The best lodges & camps for walking safaris in Botswana
Secondary reasons for this may be the amount of water in the Okavango Delta. This means that there are lots of other activities to do and the thick bush in some areas, which often doesn't lend itself to walking safaris. That said there are a handful of camps whose primary focus is on walking safaris - and these camps do it very well.
The good news is that the very few camps that we can recommend for walking safaris in Botswana do a superb job - and parts of northern Botswana do make great areas to explore on foot.
Call one of our Botswana specialists for more information on where the best walking safaris are in Botswana.
Kudu Safari
7 days • 2 locations
MAUN AIRPORT TO MAUN AIRPORT
US$8,470 - US$22,560 per person
Sandibe Safari Lodge
Sandibe focuses primarily on day and night game drives, but they also offer guided walking safaris, with specialist walking guides based in camp. You'll learn about the Delta's ecosystem, plant life, the 'small five' and how to read the tracks and signs left by animals.
Ground Squirrel Safari
7 days • 2 locations
MAUN AIRPORT TO MAUN AIRPORT
US$8,530 - US$11,180 per person
Kanana
For a walking safari in Botswana, Kanana offers bush walks with an experienced, armed guide who will explain tracks and signs. Often following old hippo paths, these are usually slow walks, with a view to giving visitors a deeper understanding of the environment.
Tsessebe Safari
7 days • 3 locations
MAUN AIRPORT TO MAUN AIRPORT
US$7,790 - US$11,820 per person
Kanana
For a walking safari in Botswana, Kanana offers bush walks with an experienced, armed guide who will explain tracks and signs. Often following old hippo paths, these are usually slow walks, with a view to giving visitors a deeper understanding of the environment.
Sable Self-drive Safari
12 days • 7 locations
WINDHOEK AIRPORT TO VICTORIA FALLS AIRPORT
US$6,310 - US$9,510 per person
Onguma Camp Kala
Want a break from Namibia's bumpy roads? Why not stretch your legs on a walking safari, accompanied by a guide from Onguma Camp Kala? It's a great way to see another side of the bush.
Nkasa Lupala
Experience the lush environment of the Caprivi Strip on a walking safari from Nkasa Lupala. Led by a professional guide and an armed community ranger this is a great opportunity to experience the bush from a different perspective.
Rock Hare Self-drive Safari
20 days • 12 locations
WINDHOEK AIRPORT TO VICTORIA FALLS AIRPORT
US$5,400 - US$8,580 per person
Ongava Lodge
Expertly trained, armed guides lead walking safaris from Ongava Lodge in the Ongava Reserve. The focus of these walks is often on tracking white rhino, although you may also see some of the reserve's wide variety of other game species.
Kazile Island Lodge
Led by a professional guide a walking safari from Kazile Island Lodge is great opportunity to focus on the small things and see things often missed from a 4WD.
Best camps & lodges for Walking safaris in Botswana
Okavango Walking Safari
The Okavango Delta Walking Safari is the only multi-day walking trail offered in Botswana. You’ll stay in a very comfortable mobile camp, with one night in a more adventurous fly-camp, in a secluded wilderness where there are few roads - led by a top expert guide and a Bushman.
Sandibe Safari Lodge
Sandibe focuses primarily on day and night game drives, but they also offer guided walking safaris, with specialist walking guides based in camp. You'll learn about the Delta's ecosystem, plant life, the 'small five' and how to read the tracks and signs left by animals.
Kanana
For a walking safari in Botswana, Kanana offers bush walks with an experienced, armed guide who will explain tracks and signs. Often following old hippo paths, these are usually slow walks, with a view to giving visitors a deeper understanding of the environment.
Shinde Footsteps
Shinde Footsteps is a great place for walking safaris in Botswana. Led by excellent and experienced guides, walks are in a remote wilderness area, and focus on the small things: the plant life, the tracks left by animals, and the Delta's fascinating ecosystem.
Okavango Explorers
Okavango Explorers is a small, tented camp in a great area for wildlife and birds, which offers reliably good walking safaris at a relaxed pace with good guides. It’s one of Botswana’s better camps for walking safaris.
Karangoma
Karangoma is a small, classic tented camp with great herbivore densities, especially zebra and elephants; it offers walking and San tracking – and is a good camp for walking safaris in Botswana.
Selinda Explorers Camp
Selinda Explorers is a small, smart tented camp in a first-class area for big game; it offers walking and canoeing – and is an excellent camp for walking safaris in Botswana.
Walking safaris elsewhere in Africa
Our top ideas and inspiration for Walking safaris in other countries.
Kenya
Walking is prohibited in most of Kenya's national parks and reserves; driving is often the only option...
Namibia
Namibia has some of Africa's most dramatic scenery and many great hikes and walking trails: it's ...
Tanzania
Tanzania classifies its wild areas in different ways, each with different rules - meaning that ...
Zambia
Zambia offers Africa's widest choice of reliably excellent walking safaris. Strict guiding exams ...
Zimbabwe
Walking can be a big part of a safari in Zimbabwe. Exceptionally high guiding standards due to ...
Where to see wildlife species in Botswana
Maximise the chances of seeing your favourite animals based on traveller sightings reports from the field.
Lion
Panthera leo
Lions are at the top of the food chain and also most safari wish-lists, but with their numbers falling fast, any encounter with these majestic apex predators always feels like a privilege.
