Combined - 7 day Central Kalahari & 9 day Classic safari
16 Days, 15 Nights
Our specialist guide takes you on an adventurous route seldom used by others. You travel from Maun to Passarge Valley, the remote Piper Pan and then finally reach Deception Valley, home to a variety of Kalahari game. Then continue to the Moremi Game Reserve the Savuti Channel, Chobe National Park and Victoria Falls. Listen to the haunting cry of the fish eagle; see herds of elephant and buffalo, tsessebe and zebra as well as all large and small predators. A boating experience on the Chobe River is included. The safari ends with a transfer from Kasane to Victoria Falls or Livingstone. Optional 2-day extensions are available.
- Tour Itinerary -
Your Penduka guide will meet you at your guesthouse after breakfast for an early departure to the Central Kalahari.
Arrive at Matswere Gate, where we enter the Central Kalahari Game Reserve. We make our way to the Passarge Valley (all these valleys are old fossil river beds now, with clusters of trees and grass). Passarge Valley is set in the north west of CKGR and was closed until 10yrs ago to the public, the valley smaller than Deception Valley gets it name from a Swedish Botanist called Passarge.
The area is remote and not visited frequently but has good game concentrations if rains fell. In this area Surricate or Meerkat can be found over and above the other Kalahari game species. Chances of seeing giraffe and cheetah are also very good.
Activities:
Transfer day, Game drives between camps
Map:
Early morning and afternoon game drives in the valley in search of game. The area is also host to numerous bird species, and small raptors can often be seen in pursuit of their prey.
Today we travel south via a couple of vegetated pans to reach the remote Piper Pan in the early afternoon. Lunch served en route. We enjoy the peace and tranquillity around the campfire.
Morning and afternoon game drives. Time to relax during the heat of the day.
After breakfast we make our way due northeast via Lethiau Valley to reach Deception Valley in the afternoon. We spend these two days exploring Deception Pan, and the adjoining pans. This area is home to a number of Kalahari animals such as springbok, gemsbok, red hartebeest, brown hyena and lion, which we should see on our morning and afternoon game drives.
Drive back from the Central Kalahari to Maun today.
Your guide will drop you at your bed and breakfast for an afternoon at leisure.
You will spend the morning relaxing at the hotel or exploring Maun. Just after lunch your Penduka representative will pick you up from your hotel for your transfer to the Maun Airport and your flight into the Moremi Game Reserve.
Upon arrival at the Xakanaxa airstrip you will be met by your guide and taken on a game drive arriving in camp in the late afternoon with enough time to settle and shower before sundowners around the campfire.
A large variety of game can be found along the rivers and floodplains of the Okavango, herds of red lechwe, buffalo and hippo are commonly seen. In the afternoon we may encounter some breeding herds of elephants coming to drink along the rivers. Moremi is well known for its wild dog population; lions, leopard and cheetah are also frequently seen.
Camp near Xakanaxa in exclusive wilderness area.
Early morning coffee or tea, and we set off on a full morning’s game drive to return to camp at about 11h00 for a delicious brunch. Time now to shower, rest and relax in camp. After tea we set off on our afternoon game drive through Moremi with its wilderness of rivers and lagoons. We take a motorboat cruise on the Xaxanaka lagoon or Mboma waterways to visit the famous heronries of the eastern Okavango. Return to camp and relax around the campfire. Dinner served in dining tent. Camp near Xakanaxa in exclusive wilderness area.
Having had breakfast we leave Xakanaxa and continue on an interesting riverine route through Moremi to arrive and set up camp within sight of Khwai River at Moremi’s North Gate. Camp near Khwai River in exclusive wilderness area.
Early morning and afternoon game drives exploring the Khwai River area should reveal a variety of game. Dombo Hippo Pools offer beautiful sunsets and plenty of Hippo. During the heat of the day you will have a chance to read, relax and enjoy the sounds of the wild, followed by afternoon tea and a sunset game drive. Camp near Khwai River in exclusive wilderness area.
An early morning game drive to have one last look at the Khwai, before returning to our camp for breakfast. We leave Moremi and our route takes us on an interesting day’s drive northwards to Savuti. We stop en route for lunch. On the way to Savuti we pass over the Mababe depression, once a vast lake, here in summer months the zebra migrate from the Northern Chobe via Savuti and Mababe to Makgadigadi Pans. Approximately 20 000 zebras make this annual migration.
The Savuti channel and marsh have been dry since 1980 and finally received water again in 2009. The marsh is now partially covered in water and attract large concentrations of game and birds. Time will now tell how the water will influence the famous Savuti bull elephant population which it is well known for. Overnight Savuti in exclusive wilderness area.
We depart on an early morning drive in search of the Savuti predators. Savuti has been host to most of the amazing wildlife documentaries filmed in the last 25 years. Many about the merciless competition between the different predators. Savuti also have a few rocky outcrops enabling us to see the Klipspringer antelope. There is also a small collection of Bushmen rock art. Morning and afternoon game drives with leisure time to relax during the heat of the day. Overnight Savuti in exclusive wilderness area.
After breakfast we leave for the Chobe River and we should see the breeding herds of elephant and large herds of buffalo for which this park is famous. Chobe riverfront is without a doubt one of the best game viewing spots in Southern Africa. In an afternoon it is possible to see more than a thousand elephants and buffalo. Shy antelope species like the Chobe bushbuck, Roan and Sable antelope can also easily be seen. Along the Chobe floodplains is also a small population of Puku antelope common on the floodplains of Zambia.
If you are a keen birdwatcher, Chobe will not disappoint, huge amounts of water birds congregate here especially in the summer months. In the afternoon on the second day, a boating excursion on the Chobe River offers a new dimension to game viewing. Camp along Chobe floodplains in exclusive wilderness area.
After a leisurely breakfast, we pack up and slowly make our way out of Chobe National Park towards the town of Kasane, from here it is time to bid farewell and get transferred to Livingstone or Victoria Falls. Your transfer company will drop you off at the Airport in time for your international flight.
(Visa and departure taxes are for own account)
End of the safari
- Map -
- Testimonials -
- 2024 Departures & Rates -
Dates: Combined – 7 day Central Kalahari & 9 day Classic safari
Low season rates: USD 8 050.00 pp sharing / Single supplement Euro 840.00
High season rates: USD 9 200.00 pp sharing / Single supplement Euro 840.00
- 2025 Departures & Rates -
Dates: Combined – 7 day Central Kalahari & 9 day Classic safari
Low season rates: USD 8 050.00 pp sharing / Single supplement USD 500.00
High season rates: USD 9 200.00 pp sharing / Single supplement USD 500.00
- Departures & Rates -
Dates: 13 Day Botswana Explorer
2022: USD 8 500.00 pp sharing / Single supplement Euro 840.00
2023: USD 9 200.00 pp sharing / Single supplement Euro 840.00