Okavango, Kalahari
& Great Wilderness

Welcome to Botswana. On arrival at Maun International Airport, you are met and assisted to your light-aircraft flight into the Okavango Delta. Approximately 20 minutes later, the aircraft descends over an extraordinary mosaic of islands, floodplains and winding waterways before landing near Pom Pom Camp.

Pom Pom lies in a private concession west of Moremi Game Reserve, overlooking a permanent lagoon in classic Okavango country. After settling into your luxury tent, enjoy afternoon tea before your first safari.

Depending on arrival time, head out on a game drive or simply spend the late afternoon watching the lagoon from camp. As the sun disappears over the Delta, enjoy a sundowner followed by dinner beneath the African night sky.

Rise before dawn for coffee and a light breakfast before setting out with your guide and tracker. Morning game drives explore woodland, islands and open floodplains in search of lion, leopard, spotted hyena, African wild dog, elephant, giraffe, zebra and abundant antelope.

Return to camp for brunch and quiet time during the heat of the day. Later, exchange the safari vehicle for one of Botswana's most iconic experiences: a mokoro journey through the Delta's channels.

Sitting almost at water level, glide silently between reeds, papyrus and water lilies while your poler interprets the smaller details of the Delta.

Water activities are seasonal and depend on water levels. Finish the day with sundowners before returning to camp for dinner.

Botswana's best safaris should never feel rushed. This additional day allows the Delta to set the pace.

Let your guide shape the day around wildlife movements and water conditions. You might track predators on an extended morning drive, take a guided nature walk, explore waterways when conditions allow, or return to an area where lions, leopards or wild dogs were active the previous evening.

The private-concession setting offers flexibility, including off-road tracking and night drives where permitted. Tonight, linger over dinner and listen to hippos and the sounds of the Delta after dark.

Take one final early-morning safari before breakfast. Later, board a light aircraft and fly north toward the Kwando Private Reserve, one of Botswana's great wilderness areas.

Your destination is Lagoon Camp on the banks of the Kwando River. The environment changes dramatically: Delta channels give way to riverine forest, floodplains and woodland.

Elephant and buffalo gather around the water, while lion, leopard and African wild dog make this particularly rewarding predator country.

After lunch and time to settle in, head out with your guide-and-tracker team. In this private reserve, safari activities can include off-road tracking and night drives, allowing the wilderness rather than a rigid timetable to dictate the experience.

There is deliberately no rigid timetable today. This is safari as it should be: wildlife determines the program.

If fresh wild-dog tracks cross the road at dawn, follow them. If lions are calling from the floodplain, investigate. If elephants are gathering along the river, change plans and head toward the water.

Morning and afternoon game drives can be complemented by a boating safari on the Kwando River. Fishing may also be available subject to conditions and regulations.

Later, take to the river and watch elephants along the banks and hippos in the channels as the afternoon light turns gold.

After breakfast, leave Botswana's waterways behind and fly south into an entirely different Africa. The wetlands gradually disappear beneath you as green floodplains give way to sand, scrub and immense open spaces.

Welcome to the Central Kalahari Game Reserve. Tau Pan sits overlooking a broad pan and permanent waterhole. Its name means 'Lion Pan', appropriate for an area renowned for magnificent black-maned Kalahari lions.

After lunch and time at camp, set out on an afternoon drive. Look for oryx, springbok, wildebeest, brown hyena, jackal, cheetah and lion — wildlife and landscapes that provide a striking contrast to the Delta.

Return as the sky changes from gold to violet and the first stars appear.

This morning offers one of the journey's most culturally meaningful experiences. Join San/Bushmen trackers on an interpretive nature walk and discover how generations of people learned to survive within this seemingly unforgiving environment.

Learn about traditional tracking, medicinal plants, finding water, fire-making and survival techniques. The experience is best presented as an interpretive cultural and tracking encounter rather than simply a village visit.

After lunch, choose another game drive or an excursion toward Deception Valley. When available and pre-arranged, a sleepout beneath the Kalahari stars can make this evening especially memorable.

After breakfast, fly north toward Kasane using the most efficient available light-aircraft routing for your travel dates. On arrival, transfer to your lodge overlooking the Chobe River.

After lunch, embark on a private afternoon Chobe River safari. This is one of Africa's great wildlife spectacles.

Elephants descend to drink and swim; buffalo gather along the floodplains; crocodiles bask at the water's edge; hippos occupy the channels; and fish eagles call from riverside trees.

Enjoy sundowners aboard the boat before returning to the lodge for dinner.

Start early with a private game drive into Chobe National Park. The riverfront is famous for elephants, but the ecosystem also supports buffalo, lion, leopard, giraffe, zebra, kudu and prolific birdlife.

Return for breakfast or brunch and relax at the lodge. Your final afternoon is best spent back on the river rather than squeezing Victoria Falls into the day.

A second cruise often produces completely different encounters from the first and creates a relaxed finale to the safari.

As the sun falls behind the river, raise a glass to your final evening in Botswana.