Kgalagadi Desert and Pans National Parks

Choose attraction by clicking this tourist map of Botswana.

From the varied lands, there exists abundance of wildlife and natural resources supported by the swamps, river plains and pans around the Makgadikgadi pans which flood during the rainy seasons attracting large flocks of aquatic birds and flamingos

THE KALAHARI DESERT

The Kalahari Desert covers about three-quarters of the western part of the country, characterised by heavy sands to the golden-sand dunes, with shrubs, acacia, open grasslands and horizonless landscapes. Ideal for those in love with the wilderness experience.

GAME RESERVES & PARKS

Khutse Game Reserve

The Khutse Game Reserve (2,500sq.km), hosts animals like giraffe, gemsbok, red hartebeest, eland, kudu, springbok, lion, leopard, cheetah and wild dog.

Khutse is about 210km from Gaborone. Since the roads are rough and sandy, it is advisable for travellers to use 4X4 vehicles only.

There are no lodges in Khutse. However, between Khutse I and Khutse II Pan there is a campsite at Molose Waterhole. Situated in the adjoining areas of the Central Kalahari Game Reserve, are Marushele, Sekusuwe and Khankhe campsites.

Central Kalahari Game Reserve

The Central Kalahari Game Reserve and Khutse Game Reserve make the Kgalagadi Game Reserve Complex, and is the third largest reserve in the world, covering an area of 52,800sq.km.

Offering the beauty of the wilderness, serenity and vast space, the game reserve is the ultimate for tourists with a mind for adventure. The golden Kalahari sands and the unspoiled arid environment make the reserve spectacular. It supports a wide variety of African antelopes including wildebeest, eland, gemsbok, kudu, red hartebeest and springbok, giraffe, lion, cheetah, leopard, wild dog and brown hyena. Game viewing is at its best between November and April when animals gather in the pans and the valleys. The park has nine camping sites, which are partially developed.

Camping sites in the Deception Valley, Sunday Pan, Leopard Pan and Passage Valley, can be reached from Matswere. However, for game viewers intending to make camp in the Piper Pan, Xade is the best entry point.

Gemsbok National Park / Trans-Frontier Park

Through a cooperation between the Botswana and South African Governments, the Gemsbok National Park Botswana which covers an area of about 28, 105 sq.km has been merged with the Gemsbok National Park of South Africa to form, a single ecological unit, the Trans-Frontier Park is managed jointly by both countries.

There are plenty of wild animals, which include wildebeest, eland, hartebeest, gemsbok and springbok. Super predators like lion, leopard, cheetah and hyena can also be viewed.

Camping areas on Botswana side include the Rooiputs camping grounds, some 25km up the Nossob River Valley from the entrance gate. Poletswa grounds lie in the northern section of the Nossob Valley.

In the extreme east of the Park, there are a number of campsites overlooking pans. These include Lesholoago, Khiding, Mabuasehube and Mpaathutlwa.

MAKGADIKGADI NATIONAL PARK

It is a fascinating place with salt-baked ground surfaces. The Makgadikgadi covers an area of about 7, 300sq.km.

Remains of the palaeontogical 'super-lake', which covered most of northern Botswana still lies here as a wide dry expanse covered with salt here and there. It consists mainly of fossil pan floors covered with palatable grass species which are a very important source of food to herbivores like impala, zebra gemsbok and springbok.

Many bird species are attracted by water in pans especially in the rainy season. Some places are not accessible by road during the wet season.

In any season of the year, driving in 4X4 vehicles is advised because the roads in the parks are sandy and rough.

Campsites can be found 48km southwest of the main gate, at Kumaga, which is situated on the banks of the Boteti River. Njuca Hills, an area about 26km south of the main entrance has two camping sites overlooking the vast open grass plains.

NXAI PAN NATIONAL PARK

The park is the home to thousands of wildebeest, zebra and gemsbok, especially around the Nxai pan area. This pan is a fossil lakebed that is part of the geographical complex, which include Makgadikgadi, Ngami, the Mababe depression and the Okavango Delta.

Travellers to this area are sure to enjoy the sight of the golden sands as they drive through the park about 136 kms from the Maun-Nata road. The safest way to drive into this national park is by 4 x 4. The Nxai National Park has two main campsites. The south and north camps are fully developed with toilets, showers, fire pits and water stand pipes.