81% SUCCESS
3,317 sightings from 4,095 observations
Leopard
Panthera pardus
The most numerous of Africa’s big cats, leopard occur across many habitats, from wild tracts to populated areas. Their grace and their elusive nature make them a unique safari drawcard.
47% SUCCESS
2,135 sightings from 4,535 observations
Cheetah
Acinonyx jubatus
The cheetah is the fastest land animal and the only cat that hunts by pure speed. Found largely in open grasslands, its slim, elegant form is today an increasingly rare sight.
33% SUCCESS
1,124 sightings from 3,438 observations
Wild dog
Lycaon pictus
African wild dogs are among the continent’s most compelling animals. Much misunderstood, these rare, tie-dyed canids are amazingly efficient hunters with a fascinating social life.
32% SUCCESS
965 sightings from 3,026 observations
Spotted Hyena
Crocuta crocuta
The spotted hyena may be thought of as ‘ugly’ and ‘cowardly’. In fact, this versatile and intelligent carnivore is one of Africa’s most fascinating and warrants attention on any safari.
55% SUCCESS
2,374 sightings from 4,318 observations
Brown Hyena
Parahyaena brunnea
This largely solitary scavenger is one of the more elusive and little-known of Africa’s carnivores. Shaggier than its spotted cousin, it occurs only in the arid southwest of the continent.
16% SUCCESS
262 sightings from 1,662 observations
Meerkat
Suricata suricatta
These highly sociable little mammals have an endearing appearance and comical antics. Found in the drier areas of Southern Africa, close encounters are a sought-after experience.
21% SUCCESS
92 sightings from 447 observations
Elephant
Loxodonta africana
By far the biggest of the so-called Big Five – indeed, the largest land animal on the planet – the elephant shapes the very landscape it inhabits and is a defining presence on any safari.
91% SUCCESS
4,001 sightings from 4,400 observations
Buffalo
Syncerus caffer
One of the ‘Big Five’, buffalo earned a fearsome reputation in hunters’ tales. By contrast, big herds of these sociable bovids are placid, but mount formidable defences against predators.
83% SUCCESS
2,818 sightings from 3,397 observations
Giraffe
Giraffa camelopardalis
The world’s tallest land mammal, giraffes are herbivores which have evolved many unique adaptations. Their iconic outlines tower above the bush in many of Africa’s wildlife areas.
86% SUCCESS
3,830 sightings from 4,459 observations
Hippo
Hippopotamus amphibius
The territorial calls of the hippo create a signature soundtrack to Africa’s rivers & wetlands. Despite an endearing smile, this aquatic herbivore has a notoriously aggressive disposition.
89% SUCCESS
2,938 sightings from 3,284 observations
Black Rhino
Diceros bicornis
The black rhino is the smaller and rarer of Africa’s two rhino species but has the more fearsome reputation. Shy and heavily persecuted, it tends to stick to cover.
30% SUCCESS
668 sightings from 2,213 observations
White Rhino
Ceratotherium simum
The white rhino is the largest and most numerous of the world’s five rhinoceros species. They are larger, easier to see and generally more approachable than the black rhino.
43% SUCCESS
529 sightings from 1,235 observations
Oryx
Oryx sp.
Oryx are impressive antelopes, with a powerful physique and elegant markings set off by rapier-like horns. They cut a distinctive dash in some of Africa’s harshest landscapes.
69% SUCCESS
1,427 sightings from 2,063 observations
Eland
Taurotragus oryx
Africa’s largest antelope, eland are culturally important from prehistoric rock art to modern game farms. Though widespread, they are also shy so sightings are uncommon and often fleeting.
49% SUCCESS
1,565 sightings from 3,225 observations
Roan antelope
Hippotragus equinus
Africa’s second largest antelope and one of its most handsome, with a powerful build and distinctive markings, roan are wary of people, but renowned for their bravery against predators.
24% SUCCESS
543 sightings from 2,237 observations
Sable antelope
Hippotragus niger
Perhaps Africa’s most beautiful antelope, sable are renowned for their combative nature, even holding off lions. Shy and restricted in range, sightings of sable are always special.
23% SUCCESS
522 sightings from 2,245 observations
Sitatunga
Tragelaphus spekii
The sitatunga is the most aquatic of Africa’s antelopes and specially adapted to its swampy habitats. Though widespread across Africa, only a handful of places offer reliable sightings.
19% SUCCESS
69 sightings from 369 observations
Wildebeest
Connochaetes sp.
Superficially bovine in appearance, wildebeests are known for their spectacular migrations sometimes in huge numbers. These resilient animals are some of Africa’s most successful herbivores.
67% SUCCESS
2,688 sightings from 4,000 observations
Zebra
Equus sp.
The zebra is a quintessential African animal: the horse in stripy pyjamas at the end of every child’s A–Z. There are three species, of which the plains zebra is much the most common.
84% SUCCESS
4,199 sightings from 4,990 observations
Pangolin
Smutsia sp.
Pangolins appear to be more pine cone than animal in their unique armoury of scales. These nocturnal, ant-eating oddities are not only highly elusive but also increasingly rare.
2% SUCCESS
60 sightings from 3,624 observations
Aardvark
Orycteropus afer
The aardvark is one of Africa’s most bizarre and enigmatic animals. A shy, nocturnal termite-eater, signs of its presence may be scattered about the bush whilst sightings remain elusive.
2% SUCCESS
79 sightings from 3,597 observations
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