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Trees and golden grass reflected in the still water of the flooded Okavango Delta

Sample journey · 9–11 days

Under canvas across northern Botswana, by mokoro and on foot

Maun, the Okavango Delta, Moremi, Khwai, Savuti & the Chobe riverfront

Photo: Andy Robson / Unsplash

Illustrative journey ideas — not bookable packages. No prices, dates or accommodation are implied.

Botswana is often known through small camps reached by light aircraft. This route is different: it travels by land and under canvas. A small team, guide, cook and camp hands, travels with you and puts up the tents at each stop, cooks dinner over the fire, and at night you may hear lions grumbling beyond the canvas or the footsteps of a passing elephant. Between camps you drive sandy tracks through the reserves, so that each travel day becomes one long game drive.

It begins in the Okavango Delta, reached by mokoro, a traditional pole-pushed canoe, where you walk the islands with a guide. Then come Moremi, Khwai, Savuti and finally the Chobe River, where elephants come down to drink in their hundreds. The journey is for active travellers, groups of friends and those who have been to Africa before and want to be closer to it: simpler, but no less. You can travel as your own group or, where the option exists, join a small shared mobile camp.

The route

The journey

  1. Maun
  2. Okavango Delta (mokoro)
  3. Moremi Game Reserve
  4. Khwai
  5. Savuti
  6. Chobe riverfront
  7. Kasane
  1. The bow of a mokoro on a still Okavango Delta channel among reeds and grasses

    01Days 1–3 · Maun & the Okavango Delta

    A pole, the reeds and silence

    In Maun, the town on the edge of the delta, your guide meets you and the journey begins at once: a short flight or a boat brings you to where the mokoros and their polers are waiting. The canoe slides through narrow channels between reeds and water lilies so quietly that all you hear is the pole touching the bottom and the chorus of frogs. Two nights at a simple camp on an island: morning and evening walks with the guide, reading tracks, seeing antelope, elephant or giraffe not through a vehicle window but standing in the grass. After dinner, a fire and stars no light competes with.

  2. Two wild dogs resting among fallen timber in Moremi Game Reserve

    02Days 3–5 · Moremi Game Reserve

    The first night under canvas

    Back from the delta, a vehicle and the road into Moremi Game Reserve, which covers much of the eastern delta. By the time you arrive the mobile camp is already up: roomy tents with beds, a bucket shower with warm water, a fire and a table under a tree. Two nights here: mornings and evenings among lagoons, mopane woodland and floodplains where red lechwe, buffalo and elephants often graze, and leopards or wild dogs sometimes appear, though that is never promised. At night the camp is unfenced, so your guide explains a few simple rules in advance, and they are followed without exception.

  3. Two greater kudu standing in the shallows by the Khwai River

    03Days 5–7 · Khwai

    A river where more is allowed

    A short drive north-east to the Khwai River, whose one bank belongs to the reserve and the other to an area managed by the local community. The rules here are more flexible: you can drive at night, looking for genets, hyenas or leopards by spotlight, and walk with a guide. Two nights in camp by the river, with hippos snorting close by and kudu and impala coming down to drink at the shallows. In the morning, if there's enough water, another mokoro outing in the river's backwaters.

  4. An elephant bathing in a waterhole at Savuti, with birds behind

    04Days 7–9 · Savuti

    Deep sand and ancient rock

    This is the longest day of the journey: several hours on sandy tracks across the Mababe Depression to Savuti, a drier part of Chobe National Park. The landscape here is more open: wide plains crossed by the Savuti Channel, waterholes where elephants gather in the dry season, and the Gubatsa Hills, whose rocks still hold ancient San paintings. Savuti is known for its predators, lions and hyenas, whose lives here often play out in the open. Two nights in camp, where the evening silence is so deep you can hear a jackal calling far out on the plain.

  5. An elephant family drinking at the Chobe River in Chobe National Park

    05Days 9–11 · The Chobe riverfront & Kasane

    Elephants at the river

    One more long but scenic drive north, and after the sandy tracks the Chobe River opens out with its wide floodplains. The last two nights are in a camp or, if after a week under canvas you feel like it, a lodge near Kasane. In the afternoon a boat follows the bank: elephants wade across the river and drink in their hundreds, hippos rest in the shallows, and the sun sets over the far bank, already in Namibia. The next morning, a final drive along the riverfront and a flight home from Kasane airport via Johannesburg or another regional hub.

Experience highlights

  1. 01

    A mokoro at first light

    A pole touching the bottom without a sound, and water lilies opening with the sun.

  2. 02

    On foot on the islands

    Tracks in the sand and animals you see standing in the grass rather than sitting in a vehicle.

  3. 03

    A fire in an unfenced camp

    Dinner under the stars and night sounds that seem right beside you.

  4. 04

    An evening on the Chobe

    Elephants wading across the river as the sun goes down behind the Namibian bank.

First, we listen. Then, we explore what's possible.

Make it your own

  • Simpler or more comfortable

    A mobile safari can be very simple, with small tents where you help with camp chores, or fully serviced, with roomy tents, beds and an en-suite corner. The choice changes both the character of the journey and its cost.

  • Travelling solo

    For solo travellers, some local operators run small shared mobile safaris on set dates. We'd check what's possible at the time and help you choose.

  • With Victoria Falls

    From Kasane it's about an hour and a half by road across the border to Victoria Falls. Two nights there make a natural ending after the sandy days.

  • In another season

    In the dry season wildlife gathers at the water and the delta usually holds the most water. The summer rains bring green and newborn animals, but Savuti's tracks can then become hard to pass, so we'd match the route to the season.

Practical considerations

  • A mobile safari means unfenced camping: tents, a bucket shower and a simple toilet. The comfort level depends on the style you choose, but be ready for dust, early mornings and long travel days on sandy tracks.
  • The delta's water flows down from the Angolan highlands after their rainy season, so the flood usually peaks around June to August. Mokoro trips depend on water levels, and in the rains Savuti's tracks can be closed or hard to pass.
  • Walking takes place only with licensed guides and only where it's permitted: in the delta and some community areas, but usually not in the national parks. The guide's instructions are always followed.
  • Campsites in the reserves often need booking well in advance, and travel between them can depend on the season and track conditions, so we plan with time in hand.

General guidance only. Seasons, weather and wildlife are never guaranteed, and travel requirements are always worth checking before you go.

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