Maun 12-Day Tours and Trips

This was my first safari, and the holiday exceeded my expectations. Our guide Phenyo shared his exceptional knowledge and love of wildlife and Botswana with us. His local knowledge and a touch of being in the right place at the right time gave us many opportunities to see amazing wildlife in their natural surroundings. Many many, highlights; getting close to the leopard and lions, watching the elephants crossing the river, the enormous herd of buffalo, giraffes, zebras, impalas, numerous varieties of birds. The list goes on. Thank you to Phenyo and the people of Botswana for sharing this with us.

This was an amazing experience. Most of the accommodation was excellent, however, the house boat on the delta was not the one mentioned in our final itinerary, and the rooms were very small, however the staff on board were excellent and looked after us well producing excellent food in a tiny kitchen. The staff at Batonka lodge in Victoria Falls deserve a special mention too. Travel was via an open sided vehicle which was excellent for viewing animals but got very cold and blustery on the two days of long journeys, make sure you bring warm clothing, gloves and a scarf or mask to prevent breathing in dust. There were two long travel days, particularly the day traveling through Namibia, the border crossing took longer than expected due to the introduction of a required visa a few months earlier. An extra night slotted in Namiba would have taken the pressure off. I cannot fault our guide/driver Phenyo, his ability to spot wildlife was extraordinary, he was so knowledgeable about every bird and animal we saw and had an excellent understanding of animal behavior which he passed on. He looked after us from start to finish and was always so positive. I chose this trip for the wildlife abs it did not disappoint, from a pack of hyenas eating a dead elephant to a leopard resting, multiple lions and what seemed like hundreds of giraffes and elephants to mongooses and even honey badgers. The optional boat trip at Chobe was another highlight. If you like wildlife then this is the trip for you. I loved every minute.

Joe was the best guide with so much knowledge of African wildlife and also tracking and finding the animals. This trip was great thanks to him. Great driver who took us through the bush and delta and sharing all his knowledge. He was very keen to show us everything and he even found 8 hunting wild dogs. He was great with kids and engaging with them at all times. Really great trip with kids but would say +11 is required as long travelling days are in place. Accommodation varied but overall this was a great adventure. Highly recommend this trip if Joe is on it.

We so saw much wildlife - our fabulous Tour Leader KK even found us Leopards and Cheetah, and was intensely knowledgeable about the animals' behaviour and likely location. For animal and adventure lovers this holiday is perfect, and that is its key focus. Apart from the trip to the Tsodilo Hills, this is pretty much a true wildlife and camping trip with all the early mornings and changes of pitch/location that implies. And beware - changing water levels as the seasons draw on and huge distances means the Tour Managers have to tweak accommodation arrangements sometimes, and that driving days can be long. Accommodation varies from the quite plush to good basic roomy camping next to Hippo Pools - but you'll not have to set up any tents ( own toilet and bucket shower - which was AMAZING), or think about meals. If I would do one thing differently I'd bring one or two chains of battery powered warm white fairy lights - the mozzies on the delta were really attracted to the Big White Lights on the houseboat and it gets dark at 6.30 sharp.

Excellent accommodation and meals throughout. KK our guide/driver/navigator/spotter was excellent!! He worked very hard to give us the best views of wildlife & experiences throughout the trip. On previous Explore trips there has always been a driver plus guide, why was this not the case on this trip?We suggest that a laminated set of instructions is kept in the vehicle on what to do if the driver is taken ill in a remote location. Our vehicle was a sturdy workhorse but needed some effort to get in and out of. We noted that other groups had custom built vehicles which looked more comfortable & better adapted to the terrain with more passenger space. We saw a great variety of wildlife & particularly enjoyed the different bird species. Our included trip to the Tsodilo Hills to see the ancient rock paintings was really fascinating. Overall a brilliant trip!!

KK was a superb leader. Great bunch of fellow travellers. We saw a huge array of animals and birds. Bush camping was very exciting esp when hyenas were around and a hippo belly flopped into the river not far away. The camp guys were amazing. Porridge cooked on an open fire and served up before a morning game drive was delicious. Fantastic and varied itinerary gave variety. Quite a lot of driving but that meant we saw local villages, countryside and wildlife along the way, but needed to wrap up warm.