13 DAY NORTHERN HIGHLIGHTS ROUTE DEPARTURE

Trip Description

Trip Itinerary Overview:                                                                                                  

Travel with a Purpose in Northern Highlights Route Departure, glamp in the Moremi Game Reserve, Khwai Concession and Savute in Chobe National Park on a mobile safari. Pole the Khwai on a mokoro and get close to elephants on a Chobe River boat cruise. Take in the beauty of Botswana with African Dwarf Frog Safari Tours in this photographic departure and immerse yourself in the wilderness for 10 nights in a safari and 3 nights lodging; exploring amazing flora and fauna and landscape. The Northern Highlights safari has been carefully pre-costed and put together by the very experience of the co-founder of African Dwarf Frog Safari, to allow you to enjoy the full Botswana.

Imagine exploring the remote game lands linking the famed elephant stronghold of Khwai River Concession and Xakanaxa area in Moremi National Park with Botswana’s renowned Chobe National Park. Some 200,000 elephants roam this wild trans-frontier corridor. We’ll head across rich savannahs unknown to most travellers, encountering massive herds of elephants and plenty of other wildlife including lion, rare sable antelope, African painted dog, wildebeest, buffalo, giraffe, and more. Memorable experience of nature indeed! This departure is based on your specific needs and requirements by simply requesting you to choose from options of starting point to the last destination. African Dwarf Frog Safaris staff is all natives and we recognize how Africa works. Our experts consultants have travelled extensively and they have stayed at the private camp sites, lodges and hotels that they will recommend to you. We know all the hidden gems and still discovering, the entire traveller’s secrets and all the difficulties to watch out for. We’re passionate about Botswana, its wildlife, its people and its huge potential. African Dwarf Frog Safari Tours is synonymous with responsible tourism. We’re at your service. So let us make your amazing unforgettable Botswana holiday of a lifetime. We assist in finding the right accommodation under lodging, which is suitable for your budget and which meet your desire.

Trip Highlights:

Duration: 12 Nights / 13 Days

3 Nights Moremi Game Reserve – game viewing

3 Nights Khwai Concession NG 19 – Game viewing/ nature walk /mokoro (dug-out canoe) excursion

3 Nights Savute – game viewing / rock painting

1 Night Kasane – boat cruise at Chobe River (accommodation at travellers own expense)

2 Nights Livingstone – Zambia (optional, at travellers own expense)                                                                                                                            

All inclusive: meals, activities, meru en-suit tented accommodations and drinks.

Type of accommodation: camping & lodging in Kasane

Minimum: 3ppl        Maximum: 6ppl RATE: $420.00ppn/n - (excl. tickets & LODGING ARRANGEMENTS)

• NB: Luggage Soft sided duffel bag / 20kg maximum inclusive of hand luggage

Trip Daily Activity:

Day 1, 2 & 3: MOREMI GAME RESERVE-TENTED CAMPING

You will be welcomed at Maun airport by African Dwarf Frog Safari’s representative. En-route picnic lunch to Moremi. It will be a short break to catch time to be permitted to drive in the park. We will drive to familiarise ourselves with the area and then to private camp site where you will be spending your first three nights of the safari. We should arrive at the lodge around sunset, just in time for your first shower. We will meet around the camp fire for a snack and refreshments.

Explore the Moremi Game Reserve in the Xakanaxa area, with game drives and bird watching for 3 days on early and late afternoon game drives, accompanied by a professional guide. The safari is fully serviced with a safari chef, waiter and camp assistants taking care of the comfort of the guests. Guests return to camp each sunset and enjoy the meru en-suit tented accommodation, en-suite bucket shower, and bush toilet. It is in our colourful candle lit mess tent or under the starlit sky that you will enjoy your first 3 course meal that has been prepared over the fire by our Chef. After dinner we will have time to share stories around the camp fire before retiring to bed where you will fall asleep to the many interesting sounds that the bush has to offer.

The next day we spend a full day in the bush on a game drive. Departing after a full breakfast we take our safari equipped vehicle and drive through the wilderness area of the Moremi Game Reserve region, spotting a variety of game that frequent this region that borders Moremi National Park like Xakanaxa and 3rd Bridge. Picnic- lunch will be in the wilderness area under the shade of trees. With some luck we will encounter a few of the "big five" and a host of other animals including hippo, giraffe, zebra and many species of antelope. We will return to our private camp late afternoon to enjoy the magnificent African sun set scene.

Moremi is home to diverse wildlife including predators, birdlife and beautiful antelopes. It is home to the most endangered species of large mammals: the cheetah, white rhinoceros, black rhinoceros, African wild dog and lion. Over 500 bird species (from water birds to forest dwellers) and over a 1000 species of plants are also recognized in this region. This ecosystem is amongst the richest in Africa. And thanks to effective protection, the flora and fauna is relatively undisturbed. Within the larger UNESCO listed Okavango Delta Game Reserve, Moremi covers about 40% of the Okavango. The Moremi and the Okavango Delta is one of the few interior delta systems that do not directly flow into the ocean or sea. The annual flood makes for a spectacular interaction between water and wildlife, as animals synchronize their cycles with this seasonal flood. Guests can discover a unique land while staying in one of the intimate camps in the Moremi and let the river take them on an adventure.

The following day will be spent with dug-out canoe activity and game drive. We will return to the lodge for lunch and after a relaxing siesta in the afternoon we will set off on our afternoon game drive. We will stop next to the river at sunset to enjoy some snacks and sun downer drink, before setting off on a night drive en route to the private campsite designated. Meru tented en-suit accommodation [B x 3, Lx 3, D x3]

Day 4, 5 & 6: KHWAI CONCESSION NG 19-TENTED CAMPING Following an early breakfast we pack camp and continue our journey to Khwai, stopping for a picnic lunch en-route from Moremi to Khwai Concession. The Khwai River forms a boundary between the Moremi Game Reserve and the community area. We spend the next remarkable 3 nights camping at a camp-site in the community area, exploring the Khwai floodplains on game drives both during the day and at night.

