Camp Kalahari | Makgadikgadi Salt Pans
Camp Kalahari sits among acacias and Mokolwane palms on the edge of the Makgadikgadi Salt Pans. A relaxed, family-friendly camp, ideal for those seeking fun and adventure, without sacrificing comfort or style.
The camp is an eclectic mix of original African furnishings paired with traditional campaign furniture and colonial antiques. Guests can relax in the traditional lounge/dining area, or cool off in the large swimming pool. All 12 spacious Meru tents - 6 twin, 4 double and 2 family tents, are en-suite and furnished with rich textiles, Moroccan kilims, and four poster beds.
Guests can enjoy a range of year-round activities: Get up close and personal with a gang of friendly habituated meerkats; walk with Zu/’hoasi Bushmen for a glimpse into their ancient culture; game drive to experience unique desert wildlife; visit the Fallen Baobab, campsite of Livingstone & Selous and one of Africa’s three largest, oldest trees.
Dry season only: quad bike across the lunar expanse of the pans; lie out on the pans as the sun sets; watch the planetarium show unfold with horizon-to-horizon stars.
Wet season only: experience the spectacular migration of zebra and wildebeest, the second biggest in Africa and the last remaining in Southern Africa.
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Main Area
Twin Tent
Double Tent
Family Tent
Each of the 4 double tents include 1 x queen sized bed, private indoor/ outdoor showers, fans and private verandas with a seating area
Max: 2 adults
Children of all ages welcome
There are 2 Family tents, one includes 1 x queen sized bed & 2 x 3/4 beds, while the second includes 1 x king sized bed & 2 x 3/4 beds. Both are joined by a common private indoor/ outdoor shower, include fans and a private veranda with a seating area.
Max: 2 adults and 2 children
Children of all ages welcome
The 6 twin tents are made up of 2 x 3/4 beds, private indoor/ outdoor showers, fans and private verandas with a seating area
Please note that these can not be convered into a double bed
Max: 2 adults
Children of all ages welcome
Property Facilities
Accept Credit Cards, Battery Charging Facilities, Communal Dining, Eco Friendly, Internet Access (Complimentary), Laundry Service, Library, Pool, Vegetarian
Room Facilities
Balcony / Deck, Complimentary Wi-Fi, Electrical Outlets, Ensuite, Fan, Laundry Service (Complimentary), Mosquito Netting, Safe, Shower
Available Services
Credit Card Facilities, Laundry Service (Complimentary), Private Vehicle (Available)
Activities on Site
Bird Watching, Game Drives, Game Viewing, High Tea, Horse Riding, Horse-back Safaris, Night Drives, Quad Biking, Safaris
Activities Nearby
Cultural Tours, Helicopter Scenic Flights, Horse Riding
Take game drives and night drives in custom built 4x4s to spot the unique desert wildlife that inhabit the pans, like the elusive brown hyena or Kalahari lion. Your experienced safari guide will help you discover a desert landscape, pulsating with life. Complete with bush picnics, morning coffees and chilled drinks.
Get up close and personal with our families of habituated meerkats. Head out from camp at sunrise, so that you are ready to tail these delightful omnivores as they set off in search of their breakfast. Walk amongst them (advised by your guide) and if you take a seat you might be lucky enough to be mistaken for a termite mound, where you'll be used as a look out point for predators.
Discover the secrets of the pans with the Zu/’hoasi Bushmen on a fascinating bush walk. See this ancient desert landscape through their eyes. These skilled hunter gatherers will show you how to survive, using their extraordinary tracking skills to uncover a smorgasbord of culinary delights... from bulbs, to scorpions, to berries. Spending time with them is a very rare privilege.
Saddle up to explore this wild, unspoilt area in the same way many of the earliest explorers, hunters and missionaries did – on horseback! You’ll embark on an adventurous outride (for all level riders). This is an exhilarating way to spot wildlife, cantering along the crusty salt flats and following the animal highways that bring life to the Makgadikgadi Pans.
*Please note that this activity is at an additional cost.
This is pure desert adventure! Take an exhilarating quad bike across the salt-crusted pans (all pan activity is weather permitting and dependent on the dryness of the pans). You’ll feel total freedom as you trek across this vast and ancient landscape, discovering so much about the remnants of this once super lake.
Seasonal: April - October
Visit the site of the Fallen Baobab, one of the three largest and oldest trees in Africa and the camp site for Livingstone and Selous..
