LODGE OF THE WEEK - CAMP OKAVANGO

CAMP OKAVANGO – OKAVANGO DELTA

Camp Okavango is situated on the remote Nxaragha Island in the heart of the permanent Okavango Delta, assuring a year-round water wilderness experience.

CAMP OKAVANGO OVERVIEW
No. of bedrooms: Eleven safari tents with ensuite bathrooms
East African-style safari tents individually situated on raised teak platforms with en-suite facilities and private sun decks. Each tent is exquisitely furnished with an African teak wardrobe, luggage rack, dressing table, bedside pedestals and traditional director's chairs. Colourful woven rugs, designer linen and matching interior blinds complete the setting. Tea and coffee making facilities are also provided to make guests’ stay as comfortable as possible. For those who demand the ultimate in exclusivity, Camp Okavango boasts the “Okavango Suite” a thatched cottage offering complete privacy and the option of private game-viewing activities and dining options – ideal for honeymooners
Recent refurbishments include changing the old zip-up doors with brand new glass sliding doors as entrances.

Season: 08 Jan 08 – 08 Feb 08 Closed
Ideal length of stay: 2 nights/3 days
Central facilities: Camp Okavango’s elegant thatch and lethaka main lodge building features a cocktail bar, lounge and wildlife reference library. The dining room leads onto an expansive open-air patio for evenings around the fireside.

Other facilities include a secluded bird-viewing hide and a sun-kissed deck with plunge pool for relaxing during the hot midday hours

Game activities: All game-viewing activities are conducted by experienced professional guides and include exploring the Okavango by canoe (mokoro) and motorboat.
Guided nature walks on the various islands allow for opportunity to track some of the larger species that inhabit this water wilderness. Bird-watching opportunities are outstanding, and fishing for bream and tiger fish is also offered as an activity at the camp
Please note that children under the age of 16 years may not take part in any walking or mokoro activities.

Geographics
Distance from airstrip: Camp Okavango has its own private airfield which is located a mere five minutes walk from the main lodge area on Nxarahga Island..
Accessible by: Fly-and-Road Transfer

Management
Owner: Owned, Marketed and managed by Desert and Delta Safaris.

Food & drink
Usual board basis: Full Board
Vegetarians and any particular requirements can be catered for on request.
Dining locations: Indoor and Outdoor Dining
The expansive open air patio caters for al fresco meals and evenings around a blazing fire. For a special dining experience, Camp Okavango's silver service dinner, by candelabra, is renowned
Room service: No room service.
Drinks included: All drinks are included in the nightly tariff, with the exception of premium wines and champagne, premium liqueurs and spirits

Children Policy
Age restrictions: Children 12 years of age and over are accepted.
Meals: Special meals can be organised for children on request.

Central communications
Power supply: Generator
Generator power (AC 220V) is available during the day and evening. Video batteries can be recharged. Rooms are equipped with a 220-volt AC plug for hairdryers and 12-volt DC lighting for nighttime use, after the generator has been switched off
Communications:There is no mobile reception, no direct phone or fax and no email Contact in an emergency is made via radio.
TV & radio: There is no television or radio in your room.

Health & safety
Malarial area: Yes
Medical care: All camp managers are first-aid trained and a comprehensive first-aid kit is kept at camp
In an emergency, camps can arrange for clients to be flown out if necessary.
Security measures: Camp Okavango is unfenced, guests are escorted to their rooms after the dark..
Fire safety: There are extinguishers on the balconies of all rooms.

Extras
Laundry facilities: A full laundry service is included.
Accepted payment: Mastercard and Visa credit cards are accepted. Diners and Amex are not.

BOTSWANA IN THE NEWS

Botswana's tourism scoops awards at INDABA 2008

Durban, South Africa - Botswana's Tourism has received three prizes at INDABA.


The prizes, Best Wildlife Reserve in Africa, Best Ecologically Sound Operation and runner-up to the Best Safari Guiding Team in Africa were presented at a ceremony hosted by the Good Safari Guide, an independent directory of the top safari lodges, hotels and camps in Africa and member of the African Travel and Tourism Association (ATTA).
ATTA is a network of over 360 members representing travel and tourism buyers and suppliers throughout Africa with headquarters in London. The association creates a platform for buyers and suppliers to interact at networking events, trade shows, crisis management and tourism seminars through its links with the media.
The awards honour the best in the safari industry. Nominations in 13 categories are accepted only from qualified travel professionals, with a panel of distinguished industry judges making the final tough decisions.

