wildlife encounters available in each today. 01 Okavango Delta I sit motionless, eyes straining to pierce the murky, predawn curtain that has been drawn across this unique landscape. Towering mopane trees gradually emerge from the darkness, like statues in a dimly lit museum. A red-billed francolin pecks impatiently at the dust, announcing itself with a noisy squawk that might have been nature’s first...