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African Safaris and Tours
Savute Lodges
Savute Lodges – Where to Stay in Botswana's Savuti Region
The Savuti region of Chobe National Park is wild, open predator country. It takes in the Savuti Marsh and the Gubatsa Hills, where San rock paintings survive. Through it runs the Savute Channel, which flows and dries up over the years in a cycle not closely tied to local rainfall. Lion and elephant are the headline sightings. Leopard, cheetah, African wild dog and spotted hyena are all on the list too.
You'll see two spellings, Savute and Savuti. Both mean the same place, and each lodge keeps whichever spelling its owners chose.
Our Savute lodges cover four very different ways to stay:
- Permanent lodges inside the park: Savute Elephant Lodge and Savute Safari Lodge, both facing a permanent waterhole, each with its own viewing hide
- A rustic tented camp: Camp Savuti, on the channel in the park's remote west
- A mobile camp: &Beyond Savute Under Canvas, which moves between campsites near the Savute Channel
- A private-reserve camp: Wilderness Savuti Camp, in the Linyanti Wildlife Reserve, where night drives and walks are possible
Savuti's dry grasslands make a striking contrast with the water of the Okavango Delta and Moremi. Pair it with them, or with the Linyanti and the Chobe River, for a northern Botswana circuit.
For seasons, see when to visit Botswana. Savuti lies in northern Botswana's malaria area, so read our Botswana malaria guide and malaria in Africa before you travel.
Choose Your Savute Lodge
andBeyond Savute Under Canvas
Rates from US$ 685.00 Per person per night
A mobile tented camp that moves between campsites near the Savute Channel, inside Chobe National Park's Savuti region. Expect morning and afternoon game drives, bucket showers and dinner cooked over the fire. This is real camping, with comfort.
Camp Savuti
Rates from US$ 655.00 Per person per night
A rustic tented camp run by Sun Destinations, on the Savuti Channel in the remote west of Chobe National Park. Tents stand on raised decks, and twice-daily game drives head out to the Savuti Marsh. Not to be confused with Wilderness Savuti Camp.
Savute Elephant Lodge
Rates form part of a safari itinerary
Belmond's lodge on the Savute Channel inside Chobe National Park. It has raised tented suites, a pool and a viewing hide over the permanent waterhole. Morning and afternoon game drives, plus excursions to the San rock paintings in the Gubatsa Hills.
Savute Safari Lodge
Rates from US$ 740.00 Per person per night
A Desert & Delta lodge on the banks of the Savuti Channel in western Chobe National Park. Every chalet has a private deck over the permanent waterhole, and a photographic hide puts you at eye level with elephants coming down to drink.
Savuti Camp
Rates from US$ 1,043.00 Per person per night
Wilderness's thatch-and-canvas camp on the Savuti Channel, in the private Linyanti Wildlife Reserve rather than the national park. That means night drives, seasonal walks and boating, waterside hides and a star-bed sleep-out overlooking Zibadianja Lagoon, plus a plunge pool.
Savute Lodges: Frequently Asked Questions
Which Savute lodges are inside Chobe National Park?
Savute Elephant Lodge, Savute Safari Lodge, Camp Savuti and &Beyond Savute Under Canvas all sit inside the Savuti region of Chobe National Park, close to the Savute Channel. Wilderness Savuti Camp is the exception. It lies on the same channel but in the private Linyanti Wildlife Reserve, outside the park.
Is Camp Savuti the same as Savuti Camp?
No, they are two different camps. Camp Savuti is a rustic tented camp on the Savuti Channel inside Chobe National Park, run by Sun Destinations. Savuti Camp, now called Wilderness Savuti, is run by Wilderness in the private Linyanti Wildlife Reserve. Check the operator's name when you compare itineraries.
Which Savute camp offers night drives and walks?
Wilderness Savuti Camp does. Because it sits in the private Linyanti Wildlife Reserve, it can run night drives as well as day drives. Walks, boating and catch-and-release fishing depend on the season. The camps inside Chobe National Park focus on morning and afternoon game drives, because park rules don't allow night driving.
Which Savute lodges overlook a waterhole?
Savute Elephant Lodge and Savute Safari Lodge both face a permanent waterhole on the channel, and each has a viewing hide over it. At Savute Safari Lodge, the hide puts you at eye level with the animals coming to drink. Wilderness Savuti Camp has several hides and a waterhole close to camp.
What is it like staying at a mobile camp in Savuti?
&Beyond Savute Under Canvas moves between campsites near the Savute Channel, chosen for resident game and few other vehicles. Tents are en suite with bucket showers, meals are cooked over the fire, and game drives run morning and afternoon. More on this style on our Botswana mobile safaris page.
Which Savute lodge visits the San rock paintings?
Savute Elephant Lodge offers excursions to the Gubatsa Hills, rocky outcrops near the Savute Channel where San rock paintings survive. The hills also shelter klipspringer and leopard. If you'd like the paintings from another Savuti camp, ask us, because it depends on that camp's drive routes.
Map of Lodges in and around the Savute Region
Botswana Travel Topics
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Ten reasons to put Savuti on your route: bull elephants, big lion prides, wild dogs, the Savuti Marsh, San rock art in the Gubatsa Hills, and a channel with a habit of drying up for years at a time.
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Five lodges in and around Chobe National Park that we would happily send you to: Chobe Game Lodge with its all-female guiding team, Ngoma, Muchenje, Chobe Chilwero, and &Beyond Chobe Under Canvas, which moves camp to follow the game.
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