Witness the second largest migration in Africa. A stonking spectacle of black and white stripes
as approximately 30,000 zebra and wildebeest migrate across the Makgadikgadi Pans, followed closely by stalking predators, waiting for the rich pickings of tired hooves. This is a wildlife explosion and an experience not to be missed!
This really is an unforgettable experience. Enjoy a helicopter flight over the Makgadikgadi Pans, doors off (or on), to take in the vastness of this desert landscape. You’ll go in search of the zebra and flamingo migrations (if timed correctly), get dropped on an island of baobabs for lunch, do a bit of sunset sky surfing as you follow the palm tree linings and tell all your friends about it all when you get home.
If you are in need of some serious time out, then one of our spa treatments is your perfect escape. Our professional therapist will put you in seventh heaven. Book a back massage overlooking the Makgadikgadi Pans or enjoy a relaxing spa treatment from the privacy of your tent. Whichever you decide, you’ll walk away feeling refreshed and rejuvenated.
Grab a fat bike and peddle around the Makgadikgadi Pans. This is a really fun activity for the whole family, and an ideal way to get some exercise. These bikes can easily cruise over the desert terrain, taking you along 4x4 tracks and around the crusty salt flats. Keep a look out for sightings of wildlife, while breathing in the beautiful scenery, alongside the desert silence.
The Makgadikgadi Salt Pans are one of the most important breeding sites in southern Africa for
the lesser and greater flamingos. These flying flame birds, arrive in their millions during seasons of good rain, when millions of small shrimp and other crustaceans crack through the salty pan crust to spawn. The result, a pink extravaganza in the heat of the desert. You can also heli to Sua Pan to view the flamingos in Mar - Apr (scenic helicopter flight must be booked an an additional cost).
Your Stay
3 Nights
Fully Inclusive - Bed, All Meals, Fees and Activities
All Local Brands (Spirits, Wine and Beers) Included
Fast Facts
Other
Spoken Languages: English
No. Rooms: 12
Special Interests: Adventure, Birding, Leisure, Nature, Relaxation, Star Gazing, Wildlife
Nxai Pan | Nxai Pan National Park
The secret safari superstar is home to a great migration! Follow explorers to the little-visited Nxai Pan National Park, an extension of the Makgadikgadi Salt Pan network.
Zebras migrate here by the thousands to drop their young during the rainy season, completing the longest mammal migration in Southern Africa. Dust-white elephants depend on the permanent waterhole at Nxai Pan Camp (the only permanent camp in the national park) during the dry season, and predators, such as Kalahari Black-maned lions, lurk, waiting for prey to take an unsuspecting sip. There are also a vast springbok population, wildebeest, bat-eared foxes and large groups of giraffes.
Nine spacious tents include a relaxed lounge area, indoor and outdoor showers and a veranda facing the waterhole. One room has an additional twin bedroom for family use. The main area has a swimming pool and minimalist open-air lounge with decor echoing the salt pan landscapes. The thatched dining area and bar maintain a comfortable temperature year-round.
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The minimalistic white-washed design of the camp is in keeping with the surrounding white salt pans. Nxai Pan accommodates up to eighteen people in nine environmentally designed units. All are built with materials of minimal environmental impact and additionally maintain a constant and comfortable in-room temperature year-round, while seasonal temperatures vary from below freezing to over 40 degrees Celsius.
The rooms include double wash basins and both indoor and outdoor showers. The rooms are spacious with lounge area and one includes an additional twin bedroom, ideal for family use. All the units are on raised decks and their location on the edge of the ridge means that each viewing deck has truly special and captivating views of the wide open pan and its big beautiful sky. Each hasan open verandah which looks on to the waterhole in front of the camp, where elephant are frequent visitors.
Family unit includes en-suite double bedroom, separate second twin bedroom and one shared bathroom.
Minimum age is six years, except 1 April – 15 November where there is no min age requirement. Special activities & services are offered for children. (eg. early mealtimes / children's meals). Families travelling with children aged 6–12 years are required to book private activities.
