What to See in Botswana

The Nata Bird Sanctuary (NATA), located 17 km south of the village of Nata, was established in the early 1990s on the northeastern edge of the Sowa Valley. Community project with an area of ​​230 sq. km was aimed at preserving wildlife around the Shua depression. The main attractions of the reserve are various varieties of antelopes, more than 165 species of birds, which include kingfishers, ostriches, eagles and bustards.

How to get there. Two hours by ground transfer from Frankistown.

Maun is the safari capital of Botswana, a bustling tourist town with the second largest airport in the country, where tourists fly in from Gabarone, Kasane, Cape Town and Johannesburg before starting a trip to the Delta or Kalahari to fly further on small planes to their camps and lodges. Maun has restaurants, pubs and fast food outlets, several local craft shops, as well as the curious Nhabe Museum in an old colonial house with a good ethnographic exposition.

How to get there. Flight from Cape Town, Johannesburg, Kasane, Gabarone.

Central Kalahari Game Reserve – the second largest in the world (52,800 sq. km). This is a zone of vast open plains, salt lakes and ancient riverbeds – a haven for large herds of springbok, oryx, blue wildebeest, cow antelope (bubola) and the largest antelope – eland. Over 40 species of birds live here. In the southern part of the reserve, in the petrified bed of an ancient river, there is a huge beautiful valley. The winds blowing across the Kalahari have shaped the high and wide dunes that dominate the landscape in the northern part of the reserve. There are three entrances to the Central Kalahari: through Xade and Matswere in the northeast and through Khutse in the south. The Heid entrance is located 36 km south of Gantsi on the Kalahari Highway. The reserve has two non-equipped campsites near the Haid Wildlife Camp. Visitors should stock up on fuel at Gantsi and make sure they have enough food. Visitors are required to register at the Wildlife Camp upon arrival at Heide. To the north of the central Kalahari Game Reserve, in the bed of an ancient river, lies the Deception valley. The fresh grass that has soaked up the summer rains attracts large herds of antelope, as well as ostriches, giraffes and all major predators.

How to get there. By air charter from Maun or Gaborone.

The reserve Khutse (Khutse) covers an area of ​​2500 square meters. km, covered with rolling plains and dry savannah bushes in the south of the Central Kalahari. The extensive system of mineral water depressions attracts antelopes and other herbivores who drink the water during the rainy season and lick the salt during the dry months. There are also many predators here, including lions, cheetahs and leopards. Khutse is located 240 km west of Gaborone and is part of the river system that once fed Lake Makgadikgadi. Today, these lowlands provide excellent opportunities for observing the wildlife and dramatic events involving herbivores and carnivores taking place at the watering hole. Springbok, oryx and ostriches are represented in large numbers, here you can regularly see elands and giraffes.

How to get there. By air charter from Maun or Gaborone.

Kgalagadi International Park (The Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park). His education was a unique event in the protection of Wildlife. The documents on its creation were signed by the governments of Botswana and South Africa, and Kgalagadi Park became the first in Africa, the agreement on the formation of which was concluded at such a high level. This reserve, officially opened in May 2000, was formerly known as the Mabuasehube Gemsbok National Gemsbok Park on the Botswana side and the Kalahari Gemsbok Gemsbok National Park in South Africa. The reserve is managed by a single administration from representatives of both countries. The total area of ​​the park is 38 thousand square meters. km. Three-quarters of its territory is located in the southwest of Botswana, the rest – in South Africa. In Botswana, the park is divided into three main areas: the Nossob River Valley, which stretches along the border of Botswana and South Africa, Mabuasehube region in the east and inland. The park has very beautiful landscapes, an impressive petrified river valley, bordered by dry shrubs and sand dunes of various colors, watering places are hidden in green oases. From the old river bed, wonderful views of the Nossob and Ayob valleys open up. Interesting tourist routes are laid in the Mabuasehube region with its pristine wild landscapes of the valleys. Legendary black-maned Kalahari lions, wild cats, jackals, hyenas, antelopes, including oryx and gazelles come here to drink. Here is the richest world of birds. Weaver birds are very interesting. They live in packs. The huge communal nests of these birds, arranged in complex structures in trees, are sometimes so heavy that they cause the tree to fall!

How to get there. By air charter from Gaborone.

What to See in Botswana