Botswana: reviews from our travellers

"We have to send a HUGE thank you to Tracy Lederer for her incredible work on putting this trip together and gently guiding us to find the courage to step out of our lockdown comfort zones to finally go to Botswana! All her recommendations were fabulous and all 8 of us had a really amazing time.

Tracy's input goes way beyond anything we could hope to expect, and her tireless enthusiasm and friendliness pays off big time. She is immensely knowledgable about every camp and quite a magician when it comes to satisfying everyone's hopes and desires for the trip.

Thanks Tracy and thank you Expert Africa. We've travelled with you 3 times now and are already looking forward to planning our fourth!" Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 13 on a Botswana safari

"Exceptional. It was our 5th time in Botswana, but our first visit in March.

It is a beautiful time of the year for those who do not arrive with a shopping list of what they expect to see. It’s a very rewarding season for those who simply enjoy what mother nature has to provide to them while being on safari as well as those that love Botswana’s incredible beauty." Read full review: 10 nights in Africa; 8 on a Botswana safari

"This has been our fifth trip to Southern Africa and the second that we booked with expertafrica. We spent three weeks self-driving in Namibia and then roughly two weeks on a fly-in safari in northern Botswana. Compared to our 2021 trip, this one featured much more landscape (as can be expected of Namibia) and more interactions with humans. That’s not to say that we didn’t see any less wildlife than on previous trips.

I would like to also emphasize that this trip was the first time that we visited this region at the end of the southern summer, i.e. at the very end of the rain season. Previously we had traveled here only in October (3 times) or July (once). We were pleasantly surprised by all the greenery, and we weren’t bothered by mosquitoes in any significant way. However, I should point out that my wife was often bitten by midges, whereas I wasn’t.

Virtually all guidebooks point out that the dry season is the best time to visit Africa in order to get the best wildlife sightings. I readily admit that the tall grass sometimes impedes tracking down predators, however, as my review of the camps in Botswana shows, we were not really short-changed of lion and cheetah sightings. Overall, except perhaps for leopards (only 2 encounters in 5 weeks) the wildlife sightings were as good as in the dry season, and in some aspects they were even better: To us, the animals appeared to be more relaxed or at least less stressed, due to the availability of food and water.

Everybody we talked to said that the region had a good rainy season. However, during our whole stay, we only had one brief shower (during siesta time in Etosha Heights) and one morning game drive in Nxai Pan, during which we had to wear rain gear and protect our cameras.

All ten safari camps are, in our minds, highly recommendable. And, as it turned out repeatedly, we saved the best (Kwara Camp) for last. This is not in any way to diminish the experiences we had at other camps. They all had their special appeal. However, if asked which are the places we are most likely to revisit again, they are Okonjima, NamibRand, Tau Pan and Kwara Camps.

I would like to add a comment about the flights to the various camps in Botswana. All of them took place on time and, most importantly, got us safely from point A to point B. However, I don’t quite understand why the departure times are only given to us the day before. I understand that for the airlines it can be challenging to come up with an economic way of handling these flights, but isn’t it true that virtually all of these trips are booked months in advance? For instance, on our way from Maun to Kwara Camp, we stopped in Xaranna and then Shinde Camps, whereas on our way back to Maun, it was a direct flight of 25 minutes.

Finally, a comment about Covid-19. Entry requirements with regards to corona changed during our trip: While we had to produce a negative PCR test for our first destination Namibia (to the tune of $250 per person) they lifted that requirement one week after we arrived, and Botswana lifted its requirement for the test before we crossed into Botswana. So did South Africa. The US, on the other hand, still requires a negative PCR test, so we did that in Maun one day before our departure back home. However, no one asked us to produce the paperwork!

I would also like to commend the way the camps in Zimbabwe last year handled the seating arrangements during the meals. They provided separate tables for each party rather than having everybody sit together at one or two tables along with the guides. I sense that this is a delicate issue and that it’s really up to company policy and not expertafrica to decide what’s best. With regards to guests sitting together I much prefer the separate tables arrangement, because in our five trips to Africa so far, our experience has been that the vast majority of conversations one has at these occasions amount to not much more than small talk: Where have you been, and where are going from here? Of course, there are exceptions. For instance, we got to know one couple from Switzerland and, on another trip, a couple from the UK that we really liked to talk to, and then we simply asked the camp staff to set up a table for four instead of two.