Property Facilities
Battery Charging Facilities, Communal Dining, Eco Friendly, Internet Access, Pool, Vegetarian
Room Facilities
Balcony / Deck, Fan, Laundry Service (Complimentary), Lounge Area, Mosquito Nets, Outside Shower, Safe, Shower, Verandah
Available Services
Airport Shuttle (Complimentary), Credit Card Facilities, Laundry Service (Complimentary), Meal on Request, Private Vehicle (Available), Room Service
Activities on Site
Big 5, Bird Watching, Game Drives, Game Viewing, Game Walks, Helicopter Scenic Flights, High Tea, Safaris, Walks (Guided)
Activities Nearby
Big 5, Bird Watching, Game Drives, Game Viewing, Game Walks, Helicopter Rides, Helicopter Scenic Flights, Walks (Guided)
Game drives are undertaken in custom designed Toyota game viewing vehicles seating no more than six guests at a time in two rows of three seats. Guests are guided by a two person team of professional guide and tracker - a special feature of the Kwando Safaris wildlife experience. The two person team enables the guide to communicate points of interest and the complex interrelations that exist throughout the natural world, while the tracker ensures no sightings or tracks are missed. At Tau Pan, the tracker comes from the San Bushman tribe, a tribe that has traditionally lived in the Kalahari desert for generations and is intimately acquainted with the area and wildlife that is endemic to the Kalahari.
Walking with a member of the San Bushman tribe allows guests to appreciate how the tribe used to live off the land through traditions and skills passed from generation to generation. Conducted close to the camp area, the walk is conducted at a slow pace designed to allow engagement and question asking so that guests may better understand the nature of the bushman to the environment around them. Knowledge about how they would hunt, trap animals, and the manner in which they use the flora and fauna in their environment to help them survive are all shared with guests. Questions are always welcome!
Located in the south of Nxai Pans National Park are the seven baobabs known as Baines Baobabs or the Sleeping sisters.
Day trips to Baines’ Baobabs are highly popular, and include a picnic lunch at the site. These age-old trees were immortalised in paintings by the artist and adventurer Thomas Baines in 1862. If you were to compare Baines’ paintings to the scene today, you would find that after 150 years, the trees are nearly identical – testament to the age of these magnificent giants.
Your Stay
2 Nights
Fully Inclusive - Bed, All Meals, Fees and Activities
All Local Brands (Spirits, Wine and Beers) Included
Fast Facts
Camp
Spoken Languages: English
No. Rooms: 9
Special Interests: Adventure, Big 5, Birding, Flora, Leisure, Nature, Relaxation, Star Gazing, Wildlife
Tau Pan | Central Kalahari Game Reserve
The dramatic desert of legend and home of the San. Tau Pan Camp was the first lodging welcomed to the famous Central Kalahari Game Reserve and an unprecedented opportunity to establish camp in one of the world's largest pristine wildernesses. It occupies unrivalled placement high on a dune ridge, overlooking a waterhole and game-rich plains. The vistas are magnificent — vast skies, tremendous savannah — and the camp design takes every opportunity to exploit this location.
The main area includes an open bar, lounge and dining areas all set around the fireplace, which is the ideal spot for spotting game at the waterhole. 'Tau' means lion in Setswana and the pan is so named for its pride of iconic black-maned Kalahari lions, who are frequent visitors to the camp.
Discover the land of the lion through ancient San eyes. Also known as the Bushmen in Botswana, indigenous trackers provide life-giving insights on surviving in this harsh paradise during a spellbinding nature walk. When you enter this world as a student, it ensures the conservation of their fast-vanishing San culture. Stargazing is astonishing in this remote location and best experienced with a night below the Milky Way on the sleepout deck.
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- Rooms
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Tau Pan accommodates up to eighteen people in nine environmentally designed units. All are built with materials of minimal environmental impact and additionally maintain a constant and comfortable in-room temperature year-round, while seasonal temperatures vary from below freezing to over 40 degrees Celsius.
The rooms include double wash basins and both indoor and outdoor showers. The rooms are spacious with lounge area and one includes an additional twin bedroom, ideal for family use. All the units are on raised decks and their location on the edge of the ridge means that each viewing deck has truly special and captivating views of the wide open pan and its big beautiful sky.
Family unit includes en-suite double bedroom, separate second twin bedroom, sharing one bathroom.
Minimum age is six years except 1 April – 15 November where there is no min age requirement. Special activities & services are offered for children. (eg. early mealtimes / children's meals). Families travelling with children aged 6–12 years are required to book private activities.
Raised open deck with a large king size double and a flushing toilet and basin at the back.
