When to go to the Okavango Delta?
→ The detailed month-by-month page, with real weather records
Best time: May to October (flood season and dry season)
At a glance
Why go to the Okavango Delta?
The Okavango is a river that goes nowhere. Born in the Angolan highlands, it runs 1,200 kilometres, crosses the Caprivi Strip, then fans out into the sands of the Kalahari and evaporates almost entirely. The result is an inland delta that reaches 15,000 km² at the peak of the flood, a mosaic of channels, islands born from termite mounds and flooded grasslands. UNESCO added it to the World Heritage list in 2014, as the thousandth site on its list.
Its great peculiarity lies in the calendar. The rains fall in Angola from January to March, but the water takes around a month to cross the desert: the flood therefore reaches the delta between May and August, in the middle of the local dry season. While the Kalahari dries out, the delta fills up, and wildlife from across the region converges on it. That is why the best time for boating coincides with the best time for game viewing, from June to September.
Botswana has made a deliberate choice of scarce, expensive tourism, with private concessions capped in beds and vehicles. An eight-tent camp sometimes has 200 km² to itself, and you can spend a whole day without passing another 4x4. The country is home to around 130,000 elephants, the largest population on the continent, as well as the world's biggest population of African wild dogs. It comes at a price, but the experience has no equivalent in East Africa.
Map of the Okavango Delta: what is where?
The map shows the 6 places covered in this guide, to picture the distances and plan your route.
- Chief's Island
- Xakanaxa, Moremi
- Khwai
- Shakawe and the Panhandle
- Maun
- Third Bridge
How much does a trip to the Okavango Delta cost?
Botswana has opted for low-volume, high-cost tourism, and the delta is its showcase. Light-aircraft flights, bed quotas and full board in remote camps set a high floor. Self-drive camping and the community areas remain the only two real ways in on a limited budget.
| Style | Per day | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Backpacker | €150-250/day | Shared 4x4 and self-drive camping in Moremi, mokoro trip from Maun, groceries bought in town |
| Comfort | €350-500/day | Khwai community camps or Moremi lodges, light-aircraft transfers, guided outings morning and evening |
| Premium | €900+/day | Private concession camps on Chief's Island, private charter flights, a scenic flight and a guided bush walk |
Pula are available from the cash machines in Maun, the last ones before the bush, and cards are accepted in town but rarely in the camps, which bill everything in advance. A tourist levy of around 30 dollars is paid on arrival or online before the trip. Bring cash for tips, around 10-20 dollars a day for the guide and the same again for the camp staff.
Is the Okavango Delta safe?
The delta poses no crime risk: the camps are isolated, theft is almost unheard of and Maun stays calm by day and night. The dangers come from the wildlife and the climate. No camp is fenced, elephants and hippos wander along the paths at night, and walking alone after sunset is forbidden: a member of staff escorts you with a torch. Never run, and never block a hippo's path to the water; it is the animal that kills the most people in southern Africa. Swimming is out of the question everywhere, crocodiles included. Malaria circulates from November to June in the north of the country, with preventive treatment recommended and long clothing in the evening. Finally, the camps are several hours from a hospital: insurance covering air evacuation is essential, and the comprehensive first-aid kits stay at the camp.
What to see and do in the Okavango Delta
- The channels by mokoro
- Moremi Game Reserve
- Chief's Island
- A scenic flight over the delta
- Khwai Community Area
- The Panhandle and Shakawe
- Maun and the Thamalakane River
- A guided bush walk
Chief's Island
The largest island in the delta, roughly 70 km by 15, a former hunting reserve of the Batawana chief that has become the heart of Moremi. When the flood rises, the water shrinks the dry land and concentrates the wildlife on its grasslands and thickets, with herds of elephant and buffalo, lions used to crossing the channels and wild dogs visible several days running. The concessions around it limit vehicle numbers, and access is by light aircraft only from Maun, a twenty-five-minute flight over the lagoons.
Xakanaxa and Moremi Game Reserve
Created in 1963 by the Batawana community, the reserve covers 4,871 km² and protects the eastern third of the delta. Within a few square kilometres, Xakanaxa Lagoon brings together one of the richest heronries in southern Africa, crocodile-lined banks and riverine forests where leopards rest during the day. It is reached by track from Maun, four to five hours of sand, or by plane. The public campsites are booked months ahead and have no fence between the tents and the bush.
Khwai Community Area
On the north-eastern edge of Moremi, the village of Khwai manages its own territory and keeps the income from it. The difference is tangible: off-road driving allowed to follow a big cat, night drives with a red spotlight, and guided walks that are banned in the neighbouring reserve. The Khwai River, lined with fig trees and reeds, draws elephants in the late afternoon, and hippos gather in its pools. It is one of the best areas in the country for wild dogs, and prices stay lower than in the private concessions.
The Panhandle
In the north-west, the river still flows between two parallel fault lines, in a papyrus corridor 15 km wide and about a hundred kilometres long, before spreading out. It is the part most accessible by road and the least visited. Birders come for Pel's fishing owl, goliath herons and the skimmers that nest on the sandbanks; anglers come for tigerfish. The Tsodilo Hills, with their thousands of World Heritage-listed rock paintings, are an hour's drive along the track from Shakawe.
Maun and the Thamalakane River
The gateway to the delta, a town of 60,000 on a river that marks the southern edge of the fan. Everything starts from its airport: every morning, dozens of Cessnas take off for the camps' dirt airstrips, around twenty minutes' flight away. The town itself mixes shopping centres, ilala palm basket-weaving workshops, guides' bars by the water and donkeys roaming the road. It is the last place to stock up, the last cash machine and the last reliable internet connection before the bush.
