Classic Botswana

Very intimately placed in the private Jao Concession area bordering the Moremi Game Reserve in the Okavango Delta, Wilderness Jao Camp offers a luxurious way to experience this beautiful part of the world. You will be well looked after in the nine tented rooms here, with incredible service and excellent guiding. Each of the tented rooms is situated a short distance from the main area and accessed via charming raised walkways. All of the tents have their own deck area with great views over the expanse of floodplains. Inside, you’ll find peace and comfort in the luxurious canvas setting. Wilderness Jao Camp also has a great wine cellar where you can enjoy a private dinner and a great spa where you can enjoy some superb treatments. Within the camp itself, you have access to two plunge pools, ideal in the afternoon heat if you aren’t relaxing inside with a book from the library. Activities here are entirely dependent on the flood levels at the time of year you visit, however as a rule of thumb you can expect a split of about 30% game drives and 70% water activities, which gives you a brilliant perspective of the animals that call this place their home. Mokoro trips are highly recommended. As the camp is within its own concession area, it also can also provide night drives (weather permitting) to spot the elusive nocturnal creatures found here.

With uninterrupted views over Osprey Lagoon, and a fantastic vantage point from which to watch the areas mega-herds of elephants, Wilderness DumaTau and nearby Wilderness Little DumaTau are perfectly located for making the most of your stay in the Linyanti Wildlife Reserve. Each spacious tented guest suite has been positioned to offer great views whether you’re relaxing on your deck, or cooling off in your plunge pool. You’ll also find the tents include spot-cooling, meaning you can find respite from the hot afternoons indoors. Spend time investigating the ‘curiosity boxes’ you’ll find mounted on the walls in your room and the drawers filled with fascinating artefacts and information. They’re a great way to learn more about the area’s wildlife and rich history. Look out for unique elephant and wild dog art in the rooms and library made from reclaimed snare wire. Wilderness Safaris have constructed both camps to give maximum comfort and offer guests a large array of facilities. In addition to the in-tent cooling systems, you’ll discover that the central Osprey Retreat which sits between the two camps boasts a pool, drink and snack counter and a Safari Boutique area, offering you more space to mingle with your fellow guests if you choose to do so. Large decks, plunge pools and awnings are attached to each of Wilderness Duma Tau’s eight tented suites as well as at the four at Wilderness Little DumaTau. The Wilderness DumaTau team continues to focus on the sustainability of wildlife corridors, as they have done since 1997. They believe that it is more vital than ever to protect large wildlife corridors of wilderness,  like those within the vast Linyanti Wildlife Reserve – especially for the African elephant and wild dog that cover extensive ground. Staying at Wilderness DumaTau offers you easy access to the Linyanti floodplain as well as the Savuti Channel, in fact, it’s the only concession from which you can access both. The region has all the habitat diversity to make it a haven for wildlife, and is well-known for its elephant concentrations as they congregate along the waterways and lagoons during the dry winter months. General wildlife viewing is excellent year round including impala, wildebeest, red lechwe, Burchell’s zebra, giraffe, Cape buffalo, chacma baboon, vervet monkey, and warthog. Predator sightings of lion, leopard, cheetah, wild dog and spotted hyena are good. As well as day and night game drives, you can explore on nature walks or take to the water on motorboats or the river barge (depending on water levels).  

Overlooking a tranquil lagoon, King’s Pool is a luxurious camp tucked away in a grove of jackalberry trees.  The eight spacious canvas suites covered with thatched roofs are raised on wooden platforms to take in the views below. Families travelling together can enjoy the two bedroom family suite with sunken deck and private plunge pool. The camp sits overlooking the Linyanti River and the oxbow lake of Wilderness King’s Pool from which it derives its name. Communal areas include a lounge dining area, bar and a shared pool. These all sit on raised decking allowing for excellent armchair game viewing of the river and lake. This part of the Linyanti borders the Chobe National Park, meaning that great numbers of elephant frequent the area during the dry months as they visit the lagoon and river. Other game is abundant too during these months including giraffe, lechwe, zebra and impala, all helping to draw the large predators; lion, leopard, cheetah and wild-dog. As well as game drives the camp offers seasonal barge cruises along the river (dependent on the river level) , basic fishing and walking safaris (on request in advance). The camp also has two wildlife hides, excellent for close up observation of game.

Zarafa Camp is set inside the 320,000 acre Selinda Reserve, created to conserve and protect the wildlife of the area alongside connecting Botswana’s Okavango Delta to the Linyanti waterways. This reserve is home to a diverse and rich abundance of species similar to those found in the Savuti and Chobe National Parks, but with the exclusivity of a private reserve. Simply one of the most beautiful tented camps in Africa, Zarafa is a triumph of conservation and attention to detail. There are just 4 immense tented suites set on raised wooden platforms overlooking the floodplain of the Zibadianja Lagoon. The tents are decorated in a style befitting of the explorations of the early 20th Century, matched with modern comforts and technological surprises. Outdoor decking wraps around each guest suite and offers guests a private plunge pool, private outdoor shower, and outdoor seating. Within the suite your lounge flows into a well-decorated bedroom and an open layout indoor bathroom that is adorned with a polished copper bath tub and fireplace. The main camp, made up of a generously-sized main lounge, library, dining area and bush boutique, is nestled under a canopy of  trees a slight distance from the suites. An outdoor gym and in-room massages are also available. Environmentally, Zarafa has a number of initiatives in place to ensure they have as light an impact on their surrounding as possible, from solar power and water filtration systems, to vehicles that run mostly on vegetable oil. The camp also supports the notion that conservation can only be successful if communities living alongside wildlife and protected areas are given opportunities to learn, interact, and benefit from these conserved areas. As part of Great Plains Conservation, Zarafa is involved with the Great Plains Foundation’s launch of the Great Plains Academy, which provides enrichment opportunities for a community in the upper reaches of Botswana’s Okavango Delta. The academy will supply vocational training, supplemental education, and scholarships with a conservation and tourism focus. All programmes seek to invest in the skill and capacity of the individual whilst displaying respect for natural heritage and a solid conservation ethic.