If it were a musical compilation, a tour of the best Okavango Delta, Savute and Linyanti safaris would be titled Safari: Greatest Hits. Without question, these are among the best Botswana safari parks. Read on as we wax lyrical about the areas.
The Okavango Delta is one of the most dynamic ecosystems on earth. Each year, rainwater filters down from Angola and Namibia via the Cubango and Okavango rivers, collecting nutrients along the way. When it hits the delta, it fans out – transforming the area into a complex web of islands, channels and floodplains – before seeping into the Kalahari soil.
The sheer diversity of habitats – much of which are are protected by the Moremi Game Reserve – mean that the delta supports an incredible array of birds and animals. You can explore this watery wonderland by game drives, boat and mokoro excursions or even hot-air balloon rides.
Similarly, Angolan floodwaters trickle into the Linyanti region of Chobe National Park. After rising on the slopes on Mount Tembo, the Kwando River flows into Namibia’s Linyanti Swamp. The river that flows out the other side, on the northern border of Botswana, is the Linyanti, which ultimately joins the Zambezi. One offshoot of the Linyanti, however, is the Savute Channel, which feeds into the Savute Marsh.
Interestingly, the stretches of swamp and savannah were shaped by seismic forces, which can still cause the disappearance or reappearance of rivers and channels.
The presence of water and mopane woodlands in the Linyanti region is irresistible to concentrations of game in the dry winter season, especially vast herds of elephant and zebra. It’s also one of the last wild dog redoubts in Africa. In central Chobe, the Savute Marsh retains water throughout the dry season, attracting yet more wildlife. Boating adds an extra dimension to the best safaris in these areas.
In the wet summer season, the Linyanti zebra migrate south to the Savute Channel, making game drives at this time particularly interesting.
