Venture into the wilderness on foot for a truly unique safari adventure while overnighting in mobile tented camps. Along the way, experience the pristine beauty and seclusion of the Botswana bush.
Activity Type: Walking | Cultural | Wildlife
This moderate to challenging walking safari ventures into the remote wilderness areas of the Central Kalahari Game Reserve, Okavango Delta and Kgalagadi regions of Botswana. We are led by expert safari guides and stay in full-service, secluded mobile tented camps. Our full-day walks leave us feeling like intrepid explorers, traversing remote, bush landscapes. Additional activities included are: a traditional Mekoro (canoe) excursion, night drives, and bushmen-led tracking guides and cultural interactions.
Each walking safari itinerary is tailormade to match your private group’s desired activity level and interests. Our safaris are generally rated between 1+ to 3 on a scale of 1 to 5. Our walks range from 3-6 hours per day, depending on which category of walking your group chooses. Setting out on foot allows us to tune into our surroundings while observing the flora, fauna, and epic landscapes of one of the wildest places on Earth. Walks often include tracking wildlife across difficult terrain and, on certain days, hiking to reach our next camp for the night. Our aim is to utilize wilderness not traveled by other people in places where there is not a footprint to be seen or a car track to be crossed. Additional activities such as game drives and canoeing can be incorporated into your itinerary upon request.
Charter flights may be included in your itinerary depending on where we have concessions for our mobile safaris in the Okavango Delta region (these are renewed annually). The charter aircraft used are light and very compact. A certain amount of stepping and bending is required to get into the seats, and passengers are more likely to experience travel sickness on these small planes as compared to larger, commercial flights.
If you’ve opted for the “hiker” or “stroller” categories, you will have the option to go on game drives. These excursions take place in open, 4×4 safari vehicles. Due to the nature of the terrain, the roads are often bumpy and can be a little strenuous for passengers. Our safari vehicles have a canopy overhead to minimize exposure to the elements (think: sun, wind, and dust). However at times, we do not use them in order to enhance visibility and optimize photo opportunities.
Botswana: Wilderness Walking Safari
Upcoming Trip Dates – Custom trip dates can be arranged for groups of 4-8 participants. The best time of year to travel to Botswana are the months of late April through Septmember.
Trip Cost – For groups of 4-6pax, expect to spend approximately $900+/- per person, per night (adventure camping) | $1,200+/- per person, per night (classic camping) | $1,500+/- per person, per night (luxury camping). Minimum group size is 4pax (2pax are possible, but will be more expensive). Charter Flights *at an additional cost*
Activity: Arrival and airport transfer.
Accommodation: Maun Waterfront Guesthouse (or similar), Maun
Activity: Transfer to Great Tsau Hill | Game Drive | Afternoon excursion.
Accommodation: Great Tsau Hill, Central Kalahari Game Reserve
Meals: B, L, D
Activity: Transfer to mobile camp | Bushmen tracking and cultural experience.
Accommodation: Mobile Safari Camp, Central Kalahari Game Reserve
Meals: B, L, D
Activity: Walking safari | Bushmen activities.
Accommodation: Mobile Safari Camp, Central Kalahari Game Reserve
Meals: B, L, D
Activity: Walking expedition | Night game drive.
Accommodation: Mobile Safari Camp, Central Kalahari Game Reserve
Meals: B, L, D
Activity: Transfer to Okavango Delta safari lodge | Afternoon game drive or water-based activity (depending on water levels).
Accommodation: Mma Dinare Lodge (or similar), Okavango Delta
Meals: B, L, D
Activity: Scenic helicopter flight to mobile camp | Afternoon walking expedition.
Accommodation: Mobile Safari Camp, Okavango Delta
Meals: B, L, D
Activity: All day walking expedition | Optional night game drive or mokoro excursion.
Accommodation: Mobile Safari Camp, Okavango Delta
Meals: B, L, D
Activity: All day walking expedition | Optional night game drive or mokoro excursion.
Accommodation: Mobile Safari Camp, Okavango Delta
Meals: B, L, D
Activity: All day walking expedition | Optional night game drive or mokoro excursion.
Accommodation: Mobile Safari Camp, Okavango Delta
Meals: B, L, D
Activity: Transfer to Maun for departure.
Meals: B, L
In order to prepare for the walks on this trip, we encourage you to exercise 3-4 days per week for 1-2 hours at a time for several months leading up to your departure. Activities such as biking, hiking, walking, skiing, and running are great for conditioning. Please consult your physician about your participation on this safari if you have any concerns regarding your health. The better prepared you are physically for this adventure, the more you’ll be able to enjoy your surroundings and feel rewarded by the overall experience.
The day starts with your wake-up call at sunrise—a gentle “koko” (‘knock knock’ in Setswana) at the entrance to your tent. A hand-washing basin is filled with steaming hot water, allowing you to freshen up. After enjoying some coffee or tea and a light breakfast around the campfire, we set out by foot from our camp, taking advantage of the optimal game viewing during the cooler hours of the morning.
Following our daybreak adventures, we return to camp for a bountiful lunch spread. Just as the animals retreat to escape the heat of midday, so will we! This siesta period is ideal for enjoying some downtime at camp. If you are on an ‘Explorer’ walking safari, we’ll spend our lunch and siesta hours out in the bush and prolong our return to camp, especially on days when we are walking from one location to another.
Later in the afternoon, we’ll head out once again into the wilderness as the animals awake from their midday slumber and gather at nearby watering holes. There is plenty of time to marvel at the sheer splendor of an African sunset, refreshments in hand, as we toast to the day’s adventures. Upon return to camp, you may choose to take a hot shower under the starry night sky before gathering around the warmth of our campfire. Here, we relive our day’s adventures with our fellow travel companions while lingering over a three-course dinner, served with a selection of wines. Retreating to the comfort of our tents—perhaps after enjoying a nightcap against the backdrop of a glittering, African sky—we fall asleep to the calls of the wild.
