Getting to Chobe National Park
In less than an hour’s drive from Victoria Falls you can be on safari, and in two hours you can be in Botswana’s famous Chobe National Park known as “The Land of Giants”. Said to have one of the highest game densities in Africa, Chobe is famous for having more than 50,000 Kalahari Elephants.
You can visit as a day excursion from Victoria Falls Town, but we were embarking on a twelve day safari adventure in Botswana and Zimbabwe, so for the next part of our journey we joined a small group tour. There were eleven of us in the group, mostly Brits with one couple from New Zealand, plus our driver and guide who were both from Zimbabwe.
The group was a mixture of couples and single travellers ranging from their early fifties to mid seventies and all reasonably physically fit. Our tour was set to travel long distances overland, but if that’s not for you, or perhaps you are travelling with children, you can opt for a tour dedicated to families or one that uses local air strips so you can take short flights between your destinations instead.
Crossing the Border into Botswana
Crossing the land border between Zimbabwe and Botswana is relatively easy. There is one quirk that’s worth mentioning. Botswana exports much of its beef to the Netherlands. In order to adhere to EU regulations regarding bovine communicable diseases like foot and mouth, you are asked at the international land border and then regularly at regional borders within Botswana, to dip your shoe soles into a disinfectant bath at roadside checkpoints.
It only takes a few minutes, but it’s not only the shoes on your feet, it’s every pair you brought with you, so our guide had each of us keep our shoes in a separate bag in the back of the vehicle to speed things up. We had to use a plastic laundry bag from our first hotel as we hadn’t known to come prepared. I had a pair of cream leather trainers in my bag that I’d used in town, which didn’t fare too well with the disinfectant, so don’t bring shoes you are precious about.
Where We Stayed & Park Entry
Our first lodge was 20 minutes drive from the Chobe National Park gate, where you needed to pay the park fee and provide passport details. Some tours will include your park fees while others don’t, so be sure to read the inclusions before booking as these fees could add hundreds of pounds to your trip.
Just because a tour initially appears cheaper, doesn’t mean it’s going to work out less expensive, because you may have lots of extras to pay for while on holiday. A tour that appears more expensive at first glance, might actually be better value in the long run because it includes more food, excursions and entrance fees.
Our guide and tour company had a record of our passport details, but it didn’t hurt to carry a photocopy of your passport as originals didn’t appear to be necessary at the park gates we passed. Much less chance of losing your passport if you don’t have to constantly be getting it out of your bag or safe, so a photocopy is a good idea. This may not be acceptable everywhere, but your guide will be able to advise.
Safari Tips: What to Expect on a Game Drive
Chobe National Park gates opened at 6am so we left our hotel at 5.40, because game viewing is always better early morning and late afternoon. The twenty minutes drive by tarmac road was in an open top safari vehicle going 60mph, so layer up, as it’s windy and cold on the way out, but hot by the time you finish your morning game drive.
Some of the roads in the park are just dirt tracks so there can be lots of dust, particularly when behind another vehicle. So I always carry a thin scarf to put round my mouth and nose if needed, some sunglasses to cover my eyes and a hat and suncream are essentials.
A Real Safari Experience: Wildlife Encounters
In my many years going on safari I have witnessed many thrilling unsuccessful predator hunts, and often come across a predator just after a successful hunt. But I’ve never actually seen a live kill, and to be honest I’m grateful for it, as I’ve no real wish to see such a brutal act, no matter how necessary.
If, like me, you want to go on a safari for the sheer privilege of seeing these magnificent animals living wild, then you probably have no wish to see any harm come to them. And I’m sure you certainly won’t want to be the cause of that harm.
Why Choosing the Right Guide Matters
So it’s imperative that you travel with a driver from a reputable company, because what we witnessed in Chobe that morning was proof that it’s not enough just to pick someone from the internet because they have five star reviews. You need to look much closer for a licensed driver who has a proven history in conservation tourism.
There are many unethical and unskilled drivers getting good reviews because they get inexperienced passengers a great photo regardless of what can be devastating consequences. All because the better the photos, the bigger the tip! Unfortunately we’ve seen these dangerous drivers before, all over Africa, and we saw them again that morning in Chobe.
A Powerful Moment on Safari
We had only been in the park a half hour when we came across eleven lionesses and their cubs of various ages. We were told the pride was headed by two brothers but they were currently away patrolling their boundaries.
It was sun up and the pride were clearly hungry and on a hunt. We had found them approaching the river and as this was dry season with water scarce, there was a family of elephants already drinking on the bank. With such a large pride of lions, big prey was needed and so they decided to hunt elephants.
We witnessed two attempts by the lionesses to bring down smaller elephants. There was lots of commotion and trumpeting as the elephants scattered. The track we were on was just above the bank and a number of safari vehicles had gathered to watch events unfold.
But instead of leaving large gaps between vehicles as was required in this situation, some drivers pulled too close together blocking the elephants escape route just to get a better photo for their passengers. A young elephant found herself trapped with vehicles at her front and lions at her back, and she was forced to veer right, straight into the path of a charging lioness.
There were angry shouts at the offending drivers by guides with enough experience to see what was about to happen, and we all held our breath as the lioness moved to intercept and launched herself onto the elephant’s back clinging on with her huge claws. Thankfully after a few heartbreaking moments the young elephant managed to shake off the lioness and she ran off with her family.
We can only hope she didn’t escape only to later get a life threatening infection from the wounds made by the lion’s claws.
Tourist money is vital to the preservation of the National Parks bringing much needed money into developing economies. But situations like these highlight how important it is for everyone involved to act responsibly and that we as visitors hold a share in that responsibility.
River Safari on the Chobe
The afternoon safari was much more relaxed and involved a cruise on the Chobe River which joins the mighty Zambezi, at its confluence four countries meet, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Zambia.
Our cruise was rich in birdlife, with buffalo and Hippo grazing along the mudbanks or wallowing in the water.
Where to Stay in Chobe
We spent two nights in Chobe. There are several lodges to choose from, but one of the most famous is Chobe Game Lodge, home to the Chobe Angels.
So if you fancy enjoying your safari under the care of Africa’s first all women guide team, (quite an achievement on a continent that is still largely a patriarchal society), then that’s the place to stay.