ENCOUNTERSAFRICA
8-Day Moremi & Khwai Explorer

Botswana - Fly-in safari

8-Day Moremi & Khwai Explorer

Duration
8 days
Countries
Botswana
Suited to
2-8 guests
Pricing
From USD 19,880

The journey

Updated on 23 August 2026

Moremi and Khwai are neighbours divided by one river and two sets of rules, and this trip uses both to advantage. Chief's Camp sits in the Mombo concession on Chief's Island, the Moremi Game Reserve's celebrated predator ground, where the floodplains hold lion, leopard and wild dog at densities most of Africa cannot approach. Four nights there builds the classic delta safari: big cats, big herds, big skies. Then you cross to the Khwai Community Concession, run by the village that owns it, where Khwai Leadwood sits on the riverbank. Community land allows what the reserve does not: night drives with a spotlight, guided walks, and mokoro on the slow Khwai channels. The game is the same neighbourhood's; the ways of meeting it multiply. May to October is dry season, when the Khwai River becomes the only water for miles and the traffic to it never stops. Green-season travellers trade a little concentration for storm light and better rates.

Your camps, day by day

Stay 1

Maun to Chief's Island

You land at Maun off the Johannesburg flight and take the 25 minute Cessna hop onto Chief's Island. Chief's Camp's pavilions look across a floodplain where lechwe graze in their hundreds. There is time for a swim and tea before the first drive, which has a way of producing a lion sighting before the sun is anywhere near down.

Stay 2

The Mombo Concession

Two long drives on the island's western floodplains, ground that guides speak about with a certain reverence. Lion prides here hold visible territories, leopard work the treelines, and in winter wild dog den within driving range. Between outings the camp's deck faces the plain, so the game viewing continues over lunch.

Stay 3

Water Morning

When levels allow, the morning goes to mokoro: a poler pushes you along hippo channels at walking pace, past reed frogs the size of a thumbnail and jacana stepping across the lilies. The afternoon returns to the vehicle to follow up whatever the radio has been promising, with sundowners poured wherever the day ends.

Stay 4

Predators on Repeat

The advantage of a fourth night is patience. Today can be spent properly on one story: a leopard female and her cub moving between islands, the buffalo herd drawing lion at the floodplain's edge, or a cheetah using the open ground in the south. Dinner is in the boma under mopane smoke and a sky thick with stars.

Stay 5

Across to the Khwai

A 20 minute flight east swaps reserve for community land. Khwai Leadwood's tented suites stand on the bank of the Khwai River, close enough to hear hippo through the canvas. The rules change with the river: your first outing is an afternoon drive that simply keeps going after dark, spotlight sweeping the leadwoods.

Stay 6

The River That Feeds Everything

In the dry months the Khwai is the only water for miles, and a day parked along it watches the whole cast arrive: elephant in family lines, buffalo, kudu, and the lion that wait for all of them. A mokoro glides the quieter reaches in the afternoon, and the night drive home picks up honey badger and, with luck, a hunting leopard.

Stay 7

On Foot at Dawn

A walking morning: two to three hours with an armed guide on the river terraces, learning the grammar of tracks laid overnight and easing around browsing elephant at a careful distance. The afternoon drive crosses the concession's mopane belts for wild dog, and the last night ends around the fire with the village guides' stories.

Stay 8

Khwai to Johannesburg

One unhurried river morning with coffee on the bank, then the 20 minute hop to Maun and the early-afternoon Johannesburg connection, landing in time for evening international flights the same night. Two concessions, two rulebooks, and seven nights that covered the delta system by vehicle, boat, mokoro, spotlight and your own feet.

Safari highlights

  • Four nights at Chief's Camp in the Mombo concession
  • The delta's highest predator densities on Chief's Island
  • Three nights at Khwai Leadwood on the riverbank
  • Night drives and walks on community land
  • Mokoro on the Khwai channels
  • Two concessions, one short flight apart

What is included

Included

  • 7 nights accommodation, per person sharing
  • Return regional flights Johannesburg-Maun in economy class
  • Light-aircraft sectors Maun-Chief's Island, Chief's Island-Khwai and Khwai-Maun, with airstrip taxes
  • All meals, house wines, local spirits, beers and soft drinks
  • Twice-daily game drives, night drives and walks at Khwai, and mokoro where water levels allow
  • Moremi Game Reserve and Khwai community 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, trackers and camp staff
  • Items of a personal nature, curios and telephone calls

Frequently asked questions

How much does an 8-day Moremi and Khwai safari cost?

From USD 19,880 per person sharing, reaching about USD 25,480 in peak season. The price covers seven nights at Chief's Camp and Khwai Leadwood, all meals and house drinks, park and community concession fees, three light-aircraft sectors and the return Johannesburg-Maun regional flights. International flights to Africa are excluded and quoted separately.

What is the difference between Moremi and the Khwai concession?

Moremi is a national game reserve: superb ground, strict rules, no night drives, no walking, no off-road. Khwai is community-owned land run by the Khwai village trust, where night drives, guided walks and mokoro are all permitted and the tourism income goes to the community. Doing both in one trip gets you Moremi's game density and Khwai's freedom.

When is the best time to visit?

May to October is the dry season. The Khwai River becomes the last water for miles, so elephant, buffalo and the predators that follow them concentrate along it, and the delta flood peaks on Chief's Island between June and August. November to April is green season: lower rates, newborn impala, migrant birds and afternoon storms that clear into the best light of the year.

What do you see on a night drive at Khwai?

The spotlight picks up what daylight never shows: genet and civet in the leadwood branches, honey badger quartering the ground, servals hunting the grass edges, and often lion or leopard starting their night's work. Khwai's guides run the light with care, off breeding animals and away from hunts in progress. It is a different park after dark.

Are international flights included?

No. International flights to and from Africa are booked separately, normally via Johannesburg. Included are the return Johannesburg-Maun flights of about 1 hour 40 minutes each way and all three light-aircraft sectors within Botswana. The light aircraft enforce a 20 kg per person luggage limit in soft-sided bags.

Is this a malaria area?

Yes. The Okavango Delta and the Khwai area are malarial, with peak risk from November to April. Prophylaxis is recommended whenever you travel; arrange it with a travel clinic about six weeks before departure. Both camps have screened rooms and supply repellent. A yellow fever certificate is required only if you arrive from a country with transmission risk.