The Botswana Grand Safari

Your Botswana adventure begins the moment your aircraft touches down at Sir Seretse Khama International Airport. A Finders & Keepers Safaris representative greets you in the arrivals hall and escorts you into a waiting luxury transfer vehicle. The drive carries you through Gaborone's leafy suburbs, past modern buildings and bustling markets — a gentle introduction to Botswana's famous hospitality. At the Protea by Marriott Hotel you are checked in immediately, no waiting. The remainder of the day is unscheduled — rest, explore the hotel's facilities or swim in the pool. As evening approaches, a welcome dinner is served at the hotel's signature restaurant, where your guide joins you to brief the journey ahead over maps and stories of the bush. Tomorrow, the wilderness begins.

After a leisurely breakfast, transfer to Gaborone Airport for your private charter flight to Mashatu Reserve (approximately 1 hour 15 minutes). From above, the outskirts of Gaborone give way to open savannah, ancient riverbeds and baobab-dotted plains. You may spot wildlife from the air. Upon landing, your guide is waiting. The drive to Mashatu Main Lodge takes you through the reserve's northern sector — within minutes, a herd of elephants with tusks curving toward the earth, a family of giraffes at the highest acacia leaves, a troop of baboons crossing ahead. You arrive to cold towels and a welcome drink. Check into your suite — a private deck overlooking the bush, a king-sized bed in fine linens, an outdoor shower open to the African night. Lunch, a rest, then sundowners on the main deck as elephants silhouette against the fading sky. Dinner by candlelight. The African night surrounds you.

The day begins before sunrise. By 6:00 AM, you are in your private safari vehicle as the morning air turns cool and golden. Within the first hour, a herd of more than fifty elephants — a massive bull tearing bark from a baobab, mothers guarding calves, adolescents chasing each other through dust clouds. Your guide explains elephant social structure, their memory, their grief. Mid-morning: a table set in a clearing with white linen, silverware and china cups. A chef prepares a full breakfast over an open fire while zebra graze a hundred metres away. Return to the lodge for lunch and a siesta. At 4:00 PM, reports of a leopard near the Majale River. You drive toward the acacia trees — and there she is, draped across a branch, an impala carcass wedged above her, watching you with half-closed eyes. A sundowner under the first stars. Bonfire dinner. Somewhere in the darkness, an elephant rumbles.

Today you visit the world-famous Matebole Underground Photo Hide — sunk into the ground at a waterhole, bringing you eye-level with wildlife as they arrive to drink. Large ground-level openings allow unobstructed views and extraordinary low-angle photography. Your guide is an expert photographer, available to help with settings and composition. Warthogs, impala and then elephants arrive in succession — seeing them from underground, at eye level, is an experience unlike any other. A young elephant approaches the hide, curious, and you photograph it from just a few metres away. The session lasts approximately three hours. You emerge exhilarated, memory cards full. The afternoon is yours to rest, swim and review your images. An evening game drive closes the day with a lion pride in the shade of an acacia and a sundowner overlooking the river.

Today you experience Mashatu from an entirely different perspective — on horseback. After an early breakfast, your equestrian guide assesses your riding experience and matches you with the appropriate horse. Mashatu's open terrain is perfect for riding, and the silence of hooves on sand allows you to approach wildlife more closely than any vehicle. You ride out as the sun rises over the baobabs — through open grasslands, acacia woodlands, ancient riverbeds and baobab groves. Within the first hour, a herd of zebra watch you curiously and return to grazing. Your horse is calm, untroubled. You feel a connection to the landscape that is impossible from a vehicle. The ride lasts approximately three hours with a stop for bush refreshments. Return to the lodge exhilarated and deeply satisfied. Evening game drive, sundowner, bonfire dinner.

A 5:30 AM wake-up call. A full day dedicated entirely to Mashatu's extraordinary wildlife. Reports of a cheetah with cubs near the Limpopo River — within an hour you find them on a rocky outcrop, cubs tumbling over each other, the mother watching with patience and love. After the cheetahs, your guide takes you off the main tracks into the reserve's most remote corners. A pride of lions resting in the shade of a baobab. A herd of buffalo — massive, ancient, watchful. A pair of rhinos, rare and magnificent. A large python coiled in the branches of a fig tree. Mid-morning: a bush breakfast set under an acacia. Return for lunch and a long siesta. At 4:00 PM, out again. The elephants gather to drink — dozens of them. Sundowner. The sky turns violet, then deep indigo.

After breakfast, bid farewell to Mashatu and transfer to the airstrip for your charter flight to Chobe National Park (approximately 1 hour 30 minutes). From above, the baobab-dotted plains give way to lush riverine forests and winding waterways. The Chobe River glints in the morning light, and elephants are visible from the air — hundreds of them gathering along the riverbanks. Your new guide is waiting on landing. The drive to Chobe Game Lodge reveals your first animals immediately — more elephants than you have ever seen in one place. Hippos grunt in the river. Crocodiles bask on sandbanks. Check into your luxurious river-facing suite — balcony, deep soaking tub, air conditioning. Lunch on the main deck. At 4:00 PM, a first Chobe game drive: a herd of more than one hundred elephants drinking, bathing and playing in the river. Sundowner. Dinner. The sounds of the African night surround you.

Today you explore Chobe from the water. After breakfast, board a private river safari boat. From the water, hippos surface beside the boat, crocodiles slide off the banks, and elephants wade in to drink and bathe. Your guide navigates close to a pod of thirty or more hippos, resting in the shallows. The birdlife is extraordinary — African fish eagles, saddle-billed storks, goliath herons, kingfishers of every colour. Mid-morning: a bush breakfast on a sandbank, a table with white linen and silver, a chef preparing eggs while hippos surface behind you. Return to the lodge for lunch and a siesta. An evening game drive discovers a pride of twelve lions resting in the shade of an acacia. Sundowner over the floodplains as hundreds of elephants gather to drink. Bonfire on the riverbank.