The Moremi Game Reserve
Voted the Best Game Reserve in Africa, the award was received by Botswana Tourism Board chief executive officer (CEO) Myra Sekgororoane. Receiving the award, Sekgororoane said: "This is a great honour and privilege and highlights that Botswana has fulfilled its aim of protecting its wildlife and wilderness for the benefit of future generations."

Kwando Safaris
Kwando Safaris was voted runner-up in the Best Safari Guiding Team. Charles Sebaga received the prize for his team of guides in Botswana. Also present were the owners John and Louis Mynardt, and the managing director, Sue Smart.

Jack's Camp
Based in the Makgadikgadi Game Reserve, Jack's Camp was voted the Best Ecologically Sound Operation. The prize was received by one of the owners Ralph Bousfield, who expressed his hope that the Makgadikgadi continues to receive support by tourists and operators for its long-term sustainability.

SIGHTINGS AT JACKS CAMP

A mother cheetah and two nearly full grown cubs have been seen around the Makgadikgadi Pan - which is very unusual! Guides at Jacks Camp knew that the cheetah were in the area, as they had spotted cheetah tracks near camp a few days before (One appeared to be chasing an aardvark!).

Cheetah do come near to the Makgadikgadi Pans but it is very rare to see them on game drives.

So imagine the surprize when this cheetah family were found next to the Jacks Camp airstrip in the middle of the day panting over a fresh kill!

Nature always has surprizes up her sleeve!!

LUXURIOUS HOUSE-BOAT SAFARI IN CHOBE AREA

Houseboat safaris are a wonderful way to experience the wilderness of Africa. The boat makes a fantastic photographic platform allowing you spectacular scenery and wildlife shots. Whether you are viewing game from the decks, fishing or relaxing in the sun on the top deck, Houseboat safaris offer you a new way of exploring Botswana.

To view the itinerary, please click on the following link

http://www.experience-botswana.co.za/index.php?id=194&busaction=viewitem&itemid=232&viewtype=searched&newcurrentpage=

Cost: US $1 399 per person sharing

Included:

Day 1: Transfer from Victoria Falls Airport to Victoria Falls Safari Lodge
1 Night Victoria Falls Safari Lodge
Accommodation and Breakfast only whilst at Victoria Falls Safari Lodge
Day 2: Road transfer from Victoria Falls Safari Lodge to Kasane Immigration
Transfer from Kasane Immigration to Ichobezi Houseboat
3 Nights on the houseboat
Accommodation, all meals, local brand beverages, national park fees and activities whilst on the houseboat
Day 5: Boat transfer back to Kasane Immigration (where the safari ends.) If you would like to add on additional nights in Chobe, Savuti, Okavango Delta or transfer back to Vic Falls, please enquire with our travel specialists and they can cost accordingly.

Excluded:
All Visa Fees
Lunch, dinner, beverages and activities whilst at Victoria Falls Safari Lodge
Premium brand beverages whilst on the house boat
Items of personal nature
Travel insurance
Tips / Gratuities

Booking notes:
The costs are valid until 31 December 2008
Should there be any single traveller, please contact us for the single supplement costs
Flights are not included in this package

For more information please contact us on reservations@booking.co.bw.

OUR TIME SPENT WORKING AT LITTLE MOMBO - SHARON & LEIGH KEMP

We had the amazing opportunity to work at Little Mombo Camp in 2003 and 2004

Here is an excerpt from our August 2003 month in camp

August 2003

As August draws to a close, the air is heavy with the scent of the yellow flowers of the candle pod acacia and the vervet monkeys are enjoying a bonanza of jackalberries – and it is consequently raining skins and seeds down on the Tent roofs!!!


Monkeys and Baboons think the Mombo tents are the best jungle gym!!

