Contact us and we can find the right accommodation in Botswana that matches the specifications of your requirements

Botswana has a lot exciting places to visit. One of them is Mokolodi Nature Reserve, a privately own not-for-profit game reserve in southern Botswana. Mokolodi Nature Reserve was founded in 1994 by The Mokolodi Wildlife Foundation, it is located south of the capital Gaborone on a donated piece of land 10km from Gaborone. There is a wide variety of African wildlife that includes bird and reptile species, some of which are rare and vulnerable to the threat of extinction.

Mokolodi Nature Reserve is also the centre of the breeding of the white rhinoceros herd. The programme seeks to replenish the rhino population in Botswana.

The main emphasis of the Mokolodi Wildlife Foundation is the provision of education around education and conservation to the communities. It is envisaged that the natural environment will be better kept in this way. The nature reserve hosts children from across Botswana, some of whom are from disadvantaged backgrounds. The fee-based activity and accommodation services offered to the public by Mokolodi Nature Reserve support the Foundation’s charitable objectives, to present the children of Botswana with the opportunity to embrace the natural world and to promote the wider protection of Botswana’s natural environment.

Wildlife in Mokolodi Nature Reserve includes

• White rhino
• Cheetah
• Mountain reedbuck
• Giraffe
• Zebra
• Red hartebeest
• Sable
• Gemsbok
• Reared elephants
• Kudu
• Impala
• Hyena
• Leopard
• WaterbuckThe park is developed as a game sanctuary with an extensive network of paths, which permits viewing the wild life at close quarters. The park administration is planning to expand its limits of conservation area up to the Lion Park.

Welcome to Botswana – The Elephant Country. The country has the one of the largest herds of elephants in the world. Elephants exude a sense of mystery. Their sheer size alone is enough to intimidate anyone and everything. However, they are the most gentlest of mammals of their size.

Below are some interesting facts about elephants:

1. The elephant’s foot is constructed in such a way that the animal is virtually walking on tip toe, with a tough, fatty pad of connective tissue forming the sole.
2. Elephants tusks are simply overgrown incisors protruding from the upper jaw. They grow at a rate of 15–18cm a year, depending on their diet.
3. The skeletal frame of an elephant is so strong. It enables it to stand upright on its hind legs.
4. Elephants replaces about six sets of molars in a lifetime.
5. Elephant herds consist of females, who are usually related, calves and young bull calves. The eldest female, known as the Matriarch, most often leads the herd.
6. Bull calves get kicked out of the herd when they reach about 12 years of age to join the bull “bachelor” herds or to become a solitary bull. Bull herds will only join a female herd when it is mating season, or at a waterhole. The females are responsible for the welfare of the family.
7. The elephant is deceptively fast despite its huge form. Its average speed for charging elephants is about 35–40km per hour.
8. A calf will only learn how to use its trunk properly at about six months of age.
9. Elephants are known to display a deep sensitivity and awareness of death and will return repeatedly to carcasses and skeletons of deceased herd members, running their trunks gently over their remains as though paying their respects.
10. Elephants spend as many as 18–20 hours a day feeding and drinking.
11. An elephant generally sleeps for only three or four hours a day. Very occasionally they may lie down for an hour or so, but mostly they take short, cumulative naps, usually standing upright or leaning against a tree or termite mound.
12. A fully grown adult bull’s tusks can extend to 3m and weigh as much as 100kg each. The heaviest recorded tusk weighed 102.7kg.
13. Like man, elephants are usually left or right “handed” and will use one tusk almost exclusively.
14. Elephants have a highly developed social structure, with family bonds, love, loyalty and intelligence.
15. African elephants have four hoof nails on their front feet and three nails on the hind leg.
16. The elephant brain can weigh up to 4,8kg depending on the age of the elephant.
17. The small intestine is 82 feet long; the large intestine is 21 feet, and the rectum is a further 13 feet. That makes a total of 116 feet of intestine that the food has to pass through. Digestion of food can take 22-46 hours.
18. An elephant’s jaws can crack open the thickest and hardest shells of fruits, releasing the seed kernels inside.
19. Elephants use a wide range of sounds to express their moods and feelings.
20. The gestation period in female elephants is 22 months. When the calf is born it can weigh 100kg-120kg and stands about 85cm tall.
21. Another adaptation that the elephant has is its appendix. This organ is 5 feet long and its role is to process and break down proteins, starches and the simple and complex sugars that are found in its food. Larger than the stomach, this organ is where the majority of the intestinal bacteria are located that are required to digest the vegetable materials.
22. The bone structure of an elephant is similar to that of  beings, for example they too have a wrist joint in the front legs as well as knee caps and ankles in the back legs. Even the shoulder blades are positioned in the same place as in humans.
23. When standing on hind legs, the kidneys are in the same position as that of a human being.
24. The elephant’s memory surpasses that of humans.

