ENCOUNTERSAFRICA
5-Day Okavango Immersion

Botswana - Fly-in safari

5-Day Okavango Immersion

Duration
5 days
Countries
Botswana
Suited to
2-6 guests
Pricing
From USD 12,380

The journey

Updated on 23 August 2026

Five days is the honest minimum for the Okavango, and this trip spends them where they count: inside a single private concession, so no hour is wasted repositioning. The Jao concession is 60,000 hectares of channel, floodplain and palm island in the delta's west, held by a handful of Wilderness camps, and it happens to contain both of the delta's registers, deep water and dry island, twenty minutes apart. Jao Camp opens the trip with the water. Its sculptural suites stand in a fig canopy with channels on every side, and the days move by mokoro and boat. Then a short hop lands you on Hunda Island at Little Tubu, a three-tent camp sharing Tubu Tree's famous ground, where the drives concentrate on the island's leopards and the floodplain herds that support them. Small camp, short trip, no filler. June to September is the flood's height; October to December opens the island up for longer drives. Either way you fly home having seen the delta whole.

Your camps, day by day

Stay 1

Maun Into the Flood

The morning Johannesburg flight connects at Maun to a 25 minute Cessna hop west into the Jao flats. The camp appears out of its fig canopy at the last moment, water on all sides. After lunch the first outing goes by boat, lechwe exploding across the shallows and jacana trotting over the lilies alongside.

Stay 2

The Mokoro Day

Morning by mokoro, the delta's original transport: a poler pushes you along channels at walking pace, close enough to the water to count the reed frogs. Brunch on the deck, a slow hour at the spa or the plunge pool, then an island game drive in the afternoon for tsessebe, elephant and the first talk of leopard.

Stay 3

Boat to Hunda Island

The move to Little Tubu is an hour's cruise through the concession's channels, which is to say a game drive on water. Three tents wait under the jackalberries, six guests at most, one dinner table. The afternoon drive works the island's floodplain edge, where the lechwe herds graze with one eye on the treeline.

Stay 4

Leopards of Tubu

A full day on the island's famous ground, following the night's tracks through the jackalberry lines where Hunda's leopards hunt and hoist. With the camp this small the vehicle is effectively yours, so the day bends to the sighting: an hour under a sleeping cat if you want it, or the floodplain circuit for wild dog news. The night drive closes the set.

Stay 5

Island Out

One last drive to the airstrip with breakfast packed, then the 25 minute hop to Maun and the early-afternoon Johannesburg connection, landing in time for evening international departures. Four nights, two camps, one concession, and the delta seen from the water and the land rather than from a schedule.

Safari highlights

  • Two nights at Jao Camp among the channels
  • Two nights at three-tent Little Tubu on Hunda Island
  • Leopard territory shared with Tubu Tree
  • Mokoro through the Jao flats
  • One concession, no wasted travel days
  • The delta's water and land in five days

What is included

Included

  • 4 nights accommodation, per person sharing
  • Return regional flights Johannesburg-Maun in economy class
  • Light-aircraft sectors Maun-Jao and Jao-Maun, with airstrip taxes
  • Boat transfer between Jao Camp and Little Tubu within the concession
  • All meals, house wines, local spirits, beers and soft drinks
  • Twice-daily game drives, mokoro and boating where water levels allow
  • Private concession fees, government levies and VAT
  • Botswana Tourism Development Levy of USD 30 per person
  • Laundry and emergency medical evacuation cover

Not included

  • International flights to and from Africa
  • Visas and entry permits
  • Comprehensive travel and medical insurance
  • Premium spirits, champagne and imported wines
  • Gratuities for guides, polers and camp staff
  • Items of a personal nature, curios and telephone calls

Frequently asked questions

How much does a 5-day Okavango safari cost?

From USD 12,380 per person sharing, rising to about USD 16,280 in peak season. The price covers four nights at Jao Camp and Little Tubu, all meals and house drinks, concession fees, water and land activities, the in-concession boat transfer, both light-aircraft sectors and the return Johannesburg-Maun regional flights. International flights to Africa are excluded and quoted separately.

Is five days enough for the Okavango Delta?

It is enough to do it properly once, provided the itinerary does not waste time moving between distant concessions. That is the design here: both camps sit inside the Jao concession, twenty minutes apart, so you get four full-activity days out of five calendar days. Travellers with more time usually add Chobe or the Linyanti; travellers with less should wait until they have five.

What is Little Tubu like?

Three tents on raised decks under jackalberry trees on Hunda Island, sharing its sister camp's traversing area but not its guests. With a maximum of six people in camp, drives are effectively private, dinner is one table, and the guiding bends entirely to what you want. It is the delta at its most personal, and it books out months ahead for exactly that reason.

When is the best time for this trip?

June to September for the classic high-water delta, when the flood arriving from Angola fills the Jao flats and mokoro runs from the front of camp. October to December trades water for range: the floodplains dry, drives go further and the leopard viewing on Hunda holds firm. The green months, January to April, are quietest and best value, with storm skies worth the trade.

Are international flights included?

No. International flights to and from Africa are excluded and booked separately, normally via Johannesburg. Included are the return Johannesburg-Maun flights of about 1 hour 40 minutes each way and the two light-aircraft sectors to and from the concession, where the 20 kg soft-bag luggage limit applies.

Is the Okavango a malaria area?

Yes, the delta including the Jao concession is malarial, with peak risk from November to April. Prophylaxis is recommended year-round; see a travel clinic about six weeks before you fly. Both camps have screened tents and provide repellent. A yellow fever certificate is required only if arriving from a country with transmission risk.