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African Safaris and Tours
Botswana Luxury Tented Safaris
Botswana Luxury Tented Safaris – Comfort Under Canvas in the Wild
A luxury tented safari takes you deep into Botswana's wildest reserves without leaving comfort behind. Most itineraries below use a mobile camp of spacious walk-in Meru-style tents, set up by a dedicated team before you reach each destination, so you come in off the afternoon drive to a camp already standing and a cold drink in the dining tent. It is mobile camping at its finest on a safari in Botswana.
What to expect in a mobile camp:
- Walk-in Meru-style tents with en-suite facilities and twin beds
- A shaded verandah with safari chairs, a washbasin and a hanging mirror
- A dining tent with a full bar and a 24-hour coffee station
- Three-course dinners after the afternoon drive
- A lounge with comfortable seating and a small library
The camps are unfenced, so elephants and antelope may wander through at any hour – keep your eyes open for unexpected visitors. Routes take in Moremi Game Reserve, Khwai, Savuti, Linyanti, the Chobe River, Nxai Pan and the Central Kalahari Game Reserve, with Victoria Falls an easy addition at the end of a Chobe journey.
Deciding when to go? Our guide to when to visit Botswana covers the seasons, the Okavango flood and the zebra migration. Most of these routes cross northern Botswana, so read our Botswana malaria guide and malaria in Africa before you travel.
Every itinerary can be tailored to your dates, budget and interests – add nights, swap areas or combine two routes into one. We have been arranging Botswana safaris since 1999; tell us what you are dreaming of and we will build it around you.
Luxury Tented Safari Itineraries in Botswana
Botswana Luxury in a Tent
This Safari is Tailor-made Rates On request
A mobile tented journey from Khwai and Selinda to the Savuti Channel and the Chobe River frontage, ending at Victoria Falls. Camp is set up ahead of you at each stop in walk-in Meru-style tents with en-suite facilities.
Central Kalahari Mobile Safari
This Safari is Tailor-made Rates On request
Four days on a private mobile safari in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve – vast open pans, gemsbok, springbok and wildebeest, and the chance of Kalahari lions and leopards, all from the comfort of your own tented camp.
Discover Botswana
This Safari is Tailor-made Rates On request
Nine days through Moremi Game Reserve, the Savuti Marsh and Xobega Island Camp, a small tented camp on an island in the Okavango Delta reached by boat. Light-aircraft flights on the first and last days give you the Delta from the air.
Discover Botswana Camping Safari
This Safari is Tailor-made Rates On request
Thirteen days under canvas through Nxai Pan, Khwai, Savuti and the Chobe River – desert pans, floodplains, the Savuti Marsh and Chobe's riverfront. Attentive, unhurried service leaves you free to sit back and soak up the bush.
Discover Botswana Wildlife Safari
This Safari is Tailor-made Rates On request
Twelve days from Moremi Game Reserve to the Savuti Marsh and Chobe National Park, finishing at Victoria Falls. A classic northern Botswana circuit, travelled in comfort under canvas.
Discover Moremi & Chobe Safari
This Safari is Tailor-made Rates On request
Seven days in Moremi Game Reserve and Chobe National Park – a week to discover what a classic mobile safari is all about, with walk-in tents, three-course dinners and game drives straight from camp.
Discover Moremi Safari
This Safari is Tailor-made Rates On request
A week-long mobile tented safari through Moremi Game Reserve and the Khwai area, from Moremi's waterways and lagoons to the wildlife-rich floodplains along the Khwai River.
Okavango Mobile Expedition
This Safari is Tailor-made Rates On request
A mobile expedition under canvas in the Okavango Delta – no lodges, just stylish mobile camps among the Delta's channels and islands, with wildlife sightings to match.
Tsodilo Hills Safari
This Safari is Tailor-made Rates On request
The Tsodilo Hills, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in north-west Botswana, rise abruptly from the Kalahari sand. Revered by local communities and rich in ancient rock paintings, they make a striking contrast to Botswana's wildlife areas.
Botswana Luxury Tented Safari FAQ
What is a luxury tented safari in Botswana?
A luxury tented safari moves you between wildlife areas while you sleep in large walk-in Meru-style tents with en-suite facilities. On most routes a dedicated team sets up a mobile camp ahead of your arrival at each destination, and some itineraries add nights at a fixed tented camp, such as Xobega Island Camp in the Okavango Delta.
What is inside a luxury safari tent?
In the mobile camps, each walk-in Meru-style tent has en-suite facilities and twin beds, plus a shaded verandah with safari chairs, a washbasin and a hanging mirror. The tents are larger than those used on standard camping safaris, which gives you room to unpack, rest and enjoy the view between game drives.
What are meals and evenings like in camp?
Meals are served in a dining tent with a full bar and a 24-hour coffee station, and dinner is three courses. A lounge with comfortable seating and a small library gives you somewhere to unwind after the afternoon drive, swapping the day's sightings over a drink before dinner.
Are luxury tented camps fenced?
No, the camps are unfenced, so elephants, antelope and other wildlife may wander through at any time. That closeness is a large part of the appeal. Follow your guide's camp briefing, particularly about moving around after dark, and you can enjoy your visitors from a respectful distance.
Which areas do luxury tented safaris visit?
Our luxury tented itineraries cover Moremi Game Reserve, Khwai, Savuti, Linyanti, the Chobe River and the Central Kalahari Game Reserve, with routes to Nxai Pan, Selinda and the Tsodilo Hills. Several combine areas into one journey, and some finish at Victoria Falls after Chobe.
Can I see the Okavango Delta on a luxury tented safari?
Yes. The Okavango Mobile Expedition is spent entirely under canvas among the Delta's channels and islands, with no lodges at all. Discover Botswana includes a stay at Xobega Island Camp, a small tented camp on an island reached by boat, plus light-aircraft flights at the start and end of the trip.
Map of Lodges in and around Botswana
Botswana Travel Topics
10 Reasons To Visit Botswana
Ten reasons, from the Okavango's flood and Chobe's elephant herds to the Makgadikgadi salt pans, Kalahari lions and San trackers, wild dogs in the Linyanti, mokoro trips, and a low-volume tourism policy that keeps vehicle numbers down.
Best Botswana Safari Lodges
Our pick of Botswana's safari lodges, region by region: Mombo and Xigera in the Delta, Chobe Game Lodge on the river, Jack's Camp on the pans and Savute Elephant Lodge, plus how to choose between them.
Botswana Chobe National Park
A practical guide to Chobe: getting there from Kasane, river cruises versus game drives, where the elephants come down to drink, the lodges we use, and how to add Victoria Falls on the way in or out.
The Perfect Okavango Delta Honeymoon Safari
Planning a honeymoon in the Okavango Delta: the camps that suit couples, from Camp Okavango to Mombo, with sunrise boat cruises, mokoro trips, and private dinners and helicopter flights where the camp offers them.
10 Reasons To Visit The Savuti
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.
5 Best Lodges In The Chobe National Park
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.
How Much Does It Cost to Go on a Safari in Botswana?
What a Botswana safari actually costs, and why: camping versus mobile versus lodge, the season you travel, flights between camps, park fees and tips, and where a few honest savings can be made.
10 Best Lodges In Okavango Delta
Ten Okavango Delta camps we rate, from Eagle Island and Xigera to Jao, Jacana and Duba Plains, with what each does best, from mokoro trips on the water to family suites and walking safaris.