The game at Mombo continues to more than live up to this area’s awesome reputation. Guests enjoying sundowners in the Mombo Lounge were startled to see two lionesses reclining at the water’s edge just metres away. We have been kept awake most nights by the tingling roaring of territorial male lions, and the sawing cough of a leopard has regularly cut through the night. The hyaena’s ghostly whooping and the deep chortling of very amused hippos adds to the strangely melodic choir. Most times the fruit bats and Scops owls have to struggle to make themselves heard over all this din!!! A porcupine has been regularly running across the floodplain at sundowner time, to the delight of many of our guests who have never seen one of these wonderful creatures.
And all this game is of course seen without even leaving Mombo Camp – one afternoon two of our guests, about to head into the bush on a game drive, were dissuaded when they saw first a herd of buffalos and then a breeding herd of elephants pass by their deck and they opted for have a ‘game siesta’ instead!!

Out in the bush, another phenomenal month. A testament to the quality of the game viewing here is that we have had not one but two National Geographic film crew in the area during August, one concentrating on leopards, and the other on the re-introduced rhinos.



The Tortillis female leopard, one of the Mombo regulars, is still fully occupied in bringing up her latest cub – Legadema, now approximately three months old. This cub easily wins out on the cuteness stakes and we have seen some wonderful suckling and playing behaviour between the two coolest cats at Mombo! Legadema’s every mood delights all who see her, and her new game of catch mother’s tail provides endless fun, and not just to the cub. The mother has been doing well in hunting to provide milk for her growing offspring, and just recently we have seen the cub take its first tentative mouthfuls of the impala that will form the mainstay of her diet throughout her life at Mombo.

This young life almost came to an abrupt end one day when the mother was surprised and chased by a troop of baboons. She managed to evade them and at the same time lead them away from where Legadema was hiding, wisely lying low until it was safe to emerge again. A few heart-stopping moments when it looked as if the cub might be discovered, but the game of hide and seek resulted in a total victory for the leopards.


We have seen more elephants than usual in this area, drawn to the water sources, and some of these breeding herds have very young calves – one, still not old enough to use his trunk to drink, struggled to kneel down to get his mouth to the water and at the same time keep up as his herd crossed a channel – there is a lot to learn for a young elephant in the bush………
The Mombo lions continue to do well, bringing down zebra and even one tsessebe. Even Africa’s fastest antelope can’t outrun a cleverly sprung trap. The cheetah are in the area in strength at present, with the veteran Steroid Boys showing that they still have what it takes.

A family staying at Mombo this month was desperate to see a kill but after three days their slightly bloodthirsty dream had not come true. As they sat at the airstrip eating their specially prepared kosher sandwiches, a lioness obliging tripped and strangled a warthog right in front of them. Hopefully they weren’t put off their lunch…….



View from our staff house at Little Mombo!







Mombo is truely a paradise in Africa..............

LODGE OF THE WEEK - LITTLE MOMBO CAMP

The various seasons as photographed from Tent 3 at Little Mombo ....

LITTLE MOMBO - MOREMI GAME RESERVE

Situated off the north-western tip of Chiefs Island and deep within the Moremi Game Reserve is the paradise called “Mombo”
Large concentrations of wildlife occur right in front of Mombo Camp and can be viewed all day from the main deck or from the privacy of your luxury tent. It is quite possible to see up to twelve different mammal species from the comfort of your sala
As a year-round, exclusive wildlife destination, Mombo has a record unequalled in Africa – this is especially the case with the major predators. The Mombo area provides one of the highest quality wildlife viewing opportunities in Africa.. Elephant, Buffalo, Lion, Leopard, Cheetah and all the major predators are common in the region. Birdlife is prolific and so a haven for bird-watchers too! The excellent game at Mombo has made this area Botswana's top wildlife documentary location. National Geographic, the BBC and many others have filmed here.

The most recent film was the ‘Eye of the Leopard” by Dereck and Beverly Joubert - It is the story of a mother and daughter leopard relationship as well as that of an emerging huntress in Botswana’s magnificent Mombo region of the Okavango Delta. Legadema - A small leopard is filmed from when she is just 8 days old until she is 3 years old and on the brink of adulthood.

September 2007 - 28th Academy of Arts and Science, EMMY Awards Ceremony

Eye of the Leopard and its producers, Dereck and Beverly Joubert were honoured as winners of an Emmy Award for Best Science, technology and Nature film on television for the year.

The film was shot over a period of three years, using the finest High Definition imaging equipment, by Dereck and Beverly to enable them to capture the details of this intimate story of a young leopard as she survives the trials and tribulations of growing up in one of the world's most wild and truly natural wildernesses, the Okavango Delta in Botswana.

