On foot
On foot, the smallest sign matters: a fresh print in the sand, a flattened reed where a hippo left the water, a warning snort from somewhere in the palms.
A Botswana walking safari depends on one thing above all: where you stay. Walking is generally not permitted inside the national parks and game reserves, including Moremi and Chobe, so it happens in private and community concessions such as the Okavango’s private areas, Khwai and the Linyanti, Selinda and Kwando reserves. Each concession sets its own rules, which is why we choose camps with walking in mind rather than hoping it can be added later.
Walks here take three distinct forms. In the Delta, you often reach an island by mokoro and explore it on foot, reading tracks between palms and termite mounds. In the northern concessions, you walk the edges of floodplains and old river channels where elephant and buffalo come to drink. On the Kalahari’s fringes, San guides lead walks built around tracking, plants and survival skills. The point is never to get close to big animals; it is to understand how the whole system fits together.
Walking Safaris in Botswana
We build walks into your itinerary by choosing concession camps that offer them, and tell you on which nights they are possible.
Before you set out, your guide runs a full briefing: single file behind the lead, voices low, hand signals agreed, and no running under any circumstances.
Walks are led by guides qualified for walking, who in big-game country usually carry a rifle as a last resort; practice varies by concession, so ask your camp.
You move slowly, usually into the wind, stopping for tracks, dung, insects and plants, while your guide judges how close is sensible to any animal you meet.
Groups stay small, and walks end back at camp or at a waiting vehicle before the heat of the day.
Walking Safaris in Botswana
Where to go
Botswana’s flooded heart: papyrus channels, palm islands and small fly-in camps where the safari happens on the water as well as by vehicle.
Explore
Moremi’s northern neighbour: a community concession on the Khwai River with night drives, guided walks and superb dry-season elephant.
Explore
Botswana’s far-north private concessions: exclusive camps, night drives, walking and some of the country’s best wild dog country.
Explore
Salt pans, grassland and the Boteti River: green-season zebra, habituated meerkats, sleep-outs under the stars and Baines’ Baobabs.
ExploreA vast, remote Kalahari reserve that turns green after good rains, bringing springbok and gemsbok herds, dark-maned lions and deep solitude.
ExploreSafaris
Victoria Falls · Kasane · Chobe Riverfront · Khwai · Okavango Delta · Maun
First-time visitors who want Victoria Falls and Botswana’s finest water country in one trip, without rushing either
Kasane · Chobe Riverfront · Okavango Delta · Makgadikgadi Pans · Maun
Families with children roughly 12 and older who want variety, activity and a little adrenaline
Maun · Okavango Delta · Northern Delta concessions · Makgadikgadi Pans
Couples who want privacy, water and wilderness rather than a resort-style honeymoon
Maun · Okavango Delta · Moremi Game Reserve · Linyanti, Selinda & Kwando · Savuti · Chobe Riverfront · Kasane
Returning safari travelers, photographers and anyone with two weeks to see northern Botswana properly
Good to know
Generally not. Guided walking is usually restricted inside Botswana’s national parks and game reserves, so it is arranged in the private and community concessions next to them, such as Khwai beside Moremi or the Linyanti reserves west of Chobe.
Walks are led by experienced guides who read animal behavior and keep a careful distance, especially from elephant and buffalo. The rules from the briefing, single file, quiet and never running, are what keep walks safe, and guides choose routes to avoid surprises.
It depends on the camp, but minimum ages commonly fall between 12 and 16. Some camps offer short, gentle walks near camp for younger children, focused on tracks and insects rather than big game.
No. Most walks cover a few kilometers at a slow pace with frequent stops. Deep sand, heat and the occasional wade through shallow water on Delta islands make a moderate level of fitness helpful.
Experiences
On the water
Glide through the Okavango’s papyrus channels in a poled canoe, low enough to meet reed frogs and lily-trotters at eye level.
On the water
Watch elephant herds drink, swim and cross the Chobe River from a boat, the riverfront’s signature way to see its wildlife.
In the air
See the Okavango’s channels, islands and wading herds from the air, on a doors-off helicopter flight or a fixed-wing scenic flight from Maun.
Share when you can travel, who is coming and what you most hope to see in Botswana. A specialist will shape a private route around it and walk you through every choice before anything is booked.
Plan My Botswana Safari