ON Safari

A DAY ON A GREAT ADVENTURE SAFARI

Every day on a great adventure safari is unique. You’ll have new experiences and see things from a new perspective every single time you’re out in the Botswana wilderness. Even when you remain at the same camp for a few days, no safari drive will be the same. From sweeping savannahs to lush marshlands, dense forests, and arid plains there’s always new scenery, not to mention new animals by the thousands. 

There are no guarantees on a safari except to say that we’ll do our best to ensure you get the MOST time possible out on game drives and with the animals. To make this happen, you can expect some long adventurous days, but believe us; they are completely worth it. Here’s what you can expect from morning until night on every great adventure safari with us, and though your experience may vary, we’ll try to stick as close to this schedule as possible.

No matter which Brave Africa safari package you choose—10 Days or 7 Days (Savuti or Moremi)—you’ll enjoy the same experience.

10-day Safari itinerary

 

Our full 10-day/9-night Botswana wilderness safari through the Okavango Delta will take you to three highly unique areas in this wildlife-dense region. You’ll enjoy everything from the open savannas of Savuti to the lagoon-front setting of Khwai to the heart of the Moremi Game Reserve.

DAY 1 - Arrival at Camp 1 (Savuti or Moremi)

Upon your arrival in Maun, you’ll be met at the airport by your bush flight guide and then transferred to the nearest landing strip either in Savuti or Moremi, depending on where you choose to start your mobile safari experience. You’ll then be picked up at the airstrip by your Brave Africa safari guide to start your first game drive on the way back to camp. Depending on timing, you’ll enjoy a complete afternoon safari experience before heading to camp for the evening where you’ll get settled, enjoy a delicious dinner, and get plenty of sleep for your early morning Day 2

DAY 2 & 3 - All Day at Camp 1 (Savuti or Moremi)

Both days you’ll wake up before sunrise for a quick, light breakfast then head out with your Brave Africa safari guide for your game drive. You’ll explore all over the gorgeous and enchanting Savuti or Moremi landscapes. In each location, you’ll have opportunities to enjoy up-close-and-personal encounters with abundant wildlife and few other cars and humans.

  • Savuti is most well-known for its high concentration of predators as well as its abundant elephant population.  
  • While Moremi is renowned for its big lagoons, notoriously big game, and winding tracks of forests, lush grasslands, and waterways.

Both locations are rated as top game-viewing areas in Botswana, and you’ll find an exciting mix of elephants, zebra, giraffe, red lechwe, waterbuck, leopard, cheetah, wild dog, lion, and more. There’s also an abundance of bird life from world-famous heronries to bee-eaters.

During the cool morning hours, you’ll have the best chance of seeing a hunt, as most animals are more active at this time. Then, as the day heats up, you’ll have the choice of heading back to camp for lunch or staying out on your game drive and eating a cold lunch near an elephant watering hole or wherever your guide chooses. Then, after lunch, continue on your game drive and enjoy a blissful sunset as the animals once again take advantage of the cooler weather to become more active.

You’ll finally head back to camp as the sun sets to enjoy an evening around the campfire. Share your experiences with your fellow safari guests, dive into a delicious hot meal, and then get a great night’s rest in preparation for the next day.

DAY 4 - All Day Game Drive with Travel to Camp 2 (Khwai)

On this early morning, you’ll grab everything you want to bring along with you for an ENTIRE day out in the bush because after your morning game drive in either Savuti or Xakanaxa, you’ll travel either north or south toward Camp 2, the exciting Khwai. The entire drive takes place through game-heavy areas and varying landscapes, so each moment offers up something new and exciting. Around lunch time, you’ll stop for a cold meal out in the bush before continuing on your journey. Finally, when the sun sets, you’ll arrive at your new camp to find everything already set up and waiting for you to enjoy.

While you’re enjoying your all-day safari, our competent and friendly camp staff will be packing up your tent and moving to the new location. They’ll take care of everything and be all set up in Khwai with dinner waiting for you when you finally arrive at camp. This is nothing like transferring between lodges. You won’t even realize you moved locations except for the new landscapes waiting for you to explore.

DAY 5 & 6 - All Day at Camp 2 (Khwai)

Both days you’ll wake up before sunrise for a quick, light breakfast then head out with your Brave Africa safari guide for your game drive. You’ll explore all over the gorgeous and enchanting Khwai landscape, which boasts migrating herds of elephants, extremely rare Roan and Sable antelope, African wild dogs, lion, leopards, spotted hyena, zebra, wildebeest, and more.

As the Khwai concession is mostly dry and made up of sweeping grasslands, forests, and floodplains, you’ll have great game-viewing areas as animals gather around various watering holes and the Khwai river. Located just outside the north-eastern boundaries of the Moremi Game Reserve, Khwai offers unmatched wildlife encounters, including spectacular bird watching opportunities.

