Holidays in Botswana

Burnt orange sunsets. Desolate salt pans melting into the horizon. Thousands of elephants wading through a vast riverine delta. Botswana is a land packed with natural drama and one that can lay claim to being one of Africa’s last remaining true wildernesses.

Going on safari here is a luxury holiday in all senses, from the top-class camps and lodges pitched in its wild heart to the close-up encounters of one of the densest wildlife populations on Earth. The Okavango Delta is rightfully Botswana’s head-turner, an extraordinary web of watery channels fed by the Angolan highlands that snake past papyrus reeds, forested islands and emerald floodplains. It’s an otherworldly oasis in the arid Kalahari Desert and wildlife rules here; the roars of lions and leopards are a daily soundtrack, hippos yawn and birds soar as you glide past in a mokoro (traditional dug-out canoe) on a river safari. Herds of elephants also wander the lush plains between here and neighbouring Chobe National Park.

The Kalahari couldn’t be more different. The salt pans of Makgadikgadi National Park look more like the surface of the Moon, until the November rains set in and it becomes a sodden paradise for zebra, giraffe and lions – just one of a long list of wildlife-filled memories you’ll capture on your trip to Botswana.

Wildlife is king in Botswana and a range of wilderness safari camps afford you the chance to right on the edge of nature. From safari-luxe camps right in the heart of the Okavango Delta to stylish tented accommodation sitting among the Makgadikgadi Salt Pans, you can let Botswana's incredible animals come to you.

With its landscapes changing through the year, Botswana is a year-round holiday destination.
Botswana’s rainy season usually occurs between January and February, during the country’s summer from November-March. Then, you might experience brief but heavy thunderstorms, but with it comes great game viewing and lots of birdlife. You might even be lucky to witness the miracle the rains bring – transforming the dry lands to vibrant, lush greenery. In March, the rain starts to ease off and days become drier.
April to May features comfortable temperatures – around 15-30°C. The lands are lush and beautiful and April marks the start of the period where large numbers of animals migrate towards the Okavango Delta (until November). Having said that, the grass is long after the rains, making game viewing more difficult than other seasons.

June, July & August is Botswana’s winter and are marked by cloudless days and mild temperatures between 5-27°C on average. In the Okavango Delta, the floodwaters from Angola begin to fill the lagoons and streams, while the landscapes outside of the delta start drying up, fading from emerald green to a dry khaki colour. At this time of year, animals can often be seen congregating around watering holes, making it an excellent time to go on a safari.

Visit Botswana from late August to September and you’ll be in-between the cold of winter and the intense heat, before the rains. Temperatures range from 15-31°C, and towards the end of September temperatures can go above 40°C. Game viewing is excellent during spring thanks to the lack of thick vegetation and the waterholes drying up.