What’s What in Botswana

Michelle Obama has been front page news all week here in South Africa, what with her current African trip. Today her journey took her to Botswana, Southern Africa’s premier wildlife destination, after a stay in Cape Town. We’re jealous! Bots is one of those special destinations with such understated natural beauty and delightful locals that it attracts everyone from the Top Gear crew to Princes Harry and William. Since we can’t be there right now, we thought we’d look deeper into this top African destination. We bring you: BOTSWANA

The top four places to visit in Botswana are:

• Okavango Delta – The top attraction by far!

• The Kalahari Desert – covers up to 70% of its land surface

• Chobe National Park – has the world’s largest concentration of African elephants

• Makgadikgadi Pans – a large salt pan in the north; home to Jack’s Camp

The Okavango Delta

“Take a trip in a Mokoro down the Okavango Delta”; this is a bucket list wish I’ve heard uttered by many over the years. It’s the world’s largest inland delta, spanning more than 16,000 square kilometres, and is oft described as “the river which never finds the sea”. The Okavango River in northwestern Botswana disappears into a maze of lagoons, channels, and islands. The Delta is a spectacular site whether in flood or at other times of the year and teems with wildlife, such as crocodile, red lechwe, sitatunga, elephant, wild dogs, buffalo, wattled crane as well as the other more common mammals, and over 400 bird species.

Our Recommended Okavango Delta Accommodation:

Little Vumbura Camp
Little Mombo Camp
Jao Camp

Plan an OKavango Delta Safari with Rhino Africa:

Due to the seasonality and dynamic nature of the Okavango Delta we always recommend talking and discussing your itinerary with your Rhino Africa consultant. As a general rule we recommend spending at least four nights in the Delta. This should be two nights in a land activity or combination camp – and two nights in a water activity camp in order that you might appreciate and experience the full range of activities that the Delta has to offer.

There are several activities and tours to go on in Botswana. Search our collection or chat to a travel consultant to tailor-make one.

When to go:

The best time to go to Botswana is a tricky question to answer, as it depends on what you like, weather wise, and what interests you have/ what activities you want to do. Here’s a guide:

Climate:

Summer is from October to March and is the rainy season. Day time temperatures can rise to 38°C and night time it can drop to 20°C to 25°C. Winter is from April to September and days are sunny, dry, clear and cool to seductively warm while evening temperatures drop sharply. Day temperatures reach around 20°C; evening can be as low as 5°C. There’s virtually no rain in winter.

Wildlife:

Towards the end of November when the summer rains start, new grasses attract Burchell’s zebra and wildebeest. Large herds of buffalo gather from the Okavango and move to the mainland of Moremi, where new pools of water collect. April to October, breeding herds of elephants increase in density along the Chobe River daily, as they visit the rivers and pans with permanent waters.

Bird viewing is good from October to March, in summer, when a large variety of migrant birds from the northern hemisphere fly down to use Botswana and more specifically the Okavango Delta as preferred breeding and feeding areas.

Vegetation:

This is particularly lush after the first rains during December to May. February is peak flowering time for water lilies. Savuti and the area between the river and wooded dunes in Chobe explode with white, yellow and purple flowers in between the green.

* Pics courtesy of Wilderness Safaris