A full day dedicated to Chobe's extraordinary wildlife. Reports of a leopard near the Nogatsaa area — elusive in Chobe, but today luck is with you. A female leopard rests on an acacia branch, an impala carcass wedged in the fork above her, watching you with calm intelligent eyes. Thirty minutes alone with her, no other vehicles. After the leopard, the guide takes you off the main tracks: buffalo, rhinos, wild dogs resting in the shade. Mid-morning bush breakfast. Lunch served in the bush — a gourmet picnic at a viewpoint over the floodplains. The afternoon continues deeper into Chobe's remote corners. Sundowner over the river as the elephants mass to drink. Return to the lodge for dinner. Bonfire on the riverbank.

The alarm comes at 4:00 AM. A short drive to the launch site on the edge of the Chobe floodplains. The balloon inflates in the darkness, burners casting an orange glow. You climb into the basket. The ground falls away. The Chobe River winds below you, glittering in the first light. Elephants gather along the banks in their hundreds, moving in single file, shadows stretching across the floodplains. Hippos leave the river. Buffalo move across the grasslands. Lions return from their night hunts. The sun breaks over the horizon. The floodplains turn gold, then amber. The balloon drifts for over an hour. You descend to a champagne breakfast on the floodplains — white linen flapping in the morning breeze. A morning game drive follows. This evening, a private bush dinner on the Chobe riverbank: lanterns in the acacia branches, white linen, bonfire crackling, elephants watching from the opposite bank.

A walking safari along the Chobe River with an armed ranger. Walking through the bush is a fundamentally different experience — sounds, smells, textures all amplified. Your guide reads the tracks: an elephant passed here last night, a lion rested under this tree, a crocodile slid into the river at dawn. You walk for two hours, stopping often to observe and absorb. Return to the lodge for a late breakfast. The afternoon brings a private river safari boat for one final exploration of the Chobe River — the light golden, hippos surfacing, crocodiles on the banks, an elephant matriarch leading her calf across the river. A sundowner on a sandbank in the middle of the river as the sky turns violet. Dinner. Bonfire on the riverbank.

A 5:30 AM wake-up for one final full day in Chobe. Your guide asks where you wish to go — a particular lion pride, a favourite waterhole, or the river where the elephants cross. You choose the Chobe River one last time. Hundreds of elephants line the banks, drinking, bathing, playing. Hippos grunt in the shallows. Crocodiles bask on the sandbanks. Mid-morning bush breakfast in the shade of an acacia. After breakfast, a final game drive into the remote corners of the park. Return to the lodge for lunch and a siesta. At 4:00 PM, a final Chobe game drive: the elephants gathering to drink, stretching to the horizon. Sundowner. The sky turns violet, then deep indigo. You raise your glass. To Chobe. To the elephants. To the memories. A farewell dinner. Bonfire on the riverbank.

After an early breakfast, depart Chobe Game Lodge at first light for one of the journey's most anticipated excursions. Your guide drives you to the Kazungula Border Post, clearing customs and immigration (all visa fees included). The journey from Chobe to Victoria Falls takes approximately 1.5–2 hours. You hear it before you see it — a deep, continuous rumble the Kololo people called "Mosi-oa-Tunya": the Smoke That Thunders. Then you see the spray rising hundreds of metres, visible from miles away, rainbows dancing across the gorge. Your guide leads you through the network of paths following the gorge edge — the Devil's Cataract, Main Falls, Rainbow Falls, Horseshoe Falls, the Eastern Cataract. Each viewpoint offers a different perspective on this extraordinary place. David Livingstone was the first European to witness it in 1855, but the local people had known its power for centuries. Lunch at a carefully selected restaurant overlooking the Zambezi. Afternoon free to explore the craft markets or take tea at the historic Victoria Falls Hotel. Return to Chobe at sunset.

After the long excursion to Victoria Falls, today is intentionally scheduled as a full day of relaxation and gentle wildlife viewing. Sleep in. Breakfast served until late morning. The remainder of the morning is yours — rest on your river-facing balcony, swim in the pool, enjoy a spa treatment, read in the library, or simply watch the elephants and hippos from the lodge deck. Lunch on the main deck overlooking the river. At 4:00 PM, for those who wish, a gentle afternoon game drive to favourite viewing spots along the Chobe River. A farewell sundowner as the elephants gather to drink, hundreds of them stretching to the horizon. The sun sinks below the horizon. The sky turns violet, then deep indigo. You raise your glass one final time. To Chobe. To the memories. A farewell dinner. A final bonfire on the riverbank.

After breakfast, bid farewell to Chobe Game Lodge and transfer to the airstrip for your charter flight back to Gaborone (approximately 1 hour 30 minutes). The lush riverine forests of Chobe give way to open plains, then rolling hills, then the outskirts of Gaborone. A Finders & Keepers Safaris representative is waiting at Sir Seretse Khama International Airport. Transfer to the Protea by Marriott Hotel — the same sanctuary where your journey began. As a special conclusion to the safari, a complimentary spa session awaits: full body massage, aromatherapy, deep tissue treatment, steam room and sauna. The remainder of the day is unscheduled. A farewell dinner in the hotel's signature restaurant celebrates the completion of an extraordinary journey. From Day 15 onward, the Protea by Marriott Hotel is your home until you choose to leave. There is no fixed departure date — Finders & Keepers Safaris will arrange your airport transfer for any date and time you choose. No rush. No pressure. You leave when you are ready.