Break Away to Botswana – Part 2

By Samantha Myburgh and Niki Duncan

Niki’s Highlights – Part 2

• The fantastic drinks stop at Xaranna
• Spotting a leopard late at night on a game drive at Xaranna
• The ribs lunch! (Xaranna)

Sam’s Highlights – Part 2

• The private massage on the deck of my suite at Xaranna
• The honey badger sighting driving from Xudum to Xaranna
• Watching a large pride of lions moving after impala on a night game drive

Read on to find out more about these exciting encounters…

After great stays at Wilderness Safaris’ Botswana lodges (Read Part 1 Here), we moved on to explore a few andBeyond properties in Bots, which were just as great and offered some excellent game viewing. From Mombo Camp we flew for 10 minutes to Kanana Airstrip from where we drove to a boat crossing at Xaranna. From here we drove for 45 minutes to the first of our andBeyond stays – Xudum Okavango Delta Lodge.

Xudum Okavango Delta Lodge

We had a great welcome at Xudum Okavango Delta Lodge; singing, welcome drinks, the whole toot! The lodge is surrounded by waterways on a permanent channel of the Okavango Delta and reaches out to a lagoon where an array of wild animals and bird life play. All the safari suites are environmentally friendly and have magnificent views of the lagoon, with a private lofty hideout and plunge pool. The salas on the rooftop are great with excellent views of the delta.

We had a great game drive here and spotted lechwe, giraffe, elephant, zebra and plenty birds. The drinks and snacks on the drive were excellent with no half measures and a great set up with table, cloth, glasses; everything! The guides were phenomenal and attentive, as were the rangers and trackers, who were very friendly with the guests, informative and always looking out for us.

Activities at Xudum included mokoro trips, day and night game drives, bush walks, cocktails on the beach, swimming in the channels, bush dinners, and more.

The main area is small but you’ll want to spend more time in your room since it’s so big and beautiful, set in a woodland forest overlooking the channels. In the morning we enjoyed a great mokoro ride and a delicious hot breakfast with omelettes and poached egg and bacon, served in an open-plan kitchen.

Xaranna Okavango Delta Camp

We made our way to Xaranna Okavango Delta Camp – which was about a 35 minute drive from Xudum to the boat crossing –  and spotted a honeybadger en route. The service here was great, as was the greeting at Xarana by boat. They introduced all of the staff to us – including our allocated butler and housekeeper. The attention to detail was phenomenal.

After a dip in our suite’s plunge pool, we had an amazing lunch in the dining area – sizzling pork ribs as tasty as the best steakhouse in Cape Town, from where we hail. Another delightful touch was the gentle African-infused music playing in the public areas – soft enough to still be able to hear the sounds of the eagles and other wild noises outside. You can purchase the CDs they play from the camp’s shop.

We had a memorable game drive here with champagne, cushions, lanterns and a great surprise masseuse, who was hiding around the corner to catch us unawares – just like the male elephant trying to check up on what was happening in his turf. andBeyond always does something special for its guests, such as pancake treats, petal and bubble baths, back and neck massages on bush lunches, and more.

We tracked lions until after 9 pm that night. There were about 18 of the big cats and we followed them in the dark with flashlights. It was incredibly thrilling as we couldn’t see very well but could hear the lions roaring. We also heard hyena and baboon calls. On the way back to camp we spotted a leopard on the move and a hippo in the reeds.

The rooms here are amazing – all have air-conditioning, big lounge areas inside and outside, huge bathrooms, mosquito-shield walls, slippers and bathrobes and more. We returned from our game drive to turned-down beds with water and torches next to the beds.

While Sam received a massage in her bedroom, Niki indulged in the breakfast which included special long koeksuster-like doughnuts with Nutella chocolate and cream dip, fresh fruit juice, and cooked breakfast with plenty of options for eggs – omelette, poached, scrambled, etc. It was a great way to end our stay there!

Nxabega Okavango Safari Lodge

From Xaranna we ventured on to Nxabega. Nxabega is excellently positioned in the 7000-hectare exclusive wildlife concession near the game-rich Moremi Game Reserve in the Okavango Delta. It offers both land and water safaris. We stopped for a picnic in the bush on our drive to camp. Needless to say, with the chicken, wraps, burgers, salads, pecan nut cake and drinks, it went down well! Our welcome at the camp was great with song and drinks. We were introduced to everyone and taken to our rooms, which were canvas tents on a platform.

We had tea before heading off on our game drive, which included mini pizzas, toast and dips, juices and more. You definitely don’t go hungry. The game viewing is normally good here, but there was a storm approaching when we arrived so the animals were hard to spot. Such is Africa… We did manage to see giraffe, zebra and lechwe. There are no fences anywhere so you have this feeling of being totally in the wild.

After a great night’s sleep, it was home time. City time. We could have kept flying from lodge to lodge, experiencing all the different faces of Botswana for weeks more though.

Keen to track some big cats and watch sunsets from a mokoro yourself? Contact us to plan and book your tailor-made Botswana holiday and to find out more about this incredible African destination!