Having lived in the Okavango Delta over twenty years ago, I was keen to take my own family on safari to Botswana to show them just how beautiful and breathtaking this country is.
Botswana offers quite a bit of choice for a family safari with relatively young children. The great thing is that many of the camps will only take one or two families on an exclusive use basis – which allows greater flexibility both with taking children of a younger age as well as in terms of activity. There is so much to do! Top of the pops goes to a camp which is closed to your family in the Okavango Delta. Here you have the most amazing Botswana guide who teaches your children how to read the night sky, which direction the marks in the sand are heading towards and which animal it belongs to, the medicinal properties of trees and plants, how to fish, how to canoe – the list is endless! At the end, the children get their special ranger certificate to say they are bushwise (but they have to earn it first!)
Then, we headed into the Kalahari desert where you can quad bike, sleep out beneath the stars, learn about the San or Bushman people and see habituated meerkats which is really great fun! We visited two camps in the Kalahari desert in completely different regions. It all depends upon the time of year that you travel – but we saw abundant lions and we learnt so much about the Bushmen or San people and about the plants they use and how they catch wildlife. Being a family of riders, we wanted to ride and canoe. You can either horse ride in the Delta for a couple of days at the beginning or, as we did, stay in a wonderful camp in the Selinda concession. Here we went on a riding safari on the most fabulous horses – completely at the pace of the least experienced rider – although the more experienced riders could go on ahead – which was great fun. A herd of kudu came snorting out of the island and a pack of wild dog chased them ahead. Seeing this on horseback was absolutely sensational. Our guides were some of the best in the field, too! We then spent time canoeing, which is absolutely silent and the bird life is fantastic. We also went fishing as each person tried to get the biggest catch!
The next camp we stayed in was one in the Maremi, where I think has probably the nicest camps in the region. Here there is greater wildlife and they generally accept children of all ages so you can build on your experience and knowledge and see all the big mammals and there is even a swimming pool to cool off. Finally finish off for either some rest and relaxation or more adventure activities at Victoria Falls. Anything from bungee jumping, to canoeing, white water rafting, horse riding, riding on the back of an elephant, to fishing or simply chilling out a bit. Either way, a family safari to Botswana really does offer everything and has all the ingredients for a truly successful family safari to Botswana.