And with regards to the guides sharing the dinner: Of course, they deserve to have a gourmet dinner just like the guests, but I would say, they can have it in the quiet of the staff quarters, because in my mind, they deserve a well-earned break because they work hard enough already as it is. Again, in our experience, we had virtually all of the stimulating and significant conversations with them during the game drives, the coffee break and the sundowners, but not during dinner time." Read full review: 35 nights in Africa; 19 on a Namibia trip

"Difficult to see how it could have been improved" Read full review: 11 nights in Africa; 9 on a Botswana safari

"Travelling in C-19 times and in the rainy season was always going to be at the risk of disruption but we are glad that we came, with camp staff so happy and grateful to see us in what is a lean time for them.

Our goals were not to seek the big five as we have experienced that many times before in other areas. New to Botswana, we were seeking the more unusual animals and also birds, which are often overlooked (if even available) in the rush to see predators. We got a good appreciation of what Botswana has to offer, and saw many smaller animals (steenbok, scrub hare, bat-eared fox, jackals, lion cubs and a hyena cub left alone) as well as about 130 bird species over the two locations.

The value of a travel agent shows its worth when things do not go as planned. Things certainly did no go as planned for us. The problems that we experienced were ALL outside the scope of Expert Africa and yet Tracy helped us all throughout. This was both in the planning stage when our outbound flight was cancelled some weeks before travel, and during the journey itself. Tracy joined ourselves, our VIP meet and greet helper, and the airline staff on WhatsApp when trying to put things back on track after the airline failed to make our connection. From what the airline originally offered, Tracy helped negotiate for us a loss of three days of safari down to just one." Read full review: 8 nights in Africa; 6 on a Botswana safari

"Despite the problems we had with conencting flights and lost luggage ( many thanks to Chris and Lucy for their help on a Sunday - it was much appreciated)

We thoroughly enjoyed the holiday it was amazing to be on safari in the wet season - and it was not too wet!

Plus we had some amazing drives and sightings

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

none other than we already have our next safari booked with yourselves for Zambia in July/August" Read full review: 10 nights in Africa; 7 on a Botswana safari

"It's an undoubted privilege to visit and experience the the Linyanti and Moremi wildlife areas and we loved every moment.

It's the Africa we love.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

Cannot think anything to add." Read full review: 7 nights in Africa; 7 on a Botswana safari

"We really enjoyed our trip. Visiting Botswana in the rainy season was a more positive experience than some had suggested.

The arrangements made by Expert Africa all worked perfectly high was a boon, especially during this time when COVID has made travel a deal more complicated." Read full review: 7 nights in Africa; 7 on a Botswana safari

"I left Canada November 24, 2021 for an amazing adventure in Botswana. Can you imagine what's happened since?? Omicron's emergence while I was in the bush, and in camps without cell service or wifi (normally a lovely digital detox), was certainly stressful and problematic.

Canada had left me with few options getting home. Even though Expert Africa had not booked my international flights, Megan worked with my boyfriend at home to try to navigate my changed travel. Wifi isn't an option at Kwando properties, but Expert Africa was able to send me messages at each camp. And I was invited to use the computer at Kwara should I need it. A big, big thank you to all who helped me get home. Although still in quarantine, I am reflecting on this most amazing trip with absolutely no regrets.

This is my second trip to Botswana, and second time with Kwando camps. I feel they are a perfect fit for me. Very nice, yet unpretentious. Focus is on wildlife experiences, and locations are second to none. The model of tracker and guide is not the norm, and is exactly what I am after.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

No improvement needed" Read full review: 11 nights in Africa; 11 on a Botswana safari

"Botswana was as amazing as we had imagined...in this ongoing pandemic it was like coming alive again.

Our return to 11 nights in a UK quarantine hotel somewhat detracted from the overall experience but this was no reflection on Botswana or ExpertAfrica.

Maruska's knowledge and patience in planning an itinerary that we would enjoy was invaluable. But her assistance in dealing with the difficulties presented by the Omicron variant, reorganising plans for our return and reassuring our family, was truly appreciated and demonstrated her care and concern.

Many thanks!" Read full review: 10 nights in Africa; 7 on a Botswana safari