ENCOUNTERSAFRICA
6-Day Chobe Riverfront Safari

Botswana - Fly-in safari

6-Day Chobe Riverfront Safari

Duration
6 days
Countries
Botswana
Suited to
2-8 guests
Pricing
From USD 6,280

The journey

Updated on 23 August 2026

There are two Chobes. The eastern riverfront near Kasane carries the day-trip boats; the western end, up at Ngoma, sees a fraction of the vehicles and none of the hurry, and the elephant are the same elephant. This safari is built on that quiet end, and it is the best-value fly-in Botswana we offer. It starts inland at Ghoha Hills Savuti Lodge, a solar-powered lodge set on a rocky ridge with the only elevated view in the Savuti area, sunsets over the marsh from the deck and its own waterhole below. Then a road transfer runs the sand ridge north to Ngoma Safari Lodge, eight suites on the escarpment above the Chobe floodplain, inside the forest reserve at the park's western gate. From your bath you watch elephant file down to the river; drives enter the park at the gate the crowds never use, and boat trips launch upstream of the traffic. May to October concentrates the herds on the water. Green season halves the vehicles again and drops the rates further.

Your camps, day by day

Stay 1

Kasane to the Ridge

Off the Johannesburg flight at Kasane, a Cessna carries you 45 minutes south to Savuti, where the flat country suddenly grows a ridge. Ghoha Hills sits on top of it, and afternoon tea on the deck comes with the only aerial view in the region. The first drive drops to the marsh as the light stretches out.

Stay 2

Savuti From Above and Below

The morning drive works the marsh, where Savuti's lion prides and cheetah use the open ground and the elephant march between waterholes on paths older than the tracks. Back on the ridge, the midday hours belong to the deck and the waterhole below it. The evening drive ends with the sun going down over the whole width of the marsh.

Stay 3

The Sand Ridge North

The transfer to Ngoma is a half-day game drive up the old sand ridge, through mopane where roan and sable cross, arriving on the escarpment by mid-afternoon. Ngoma's suites face the Chobe floodplain from above, and the first elephant file down to the river more or less on cue while you unpack.

Stay 4

The Quiet Riverfront

Into the park at the Ngoma gate at first light, along a riverfront that belongs to you and the animals for the first hours: buffalo herds on the floodplain, puku on the short grass, lion where the two meet. The afternoon boat cruise launches upstream of the traffic and drifts among crossing elephant until the light gives out.

Stay 5

Floodplain Rhythms

A flexible last full day: another park drive, a village visit to Mabele where the lodge funds its community projects, or simply the escarpment deck, where the binoculars do the travelling as herds cycle from forest to river and back. Sundowners on the floodplain rim, dinner under a sky the river keeps humid and soft.

Stay 6

Along the River to Kasane

A final dawn drive through the park runs east along the river to Kasane, doubling as your transfer, with breakfast packed. You connect to the early-afternoon Johannesburg flight in time for evening international departures, or add Victoria Falls, 90 minutes away by road, and keep the trip going one more act.

Safari highlights

  • Two nights at Ghoha Hills, the only elevated view in Savuti
  • Three nights at Ngoma above the Chobe floodplain
  • The quiet western riverfront, upstream of the boat traffic
  • Elephant herds crossing below the lodge
  • Solar-powered lodges with genuine sustainability records
  • Botswana's best-value fly-in combination

What is included

Included

  • 5 nights accommodation, per person sharing
  • Return regional flights Johannesburg-Kasane in economy class
  • Light-aircraft sector Kasane-Savuti with airstrip taxes
  • Road transfers Savuti-Ngoma and Ngoma-Kasane Airport
  • All meals, house wines, local spirits, beers and soft drinks
  • Twice-daily game drives and a Chobe River boat cruise
  • Chobe National Park and forest reserve 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, boat crew and lodge staff
  • Items of a personal nature, curios and telephone calls

Frequently asked questions

How much does a 6-day Chobe safari cost?

This routing starts at USD 6,280 per person sharing and rises to about USD 7,780 in peak season, which is close to the entry price for a fully catered fly-in Botswana safari. It covers five nights at Ghoha Hills and Ngoma Safari Lodge, all meals and house drinks, drives and a river cruise, park fees, the Savuti light-aircraft sector and return Johannesburg-Kasane flights. International flights are excluded.

Is the western riverfront really quieter than Kasane?

Substantially. The Ngoma gate sits 50 kilometres upstream of Kasane, beyond the range of most day-trip vehicles and boats, and the handful of lodges on the escarpment share the floodplain between them. You watch the same thousand-strong elephant congregations with a fraction of the audience, and morning drives often meet no other vehicle before coffee.

When is the best time to visit Chobe?

May to October is the dry season, when the river becomes the only water for fifty kilometres and the herds concentrate spectacularly; September and October are the peak of it. November to April is green season: the zebra migration moves through Savuti, migrant birds arrive in their thousands, storms build in the afternoons and rates drop by roughly a third.

What is special about Ghoha Hills?

Elevation, mainly. Savuti is table-flat, and Ghoha Hills is the one lodge built on high ground, a solar-powered camp on a rocky ridge whose deck looks over the marsh from above. Sunsets go the full width of the horizon, the waterhole below draws elephant and predators through the night, and the ridge itself holds klipspringer and roosting raptors.

Are international flights included?

No. International flights to and from Africa are excluded and booked separately, normally via Johannesburg. Included are the return Johannesburg-Kasane regional flights of about 1 hour 45 minutes each way, the Kasane-Savuti light-aircraft sector with its 20 kg soft-bag limit, and the road transfers along the western riverfront.

Is Chobe a malaria area?

Yes, Chobe and Savuti are malarial, with the highest risk during and just after the November to April rains. Prophylaxis is recommended year-round and should be arranged with a travel clinic about six weeks before you fly. Both lodges provide screened rooms and repellent. Yellow fever certificates apply only when arriving from a transmission-risk country.