Botswana Family Safari and Victoria Falls

Following your international flight, you will be taken to your island home at Kanana Camp. Surrounded by a necklace of islands and waterways, the huge variety of game and birds will immediately be apparent.

On arrival you will be met and introduced to your guide who will fill you in on what to expect during your stay here.

The huge range of activities will keep the whole family occupied. You can go on game drives – which often stretch into the night – walking safaris, boating trips, mokoro canoes and fish.

And depending on the season, a visit to the nearby heronry can be organised to witness the arrival of Africa’s famous migratory birds. 

With a landscape similar to the Okavango Delta and an open border alongside the Chobe National Park, the Linyanti Wetlands showcase some of the best scenery and wildlife that Botswana has to offer.

This game-rich region is also remarkably accessible from Botswana’s other popular safari locations, making it a favourite central point in any safari itinerary.

The Kwando, Selinda and Linyanti concessions may each have slightly different landscapes and wildlife, but each boasts world-class lodges and camps and truly phenomenal guides. Large breeding herds of elephants are a defining experience here, whether you are watching them swim or simply hearing them trumpet their way towards water nearby.

Known as the world’s largest waterfall thanks to its 108 m height combined with a vast 1708 m width, Victoria Falls deserves its reputation as a globally iconic destination.

At its peak, approximately 5 million cubic tonnes of water cascade over the falls every minute, creating a rising mist and resounding roar that can be seen and heard for miles around.

Commonly referred to by their Lozi name of ‘Mosi-oa-Tunya’ meaning ‘The Smoke That Thunders”, Victoria Falls is a bucket list destination for many and the ideal start or end to a Southern-Africa itinerary.

As well as exploring the falls, you can canoe along the Zambezi, go white water-rafting or explore the abundant wildlife on a game drive or walking safari.

In Victoria Falls National Park you can expect a huge variety of activities sure to give all of the family an adventure of a lifetime.

Kanana Camp is a luxurious tented camp that lies on a small island in the southwest of the Okavango Delta. The camp is on the Xudum River surrounded by a necklace of islands with palms, figs, ebony and knobthorn trees.

Kanana Camp has nine spacious and airy tents, each with ensuite bathrooms and private decks overlooking the seasonal floodplains. The family tent can sleep up to a group of five.

The tents are connected by wooden walkways and hidden elephant pathways to the main area, which is based around an ancient strangler fig tree. The camp’s two-level sleep-out deck is about a fifteen minute drive away from camp, ideal for those looking to experience a more traditional bush experience.

Today you will make your way to Selinda Explorers Camp, a camp housing only ten guests in a prime game spot in the Linyanti.

Camp life centres around the Bedouin-style main living area, furnished with campaign-style furniture and traditional Zanzibari soft furnishings. Guests can sit back around the traditional fire pit, feet in the sand, sharing stories of their day’s adventures.

Every tent has its own rustic charm, combining the canvas canopy with luxurious Persian carpets, hot showers and private verandas. The conjoining family room means that kids are reassuringly close, but have their own bathroom, dressing room and washbasin.

You will stay for three nights at the understated and family-friendly Batonka Guest Lodge. Roam Batonka’s rolling gardens, take a quick dip in the pool or cool down with a cold drink on the main lodge’s breezy verandah.

Perfect for a family trip to this iconic destination, eight of the well-appointed guest rooms have interleading doors and a dedicated family-suite features a cosy children’s bedroom.

Once refreshed, you can explore the huge variety of activities on offer in Vic Falls. If you’re feeling adventurous you can take a half-day canoeing safari on the Zambezi River or traverse the historic Victoria Falls bridge – 128 metres above the crashing water below.

The camp’s location in the Kanana private concession, adjacent to the lush Moremi Game Reserve, offers an unparalleled variety of habitats for game.

The Okavango Delta is a twitcher’s heaven, with motorboat access to the nearby heronry where many migratory birds come to nest, including yellow-billed, open-billed and marabou storks, reed cormorants, pink-backed pelicans, grey herons and sacred ibis.

The whole family can enjoy the unique experience of canoeing along the nearby Selinda Spillway. 

Travel silently along the river, without the need for a motorised engine. Not only does this lead to a more tranquil experience but means that birds and animals are less likely to take fright.

If you’re all about the wildlife, the surrounding national parks mean that there is almost too much to choose from. Walk with white rhinos in Mosi O Tunya National Park in nearby Livingstone, go on a horse riding safari or spot crocodiles and bathing elephants from Siduli Hide.

Families wanting to taste the classic safari experience can also opt for a more conventional game drive in the morning or afternoon.