Day 1 (Thursday) Arrive at Windhoek Airport (airport code WDH) and after clearing customs and immigration, you’ll be met by our team and taken straight to our camp accommodation for the night, a journey of around 45 minutes depending on. A Pre-departure meeting is at 5pm, so make sure your flight arrives in good time – or come a day or two earlier to explore the city.
Day 2 (Friday) Windhoek to Ghanzi (Botswana) (B/L/D) This morning we depart early as we prepare to leave Namibia behind us as we enter into the beautiful Botswana. Ghanzi is a town in the middle of the Kalahari Desert. Optional activities include a number of activities to interact with the San / Bushman, and to discover how they survived in the Kalahari.
Day 3 (Saturday) Ghanzi to Maun (Botswana) (B/L/D) Maun is the main centre for visits to the UNESCO World Heritage listed Okavango Delta is the starting point for travel into the Okavango Delta, and is a chance to pick up last minute essentials before we set off to explore the Delta itself.
The Delta is a huge expanse of water, which flows from the highlands of Angola before spreading out to form the largest inland delta in the world. Studded with exotic islands, the Okavango Delta is renowned for its incredible variety of birds and mammals.
Tonight, we prepare our provisions and packs for our overnight night excursion. We suggest bringing along a smaller daypack on your trip as this can be used to pack the supplies needed for this short excursion. Your trip leader will brief you fully on what is needed, and what to expect prior to your trip. The Okavango Delta is undoubtedly one of the best experiences in southern Africa, and offers a large variety of mammal, reptile and bird species. This wildlife lover’s paradise is best explored by foot and mokoro, a traditional dugout canoe. With over 400 species of birds, 70 species of fish and an abundance of larger wildlife, your experience in the delta will leave you lost for superlatives. All you have to do is sit back, relax and have your camera ready as you are guided through the maze of small channels.
Day 4 (Sunday) Maun to Okavango Delta (B/L/D) After an early rise, we pack our expedition vehicle and drive north for a couple of hours to reach the park. The local guides (polers) will be waiting for us at the waterline, where we transfer all the equipment and our personal belongings into mokoros (traditional dugout canoes). The Delta region is studded with many local villages where many families live in a traditional way. Some of the villages are very remote and can only be reached by the traditional mode of transport – the Mokoro. Mokoros are dugout canoes manoeuvred through the waterways by local guides who “pole” them through the reeds. After a couple of hours exploring the waterways, we arrive at our mobile tented camp situated in the heart of the Okavango.
On arrival, you will meet the local staff who will be your host during your stay. A brief introduction to the camp will show you your dome tent with twin beds and a bush en-suite bathroom – long drop toilet and a bucket shower. Relax in the tent with a cold drink or take a paddle in the Delta in a canoe. The activities at the camp include Mokoro trails and guided walking.
After dinner you can relax with the guides around the campfire, while listening to their stories about the bush, its animals, their cultures and of course the sounds of animals at night in Africa.
Day 5 (Monday) Okavango Delta to Maun (B/L/D) After a leisurely breakfast, we’ll break down camp and return to our vehicle once again by mokoro, arriving back at camp around lunch time. This afternoon, consider an optional one hour flight over the Okavango Delta during which you are virtually guaranteed to see many large herds of animals, as well as many single or smaller groups of animals. Flights are dependent on weather conditions & availability.
Day 6 (Tuesday) Maun to Nata Region (B/L/D) We leave this beautiful part of Botswana behind us this morning as we drive through a remote and unpopulated landscape where donkeys roam freely, arriving later at a lush campsite called Elephant Sands. Elephant Sands is 16,000 hectares of private conservation land which attracts wildlife large and small. Elephant Sands offers a range of game drive safaris, night drives and bush walks and once we have set up camp you will have the option of partaking in one or more of these activities, booked and payable locally. Your crew will provide you with more information.
Day 7 (Wednesday) Nata Region to Chobe National Park (B/L/D) After breakfast we set off directly north towards Zambia. Today’s drive is around 4 hours through beautiful Botswana and we arrive in the middle of the day in Kasane where we will camp on the banks of the Chobe River. The river forms a border between Botswana, Namibia and Zambia and is the main water source to the Chobe National Park. Elephant, hippo and many bird species can be viewed from the campsite while we watch another glorious African sunset. Listen out for the resident hippos!
Day 8 (Thursday) Chobe National Park (B/L/D) This morning we have a chance to explore the town of Kasane. Later, we head off for our overnight experience in the wilds of the Chobe National Park. Chobe is one of Botswana’s premier game parks, renowned for its large elephant herds. We spend the afternoon in search of wildlife while we game drive to our camp within the park. Look out for the rare Sable and Roan Antelope on your game drive, with their majestic backward slanting horns, or try keep a count of the Lilac Breasted Rollers that swoop by! We spend the evening at camp surrounded by the glorious night-time noises of the local wildlife.
Day 9 (Friday) Chobe National Park to Victoria Falls (Zimbabwe) (B/L) After our night in the bush, we head out early to continue our search for wildlife, before packing up the camp and heading back to Kasane. On returning to camp, we get back on our truck and continue to the Zimbabwe border. Here we complete immigration formalities, before a short drive on to the nearby township of Victoria Falls, situated on the Zambezi River and surrounded by the Victoria Falls National Park. Our campsite is conveniently situated within walking distance of the adventure booking agents, restaurants and shops. A short walk down the main road takes you to the entry point to view the falls, which straddle the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia. Victoria Falls, or Mosi-oa-Tunya (the Smoke that Thunders), was named by explorer David Livingstone and is one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. Included Activity: Entrance to Victoria Falls At 1700 m wide and around 100 m high, this is the world's largest sheet of falling water and a must-see on any African adventure. The afternoon is spent relaxing at the campsite, viewing the Falls or exploring the many sights and delights of this great little town! Included Activity: Entrance to Victoria Falls
Day 10 (Saturday) Victoria Falls (B) Your trip ends after breakfast this morning, we exchange addresses and part ways, having just experienced some of the true highlights of Africa! We strongly recommend you plan for a few days extra in Vic Falls after your trip – there is so much to do here ! Adrenalin junkies can bungee from the Victoria Falls Bridge connecting Zimbabwe and Zambia or abseil down the Batoka Gorge - neither activity is for the faint hearted! All year round, flights in fixed wing, micro light and ultra light aircraft or helicopters provide an aerial perspective over this magnificent World Heritage Site. White water rafting on the Zambezi is world class. Beside the excitement of the Grade 5 rapids, there are the "floats," where there is time to admire the scenic cliffs and the occasional wildlife on the riverbanks.
Accommodation We spend each night in a secure campsite where you will be required to put up & down your own tent. There are a wide range of great campsites in Africa, many with activities, bars, restaurants and excellent facilities. Some campsites may not have a shower or a beer available, though most have running water - whether it is hot or cold, respectively, is another matter! Sometimes conditions can be challenging – it may be dusty or rainy, it can get exceedingly hot or very cold – come prepared for the respective season you’re travelling in and you’ll have little to worry about.
Camping tours are adventurous in nature, we generally carry clients who enjoy being outdoors and don’t mind a little discomfort in exchange for seeing and doing a lot of activities in a short period of time. Our trips are all group tours so clients must be comfortable sharing their space and experiences with other like-minded travellers who are from various parts of the world.
Meals Menus vary as food is purchased en-route, and is subject to produce that is available seasonally in the areas we travel through. As we support the local communities along the way, fresh produce is mostly purchased direct from the producer or local grower and therefore has an organic appearance. Our safari cooks are able to offer a wide variety of menus with the ingredients available