On moving days, the safari team will break down our camp, traveling ahead in a back-up vehicle to prepare our next camp for arrival. When moving between locations, our route often traverses parks and reserves where there is plenty to see, including ample wildlife-viewing opportunities. A picnic lunch will also be enjoyed en-route.
Meals are prepared over the open fire by our very own safari chefs. They pride themselves on being able to create quality meals using fresh, locally sourced ingredients whenever possible, including produce grown in Robyn and Gareth’s family farm in Maun. Alcoholic beverages, sodas, juice, and water are provided throughout the safari. In major towns such as Gaborone, Maun, and Victoria Falls, you will be booked on a bed & breakfast basis.
In winter (May – September), expect warm temperatures during the day and relatively cold nights in accommodations with canvas walls. Hot water bottles, extra blankets, and ponchos may be provided to keep you warm in camp and on your game drives. In summer (November – April), you will experience hot days and nights with rainstorms in the afternoons. It is imperative to increase your fluid intake considerably in order to avoid dehydration and heat exhaustion. In September and October, both the days and nights are incredibly hot, and may cause discomfort. See the temperature chart below:
Month
|
High Temp F
|
High Temp C
|
Low Temp F
|
Low Temp C
|
---|---|---|---|---|
January
|
89
|
32
|
66
|
19
|
February
|
87
|
31
|
66
|
19
|
March
|
87
|
31
|
64
|
18
|
April
|
87
|
31
|
57
|
14
|
May
|
82
|
28
|
48
|
9
|
June
|
77
|
25
|
43
|
6
|
July
|
77
|
25
|
42
|
6
|
August
|
82
|
28
|
48
|
9
|
September
|
91
|
33
|
55
|
13
|
October
|
98
|
37
|
64
|
18
|
November
|
93
|
34
|
66
|
19
|
December
|
89
|
32
|
66
|
19
|
It is important that you plan to arrive in Maun, Botswana on the first day of your safari (please inform us if you are arriving sooner, and we can help make arrangements). South African Airways offers direct flights from New York City airports to Johannesburg, South Africa, with connections to Maun.
Your safari will end in Maun, Botswana unless you choose to book an extension to Victoria Falls (Walk Botswana can arrange transfers and accommodations for this extension; please see our Zimbabwe extension page). You may book your return international flight departing from Maun on the afternoon of the final day of your safari. However, to play it safe, we advise that you plan to spend a night in Maun after your safari and book your international flights out for the following day. We can assist with booking post-tour accommodations for you upon request.
Walk Botswana Safaris is operated by Gareth and Robyn Flemix, a husband-and-wife-owned safari business based in Botswana. Together with their incredible local team, Gareth and Robyn do it all—from designing your individual adventure to guiding and hosting you while on safari.
Gareth Flemix was born in South Africa and raised in the bush, becoming a wildlife enthusiast at a very young age. In his youth, Gareth learned the hunting trade from his friend’s father, a professional hunter. This experience left a profound impression on him, and upon completing his formal schooling, Gareth became a qualified professional hunter in 1998.
From there, Gareth went on to guide in the Sabi Sands Private Game Reserve (part of the Greater Kruger National Park) in South Africa, an area renowned for its luxurious accommodations and service, quality guiding, and sought-after game viewing. Having gained in-depth experience in the South Africa safari guiding world, Gareth moved to Botswana in 2002, where he worked for Kwando Safaris in the Linyanti region before starting his own company in 2005.
From remote stretches of Xai Xai to the bustling Chobe riverfront and the furthest reaches of the Central Kalahari Game Reserve, Gareth has an extensive and intimate knowledge of Botswana’s wild places and a keen eye for wildlife photography. His passion for the conservation of Botswana’s wild places also earned Gareth an honorary wildlife officer designation under the Department of Wildlife and National Parks—a prestigious recognition within Botswana’s wildlife community.
With nearly 25 years of safari-based experience in the wilds of Africa, Gareth is known for his high-caliber guiding, his ability to keep his guests entertained, and for operating in areas most people wouldn’t dream of venturing. Gareth leads nearly all of Mountain Kora’s Walk Botswana safaris, custom-designing each itinerary alongside his wife, Robyn. He also maintains all of our safari equipment and vehicles and is certainly the backbone of the entire operation!
Robyn Flemix, a conservation ecologist by trade, joined the family business in 2017, working in marketing and operations. Born in South Africa to a Zimbabwean family, she grew up in the wild spaces of Namibia and Kenya, completing her university coursework in South Africa, and eventually settling in Botswana in 2011. Prior to joining the Walk Botswana team, she worked in the Okavango Delta and Chobe regions of Botswana, conducting research and wildlife monitoring. Robyn now lives in Maun with Gareth and their two young children.
While operating a safari business was never on the agenda for Robyn until she met Gareth, safaris, exploration, and all things adventure do indeed run in her blood. Descended from the famous explorer, Henry Hartley, Robyn’s family first established themselves in Southern Africa in the early 1800’s. In fact, Hartley was the first white man to view Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe in 1849—years before David Livingstone saw, named, and announced the falls under the name of Queen Victoria in 1855. Hartley and his descendants continued to explore and navigate what was then an unknown continent, recording much of what later geographers and explorers would use to circumnavigate Southern Africa.
With a passion and knowledge for wild spaces and the wildlife of Africa, Robyn brings a focus on conservation to the business, continually investigating ways to operate in a more eco-friendly manner while working in areas where photographic tourism directly benefits conservation.