Botswana – Savute & Khwai Photo Tour 2023
US$10,795 / person sharing
SPACES AVAILABLE
Please note that costs & dates for 2023 are subject to change as not all our partner properties and local airlines have released their rates. Should we need to revise costs, we will endeavour to keep fees & dates as close to the original.
With vast areas dedicated to ecotourism, Botswana is home to some of Africa’s great wildlife areas, and on this photo tour we will visit two such famous areas: Chobe National Park’s Savute area, and Okavango Delta’s Khwai concession. These are contrasting areas – the Savute is a dry land of grassy plains, small pans and vast broad-leaved woodlands, while the Khwai is home to tall riverine and mopane woodlands, floodplains and lagoons. These areas are recognised as housing excellent wildlife populations, some of the finest game viewing in Africa and wonderful photographic opportunities.
Why This Photo Tour Is For You
Arrival: In Maun, Flight To Savute
Today this fabulous Botswana photo safari will begin as we depart Maun and fly on a scheduled flight to the Savute area. With four nights in this game rich area, we have a lot to look forward to!
Days 2-4: Savute
The Savute is located in north-eastern Botswana’s Chobe National Park, and its status as an incredible wildlife destination was cemented by documentaries detailing the local Lion and Spotted Hyaena interactions, and then the drying up, and years later, re-emergence of the Savute Channel as water started to flow down its serpentine length and into the Savute Marsh. The Savute Channel is currently dry, however the area is renowned for its huge numbers of Elephant that come to quench their thirst at the scattering of pans between the Savute Channel and the Savute Marsh. And then, of course, there are the predators. Lions are commonly seen, with two prides dominant here – the North Pride and the Marsh Pride (the latter renowned as the “Elephant killers” due a habit of catching Elephant from time to time). Whilst Leopard are shy, these beautiful creatures are seen fairly regularly, as too are Cheetah and the endangered apex predator, the African Wild Dog.
Day 5: Flight From Savute To Khwai
Leaving Savute early this morning on our Botswana photo safari, we fly south out of Chobe National Park to the famed Khwai area, which is positioned along the northern edge of the Okavango Delta.
Days 6 To 8: Khwai
The Khwai area is legendary as being home to a high density of predators and has recently earned a strong reputation as being one of the best game areas in Botswana, with healthy populations of Roan and Sable antelope, Cape Buffalo, Plains Zebra, Giraffe and Elephant, and with predators in the form of Leopard, Spotted Hyaena, and African Wild Dog, it is a most exciting area indeed. Lion are uncommon, sometimes crossing from Moremi Game Reserve (which is bordered by the Khwai River) into the concession however Khwai is particularly good for Leopard and African Wild Dog and these will be two of our focus species while in the area.
Day 9: Flight From Khwai To Maun And Depart
After a final morning drive and breakfast, we fly out of Khwai for Maun, where this incredible Botswana photo safari sadly comes to an end!
Testimonials
This was my second private trip with ORYX Photo Tours, combined with my 6th ORYX photo safari group tour. I have two additional ORYX group tours on the horizon. The private trips allow significantly more individual instruction, both in photography and the digital darkroom. In addition, the daily itinerary is totally up to you. Penny Robartes was an exceptional tour leader who constantly gave me invaluable advice on camera settings, animal behavior, composition, and Lightroom processing. While I was very happy with my images and instruction from the group part of the tour, the private tour was a step or two up in quality. I plan to do more private photo tours in the future. I can’t say enough about my experiences with Penny, Dale, and Marius. I can’t imagine traveling with anyone else.
I had the pleasure of meeting Nicolette for lunch prior to my tour. She has been so helpful over the years answering my many questions and making sure everything was arranged.
Our Botswana photo safari to Savute and Khwai went smoothly and without any problems. Our tour leader did a great job helping us with our photographic needs and offered assistance as well. Penny Robartes is very professional, cheerful and a pleasure to have as a tour leader. The camps were very nice, the staff in the camps were delightful and our drivers/guides were very accommodating. Overall, my experience with ORYX Photo Tours was positive.
This was our third photo safari with ORYX Photo Tours and we have a fourth one booked. The itineraries have been spot-on and the guide quality superb. The groups are small so there’s plenty of opportunity for one-on-one feedback and help. The office staff are thoughtful and detail-oriented. This was also our first time traveling with Penny and she was a great tour leader!
Amazing tour with ORYX Photo Tours. Extremely talented and knowledgeable guide, Penny Robartes made this, Mashatu Photo tour, a extremely memorable experience. I spent a week at Mashatu Main Lodge in the Northern Tuli Game Reserve. The small group size, 2 guest to 1 guide, allowed the able to communicate constantly with my guide, Penny, not only gave technical advice but the reasons why certain settings were used along with advice on composition, night photography, etc. Penny was knowledgeable, easy to understand and a joy to be around. You can see how much she loves her job. She took the time between game drives to review my photos and give advice on composition and cropping. On the evening of the 4th day, I injured myself at the lodge and the staff there, as well as Penny and the team at ORYX, took care to make sure that I had the best medical care possible. I was able to get sutured and back on a game drive the following day. Thank you to ORYX Photo Tours for this amazing experience. I will be back!
I spent a week at Mashatu for a Hides and Predators photo tour. The tour was planned for three guests and although one guest cancelled, ORYX ran the tour with only two guests. The small group size offered the opportunity to communicate intensively with the photo tour leader Penny Robartes and so I learned an enormous amount. Penny has immense knowledge and she manages to convey this with her empathetic and good manner. In the run-up to the tour, ORYX took care of all the issues and always made sure that everything went smoothly. The communication was always very transparent and fast. Thanks to the whole ORYX Photo Tours team for letting me enjoy this unique experience!
Penny, I really had a fantastic photo safari in Botswana thanks to you and ORYX Photo Tours for sure! I am still on a bit of a high. Even though this was my third time to Southern Africa and second to Botswana, and each trip has been special, this time having a focus was brilliant and your guidance was invaluable to achieving some excellent photos