LITTLE MOMBO OVERVIEW
No. of bedrooms: Three super luxury tents- Little Mombo can accommodate six guests plus tour leader (Mombo Camp has nine luxury tents)
Season: Open Year Round
Ideal length of stay: 3 nights/4 days
Central facilities: Little Mombo offers travelers- small groups or families- the exclusivity of a "private" camp all to themselves. Little Mombo is connected to the main camp via the raised walkways which connect all the guest rooms and both camps. Little Mombo has only three rooms, but it can be increased by booking out rooms from Mombo main camp. The rooms at Little Mombo and main camp are identical and it has its own dining room, kitchen, lounge and swimming pool. The game drive areas are the same and Little Mombo offers the same activities and high-standard experience as at main camp. Little Mombo have a boma for outdoor dining under the stars. For honeymooners, there is a private lounge with sala and a private dining deck
· Game activities: Game drives via 1 x 10-seater open Land Rover for 6 guests
· Private vehicle on request (maximum 5 vehicles in the concession with 3 primarily being used at Mombo main camp, one at Little Mombo and one available for private vehicle booking).
· Short game walks can be offered during siesta time on request. Please note that no rifles are allowed in the Park

Geographics
Distance from airstrip: Little Mombo is 15 minutes drive from the airstrip.
Accessible by: Fly-and-Road Transfer
Flying times:
To/from Maun 30 minutes
To/from Kasane 1hr 20 minutes

Management
Owner: Owned, Marketed and managed by Wilderness Safaris.

Food & drink
Usual board basis: Full Board
Vegetarians and any particular requirements can be catered for on request.
Dining locations: Indoor and Outdoor Dining
Room service: No room service.
Drinks included: All drinks are included in the nightly tariff, with the exception of premium wines and champagne, premium liqueurs and spirits

Children Policy
Age restrictions: Children 8 years of age and over are accepted.
Meals: Special meals can be organised for children on request.
Notes: Little Mombo is a open camp with dangerous wildlife in the area. The rooms and walkways are raised on wooden walkways.

Central communications
Power supply: Generator
Camp has 220v generator powered electricity run in kitchen and main areas when guests are not in camp. When guests return from daily activities, generators generally switched off
220v plugs available in each room for the charging of batteries only 24hrs/day. Guests must provide own power converters.
Solar-heated water
Communications:There is no mobile reception, no direct phone or fax and no email Contact in an emergency is made via radio.
TV & radio: There is no television or radio in your room.

Health & safety
Malarial area: Yes
Medical care: All camp managers are first-aid trained and a comprehensive first-aid kit is kept at camp
Wilderness have an affiliated nurse who is based in Maun and can always be contacted for further medical advice. In an emergency, camps can arrange for clients to be flown out if necessary.
Dangerous animals: High Risk
Security measures: Little Mombo is unfenced, guests are escorted to their rooms after the dark. Sirens are provided in the rooms in case of an emergency.
Fire safety: There are extinguishers on the balconies of all rooms.

Extras
Laundry facilities: A full laundry service is included.
Money: There are safe deposit boxes in the rooms.
Accepted payment: Mastercard and Visa credit cards are accepted. Diners and Amex are not.

NEW PRESIDENT OF BOTSWANA

Festus Mogae stood down as Botswana’s president on 01 April, after a decade in which his country cemented its status as one of Africa’s success stories. Mogae, handed over the reins of power to his long-time heir apparent, Ian Khama.

The new Botswana president is the son of the country’s respected founding president, Sir Seretse Khama. His late father is still a revered figure in Botswana, while the traditional hereditary chieftainship carries a lot of weight and attracts praise, unquestioning loyalty and authority.
Ian Khama obtained his military training at Britain’s famous Sandhurst Academy and took over command of the Botswana Defence Force (BDF) in 1989 when General Merafhe retired to join elective politics.
In 1998, Mr Khama was plucked from the military by his political mentor and predecessor, Festus Mogae, and appointed vice-president.

Excerpt taken from his inaugation speech, President Ian Khama said:

I am confident in the future, and I am determined to build upon the solid foundation that has already been laid since independence by my predecessors. For me to succeed, we must all be growing in success. No one can achieve anything on his or her own. This is our country, the only country we have. Botswana can achieve greater success only if we show a collective will and when we all participate fully in her affairs.
Therefore whatever we do or whatever we say must be done and said in the best interests of this country.....