Northern Highlights (10 day/ 9 night)

Day 1: Maun to Xakanaxa, 30minute charter flight
Arrival is based on the scheduled Air Botswana flight into Mau, where you arrive just before 12.00. Here you will be met by a representative of Mack Air and be flown by charter plane to the Xakanaxa airstrip in Moremi Game Reserve where you will be met by your guide.

You spend your first three nights camping in the Xakanaxa region, where you explore the surrounding wilderness on game drives during the day.

From the air only the larger animals are seen easily. These include large breeding herds of African elephant that live in the mopane scrub. On the open plains large herds of buffalo and lechwe can be seen and in the waterways rafts of hippopotami are a common sight. Once you land in Xakanaxa the smaller game can be found.

Days 2&3: Xakanaxa, Moremi Game Reserve
Moremi lies on the eastern extremity of the Okavango Delta. Habitats here range from wide-open floodplains, marshes, lagoons, papyrus fringed channels, vast reed-beds of Miscanthus and Phragmites, woodland and savannah. As a result of the extremely variable habitat the diversity of both wildlife and birdlife is excellent.

The Moremi is amongst the best game reserves in Africa for viewing the endangered African wild dog. Xakanaxa is home to a resident herd of several hundred buffalo whose range covers the territories of at least 4 prides of lion which may often be seen flanking the ever moving herd. Breeding herds of elephant move between their browsing areas in the mopane forests and the fresh water of the Okavango. Red lechwe are one of the more unusual antelope species and commonly found here, while the rare sitatunga antelope may be spotted from motor boat along the water-ways.

Day 4: Xakanaxa to Khwai, 3-4 hours
Following and early morning breakfast you take a slow drive through Moremi Game Reserve North-East towards the Khwai Community Area. The route follows the Khwai channel, with tracks going off onto the floodplain. Pass the magnificent Dombo Hippo Pools in the morning stopping to enjoy the scenery and the antics of the resident hippo.

The river has an unusually high density of hippo as well as some huge crocodile. Leopard, cheetah, serval and lion are common predators along this route and both Xakanaxa as well as Khwai are included in the home ranges of 2 different packs of wild dog. General game includes southern giraffe, plains zebra, tsessebe and red lechwe with roan and sable antelope being less common residents.

Days 5&6: Khwai Exploration Day.
The Khwai River forms a boundary between the reserve and the community area. Spend the following two nights camping at an exclusive campsite in the community area, exploring the Khwai floodplains on game drives both during the day and at night. Exploring after dark with spotlights offers you an opportunity to experience some of the nocturnal animals that are rarely encountered during the day.  You will also have the opportunity to explore the surrounding wilderness on foot and enjoy an up close and personal encounter with Botswana’s flora and fauna. It is important to note that night drives and guided walks are not permitted within the national parks and reserves. These activities are conducted outside the boundaries of the Moremi Game Reserve in the Khwai community area.

Spend your time between the dry-land habitats of the lead-wood and camel-thorn woodlands and savannahs and the riverside and marshy back-waters of the Khwai. Time permitting you may visit the lagoons and waterways of Xakanaxa where the largest heronry in southern Africa exists.

The Khwai region boasts excellent populations of both bull elephant as well as breeding herds. Lion, leopard, serval and African wildcat are common predators of the region with wild dog and cheetah being less common. Buffalo use this area seasonally with large herds moving in during the summer rains. The swampy areas in the west are home to red lechwe.

Day 7: Khwai to Savute, 100km. 4-5 hours
Today you head further north en route to Chobe National Park, were you spend the following three nights camping in an exclusive wilderness campsite in the Savuti region, exploring the dessert-like landscape of game drives.

This is a  fascinating day’s drive looking at some of the evidence of the Lake Makgadikgadi that dried up some ten thousand years ago. The most challenging part of the trip is crossing the Magwikwe Sand-ridge that formed the shoreline for this massive inland sea. The winding track through this deep sand makes for interesting travel in the early summer! The old lake bed is now the Mababe Depression. The dense clay floor of the depression result in high protein feed for wildlife and the area teams with game after the rains. During the rain season the depression is impassable due to the “cotton soil” and alternative routes must be used.

A day when anything could happen- the range of habitat that is covered encompasses most of the habitat types of northern Botswana. You pass through excellent lion country and some of the best cheetah country that our safari will cover. Elephant occur throughout the drive but are more common at the start and end of the drive where permanent surface water can be found.

Days 8&9: Savute (Chobe National Park) Exploration Days.
Unlike the vast majority of the country, Savute is not flat landscape. Large outcrops of volcanic rock reach up out of the Kalahari sands, towering over the endless savannah. These hills provide habitat for a completely different array of small wildlife, birds and plants. The Savute Marsh has been the stage for many of the most dramatic wildlife documentaries in Africa. The wide open country, good ungulate populations and particularly strong prides of lion and hyaena clans make for dramatic wildlife interaction and excellent viewing opportunities. The now dry Savute Channel runs through this landscape linking the dry sand-veldt, the waterholes, the hills and the grassland that was the Savute Marsh.

The marsh is prime cheetah country and in the wet season it is not unusual to have the wild dog hunting here in Savuti.

Day 10: Savute to Chobe River, 170km (5 hours)
On your final day on safari you will leave Savute to travel along the Chobe River arriving at Chobe Safari Lodge where you will stop for lunch before taking a leisurely afternoon boat cruise to end your safari with us.  A night or two in Kasane at Chobe Safari Lodge or two nights in Livingstone at Taita Falcon Lodge is recommended.

For those transferring across to Zambia it is recommended that your transfer be organized to meet you at Chobe Safari Lodge at 15h30.

The habitat on today’s drive takes you through the stunted mopane scrub of the Goha clay basin, across the sand-ridge and through the wonderful Zambezi teak woodlands of the Chobe Forest Reserve and along the Chobe River itself. The Chobe floodplain is tens of kilometres wide and in years of exceptional rains the water stretches as far as the eye can see.

Roan and sable antelope thrive in the teak woodlands where the low density of predators and lack of competition for food by other ungulates makes this prime habitat for these large ungulates. Leopard occur in these woodlands in low numbers but they are highly secretive and seldom seen. The Goha region has natural waterholes that hold water well into the dry season and herds of buffalo, plains zebra, greater kudu and elephant come down to drink.

NOTE: Although every effort is made to adhere to schedules and itineraries; these are subject to change in light of changing local conditions (weather, roads, and animal movements) and availability. You will be notified accordingly.

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Code: LS02