Recently i read that elephants can can detect rainstorms happening 150 miles away, possibly by hearing them even from that far off. Shouldn’t be they be considered for employment by the met office?

Get more information about game safaris in Botswana

Want to experience the  birds and wildlife of the Okavango Delta in a stealthy and uniquely serene way? Then go for a Mokoro ride! The Mokoro is a very simple and rustic dugout canoe propelled and guided by one person standing at the stern. A Mokoro is actually crafted from a trunk and is shaped like a canoe. It is normally 20 feet in length. Whilst traditionally the Mokoro was made from tree trunks, conservations issues have seen the creation of Mokoros from fiber-glass. However, this has not minimised the experience. Tourists can still enjoy the same unique experience of gliding on the shallow waters of the Okavango Delta.

Although it appears to be an exploration not meant for the faint hearted, in actual fact the Mokoro ride is very safe and should be on every tourists to do list whilst on a Botswana safari.

The guides or oarmen who pilot the Mokoros are experts in navigating the waters and they also possess in depth knowledge of the environment . They use a long pole called a “ngashi” to move the Mokoro forward. Most of them have been trained from a tender age, as low as seven in some cases, to handle the canoe.

The Mokoro ride experience enables tourists to get close and personal with nature without scaring off wildlife and birds with the noise of motorised boats. This is ideal for both nature lovers and photographers.

Contact us for more information or to book at trip to Botswana.

The best time to watch the birds is during the summer time. For really keen birders a summer, rainy season visit is a must.

Bird Species in the Okavango

Orange River Francolin

White Faced Whistling Duck

Egyptian Goose

African Pygmy Goose

Cape Teal

Little Grebe

Greater Flamingo

Yellow-billed Stork

African Openbill

European White Stork

Hadaba Ibis

African Spoonbill

Goliath Heron

Great Egret

Black Headed Heron

Lanner Falcon

Great Cormorant

Darter

Iconic destinations – the Kruger Park, Cape Town, Masai Mara and Serengeti – feature highly on these itineraries but so do off-the-beaten-path destinations in Tanzania and Botswana as well as tucked-away beaches in the Seychelles and Mozambique.

Moreover, our top rated African safari tours have been chosen to offer a range of experiences: romantics and honeymooners will enjoy our idyllic ‘safari and beach’ combinations while families will appreciate the child-friendly nature of our popular South African safari tours. Accommodation, transfers and activities are all part of our tours so the only thing left to arrange is your international flight. Why not make it extra-easy and have your consultant book your flights too?

Browse our best African tours below for inspiration. If something appeals, simply contact one of our Africa Safari Experts and they’ll take it from there.

1. Luxury Migration, Lake & Crater Safari

One of our best African tours, this 9-day safari kicks off in Kenya’s Masai Mara before heading south into Tanzania for the Serengeti, Lake Manyara and the Ngorongoro Crater. Focused on wildlife, this is a great opportunity to witness the wildebeest migration so ask us about getting your timing right.

2. Exclusive Cape Town & Kruger Romance

Two of South Africa’s landmark destinations feature on this classic 8-day combination tour and the accommodation ranks among the best on the continent. Expect fine wine, gourmet food, huge views and all the thrills of a Big 5 safari in an exclusive Kruger reserve.

Living in Botswana, I had to get used to the Kalahari’s sub-zero winters as well as white-hot summer days. I’ve had my camp washed away by flash floods, been stuck in axle-deep mud and pelted by hailstones.

There’s plenty of weather in Botswana and given the effect it has on the country’s wildlife – triggering migrations for example – an understanding of Botswana’s seasonal nature is essential if you want your expectations met. If you were planning a Botswana safari to see thousands of elephants on the Chobe River in February, read on.

The northern part of the park is bordered by the Chobe River.

The abundant water supply makes the Chobe national park a haven for animals and bird life.