botswana - zimbabwe
DAY 1, Arrive Johannesburg, South Africa
Upon arrival in Johannesburg, gateway to southern Africa, transfer to our hotel and rest up after your journey. You’ll have many options for dinner on your own this evening
Overnight: Peermont Metcourt at Emperors Palace
DAY 2, Fly to Victoria Falls / Embark on Chobe Game Drive
After breakfast, we fly to Victoria Falls and transfer to Mowana Safari Lodge, located on the Chobe River. After lunch, we venture into Chobe National Park in open-sided safari vehicles. Chobe is the most diverse park in Botswana, thanks to its four distinct ecosystems. It’s also the country’s first national park. We’re likely to see Kalahari elephants here, the largest of all the pachyderms. More than 60,000 roam these dense woodlands and river-fed marshes. Zebra and giraffe sightings are also possible
Overnight: Mowana Safari Lodge, Chobe National Park
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
DAY 3, Enjoy Chobe Game Drive & Wildlife Talk / Cruise Chobe River
We begin today with a game drive in the cool of early morning, when the big cats are most active. Chobe is quiet in the hush of morning, and if we’re lucky, we might spot a pride of lions winding down after a night of hunting. We return to our lodge in time for breakfast, then spend the morning and the warmest part of the day at our lodge, perhaps taking a dip in the pool or journaling about our sightings. Mid-afternoon, our Tour Manager invites us for a talk about the wildlife of Chobe. Later, we embark on a boat cruise along the Chobe River. Hippos, crocodiles, baboons, and myriad birds often linger around the river’s banks
Overnight: Mowana Safari Lodge, Chobe National Park
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
DAY 4, Visit Namibian Village / Choice of Chobe Game Drives
This morning we cross the Chobe River to Impalila Island on Namibia’s Caprivi Strip and walk to a traditional village. Life has not changed much here over the centuries – men spend the days fishing to feed their families and women tend to their modest homes and create handicrafts – wood carvings, necklaces – to keep their culture alive. After lunch back at our lodge, you may choose a game drive by vehicle or by boat. Or join a fishing excursion on the Chobe River, where you might hook the elusive tiger fish
Overnight: Mowana Safari Lodge, Chobe National Park
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
DAY 5, Enjoy Home-Hosted Lunch / Drive to Hwange National Park
After breakfast, we cross into Zimbabwe and visit Mpisi Village, named for its charismatic chief. Mr. Mpisi has hosted diplomats here, so we’re honored to be peer into this daily life. He gives us a warm welcome and a personal tour, inviting us to glimpse his people’s huts, sharing his tribe’s folklore, and revealing how a community of villages functions as one. It’s an enlightening morning, followed by a traditional lunch of stew, spinach, pumpkin, and sweet corn in the shade of a thatched roof. This afternoon, we drive to Hwange National Park, founded in 1928 and home to 100 mammal species. We may spot some of them before arriving at our lodge
Overnight: Hwange Safari Lodge
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
DAY 6, Enjoy Hwange Game Drives & Talk on Poaching and Hunting
After an early morning game drive and breakfast, we can view wildlife gathering at the waterhole alongside our lodge or cool off in the pool. An afternoon talk by our Tour Manager sheds light on poaching concerns, the role of hunting here, and the differences between national parks and conservancies. Later, we set out on another game drive
Overnight: Hwange Safari Lodge
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
DAY 7, Join Full-Day Hwange Game Drive
During today’s full-day game drive, we explore a variety of habitats, from open plains to mopane forests. Many of the pans we see – or waterholes – are fed by an underground pump system regulated by authorities and we’ll be sure to monitor them for thirsty animals. We’ll find a shady spot for our packed lunch, and return in time for dinner
Overnight: Hwange Safari Lodge
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
DAY 8, Visit Village, School, and Painted Dog Society / Afternoon Game Drive
This morning we stop at a nearby village. Our visit begins at the chief’s house that he shares with his extended family and five orphaned grandchildren. We are here to learn about his family’s life, but also to ask his permission to visit the school and clinic in his village. We’ll tour the school and meet its delightful children – most of them also orphans. Then meet the clinic nurse to learn about the health issues affecting this community. Later, we drop in on the Painted Dog Conservation Society to learn the steps being taken to protect the endangered wild dog. During our visit, we’ll hear how this passionate organization enlists enthusiastic children in their conservancy efforts. Late this afternoon we board our vehicles for another game drive
Overnight: Hwange Safari Lodge
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
