Two week lodge safari exploring the best of Botswana and Zimbabwe
From the cascading Victoria Falls to the meandering waterways of the Okavango Delta, this safari visits the best destinations in Zimbabwe and Botswana.
14 Days with prices from $7,795 CAD per person
Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
This two-week safari covers a lot of ground but connects some of the best places in Botswana and Zimbabwe. It does mean, however, that there are some long drives on a combination of tarmac and dirt roads, though you never know when you may spot wildlife, even outside the parks. The longer drives between the sites are done in a more comfortable minibus whilst the game drives are done in special safari vehicles.
Whilst not luxury, accommodation is in lodges apart from the two nights in the Okavango Delta which are in our campsite in the wild allowing for a different experience of Africa. This is a safari for people who want to see wildlife and get immersed in nature but do it in more comfort.
October and November are hotter months but are also good for wildlife viewing.
Whilst we will be staying in lodges most nights, included meals are, non-the-less, prepared by our crew. Breakfast is generally cereal or toast with tea and coffee with the occasional fried breakfast/brunch. Lunch is normally a simple pic-nic of cheese, cold meats, salads, bread or rolls. Dinners are cooked meals such as potjies (stew), braais (barbecue), stir-fries… etc. The trip leaders do all the shopping and meal planning for each group. They will always try to obtain fresh produce wherever possible. Each tour has 1 cool box for the meats and the fresh produce only and 1 cool box for cold drinks. We will supply the following drinks: squash, tea or coffee served with meals. All other beverages will be at your own expense. We do not supply bottled drinking water although it is available at many shops on tour if you want to buy it yourself. Please note that on some days where early morning game drives are included lunch may be substituted for a large brunch on return from the game drive – this is customary. We will always ensure that the number of meals detailed in the trip notes are provided. Please be aware that we need at least two weeks notice to deal with special dietary requirements (e.g. vegetarian or allergies.) For this reason if you did not indicate these on your booking form please advise the Exodus office as soon as possible.
The water provided on this trip is safe and clean drinking water, normally coming from bore-holes. It is not bottled water, however. If you would rather have bottled water then this will be at your expense, though we would encourage you to make use of the safe drinking water provided as this helps diminish plastic consumption.
The group flights normally arrive at Victoria Falls Airport and land only passengers can either be picked up here or at the Rainbow Hotel in Victoria Falls town. If the group flights land in Livingstone (Zambia), land only passengers can still be picked up at the Rainbow Hotel in Victoria Falls (Zimbabwe). We then transfer 120kms to Kasane in Botswana. The drive from Victoria Falls takes a little over two hours but there can be delays crossing the border. Once we are settled into our chalets we will gather for a full tour briefing.
Kwalape Lodge or similar
Meals included: dinner
Chobe National Park is best known for its huge populations of elephant and buffalo. With an estimated 40,000 to 60,000 elephants, this is, undoubtedly the best place to see these pachyderms. The park is also home to Wild dogs, lions, leopards and various other African wildlife.
We start the day by going on a game drive in one of the lodge’s open game-drive vehicles. It will be an early start as we aim to get to the park gates as they open. We spend about three hours on safari before returning to the lodge in time for some brunch.
There is time to relax at the lodge during the hottest part of the day or exploring the town of Kasane before heading out again, this time to go on a boat-safari on the Chobe River. After a short transfer to the jetty we board the boat for a three-hour safari. This is a great opportunity to view the vast herds of elephant and other wildlife from the perspective of the water.
Kwalape Lodge or similar
Meals included: breakfast lunch dinner
Today is a long drive as we transfer the 600kms between Kasane and Maun, the town on the edge of the Okavango Delta. We’ll make a stop en route for lunch at the edge of the Makgadikgadi Salt Pan before arriving in Maun mid-afternoon. We spend a bit of time in town getting supplies for the delta (this is a chance for you to get any extra drinks or snacks you may want whilst in the delta). From here it’s only a short drive out of town to our lodge.
Crocodile Camp or similar
Meals included: breakfast
After travelling 1,600kms from the highlands of Angola, the Okavango River reaches the Kalahari and spreads into a large swamp area where the water eventually transpires into the plant-life and evaporates, never reaching the sea. This makes the Okavango Delta, as this swamp is known, one of the largest inland deltas on Earth and a true natural wonder.
Year-round the delta’s islands are home to a vast array of wildlife including all the usual suspects though numbers reach their peak during the dryer winter months when animals, including many of the larger ones, migrate into the delta.
