Family Safari

Daily Detail

After your arrival at Maun International Airport, you will be met by and transferred to Thamalakane River Lodge for a restful night on the banks of the Thamalakane River before your safari adventure begins the next day.

Daily Detail

After a restful nights sleep, you can have breakfast at Thamalakane River Lodge and then the Letaka guide and vehicle will arrive to load up for your adventure.

We shall take a leisurely drive from Maun to the famous Moremi Game Reserve.

A lengthy drive but with a lunch pack and cold drinks, we shall start game viewing as soon as we are off the short section of tar road our of Maun.

Spending our first three nights camping in Moremi, we explore the surrounding wilderness on game drives during the day.
Wildlife: 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. Plenty antelope and larger mammals will be sough and the bird count begins.

Birding: A good day for raptors with African Hawk-Eagle, Gabar Goshawk, Shikra, Little Sparrowhawk, Dark Chanting
Goshawk, Tawny Eagle, Lesser Spotted Eagle* and Steppe Eagle* all inhabiting the mopane and adjacent woodlands.
Other birds common along this route includes most of Botswana’s hornbills including Red-billed, Southern Yellow-billed,
African Grey, Bradfield’s and the Southern Ground Hornbills. A large number of brood-parasites may also be seen. Diederick Cuckoo*, Levaillant’s Cuckoo*, Jacobin Cuckoo*, Great-spotted Cuckoo*, African Cuckoo*, Common Cuckoo*, Shaft-tailed Whydah, Pin-tailed Whydah, Eastern Paradise Whydah, Greater Honeyguide, and Lesser Honeyguide.

Daily Detail

Habitat: Moremi lies on the eastern extremity of the Okavango Delta. Habitats here range from wide-open floodplains, marshes, lagoons, papyrus fringed channels, vast stands of Miscanthus and Phragmites, woodland and savannah. As a result of the extremely variable habitat the diversity of both wildlife and birdlife is excellent.

Wildlife: 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.

Birding: The swampy areas of Xakanaxa are home to African Rail, Coppery-tailed Coucal, Black Coucal*, Red-chested Flufftail, African Crake*, Black Crake, Chirping Cisticola, Luapula Cisticola, Purple Swamphen, Allen’s Gallinule to name but a few. The open waters attract African Skimmer, Saddle-billed Stork, Yellow-billed Stork, Intermediate Egret, Goliath Heron, African Fish Eagle as well as the globally threatened Slaty Egret and Wattled Crane.

Daily Detail

Following an early morning breakfast you take a slow drive through Moremi Game Reserve north-east towards the Khwai and Mababe Areas. On this moving day we shall do a mokoro excursion in the calmer back-waters of the Khwai and Mbudi channels as opposed to doing the mokoro in the quicker moving section of the Khwai River that runs through Mababe.

Habitat: The Manuchira Channel is known as the Khwai River at its eastern most extremity. The day’s journey follows this water course, with the track weaving from the riverside and floodplains into the mopane veld and the woodlands that to the Mababe Private Reserve where we camp on the banks of the Khwai River before it flows out and into the Mababe Depression. We pass the magnificent Dombo Hippo Pools in the morning stopping to enjoy the scenery and the antics of the resident hippo and shall game drive through Khwai until we reach Mababe.

Wildlife: The south-east mopane veld is home to mostly breeding herds of elephant whilst the more northern reaches of Mababe is home to some impressive old bulls. The mature bulls revel in the cool waters of the Khwai River and are far more approachable while drinking and bathing than the breeding herds. The river has an unusually high density of hippo as well as some huge crocodile. Leopard- (western part of NG41), cheetah, serval and lion are common predators along this route and both Xakanaxa as well as Mababe are included in the home ranges of different packs of wild dog. General game includes southern giraffe, Burchell’s zebra, tsessebe and red lechwe with roan and sable antelope being less common residents.

Birding: In the mopane woodlands African Hawk-Eagle, Tawny Eagle, Gabar Goshawk, Little Sparrowhawk, African Harrier Hawk and Shikra are common raptors. Mixed bird parties move through the canopy and include Red-headed Weaver, Stierling’s Wren-Warbler, Scarlet-chested Sunbird, Neddicky, Yellow-breasted Apalis, Chin-spot Batis, Diederik Cuckoo* to name but a few. The verges of the swamp form breeding grounds for the Rosy Longclaw, Black Coucal*, Long-legged Bustard and the African Crake*.

Daily Detail

The Khwai River meanders through the concession giving ample riverside routes to explore. We spend the following two nights camping at an exclusive campsite in the Mababe concession that has a strict max of 20 vehicles for the whole concession at any given time, exploring the river banks, Kalahari shrub to the east, cathedral mopane to the south 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.

We will also have the opportunity to explore the surrounding wilderness on foot (please note that this activity is seasonal based on rains and grass height, your guide will determine the safety of walking in Mababe) to 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 Mababe Private Reserve.

Habitat: We spend our time between the dry-land habitats of the lead-wood and camel-thorn woodlands and savannahs and the riverside banks of the Khwai River, as well as the “mini-CKGR” habitat in the western parts of the concession.

Wildlife: The Mababe 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. Other ungulates include tsessebe, blue wildebeest, giraffe, kudu, sable antelope, roan antelope and impala, and even eland and oryx in the western parts.

Birding: Botswana’s national bird, the Kori Bustard, is a resident in the lower reaches of the Mababe Depression. The western reaches are prime habitat for the uncommon Rosy-throated Longclaw. The entire length of the river is hunting domain for the BatHawk. Other interesting raptors here are Cuckoo Hawk (rare), Longcrested Eagle and Black Sparrowhawk. More commonly Tawny Eagle, Steppe Eagle*, Lesser-spotted Eagle*, Martial Eagle, Bateleur and African Hawk-Eagle. The waterways host Africa Rail, African Crake*, Greater Painted Snipe, Allen’s Gallinule*, Lesser Jacana and Lesser Moorhen*.

Daily Detail

After a final morning bumble around the Mababe River Private Reserve, we set off on a drive to Maun, 100km.

We shall drive you straight to the Maun International Airport where you can board your lunchtime flight to Joburg or Cape Town.

This marks the end of your safari.

Alternatively if you would like to continue your safari you could book some nights in a luxury lodge and catch an afternoon charter flight to another part of the Delta or Chobe National Park.

NOTE: Although we make every effort to adhere to schedules and itineraries, these are subject to change subject to weather, roads, and animal movements and availability. You will be notified of any changes.