Botswana’s hidden secrets

The Linyanti is a collective name for three private reserves: the Linyanti itself, Selinda, and Kwando. Each is slightly different from the other, but together they form one of Africa’s finest private safari areas. Overlooking the Linyanti Marsh within the Linyanti reserve itself, your first stop on this twin-centre safari is three nights at the Wilderness Linyanti Tented Camp. It’s an incredibly intimate camp with just a handful of guest tents, each with a great view of the Linyanti Marshes, where elephants and hippos are often seen. You’ll be able to spend your time here on traditional game drives, exploring the nocturnal wildlife in residence on night drives, getting up close to the animals on a walking safari, and updating your photography to new heights as you watch the wildlife from the photography hide. Though a Wilderness camp, which is usually synonymous with luxury and expense, it is by far the best-value camp in this area.

On the fourth day of your Botswana safari, you’ll head to the northern region of the Okavango Delta, where you’ll stay at Shinde Camp for three nights. This property has a lovely location on an island, on the edge of a lagoon. Its communal lounge and dining areas are housed in a multi-tiered structure under canvas, in the shade of ebony and mangosteen trees giving its main area a treehouse feel. There’s a fire-pit too, and a very inviting swimming pool. Guest accommodation consists of tents, all raised on wooden decking, and each has a spectacular view over the open plains! Shinde provides a high-quality base camp from which to explore the northern Delta. Activities include vehicle and walking safaris, motorboat trips, mokoro excursions, and fishing (March–December). Wildlife highlights comprise four of the Big Five, numerous smaller predators and herbivores, and hundreds of birds.