During the cool morning hours, you’ll have the best chance of seeing a hunt, as most animals are more active at this time. Then, as the day heats up, you’ll have the choice of heading back to camp for lunch or staying out on your game drive and eating a cold lunch near an elephant watering hole or wherever your guide chooses. Then, after lunch, continue on your game drive and enjoy a blissful sunset as the animals once again take advantage of the cooler weather to become more active.

You’ll finally head back to camp as the sun sets to enjoy an evening around the campfire. Share your experiences with your fellow safari guests, dive into a delicious hot meal, and then get a great night’s rest in preparation for the next day.

DAY 7 - All Day Game Drive with Travel to Camp (Savuti or Moremi)

On this early morning, you’ll grab everything you want to bring along with you for an ENTIRE day out in the bush because after your morning game drive in Khwai, you’ll travel either north or south toward your final location Camp 3—Savuti or Moremi. The all-day drive takes place through game-heavy areas and varying landscapes, so each moment offers up something new and exciting. Around lunch time, you’ll stop for a cold meal out in the bush before continuing on your journey. Finally, when the sun sets, you’ll arrive at your new camp to find everything already set up and waiting for you to enjoy.

 

While you’re enjoying your all-day safari, our competent and friendly camp staff will be packing up your tent and moving to the new location. They’ll take care of everything and be all set up in Savuti or Xakanaxa with dinner waiting for you when you finally arrive at camp. This is nothing like transferring between lodges. You won’t even realize you moved locations except for the new landscapes waiting for you to explore.

DAY 8 & 9 - All Day at Camp 3 (Savuti or Moremi)

Both days you’ll wake up before sunrise for a quick, light breakfast then head out with your Brave Africa safari guide for your game drive. You’ll explore all over the gorgeous and enchanting Savuti or Moremi landscapes. In each location, you’ll have opportunities to enjoy up-close-and-personal encounters with abundant wildlife and few other cars and humans.

  • Savuti is most well-known for its high concentration of predators as well as its abundant elephant population.  
  • While Moremi is renowned for its big lagoons, notoriously big game, and winding tracks of forests, lush grasslands, and waterways.

Both locations are rated as top game-viewing areas in Botswana, and you’ll find an exciting mix of elephants, zebra, giraffe, red lechwe, waterbuck, leopard, cheetah, wild dog, lion, and more. There’s also an abundance of bird life from world-famous heronries to bee-eaters.

During the cool morning hours, you’ll have the best chance of seeing a hunt, as most animals are more active at this time. Then, as the day heats up, you’ll have the choice of heading back to camp for lunch or staying out on your game drive and eating a cold lunch near an elephant watering hole or wherever your guide chooses. Then, after lunch, continue on your game drive and enjoy a blissful sunset as the animals once again take advantage of the cooler weather to become more active.

You’ll finally head back to camp as the sun sets to enjoy an evening around the campfire. Share your experiences with your fellow safari guests, dive into a delicious hot meal, and then get a great night’s rest in preparation for the next day.

DAY 10 - Depart Camp 3 (Savuti or Moremi)

Wake up early on your final morning with Brave Africa for a goodbye breakfast before you head out on your final game drive. You’ll know from the day before when your bush flight will arrive to pick you up, and our safari guide will ensure that you get the most out of your morning and early afternoon as possible before you head out on the remainder of your journey. You’ll get a much game-viewing in as possible before heading to the landing strip in plenty of time to make your bush flight.

Daily Adventure Safari Schedule

 

5:30 AM – Early Wakeup & Light Breakfast

The days start early. Just before sunrise, around 5:30 am, expect your wakeup call. Our staff will stop by your tent to make sure you’re up for the day, normally calling out “Good Morning!” just outside your tent.

We recommend laying out your clothes the night before—with plenty of layers for the cold mornings—so you can get ready quickly.

Once you’re ready, you’ll head to the dining area where our staff will have a light breakfast waiting for you. There will be coffee, tea, juice, muffins, cereal, oatmeal over the fire, and cookies to tide you over. But eat fast…the animals are waiting.

6:00 AM – Start Your Game Drive

Our all-day great adventure safari is exactly what it sounds like—an all-day experience. You’ll be out on the game drive from 6:00 am until 7:00 pm with a few short breaks for snacks, drinks, and lunch out in the bush. This is different from a traditional safari where you are only out on a game drive from 6 – 9 am and from 4 – 7 pm, and it means you get the most out of your African safari experience.

We try to start out either slightly before first light or right after sunrise for your game drive. These cool morning hours are some of the best chances to spot wildlife while they’re active. Big cats and other predators love these early hours for some last minute hunting or finishing off their kill from the night before.

Morning is also a great time for elephants, antelope, buffalo, giraffe, and more to start grazing and moving to watering holes to quench their thirsts. Wild dogs also tend to be most active at this time before the heat of the day makes it too exhausting to hunt.

Your guide will drive you around in this gorgeous early morning light (some of the best lighting for pictures) and give you a chance to see as much as you can see. The dawn offers excellent conditions for wildlife viewing, including birding.

 

9:00 AM – Morning Snack

Depending on how your safari drive is going and how everyone in your car is feeling, you’ll stop for a short break in the bush for additional coffee, tea, juice, and snacks. If you’re seeing/experiencing something spectacular, there’s no schedule and brunch can be completely skipped or eaten later.

