Overland region

The Okavango Delta and Moremi by 4x4: local guides and trips

Mokoros gliding across the flooded channels of the Okavango Delta
Photo: Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0

The Okavango Delta is an inland delta in the Kalahari: the Okavango River, instead of reaching the sea, spreads into channels, lagoons and islands, and it has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2014. On its eastern side lies the Moremi Game Reserve, with camping areas at South Gate, Third Bridge, Xakanaxa and Khwai, reached by sand tracks and water crossings that change with the season and the flood. Maun is the usual gateway, while the Panhandle runs north-west to Shakawe and the Namibian border at Mohembo. Here are the local guides who work in the area and the trips that cross it.

9 local guides and 10 trips in the Okavango Delta and Moremi on GuideMeet.

On the map

  1. Maun Maun — Town. The usual base for the Delta: shops, hotels and car hire along the Thamalakane River, and the headquarters of many safari and air-charter operators. -19.9833, 23.4167 · Google Maps
  2. Moremi Game Reserve Moremi Game Reserve — Reserve. Just under 5,000 km² on the eastern side of the Delta, with only about 30% of it dry land. You explore it by 4x4, on foot or by mokoro, the dugout canoe. -19.1667, 23.1667 · Google Maps
  3. Moremi South Gate Moremi South Gate — Park. Gate of the Moremi Game Reserve and one of its four camping areas; sand tracks lead from here to Third Bridge and Xakanaxa. -19.4257, 23.6443 · Google Maps
  4. Third Bridge — Camp. One of the four camping areas in Moremi, by the bridge that gives it its name; sand tracks lead here from South Gate and from Xakanaxa. -19.2400, 23.3570 · Google Maps
  5. Xakanaxa Xakanaxa — Camp. One of the four camping areas in Moremi. Tracks lead here from South Gate and Third Bridge, and in the Delta the water level decides which ones you can pass. -19.1826, 23.4154 · Google Maps
  6. Chief's Island — Island. The largest island in the Delta, over 70 km long and 15 km wide, raised by a fault. Once the chief's hunting ground, now a wildlife area and a refuge when the waters rise. -19.2000, 22.8000 · Google Maps
  7. Khwai — Village. Village on the north bank of the Khwai River, just outside Moremi's north gate; the river forms the reserve's northern edge. Khwai is also one of Moremi's four camping areas. -19.1660, 23.7500 · Google Maps
  8. Lake Ngami Lake Ngami — Lake. Seasonal lake south of the Delta, filled by the Taughe River. It has shrunk a lot since 1890 but still draws birds and wildlife, especially in flood years. -20.4825, 22.7725 · Google Maps
  9. Gumare — Village. Village on the western side of the Delta and administrative centre of the Okavango sub-district. People live along the river, fishing and farming the floodplains. -19.3692, 22.1616 · Google Maps
  10. Shakawe Shakawe — Village. Village at the beginning of the Delta, close to Namibia and the Mohembo border post. It is the base for the Tsodilo Hills, 40 km away, and the start of fishing trips on the Panhandle. -18.3692, 21.8458 · Google Maps
  11. Mohembo Mohembo — Border crossing. Border crossing with Namibia, where the Okavango enters Botswana and the Delta begins. From here to Maun the water drops about 60 m. -18.2599, 21.7616 · Google Maps
  12. Tsodilo Hills Tsodilo Hills — Rock art. Rock-art hills about 40 km from Shakawe on a graded dirt road, with a managed campsite between the two largest. UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2001, with over 4,500 paintings. -18.7500, 21.7333 · Google Maps

Local guides in the Okavango Delta and Moremi

Overland trips in the Okavango Delta and Moremi

Trips already run here

When to go

Game viewing is best from July to October, when the pans dry up and the wildlife gathers on the permanent water. From October until the rains it gets extremely hot; the rains fall mostly from December to March, and with high water some roads are waterlogged.

Before you go

Photo credits

Photos from Wikimedia Commons, under the licences shown.

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