BOTSWANA DESTINATIONS
Here is a selectionof places to visit, arranged
geographically. We have included
short descriptions of locations
and highlighted what we
regard as being
special about
them.
A visit to Botswana is not complete without a visit to the Eastern side of the country.
The landscape alone will leave you breathless.
FRANCISTOWN
Francistown is the second largest city in Botswana and is an attractive town with all the necessary facilities – from shopping malls to hotels. It came into being during the gold rush period in the nineteenth century – although mining gold on a large scale never materialised. However, in the last few years, an Australian gold mining company has started prospecting again outside the city.One of early gold diggers, Daniel Francis, bequeathed his name to the town. Recently, copper and nickel have been discovered.
Francistown is a stop over town for visitors to Zimbabwe (Bulawayo is only 180 kilometres away) and for travellers heading to the west (Chobe, Moremi and the Okavango Delta). There are several comfortable hotels in town and some offer camping sites. There are also several bed and breakfast establishments in town. Not far from town, there are some good lodges on private game reserves and an excellent self-catering/camp site.
- A good stop over point for provisions and easy access to Zimbabwe
- An interesting museum
- Shopping malls with all necessary requirements
- Good road access from Gaborone/Maun/Zimbabwe
- Air services to/from Gaborone, Kasane, Maun and Johannesburg
- Hotels offering varied accommodation
- Bed and breakfast and guest houses
- Lodges outside town offering accommodation, camping and meals
SEROWE
Serowe is the birthplace of Seretse Khama, the country’s first president and the capital of the Bangwato tribe and therefore the largest tribal ‘village’ in Botswana. For some, it is one of the most attractive villages in the country with its clusters of circular thatched traditional Tswana homes.The Khama 111 Memorial Museum is in Serowe and is worth a visit for those interested in royal memorabilia and traditional cultural artefacts.
Near to the town lies the 4,300 hectare Khama Rhino Sanctuary, established in 1992 as a refuge for the few white rhino left in Botswana in the 1980s. As well as rhino the park also boasts zebra, antelope (including the tsesebe), giraffe and a good number of grassland bird species. It is a wonderfully relaxing place to visit. The sanctuary has small campsites with excellent rustic facilities and chalets – offering self catering or catered stays. With no electricity and only paraffin lamps, the spectacular night skies enhance the charm of the location.
Recently, black rhino have been introduced into the sanctuary. The aim of the sanctuary is to build up the populations of rhino and eventually release them back into the wilds of Botswana.
- Close encounters with rhino
- Tranquil and relaxing setting
- Road from Gaborone or Francistown
- Well appointed campsites and ablutions
- A-frame rustic chalets
- Stone chalets
THE TULI BLOCK
This corner of the south-eastern part of Botswana, bordering the Limpopo River, is a ruggedly beautiful area of low shrubs and mopane trees and granite outcrops. Mashatu, which encompasses much of the Tuli Block, is one of the largest privately owned game reserves in southern Africa.It is also home to a large herd of elephants known as the ‘relic herds of the Shashe’ – remnants of a herd of elephants that roamed the Limpopo Valley which were decimated in the ivory hunts of the nineteenth century.
The 30,000 hectare reserve is a great wilderness to visit and seeing lion, leopard and hyena are almost guaranteed. There is also a good bird population (some 400 species have been identified). The well-trained guides from Mashatu, all on radio-linked vehicles, ensure that game is easily located on morning and evening game drives.
This is also home to the stately Mashatu trees. The reserve has two luxury lodges – one with a chalet enclave and a tented camp and the other with thatched chalets. The Tuli area has developed significantly over the years and outside Mashatu, other lodges have been built in private concessions. There is also a horse back riding company in the Tuli and the environment provides for a thrilling horseback adventure among the prolific wildlife in the area.
- Horseback safaris
- Access into Mashatu itself is not possible by private vehicle. Guests are met either at the small Platjan border post with South Africa or at the new tarred runway.
- Access to other lodges and camps is by road or guests can be collected from Limpopo airfield.
- Luxury chalet or tented camp accommodation on a fully inclusive basis.