Third Bridge and the Mokoro Channels
In the heart of Moremi, a log bridge laid across a channel marks one of the delta's best-known campsites and the starting point for many canoe trips. The mokoro follow channels opened and kept clear by passing hippos, between papyrus and blue water lilies. The poler stands and pushes with a pole, at eye level with the reed frogs and the jacanas running across the leaves. Swimming is out of the question: hippos and crocodiles share the same waters, and the polers know which pools to avoid.
How many days, and which itinerary?
Four nights in the delta is a realistic minimum given the light-aircraft transfers. Seven to ten days let you combine two camps in different settings, water and dry land, and two weeks let you add the elephants of Chobe and then Victoria Falls on the Zimbabwean side.
🗺️ Day-by-day itinerary · 📓 Free printable Okavango Delta guide (PDF) · 🌍 All of Botswana
The delta in 4 nights
Fly to Maun, then by light aircraft to a wetland camp for two nights, with mokoro and motorboat outings, followed by a twenty-minute transfer to a dry-land camp around Khwai or Moremi for two nights of 4x4 game drives. This water-and-land combination is standard with every operator, because a single camp only gives access to half the activities. A short but packed format, to book six months ahead for July and August.
Delta and Kalahari in 10 days
Three nights in the delta, split between a water camp and a land camp, then a flight to the Makgadikgadi Pans for two nights of quad biking on the salt crust and meerkats used to people. Back via the Central Kalahari Game Reserve for two nights, with the black-maned lions of Deception Valley. Finish in Maun. This circuit alternates between the country's most extreme landscapes and is done almost entirely by light aircraft.
Botswana and Victoria Falls in 14 days
Four nights in the delta, three nights on the Chobe River at Kasane, where herds of elephants come down to drink at sunset, then across the border to Victoria Falls, an hour and a half's drive away. Allow two nights on the Zimbabwean side to see the falls from above and below. The flow peaks from April to June and is lower but easier to see from October to December. Fly back from Victoria Falls to Johannesburg.
Getting there and getting around
Everything goes through Maun, linked to Johannesburg by several daily 1h45 flights and to Kasane by a domestic connection. From Europe, expect a stopover in Johannesburg and around 20 hours door to door including the connection.
The delta camps are reached by light aircraft with five to twelve seats, fifteen to forty minutes' flight from Maun, €150-300 one way. The baggage allowance is limited to 20 kilos in a soft bag with no frame, and passengers are weighed along with their luggage.
Travelling independently, you need a 4x4 with low-range gearing, two spare wheels and an extra fuel tank. The tracks in Moremi are deep sand with log fords, and the Third Bridge crossing is taken at walking pace. Hire costs around €180-250 a day, rooftop tent included.
Within the delta itself, you get around by mokoro, by motorboat on the deep channels or by 4x4 on the islands, depending on the flood level. The camps organise everything; there is no public transport beyond Maun.
Where to stay in the Okavango Delta?
Private concession camps have six to twelve tents on stilts, with guided outings morning and evening, full board and drinks included. Expect €500-1,200 per person per night in high season, half that from November to March.
The community camps of Khwai and the lodges of Moremi offer simpler tents at €200-400 per person, with the same activities but less all-encompassing service. The best value for money in the delta.
The reserve's public campsites, Third Bridge, Xakanaxa and South Gate, are booked months ahead for around €40 per person per night. Basic facilities, no fence, and hyenas visit the pitches at night.
In Maun, lodges and guesthouses on the Thamalakane charge €40-170 a night and act as a staging post before and after the delta. Many store excess luggage while you head off by light aircraft.
Our places to stay, stop by stop, at three budgets →
What to eat in the Okavango Delta?
In the camps, meals are included and set the rhythm of the day: coffee before the dawn outing, brunch on your return, afternoon tea and dinner served at the table under the stars. The kitchens easily cater for dietary needs flagged when booking.
Botswanan cooking is built on seswaa, beef or goat boiled for hours then shredded, served with maize pap and pumpkin leaves. You will find it in Maun's local eateries for €4-7 a plate.
Maun's restaurants also serve grilled meats, river fish and Indian food, at €10-20 a dish. The marula fruit, used to make a creamy liqueur known far beyond the country, is harvested from February to March.
Take water and supplies if you are travelling independently: beyond Maun, there is nothing left to buy. The camps provide filtered water and refill bottles, and consumption easily reaches three litres a day in October.
Entry requirements
Visa-free for up to 90 days for EU, UK, US, Canadian and Australian passports. The passport must be valid six months beyond arrival, with three blank pages. Anyone travelling with a child must carry the child's full birth certificate.
Rules change: check your own government's travel advice before you go.
Frequently asked questions about the Okavango Delta
When is the best time to go?
From June to September, when the flood from Angola fills the delta while the region is in the depths of the dry season. The water is high for mokoro trips, the vegetation is low and the animals gather at the waterholes. October is still excellent for wildlife but often tops 35°C. From November to March, prices drop by half and the migratory birds arrive.
Can you visit the delta without staying in a luxury camp?
Yes, in two ways. Self-drive camping in Moremi Game Reserve with a 4x4 hired in Maun, provided you book the pitches several months ahead. Or the Khwai community campsites and two-day mokoro trips from Maun, from €150 per person, with polers from the nearby villages.
How many nights should you plan?
Four nights at least, split between a wetland camp and a dry-land camp, because a single location only gives access to half the activities. Seven to ten nights let you add the Kalahari or the Makgadikgadi Pans. Light-aircraft transfers each take up half a day, so factor them in.
Is the mokoro dangerous?
The canoe is stable as long as you stay seated and still, and the polers know the hippo pools and always steer round them. Outings stop when the wind picks up. Swimming, however, is out of the question everywhere in the delta, as crocodiles and hippos share the same channels. Most operators provide a life jacket.
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