Property Facilities
Battery Charging Facilities, Communal Dining, Eco Friendly, Internet Access, Pool, Vegetarian
Room Facilities
Balcony / Deck, Electrical Outlets, Fan, Laundry Service (Complimentary), Lounge Area, Outside Shower, Safe, Shower, Verandah
Available Services
Airport Shuttle (Complimentary), Credit Card Facilities, Laundry Service (Complimentary), Meal on Request, Private Vehicle (Available), Room Service
Activities on Site
Big 5, Bird Watching, Game Drives, Game Viewing, Helicopter Scenic Flights, High Tea, Safaris, Sleep Outs, Walks (Guided)
Activities Nearby
Big 5, Bird Watching, Child Friendly Activities, Game Drives, Game Viewing, Safaris, Walks (Guided)
Game drives are undertaken in custom designed Toyota game viewing vehicles seating no more than six guests at a time in two rows of three seats. Guests are guided by a two person team of professional guide and tracker - a special feature of the Kwando Safaris wildlife experience. The two person team enables the guide to communicate points of interest and the complex interrelations that exist throughout the natural world, while the tracker ensures no sightings or tracks are missed. At Tau Pan, the tracker comes from the San Bushman tribe, a tribe that has traditionally lived in the Kalahari desert for generations and is intimately acquainted with the area and wildlife that is endemic to the Kalahari.
Walking with a member of the San Bushman tribe allows guests to appreciate how the tribe used to live off the land through traditions and skills passed from generation to generation. Conducted close to the camp area, the walk is conducted at a slow pace designed to allow engagement and question asking so that guests may better understand the nature of the bushman to the environment around them. Knowledge about how they would hunt, trap animals, and the manner in which they use the flora and fauna in their environment to help them survive are all shared with guests. Questions are always welcome!
Imagine falling asleep while unobstructed views of shooting stars streak across the sky, and counting the twinkling of stars until you drift off to sleep.
Located in a secluded spot at the far end of the camp, the sleep-out deck is an intimate experience for two, who wish to spend a wonderous evening under the impressive Kalahari night sky. The raised deck comprises 2 three-quarter beds, a washbasin and a toilet. Guests will be walked to the deck after dinner to spend the night, and can resume game activities in the morning as usual.
This can only be pre-booked with a minimum 3 night stay. Otherwise it can be booked upon the clients’ arrival in camp, subject to availability, and weather permitting.
Your Stay
2 Nights
Fully Inclusive - Bed, All Meals, Fees and Activities
All Local Brands (Spirits, Wine and Beers) Included
Fast Facts
Camp
Spoken Languages: English
No. Rooms: 8
Special Interests: Adventure, Big 5, Birding, Flora, Indigenous Culture / Art, Leisure, Nature, Relaxation, Star Gazing, Wildlife
Jacana Camp | Okavango Delta
Jacana Camp offers a classic, water-focused Okavango Delta safari in the heart of the Jao Reserve. Set on a remote island in the expansive Jao Flats, the camp is surrounded by seasonally flooded plains, papyrus swamps and crystal-clear channels, where the annual inundation shapes both the landscape and wildlife movements.
With just five spacious en-suite tents, each featuring an outdoor shower and elevated wooden deck, Jacana provides an intimate and authentic Delta experience. The camp is particularly renowned for exceptional birdlife, including Pel’s fishing owl, African and lesser jacana, slaty egret and African pygmy goose, alongside red lechwe, hippo and elephant that thrive in this water-rich ecosystem.
While predominantly water-based, offering boating, mokoro excursions and seasonal fishing. Jacana also provides year-round game drives via dedicated access to nearby larger islands, ensuring a well-rounded safari experience in all seasons.
INSIDER’S TIP: Early morning mokoro excursions offer the most magical Delta perspective, drift quietly through lily-lined channels while scanning the trees for Pel’s fishing owl.
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Standard Twin/Double Tents
Jacana’s five elevated tented suites are set on raised wooden decks overlooking the surrounding floodplains and papyrus-lined channels of the Jao Flats. Designed to blend seamlessly into the watery landscape, the spacious canvas tents combine classic safari charm with understated comfort.
Each en-suite tent features an outdoor shower and a private viewing deck, allowing guests to remain closely connected to the rhythms of the Delta. During flood season, water often surrounds the camp, creating an immersive island experience with wildlife and birdlife visible from the comfort of the deck.
Raised wooden walkways link the tents to the main dining, lounge and pool areas, which sit beneath towering sycamore fig trees and offer expansive views across the seasonal floodplains. The elevated design enhances privacy while maximising the camp’s tranquil, water-dominated setting.
