Mapula Lodge

Name: Mapula Lodge
Address: Okavango Delta

Mapula Lodge sits on a forested island where woodlands meet open floodplains, meaning you get the best of all worlds when it comes to activities. Overlooking a permanent lagoon, you’ll enjoy wildlife sightings straight from camp, accompanied by birdsong and the distinct grunting sound of resident hippos. Now operated by Desert & Delta Safaris, the camp begins a new chapter in March 2027 with 12 sophisticated suites, including two family options. Your days can be filled with morning and night game drives, guided bush walks, seasonal boating, mokoro excursions, and fishing, making Mapula Lodge the ultimate well-rounded Botswana safari experience.

A reinvented camp in the Okavango Delta’s private Mapula and Sekwana Concession

Both covered and open-air communal dining settings, a fire-pit, a swimming pool with a gazebo, a bar, curio shop, and lounge areas

lion at mapula lodge, botswana - Yellow Zebra Safaris

Total of 12 safari suites, each with a private viewing deck, two of which can be interleading for families

Game drives, night drives, seasonal motorboat safaris, mokoro excursions, walking safaris, fishing, and birding

bedroom at mapula lodge, botswana - Yellow Zebra Safaris

Our Yellow Zebra Opinion

Excellent value for luxury seekers

We’re really excited about Desert & Delta’s first private concession property and think this will make an excellent combination with their other properties. Also, it’s a great price point for the northern Delta!

Olivia Barclay-Hudson Product Manager

Activities

The Mapula and Sekwana Concession combines both wetland and woodland settings, unlocking the full range of Okavango Delta activities.

Game drives

Night drives

Motorboat safaris

Mokoro excursions

Walking safaris

Fishing

Birding

Scenic helicopter flights

Game drives take you into the Mapula and Sekwana Concession, where you’ll likely encounter enormous buffalo herds, lion patrolling the grasslands, elephant, cheetah, and perhaps the occasional leopard. The African wild dog sightings are a real highlight, and large packs roam freely, making the most of the excellent conditions to den, hunt, and rear their young.
The drives continue into the night, when predators gear up for a night hunt and some of the more unusual creatures make an appearance. Besides genet and serval cats, special sightings could include bush babies, porcupine, aardvark, and even the fearsome honey badger!
Seasonal motorboat rides allow you to explore the deeper channels of the Okavango Delta under a canvas roof for shade. Being on the water is the essence of a Delta safari, when you glide past wading hippo pods, see elephant and plains game drinking along the banks, and cover large areas of this extraordinary flooded wilderness.
Meander along the Okavango Delta’s wildlife-rich channels in a mokoro (traditional dugout canoe), expertly navigated by a poler and your guide. This gently paced activity allows you to take in the full scope of birdlife as you brush past papyrus reeds and observe tiny reed frogs, dragonflies, and other intricate details.
Walking safaris offer a unique perspective on the land in the company of an expert guide. You’ll stop to identify animal tracks and dung, learn about different plant species, and enjoy up-close wildlife encounters in a completely different way from game drives.
Mapula Lodge provides all the necessary equipment for guided catch-and-release fishing excursions. Both beginners and experienced anglers are welcome. Please note that this activity is banned in the Okavango Delta in January and February to protect the fish during their annual breeding season.
Birding in the Okavango Delta is deeply rewarding due to the extraordinary variety of resident and migratory species that flock to its wetlands. Since Mapula Lodge is located on a forested island, you’ll have plenty of sightings right on your doorstep!
Mapula Lodge partners with Helicopter Horizons for scenic doors-on or -off heli excursions over the Okavango Delta. This is a wonderful opportunity to view the mosaic of water channels, floodplains, and forests from above, while your pilot-guide points out all the most interesting sights en route. Please be aware that this activity incurs an additional cost.

Access & Location

Mapula Lodge is located in the Mapula and Sekwana Concession (NG12) in the Okavango Delta. The journey time by light aircraft from Maun is approximately 40 minutes, followed by a short game-drive transfer.

This property is unfenced and located in a wildlife area, so large and potentially dangerous animals do pass through. If you opt to stay here, always be alert when walking around the camp and request for a member of staff to escort you if you have any concerns. Any guest is escorted after dark as a matter of course.

Facilities

Mapula Lodge has been completely reinvented into a stylish, contemporary luxury camp overlooking a wildlife-filled lagoon from its island setting.

Here, you can enjoy both indoor and outdoor communal dining, with private dining available on request. The sophisticated lounge balances contemporary comfort with classic, vintage elements, featuring a low velvet sofa and antique-wood furniture, while the well-stocked bar is an ideal spot for pre-dinner drinks. Outside, a spacious wooden deck faces the floodplains, accompanied by a fire-pit for after-dark gatherings beneath the stars and a swimming pool with a shady gazebo.

Amenities

Mapula Lodge features 12 brand-new, contemporary safari suites, including two interleading options for families.

Each suite is furnished with a refreshment station, two fans, a writing desk, and a wardrobe. Every modern en-suite bathroom offers twin vanities, a walk-in shower, and a flush toilet. Remote satellite Wi-Fi is available in the guest suites for those wanting to stay connected to the outside world, and the lodge also includes a dedicated room for private guides.

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Talk to someone who’s been there

Real expertise doesn’t come from a few trips to Africa. All our specialists have either been guides, run the camps, or grown up and lived in Africa. That’s over 600 years of genuine safari experience.

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