We head into the delta in Mokoro dugout canoes poled by local villagers who have grown up here.
When we arrive in the delta we will find our camp already set up, waiting for us. The camp is made up of tents fitted with camp beds topped by mattresses along with two communal bush-showers, two communal bush-toilets and a gazebo/mess tent. Here we will get to experience African wilderness at its fullest, not least at night when the milky-way can be seen spreading across the sky with a billion twinkling stars.
We spend the next two days exploring the waterways and islands by Mokoro canoe and on foot looking for wildlife and enjoying this amazing part of Africa.
Wild Camping
Meals included: breakfast lunch dinner
This morning we have our last Mokoro ride as we return to the edge of the delta before returning to Maun. The afternoon is free to relax by the pool or take an optional flight over the delta.
Rivernest Cottages or similar
Meals included: breakfast
After a brief stop in Maun to resupply we transfer 300kms to Nata arriving mid-afternoon. In the late afternoon we head to the Nata Sanctuary to watch the sunset on the Makgadikgadi Pan.
The Makgadikgadi Pan covers over 16,000 square kilometres and forms the bed of an ancient lake, now dried up, which once spread as far as the Okavango Delta. Sunsets on the pan are some of the best on the continent.
Nata Lodge or similar
Meals included: breakfast
Today we continue our journey back towards Zimbabwe. We go via Francistown and Bulawayo on our way to Matobo National Park. The journey is about 380kms and driving time shouldn’t be much more than about 5hrs, however the border crossing can be busy and may take between two and three hours. We stay in chalets just outside the park and enjoy sundowners from the granite ridge overlooking the park.
Hermits Peak Lodge or similar
Meals included: breakfast dinner
Matobo National Park (also known as Matopos National Park) is an area known for its kopjes, giant boulders which seem to be precariously balanced on top of one-another, and wildlife. The park is one of the best places to see both Black and White rhinos and has a very dense population of leopards (though these predators are still elusive). It also counts amongst its inhabitants a third of all species of eagle.
These hills were, once, home to San Bushmen who have left their mark with rock-paintings depicting giraffes, elands and kudu. It was also the colonialist Cecil Rhodes’ favourite place and where he asked to be buried.
We enter Matobo National Park early in the morning and go on a game drive followed by a game walk where we can hope to see rhino on foot. We visit World’s End, where Cecil Rhodes is buried and see some of the granite formations and rock-paintings. We spend most of the day inside the park returning to the lodge in the afternoon.
Hermits Peak Lodge or similar
Meals included: breakfast lunch dinner
After a leisurely breakfast we make a quick stop in Bulawayo this morning to resupply before driving north 335kms to Hwange National Park.
Zimbabwe’s largest National Park, Hwange covers 14,600 square kilometres of mopane and teak woodlands and grasslands. The park is home to over 100 mammal species and 400 bird species including all of Zimbabwe’s specially protected animals. Its most famous inhabitants are the elephants and Wild dogs, and it is the only place where gemsbok and Brown hyena can be found in reasonable numbers in Zimbabwe.
We stay in a property situated within a game-management area which abuts the park.
Miobo Lodge or similar
Meals included: breakfast dinner
We spend all day on a 4WD open-game drive in search of Hwange wildlife.
Miobo Lodge or similar
Meals included: breakfast lunch dinner
After a relaxed start we take a short, final drive back to Victoria Falls, arriving at Victoria Falls town around lunch time. In the afternoon we head out towards the mighty falls themselves.
Measuring 1,700 meters wide and 100 meters high, Victoria Falls are the largest waterfall in the World and one of the most famous highlights of Africa. The volume of water changes with the seasons but when full the spray rises into the sky – a phenomenon which has given the falls their local name Mosi o Tunya, the Smoke that Thunders. They are a site to behold and one which impressed Dr. David Livingstone so much that he commented that ‘’ scenes so lovely must have been gazed upon by angels in their flight.’’
The Rainbow Hotel or similar
Meals included: breakfast
Today is a free day to enjoy the many activities on offer in the area such as white-water rafting, taking a flight over the falls, going on a sunset cruise or crossing into neighbouring Zambia to see the falls from that side.
The Rainbow Hotel or similar
Meals included: breakfast
Those on the group flights will be transferred to the airport in time for their flight. Those who do not have a transfer included, the trip ends after breakfast.
Meals included: breakfast
