Why You Should Go to This African Country for Your Next Safari—According to a Top Travel Advisor

Travel + Leisure

14-07-2025

My first safari in Botswana changed everything for me. I still remember gliding through the Okavango Delta in a mokoro (a traditional canoe) at sunrise: the hush of water, the call of a distant fish eagle, and the feeling that I was part of something ancient. That sense of awe became the foundation for my career as a travel advisor and my company, Tribù Travel. To this day, Botswana remains my touchstone for what a truly transformative safari can be. Botswana's Okavango Delta, seen from a helicopter.
Lost Horizon Images/The Okavango Delta is pure magic—an UNESCO-listed wetland where the Kalahari Desert's thirst is quenched by seasonal floods. There, game drives reveal elephants wading through papyrus channels, leopards draped over fig branches, and a dazzling array of birdlife. There are a variety of ways to explore it, including: Mokoros, traditional dugout canoes steered by expert polers, offer a gentle, immersive encounter with the Delta's rhythms.
Motorboat safaris and catch-and-release fishing add a dose of adventure in deeper waters.
Guided bush walks invite you to track spoor (animal footprints), learn about medicinal plants, and see the bush from a new perspective.
For extra'wow' factor, take a helicopter over the floodplains or visit Tsodilo Hills, a spiritual and cultural highlight home to over 4,000 ancient indigenous San rock paintings. A lone baobab tree in the Makgadikgadi Pan.
2630ben/iStockphoto/Getty Images
Contrast the Delta's lushness with the otherworldly Makgadikgadi Salt Pans, where the horizon stretches in all directions like a white mirage. Here, you can: Quad bike across the pans to the Lost Island of Baobabs.
Sleep out under a canopy of stars.
Witness the annual zebra migration, Africa's second-largest, as thousands of zebra and wildebeest traverse the pans.
Walk with Botswana's indigenous San people and learn ancestral skills: tracking, fire-making, and storytelling that connect you to the land's oldest rhythms.
Visit habituated meerkat colonies for up-close encounters that feel straight out of a nature documentary. Canoeing at the Great Plains Okavango Explorers Camp.
Great Plains Conservation
Botswana's safaris are more than sightings—they're about connection and contribution. Conservation-focused outfitters like Natural Selection Travel and Great Plains Conservation invite guests to: Learn about human-wildlife coexistence from local farmers and conservation experts.
Join predator researchers in tracking wild dogs or lions.
Support initiatives like African Bush Camps Foundation's Female Guides Program, which empowers women to become safari guides through mentorship and field training, helping shape a more inclusive future for the industry.
Botswana's diversity—flooded delta, arid salt pans, teeming wildlife—mirrors the richness of its safari experiences. Whether floating past a kingfisher in the Delta or sharing a fireside tale with a San elder in the Kalahari, you're not just an observer here: you're a participant, a steward, and a storyteller. For travelers seeking a safari that is as meaningful as it is breathtaking, Botswana delivers in ways that linger long after you've returned home.
Marni Granston is a member of Travel + Leisure's A-List and specializes in Kenya and Botswana trips. You can create a tailor-made itinerary with Granston by contacting her at [email protected] .