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Introduction to Botswana

The Kalahari Desert covers the majority of Botswana. Over a third of the country is dedicated to Parks, Game Reserves, Nature reserves, and wildlife management areas. A large semi-arid savannah with only one water source, the Okavango. It stretches through most of Botswana but also into Namibia and South Africa. The home of the San People who have lived and hunted there for thousands of years. This lifestyle is becoming almost impossible in modern-day Botswana. However, ‘Desert’ is a misnomer: it was known as a ‘thirstland’ by its earliest travelers. Most of the Kalahari (or Kgalagadi, its name in Setswana) is covered by vegetation. 

In the Central Kalahari Game Reserve, the ecosystems, animals, and habitats are very different from what you will see further north in the Okavango areas. These include a number of species, such as brown hyena, aardwolf, oryx, bat-eared fox, and ostrich, that are more prolific here than elsewhere in Botswana. Maun – Botswana’s tourism capital, the seat of power of the Batawana people, and the administrative centre of Ngamiland District. Serowe is the birthplace of Sir Seretse Khama, the country’s founding father, and first president. Francistown is the site of Southern Africa’s first gold rush and one of Botswana’s oldest towns. Molepolole is the capital for the Bakwena, one of the eight main tribes. Sebele I, the Bakwena Kgosi (Chief), was one of the three chiefs who went to England in the colonial period to seek safety from the British.

The Tsodilo Hills is a UNESCO World Heritage Site preserved due to its numerous outstanding rock art plus its symbolic and religious significance for the local people. The importance of the hills is it shows how humans have used the area and the environmental changes over at least 100,000 years.

The Makgadikgadi pans in northeastern Botswana are some of the largest in the world. The pans are normally flooded in the rainy season but usually, they have shallow pools and islands of grasses favoured by thousands of flamingos. The animals and birdlife found here are seasonal gravitating here after the rains.

In the north, near the section where four countries meet – Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and Zambia – is Chobe National Park. This is the same spot where the Zambezi River crosses the Chobe River. With four distinct habitats, the national park is a special environment that attracts a unique range of wildlife. Kasane, a tourist city, the gateway to the national park but also for access to Victoria Falls or Livingstone.

North of Chobi are three reserves of real African big game country, Kwanda, Selinda, and Linyanti important animal migration routes and have permanent water sources, the Kwando and Linyanti rivers. There is nothing else out there but you, the bush, and a fascinating contingent of wild animals waiting to be explored.

The Okavango River flows in from the Angolan highlands in the north-west and soaks into the sands, creating 15,000 sq. Km of water channels, lagoons, swamps, and islands network. The Okavango is a little smaller than Israel, a place where large mammals retreat during the dry season. Moremi Game reserve is situated here, the first reserve in Africa to be formed by local residents, the only officially protected area of the Okavango Delta, it has enormous science, environmental, and conservation significance.

History of Botswana

Accommodation in the Okavango Delta falls into three broad categories, defined by the activities they offer: water, ground, and mixed camps. For a full Okavango experience, mixing water and land camps, or a mixed camp. Water camps are usually set up in the permanent delta.

The emphasis is on the unique ecosystem of the delta, its characteristic rivers, birds, and marine creatures. Land-based camps provide game drives and often walking safaris, with an emphasis on the exceptional game that is drawn to this desert oasis.

The fertile floodplains and delta islands are home to some of Africa’s best game watching with large animal concentrations in the vicinity of camps Both land and water activities are provided by mixed camps.

Salt pans, vast grasslands, and acacia forests constitute the Central Kalahari Reserve. There are dunes, but they are mainly dunes with grass, rather than the kind of dunes that you will find in the Sahara. The desert retains several tracts of undulating grazing land after the life-giving annual summer rains. Classic animals of the Kalahari include zebra, wildebeest, eland, giraffe, and springbok.

The park also has a reputation for predators that is well earned. As well as cheetahs, black-backed jackals, brown and spotted hyena, you’re likely to see black-maned Kalahari lions, the rare wild dog, and the secluded leopard

Most accommodation options are located along the beautiful riverfront, many of which have pontoons or vessels of their own for you to go on leisurely river cruises. Well-known guests to several of Kasane’s lodges and resorts are elephants, buffalo, antelope, and occasionally even some of the Chobe’s predators.

Staying outside the park also gives you more chances to visit some of Kasane’s restaurants and bars.

There are many different types of tents for accommodation, mostly luxurious ranging from private, peaceful Meru-style tents and Serengeti-style tents to luxury tents under thatch. A traditional East African 1940s style camp, Jack’s Camp, has been renovated with the tents almost double their earlier size and the one of a kind swimming pavilion. There are also six white canvas safari tents complete with bucket showers and flush toilets at San Camp.

Glass-fronted thatched cottages with private decks can be found at Leroo le Tau. A thatched roofed lodge finished with volcanic rock, called, Ngoma Safari Lodge, can be found in the Chobe forest reserve, with the suites nestling in bushwillow thickets and Zambezi teak trees – eco-luxury at its finest.

In an open-plan style, the tents at Jao Camp are designed to blend with the atmosphere. As part of the pristine wilderness, each tent consists of a lounge and main bedroom with a changing area and en suite facilities, including open-air showers, enabling guests to feel relaxed and luxurious. In addition, each tent has an elevated room with stunning views of the nearby channel.

