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African Safaris and Tours
Remote Lodges In Botswana
Remote Safari Lodges in Botswana – Private Reserves, Islands and Salt Pans
A remote safari in Botswana isn't measured by how far you fly. It's measured by how few people you share the bush with once you land. These are camps where that feeling runs deep: island hideaways in the Okavango Delta, private reserves in Khwai and along the Linyanti, and two outposts on the edge of the Kalahari, each one small and personal.
Most sit on private reserves rather than in national parks, and each area brings its own kind of wild:
- Okavango Delta – island camps among floodplains, palms and winding channels
- Moremi Game Reserve – Chief's Island, with private traversing for the camps that stand there
- Khwai – a private reserve between Moremi and Chobe National Park
- Linyanti and Selinda – private reserves on the Linyanti River system, deep in elephant country
- Kalahari and Makgadikgadi – open grassland, salt pans and walks with San guides
For many of these camps the last leg is a light-aircraft flight to a bush airstrip, and watching the Delta unroll beneath the wing is part of the magic. Our fly-in safaris page explains how it works.
Every camp here is booked as part of a tailor-made safari itinerary. We've been planning Botswana safaris since 1999 – tell us which corner of the wild is calling, and we'll build the route between them.
Remote Botswana Camps in This Collection
Chitabe Camp
Rates form part of a safari itinerary
Chitabe Camp sits on an island in a private concession on the south-eastern edge of the Okavango Delta, bordered by Moremi Game Reserve across the Gomoti Channel. Game drives run by day and after dark, in an area known for its predators.
Deception Valley Lodge
Rates form part of a safari itinerary
Deception Valley Lodge stands in a private reserve on the north-eastern boundary of the Central Kalahari Game Reserve. Days bring game drives across Kalahari grassland and pans, night drives, and walks with San guides who share their tracking and plant lore.
Duba Explorers Camp
Rates form part of a safari itinerary
Duba Explorers Camp sits on a small wooded island in the north-east of the private Duba Plains Reserve, in the northern Okavango Delta. Floodplains surround it, with game drives, guided walks and, when water levels allow, mokoro and boat trips.
Duba Plains Camp
Rates form part of a safari itinerary
Duba Plains Camp lies on the private Duba Plains Reserve in the northern Okavango Delta, a landscape of palm islands, floodplain and woodland. Great Plains Conservation is the only operator on the reserve, so the wilderness here feels wonderfully your own.
Hyena Pan
Rates form part of a safari itinerary
Hyena Pan is a small tented camp in the Khwai Private Reserve, between Moremi Game Reserve and Chobe National Park. Game drives, a hide and guided walks fill the days, with hippos resident in front of camp and elephants regular visitors.
Kings Pool Camp
Rates form part of a safari itinerary
Kings Pool Camp overlooks an oxbow lagoon on the Linyanti River, in the private Linyanti Wildlife Reserve beside Chobe National Park. Game drives, walks and hides share the days with barge trips on the river when water levels allow.
Kwetsani Camp
Rates form part of a safari itinerary
Kwetsani Camp sits on a palm-fringed island in the private Jao Reserve in the Okavango Delta. Activities follow the water: boat and mokoro trips when the floodplains are full, and game drives on nearby Hunda Island.
Little Mombo Camp
Rates form part of a safari itinerary
Little Mombo is the smaller sister of Mombo Camp, sharing its setting on Chief's Island inside Moremi Game Reserve. With only a handful of tented suites, it is often booked by a single group for exclusive use.
Mombo Camp
Rates form part of a safari itinerary
Mombo Camp stands on Chief's Island, inside Moremi Game Reserve in the Okavango Delta, with private traversing rights over the island's floodplains. Little Mombo, its smaller sister camp, sits alongside.
Sable Alley
Rates form part of a safari itinerary
Sable Alley overlooks a lagoon in the Khwai Private Reserve, next to Moremi Game Reserve. Morning, afternoon and evening drives explore the reserve, with mokoro and boat outings and guided walks adding variety.
San Camp
Rates form part of a safari itinerary
San Camp's white tents stand among palms on the edge of Ntwetwe Pan in the Makgadikgadi, beside Makgadikgadi Pans National Park. Walks with San guides, habituated meerkats and huge night skies set the tone.
Savuti Camp
Rates form part of a safari itinerary
Savuti Camp sits on the banks of the Savute Channel in the private Linyanti Wildlife Reserve, beside Chobe National Park. The channel flows and dries over the years, and elephants, predators and plains game follow the water.
Selinda Camp
Rates form part of a safari itinerary
Selinda Camp stands on the Selinda Spillway in the private Selinda Reserve, between the Okavango and Linyanti water systems. Run by Great Plains Conservation, it is mainly a land-based camp, with game drives by day and into the evening.
Remote Lodges in Botswana – Your Questions Answered
What makes a lodge remote in Botswana?
In Botswana, remoteness is mostly about who else is out there, not just distance from roads and towns. Most camps in this collection sit on private reserves rather than in national parks, where a reserve is shared by a handful of camps at most, and the last leg in is often a light-aircraft hop to a bush airstrip.
Which remote camps share their reserve with the fewest other camps?
Great Plains Conservation is the only operator on the private Duba Plains Reserve, home to Duba Plains Camp and Duba Explorers Camp, and Duba Explorers has its own separate traversing area. In the Khwai Private Reserve, Sable Alley and Hyena Pan share their game-viewing area only with Natural Selection's own sister camps.
Are Mombo and Little Mombo remote if they're inside Moremi Game Reserve?
Yes. Mombo Camp and Little Mombo stand side by side on Chief's Island, inside Moremi Game Reserve in the Okavango Delta, and hold private traversing rights on the island. Little Mombo is the smaller of the two sister camps and is often booked by a single group for exclusive use.
Are there remote camps outside the Okavango Delta?
Yes. Kings Pool Camp and Savuti Camp lie in the private Linyanti Wildlife Reserve beside Chobe National Park, and Selinda Camp sits in the private Selinda Reserve between the Okavango and Linyanti water systems. Further south, Deception Valley Lodge borders the Central Kalahari Game Reserve and San Camp sits on the edge of Ntwetwe Pan.
What is there to do at a remote desert camp?
Desert camps trade boats and mokoros for space and silence. At Deception Valley Lodge, days bring game drives by day and after dark, plus walks with San guides. At San Camp on Ntwetwe Pan, San-guided walks, habituated meerkats and night drives fill the time, with quad biking and horse riding available at extra cost.
Will I have Wi-Fi or phone signal at a remote camp?
It varies from camp to camp, so check before you travel. Duba Plains Camp has Wi-Fi in the suites but no mobile reception, San Camp offers Wi-Fi only in its pool pavilion, Deception Valley Lodge connects by satellite, and Sable Alley has Wi-Fi. We'll confirm the current set-up for any camp on your itinerary.
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.