DAY 9, Fly to Lake Kariba / Embark Lake Cruise
After breakfast, we fly to Bumi Hills on Lake Kariba, the world’s largest artificial lake by volume. This vast body of water put so much pressure on the earth below, that it’s believed to have caused seismic shifts over the years. The lake was formed by the completion of Kariba Dam in 1963. After lunch at our lodge, we embark on a boat cruise along its waters, perhaps spotting hippos and Nile crocodiles in the waters and fish eagles and cormorants in the surrounding trees
Overnight: Bumi Hills, Lake Kariba
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
DAY 10, Game Drive, Fishing, Village Visit / Enjoy Kariba Dam Talk
During this early morning game drive, we venture to Matusadona National Park to look for rhinos, elephants, and water buffalo. Also be on the look out for spot storks, kingfishers, and the sacred ibis. Later today, visit a Chulala or Mola village, home to the delightful and spiritual Tonga people. The Tonga have lived along the banks of the Zambezi River for centuries, and their traditions of living off the land endure. Bumi Hills Safari Lodge supports this vital community with financial assistance and employment. Back at the lodge, learn more about the Kariba Dam and the impact it had on the local people and on large animal populations during an enlightening talk. After lunch, you may choose to join a fishing excursion where you just might hook a powerful tiger fish, found only in this part of Africa. If fishing doesn't interest you, enjoy your time, at leisure, with your new friends lounging by the pool
Overnight: Bumi Hills, Lake Kariba
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
DAY 11, Flight to Victoria Falls/Enjoy Home-Hosted Lunch / Explore Victoria Falls
This morning we fly to Victoria Falls. For lunch, residents of the Chinotimba neighborhood open their doors to us for conversation and home-cooked fare, perhaps a traditional stew. After we check in to our hotel, the largest waterfall in the world beckons. During the wet season, the force of Victoria Falls is so powerful that it’s known to many by its local name, Mosi-oa-Tunya, or the Smoke that Thunders. When David Livingstone came upon this torrent in 1855, he imagined that "scenes so lovely must have been gazed upon by angels in their flight." We’ll stroll through the surrounding rainforest-like preserve, watered by a constant mist and awed by the falls’ magnificence
Overnight: Kingdom Hotel, Victoria Falls
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
DAY 12, Full Day in Victoria Falls / Farewell Dinner
On your own, you can choose from a variety of activities available for purchase locally. You may also opt to explore the town’s famous Crafts Market and bargain for a favorite wood or stone carving – even bartering with your t-shirts or caps. Late this afternoon, we embark a riverboat on the Zambezi River for a beautiful African sunset and an unforgettable farewell dinner under African skies
Overnight: Kingdom Hotel Victoria Falls
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
DAY 13, Depart Back Home
Transfer to the airport for your departure flight to Johannesburg, and connect with your flight to the USA
Meals: Breakfast
Package Includes
Small groups of 10-18 travelers guaranteed
12 nights in First Class safari lodge and hotel accommodations that evoke the local character
1 night Peermont Metcourt, Johannesburg
3 nights Mowana Safari Lodge, Chobe National Park
4 nights Hwange Safari Lodge, Hwange National Park
2 nights Bumi Hills Safari Lodge, Lake Kariba
2 nights Kingdom Hotel, Victoria Falls
All transfers and sightseeing per itinerary in modern air-conditioned vehicles
30 meals: 12 buffet breakfasts, 8 lunches & 10 dinners (including 2 home hosted lunches, and welcome & farewell dinners)
Bottled water during sightseeing excursions. Bottled water, coffee, and tea with all meals. Beer and wine included with dinner
Services of local English-speaking tour manager throughout
Comprehensive, guided sightseeing and entrance fees per itinerary
Active itinerary with unique cultural features
Luggage handling for one bag per person
Tour Highlights
Thanks to our small group size of 10-18 travelers, we can get to the heart of our destination, visit places that other tours miss, and get to know the locals
Learn about southern Africa’s remarkable wilderness and conservation efforts that surround it during enlightening talks
See wildlife along the Chobe River – hippos, crocs, and water buffalo – during a boat cruise
Cross into Namibia to visit a local village and learn about daily life there
Meet the chief of Mpisi and share lunch with him and his people in their village
Visit a school and medical clinic near Hwange to learn firsthand about the kids’ curriculum and the area’s health concerns
Hear about efforts to save the wild dog at the Painted Dog Conservation Society
Cruise the vast stretch of Lake Kariba, the largest artificial lake in the world by volume
Enjoy home-prepared stew with a Victoria Falls family in the neighborhood of Chinotimba