About Botswana

Botswana general

Botswana is tremendously rich in nature. It has a large inland delta with an enormous variation in game and birds, a desert which impresses by its emptiness, extensive saltpans and rivers where big herds of elephants are coming to drink. And not unimportant: The country is a democracy with a peaceful population.

Best time to visit

A visit is very worthwhile throughout the whole year. In the dry season (May-October) game viewing is generally best as the animals are concentrated around the rivers and waterholes. In the wet season (November–April) many animals have young, birdlife is at its peak and everything is green. However some roads might be difficult to negotiate.

Central Kalahari Game reserve

Unforgettable are the pristineness and emptiness of this second largest park in the world. Fossil riverbeds and sand dunes take one back to times long past. In summer the land revives when the few rain showers make the grass sprout which attracts big herds of springbok and gemsbok.

Chobe National Park

The wide Chobe river with its vast floodplains offers a fantastic view. In the dry season it is teeming with game, including big herds of elephants and buffalos. Birdlife along this big river is extraordinary rich. Also impressive are Lynianti, a remote swamp area, and Savuti that is famous for its predators and giant bull elephants.

Makgadikgadi, Nxai Pan and Lekhubu Island

One of the big surprises of Botswana are the Makgadigadi saltpans, remnants of one of the biggest lakes in Africa. On one of the main pans lies Lekhubu, an island dotted with rocks and baobabs. In the west of Makgadigadi National Park flows the Boteti river, where in the dry season big herds of zebras and wildebeest assemble. In neighbouring Nxai Pan are still the giant baobabs that were painted by Baines 150 years ago.

Nata Bird Sanctuary

The bird sanctuary contains a saltpan that inundates when there is enough rainfall and then forms a lake as far as the eye can reach. On the nutrient waters hundreds of thousands of flamingos may descent forming a flamboyant spectacle.

Okavango Delta and Moremi

The Okavango Delta is one of the seven African wonders of nature. Rainwater from Angola flows into an enormous inland delta which has the shape of a pan. In the panhandle the deep water is skirted by papyrus and is rich with fish and birds, while the pan consists of a mosaic of waterways, lagoons, floodplains and small islands. At the border of the delta lies Moremi Game Reserve with plenty of game in the dry season. It is reputed for its big population of wild dogs.

Serowe and Khama Rhino Sanctuary

The attractive 32 km2 big rhino sanctuary is meant to provide a safe haven to the last of the rhinos in the country and to reintroduce the rhino in the big parks. Nearby is Serowe, home of the Khama dynasty.

Tsodilo Hills

Out of the flat bush veld of the Kalahari four hills rise: the male, the female, the child, and the grandchild. These hills count 400 well conserved rock paintings from the San, of which some are thousands of years old. The area has the status of World Heritage.