The quiet corner
A great deal of land, and very few beds on it
The strip between the Okavango and Chobe is largely private concession, and it is where the low-volume model shows most clearly.
Where it is
The country between the Okavango Delta and Chobe, watered by the Kwando and Linyanti river systems. Selinda, Linyanti and the neighbouring concessions cover a large area with a small number of camps on it.
Almost all of it is leased rather than public, which is the fact that shapes everything else about a stay here.
What the concession leases permit
- Off-road driving to a sighting, which is not permitted in the national parks and reserves.
- Night drives, opening the entirely different set of animals that move after dark.
- Walking with an armed guide, which on this terrain is genuinely good.
- Very few vehicles, because there are very few beds and the operator controls the area.
That combination is unavailable in Chobe National Park or Moremi at any price, and it is the main argument for putting a concession into a Botswana itinerary rather than building the whole trip around famous names.
What it is good at
Predators. The concessions here have a strong reputation for lion and wild dog, and the ability to drive off-road and at night makes a material difference to what you actually see them doing.
Dry-season elephant. As the interior dries out, elephant concentrate along the water in numbers that are difficult to convey and that are the region’s signature experience.
Emptiness. This is the part of Botswana where you can go a full day without seeing another vehicle, and it is why people who can afford it keep coming back here rather than to the Delta.
What it is not
A water region. There are some boating and mokoro possibilities depending on the concession and the season, but this is predominantly a vehicle-based safari, and anybody expecting the Delta experience will find it different.
It is also at its weakest in the wet months, when the interior greens up, the water is no longer the only water, and the animals disperse across a very large area.
How it fits into a trip
It is the natural partner for a water-based Delta camp, and that pairing is the hardest-working combination in Botswana: boats, mokoro and islands for three or four nights, then vehicles, night drives and elephant for three or four more.
Two genuinely different kinds of day, one short flight apart, and neither of them repeating the other.
What it costs, and why
| Per person per night | What it buys |
|---|---|
| US$800 – 1,200 | Established camps in genuinely good locations, a private vehicle throughout, light-aircraft hops between parks rather than long road transfers, and guiding that is a profession rather than a job. The entry point to a safari that does not compromise. |
| US$1,200 – 1,800 | Camps on private land, where the rules change: off-road driving to a sighting, night drives, walking with an armed guide, and a cap on how many vehicles may attend anything. Usually the point at which people stop comparing safaris on price. |
| US$1,800 – 2,500 | The camps people name when they get home. Six to ten tents, an owner or manager who is present, a guide assigned to you for the stay, and food that would hold its own in a city. |
| US$2,500 – 4,000 | A guide who travels with you from park to park rather than being handed over at each one, private charters on your own schedule, and small camps taken whole for your party. |
| US$4,000 and up | Exclusive-use houses and villas with their own staff, mobile expedition camps built for your route, and private aircraft between countries. Bought for privacy and control rather than for thread count. |
Indicative planning ranges only, per person per night sharing, for a fully inclusive safari — accommodation, meals, park and conservancy fees, guiding, and transport between parks. They are what we see in the market, not a quote and not an official tariff. Your quote will be exact and itemised. International flights are not included.
Concession camps sit high in these bands, and the reason is structural: a large lease with few beds on it has to earn its rent from those beds. You are paying for the land around the camp rather than for the camp.
Ready to turn this into a real itinerary?
Send us your dates, who is travelling and roughly what you want to spend per person per night. Our Botswana specialist comes back within 24 hours with a plan built around them and a costed quote.