Makgadikgadi is one of the largest salt pans in the world, after good rains, wildlife is attracted. Dr. Livingstone, an explorer of Africa, crossed these pans in the 19th century, guided by a massive Baobab tree, Chapman’s Tree. Baines’ Baobabs are a highlight for any visitor to the Nxai Pan National Park. Kubu Island (Ga’nnyo) is an island of dry granite rock located in the Makgadikgadi Pan district, a national monument and the indigenous people of the region consider it a holy site

Central Kalahari Game Reserve, the second largest wildlife reserve in the world, home to large herds of springbok and gemsbok, wildebeest, hartebeest, and eland. The northern valley is one of the reserve’s highlights, because of the dense concentrations of herbivores attracted by the sweet grass.

Northern Tuli Game Reserve is home to all major predators, including lion, leopard, cheetah, and hyena, and the birdlife is prolific and also brilliant for adventurous travellers.

The Tsodilo Hills consists of rock art, rock shelters, depressions, and caves, a few key hills known as Child Hill, Female Hill, and Male Hill have special religious and spiritual importance to local cultures, as well as its unique record of human occupation over several centuries.

Gaborone is named after Kgosi Gaborone, leader of the Batlokwa people. The Monument of the Three Chiefs marks a turning point in Botswana’s history.

The National Museum houses important collections of traditional crafts and fine art. Interesting villages nearby are Serowe, Kanye, Molepolole, and Gabane.

Hiking in Botswana is recommended in the hills in the southeast of the country where several decent day hikes can be done as day trips from Gaborone. Kgale Hill located in Gaborone is also ideal for both hiking and hill climbing.

Botswana has also developed to become one of the hottest golfing destinations in Southern Africa. There is a Championship 18-hole course in the city of Gaborone at the Phakalane Golf Estate. In Kasane, a 9-hole golf course is located within The Mowana Safari Resort & Spa premises.

For ornithologists, Botswana has a truly impressive variety and quantity of bird species. Enjoy a superb birding experience in Chobe, Makgadikgadi, Okavango Delta or the Central Kalahari game reserve. The services of specialist birding guides are available to educate travelers in every journey on the diversity of the birds available.

The northern wetlands are the best places in Botswana to see the near-endemic Slaty Egrets, the endangered Wattled Cranes, and the huge Pel’s Fishing Owls and harbour an unrivalled selection of herons and storks.

Seriously good fishing in Botswana is possible, with artificial lures or bait, or you can even go fly-fishing. Some lodges operate a catch and release policy; other lodges will cook your catch for supper. Most water-based safari lodges supply fishing gear, offering an exciting mix of game viewing and fishing trips. Fishing is seasonal and mainly in the northern parts of Botswana.

Lerotse melon is similar to watermelon but has orange flesh; when eaten raw, it tastes similar to a cucumber but cooked gives the dish its delicate flavour.

Typically, sorghum meal mixed with lerotse melon is cooked at weddings and this mixture is called Bogobe jwa lerotse. The melon is usually prepared with sour milk and stored to be used whenever appropriate.

Batswana are also excellent at storing fruit. They preserve meat, among others, by cutting it into short lengths like strings and then drying it.

They also fetch, cook, and dry bean leaves. In Botswana, it is also popular to make mageu from leftover porridge or pap. Not very poor or rotten meat is often preserved by some tribes by drying it to be used as a relish for a long time.

Most safari camps and lodges serve international-style food infused with Batswanan staples and game meat.

The only way to travel from place to place in the permanent water areas of the Okavango Delta is by motorboat, as there are no highways. These transfers between lodges offer several game and bird sighting opportunities.

Although Botswana is mostly flat, if you want to cycle here be aware that the weather is hot and dry, the distances are huge with scarce water and widely scattered villages even on major routes. Licensed taxis have blue number plates and they have to be called or you need to visit a taxi stand; often they aren’t at the airports although great for getting to airports. A courtesy bus run by a top-end hotel or lodge is typically the only effective transport from the airports.

Trains have a very limited passenger service mainly from Lobatse to Francistown.

Bird watchers will find the migrant-filled Summer months of the “Green Season” the best time to visit Botswana for both numbers and diversity of birds, a year-round birding destination.

Fishermen will want to go when the barbel run is on; that is dependant on when the floodwaters in the delta retreat, usually around September and October.

Whilst it is possible to visit Botswana all year round, from July to October – particularly in Chobe – is the dry season and the best time to see large herds as they gather at water sources.

Botswana is a high-end safari destination so it is expensive; don’t expect numerous food choices and be aware that they restrict the number of visitors to give you an exclusive wilderness feeling.

Botswana is ahead of the game in relation to sustainable safaris, using solar and alternative energies; all accommodation is designed to be low impact and small: between 6 and 10 rooms. All lodges encourage the use of local communities whether as guides or lodge staff.

Do buy the local arts and crafts as this supports the local community and they are very well-made and durable. Spending time in the company of the longest standing inhabitants of Southern Africa is one of the most satisfying things to do in Botswana. You can spend time learning how to forage by searching for bush food as the San has done for thousands of years.

Traditionally, villages were situated in hilly regions or around reliable water sources. Homesteads consisting of circular huts, constructed with reeds or mud, have grass roofs and a pole or reed fence is typically surrounding them. Every family has the right to land where agricultural fields are planted and there is a livestock post for livestock holding. The most important spot within any village is the kgotla, often located in the centre of the village.

Cattle and goats have always played a significant social and economic role in Botswana. Animal husbandry was central to most groups’ survival and prosperity. In rural Botswana, cattle still hold a prominent role. The larger the size of a herd, the greater the power that a person or family has within the group. Disputes and fines handed down by the kgotla were settled with cattle payments. Most groups have animals as their totem. The totem acts as a symbolic reflection of a powerful connection with a particular animal. The crocodile for the Bakwena, and the lion for the Batawana.

The Batswana were typically polygynous and marriages were pre-arranged. Most Batswanas now choose their own partners, with the exception of the Baherero.

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