Room Facilities
Balcony / Deck, Bath Towels, Bath, Complimentary Wi-Fi, En Suite Bathroom, External Shower, Fan, Hand Towels, Laundry Service (Complimentary), Mosquito Nets, Outside Shower, Shower, Solid Base Camp Beds
Property Facilities
Bar, Pool
Room Facilities
Electrical Outlets, Fan, Internet Access (Complimentary), Laundry Service (Complimentary), Mosquito Nets, Outside Shower, Safe, Tea / Coffee
Available Services
Credit Card Facilities
Activities on Site
Bird Watching, Boating, Catch-and-release Fishing, Game Drives, Mokoro Excursion, Walks (Guided)
Activities Nearby
Cultural Tours, Helicopter Scenic Flights
Explore the varied habitats surrounding Jacana Camp on guided morning and afternoon game drives in open 4x4 safari vehicles. Seasonal floodplains, waterways, woodland and dry islands create a diverse landscape that supports an abundance of wildlife and birdlife.
Led by an experienced guide, each drive is shaped by the conditions and wildlife movements of the day, offering opportunities to observe the reserve’s resident animals in their natural environment.
Game drives are subject to weather, road conditions and operational considerations. Wildlife sightings cannot be guaranteed.
When conditions allow, continue your afternoon game drive beyond sunset and experience a different side of the Okavango Delta as nocturnal wildlife becomes active. Using a spotlight, your guide may search for elusive species such as porcupine, aardwolf, serval, spotted genet and lesser bushbaby, while predators may also become more active after dark.
During the flood season, Jacana Camp is situated on an island and road access is not available, so night drives cannot be conducted.
Night drives are seasonal and subject to water levels, weather, road conditions and operational considerations. Wildlife sightings cannot be guaranteed.
Experience the Jao Reserve on foot and discover the wilderness from a more intimate perspective. Guided nature walks offer the opportunity to slow down and appreciate the smaller details of the Delta, from animal tracks and plants to insects, birds and other signs of wildlife activity.
Led by an experienced walking guide, each excursion is shaped by the prevailing conditions and tailored to the interests and abilities of the guests.
Guided nature walks are seasonal and subject to weather, terrain, wildlife activity and the availability of a suitably qualified walking guide. Advance booking is essential. Participation is subject to the guide’s discretion and applicable age restrictions.
Glide quietly through the waterways surrounding Jacana Camp in a traditional mokoro, poled by an experienced guide. Travelling at water level offers an intimate perspective on the Okavango Delta and reveals its smaller details, from colourful reed frogs and aquatic plants to an abundance of waterbirds.
The channels may also offer opportunities to observe larger aquatic wildlife, including hippo and crocodile, from a safe and respectful distance.
Available subject to water levels, weather conditions and operational feasibility. Participation is subject to the guide’s discretion and applicable age restrictions. Wildlife sightings cannot be guaranteed.
Explore the waterways surrounding Jacana Camp by boat and experience the Okavango Delta from a different perspective. Cruising through open channels and alongside reed-lined banks offers excellent opportunities to observe aquatic birdlife and water-associated wildlife, including hippo and crocodile.
Depending on the season and conditions, guests may also be fortunate enough to glimpse the elusive sitatunga among the papyrus and floodplain vegetation.
Available subject to water levels, weather conditions and operational feasibility. Wildlife sightings cannot be guaranteed.
Try your hand at seasonal catch-and-release fishing in the waterways surrounding Jacana Camp. The Delta supports several freshwater species, and the experience offers a relaxed way to enjoy the channels and floodplains from the water.
A limited selection of basic fishing equipment is available at camp for guests’ use.
Fishing is seasonal and subject to water levels, weather conditions and operational feasibility. In accordance with Botswana’s annual fishing closure, fishing is not permitted during January and February to protect breeding fish populations.
The Jao Reserve offers exceptional birding across a rich mosaic of floodplains, waterways, reedbeds, woodland and dry islands. With both land- and water-based activities available, guests have excellent opportunities to add a wide variety of species to their lists.
Notable specials may include wattled crane, slaty egret, rosy-throated longclaw, Pel’s fishing owl and African skimmer, alongside more regularly encountered species such as coppery-tailed coucal and African pygmy goose.
Birding opportunities vary according to season, habitat conditions and water levels. Sightings cannot be guaranteed.
Your Stay
1 Night
Fully Inclusive - Bed, All Meals, Fees and Activities
All Local Brands (Spirits, Wine and Beers) Included
Fast Facts
5 Stars
Lodge
Spoken Languages: English
No. Rooms: 5
Special Interests: Birding, Nature, Wildlife