The Khwai Concession is a large area dominated by mopane forests on the north eastern edge of the Okavango Delta. The Khwai Concession is an 1800km (180 000 hectare) area, belonging to the local community, which is situated next to the Moremi Game Reserve. It was formed by the local Khwai villagers and is managed by the Khwai Development Trust. The area used to be a hunting concession, but is now actively managed as a conservation area. The Khwai River flows through the concession - it is the first major water source that animals migrating down from the Linyanti concession encounter and there is always a high concentration of game along the river.

The area is made up of sweeping grasslands, riparian forests and floodplains. The floodplains are flooded most of the year and there are lagoons covered in blue and white water lilies. The area also has large tracts of mopane forests. The riverine woodland consists of camelthorn, knobthorn, appleleaf and great stands of Leadwood trees. The next day you will also enjoy a 2 ½ hour mokoro (dug-out canoe) trip exploring the water ways of Khwai which is the most eastern reach of the Okavango river system. As per the interest of the client, walking activity can be done whereby our expert guide led a walking safari. Walking in the bush with a professional guide is an exhilarating experience. Night drives in Botswana provide for some of the most dramatic and unusual sightings, and although not offered in national parks or game reserves there is a unique experience for this in Khwai community concession area which is preserved and maintained by the local communities.

Exploring after dark with spotlights offers you a unique opportunity to experience some of the nocturnal animals that are rarely encountered during the day such as leopard, Aardwolf and porcupine and honey badger. It is important to note that night drives are not permitted within the National Parks and reserves. These activities are conducted outside the boundaries of the Moremi Game Reserve in the Khwai community area. Meru tented en-suit accommodation [B x 3, Lx 3, D x3]

Day 7, 8 & 9: SAVUTE; CHOBE NATIONAL PARK-TENTED CAMPING

We venture further north en-route to Central Chobe region, exploring the dessert-like landscape of game drives, We head further south en-route through Chobe National Park, where we spend the following three nights camping in a wilderness private camp-site in the Savute region, exploring the desert-like landscape with game drives. Never has there been a better time to visit Savute! The water from the Savute Channel reached the marsh for the first time in 30 years in 2009 winding its way from the North.

Savute has for the last 30 years been an extremely dry area and lately its claim to fame has been the lion and elephant interaction as they come for the few drops of water that remain in the waterholes. These dynamics have changed with the arrival of the water. The Savute is characterised by the Savute Marsh, the Savute Channel and the surrounding Hills. During morning and late afternoon drives your guide will alternate between these areas. Anything can happen on the Savute Marsh and it’s best to get there early in the morning. Dominant features Savute are the Hills, one of which has a few perfectly preserved San Bushmen paintings which are easily accessible. Savute has a very healthy population of leopard who live on these hills and the best time to see them is either at first or last light as they leave their stony refuge to hunt in the surrounding bush.

In sharp contrast to the lush Chobe River Front is the seemingly endless desolate landscape of the Savute grasslands, famous for the dry marsh, sand ridge and volcanic hills, which are unique to this area. The marsh once contained the waters of the Makgadikgadi super-lake, and the most typical feature of the landscape is the abundance of dead trees – evidence of the erratic flow of the Savute Channel over the years. The area is inhabited by a huge pride of lions with numbers fluctuating from 20- 30 members and resident clans of hyena are bucket-list targets for most visitors to the area. Meru tented en-suit accommodation [B x 3, Lx 3, D x3]

Day 10: KASANE – LODGING ACCOMMODATION

Here travellers will overnight in a Lodge. Guests traverse the Chobe River and admire Africa’s sights and sounds on the river and from the nearby riverbank. They arrive in Kasane after travelling from Savute; they stop for a picnic lunch en route. Guests board a boat cruise on the Chobe River and return to Kasane International Airport for outbound departures. *Lodging Accommodation [B x 1, Lx 1, Dx1]

Day 11 & 12: ZAMBIA; LIVINGSTONE - Lodging

Departure day from African Dwarf Frog Safari Tours arrangements. After our breakfast we will drive to Victoria Falls where we will spend 2 nights at Livingstone -Zambia. We commend you to visit the falls. The Livingstone Hotel has its own pass way to the falls. Entry fees are around US$25 per person and shall be settle directly at the gate. For almost 100 years, visiting members of the royal families, international and local statesmen, and celebrities worldwide, have preferred to stay at Livingstone Hotel, where they are assured of privacy and care.

An atmosphere steeped in history, combining the charm of the old with the comfort and convenience of today. It is one Hotel that can truly claim to be unique. During the late 1940s, the Solent Flying Boat service, offered by the imperial Airways became one of the more interesting ways to travel to Africa. This service flew from Southampton, England to Johannesburg, South Africa. The Solent’s landed and was serviced on a reach of the Zambezi above the Victoria Falls. This stopover became known as the “Jungle Junction” and was soon the favourite stop on the route, as all passengers disembarked and stayed at Livingstone Hotel. Breakfast and dinner buffets with Makishi dancers and an indigenous choir entertaining every night. *Lodging Accommodation[Breakfast x 2, Lunch x 2, Dinner x2]

Optional extension (with guests own expenses)

Extend your trip by two days and visit the magnificent Victoria Falls during a day tour! Activities include:

*White Water Rafting down the Zambezi Gorge,

*Canoeing on the upper Zambezi

*Helicopter Flights over the Victoria Falls