This is just a tentative break out in the bush before you’re ready to get back to it and continue your great adventure safari drive until lunch.

12:00 PM – Lunch in the Bush

At Brave Africa, because we believe in great adventure safaris, we keep you out on your safari drive all day long. So, instead of being back at camp for a nap, wondering what’s happening out in the bush, we keep driving. This allows us to range far from camp, giving you more opportunities to see something spectacular in the Botswana wilderness. It also means you get to choose when and where you eat lunch.

Your guide will find a nice shady spot, with nearby animals, to enjoy your lunch. Our staff will have a cold lunch and all the fixings ready to go. With a table and chairs along, you’ll quickly set up for a delicious lunch in the bush. Lunch is a full meal and includes alcoholic drinks and enough food that you’ll feel completely stuffed.

Spend as long as you want enjoying the great food and even better company before packing up and heading back out on your game drive.

2:00 PM – Afternoon Game Drive Continued

After lunch, you’re back out on your game drive. As the afternoon carries on, you’ll notice animals start to become more active again as the weather cools down. During these hours, you’ll continue to explore the wilds to see as much as you can see.

Your guide is an expert tracker and will follow footprints, listen to animal calls, and watch animal behavior to discover hidden gems you could never find on your own. He’ll take you to the best locations and follow the call of the wild, so you have the best chance possible to make a remarkable sighting that you’ll be talking about for years.

6:00 PM – Sundowner

A favorite safari tradition is the afternoon “sundowner.” During this short break, your guide will find a great view of the setting sun and a scenic outlook where you can sit for a little while to enjoy some snacks and drinks before you finish your game drive and head back to camp.

7:00 PM – Arrive at Camp

You’ll arrive back at camp right around sundown and have the chance to wash off the dust of the day and get ready for dinner. If we’re driving around a private concession or conservancy, you may be able to stay out after dark and use a spotlight to look for nocturnal animals, but most often, you’re pretty exhausted by this point and we head back to camp for dinner.

7:30 PM – Dinner

You might not think you’ll be hungry after such a filling lunch and so many snack breaks, but you’ll probably be more than ready to enjoy dinner near the fire pit. Our dinners are a multi-course affair accompanied by your drink of choice. We try to make meals that pay homage to local and continental cuisine, and our chef will meet any dietary restrictions you might have.

9:00 PM – Bed Time

After dinner, you’re welcome to sit around the fire and gaze at the star-speckled beauty of the night sky while you reminisce on your day’s experiences, but you’ll probably be exhausted and ready to retire to your tent for a hot bucket shower and a good night’s rest. After all, the sooner you head to bed, the more quickly the next day arrives and you get to go out on another great adventure safari all over again.

Traditional Safari Schedule

There may be days where your car decides not to go out on an all-day adventure, maybe you’re tired and want a little more time at camp. If that’s the case, your safari schedule will look more like the traditional safari. Instead of an all-day game drive from 6:00 am until 7:00 pm, our traditional safari will take you back to camp for a hot lunch and time to rest.

  • 5:30 AM: Wakeup call and light breakfast
  • 6:00 AM – 9:00 AM: Morning game drive
  • 9:15 AM: Relaxation at camp
  • 12:00 PM: Hot lunch at camp
  • 1:30 PM: More relaxing at camp
  • 3:00 PM: Afternoon tea and prep for evening game drive
  • 4:00 PM – 7:00 PM: Afternoon game drive with sundowner
  • 7:30 PM: Dinner
  • 9:00 PM: Bedtime

The Day You Arrive

What about the day you arrive? How does your great adventure safari work when you don’t arrive until the afternoon?

Everyone’s schedule will be slightly different depending on when your plane lands at the dirt airstrip near your camp. This schedule is not up to us and is set up by your bush flight—they work to accommodate guests at all camps and locations. You’ll typically arrive sometime after lunch and our guide will be at the airstrip to pick you up. We’ll throw your bags in the safari vehicle and immediately head out on an afternoon game drive. If you’ve been traveling for days to get to Botswana, we know you want to jump right in, so we won’t delay. We’ll try to spend as much time as possible out in the bush before heading back to camp for dinner. Remember to check out our Getting Here page for insight on traveling to and from Brave Africa.

The Day You Leave

We’ll know your schedule for flying out the day before you leave and we’ll talk with you about your plans that night. Most often, flights are scheduled out in the early afternoon. This means that you’ll have plenty of time in the morning for a final game drive.

Keeping the same early schedule, we’ll bring your bags along with us as we head out on our final great adventure safari together. You’ll have one last opportunity to experience the best that Botswana has to offer before we drive you to the nearest airstrip in time for your bush flight. Don’t worry; our guide has a radio that can be contacted in case anything changes with your flight plans. We won’t let you miss your flight or force you to sit at the airstrip when your plane is delayed. Our goal is to ensure your Brave Africa experience is top-notch until we say goodbye.