Safari in the Linyanti Waterfront

renowned for intense predator action

Located in the north of Botswana, Linyanti Waterfront is one of our favourite locations in Africa for wildlife viewing, a superb safari area especially renowned for huge herds of elephants, intense predator action and wild-dog denning.

The Linyanti is one of those lesser-known places which only real safari enthusiasts tend to know about and fully appreciate, it’s certainly one of our all-time favourite spots.

The area is divided into four superb private concession areas, each containing just a few small camps only accessible by light aircraft, all of which offer pristine remote safari.

The area we recommend most frequently is Linyanti Kwando, a prime private safari area with guest accommodation in just two earthy camps, and offering a range of intense safari activities, with superb guiding and awesome wildlife.

For very high-end safaris, we often recommend Linyanti Selinda, which contains two of the most polished lodges in the country. The area offers a wide range of wet and dry safari activities, with strong wildlife and extraordinarily elegant hospitality.

Linyanti East is a high quality and very productive private safari area, with guest accommodation in a handful of high quality camps and lodges and offering a similarly wide range of safari activities.

Chobe Enclave is a private sector of Chobe National Park which provides a remote and high quality safari experience along the scenic Linyanti River, with guest accommodation in three earthy camps, also offering a wide range of wet and dry safari activities.

Safari planning

When it comes to trip durations in Botswana, most visitors combine 2, 3 or 4 lodges by light aircraft over 6-12 nights, one of which will usually be here in Linyanti Waterfront, often in combination with further nights at the Victoria Falls and/or down in the Cape.

Seasonality

It is important to understand the seasonality of safari in Linyanti Waterfront.

The most popular period is the Jun-Oct dry season, when the flood arrives from Angola. The resulting waterfront and marshes act as a magnet for wildlife from a vast dry hinterland, providing some of the richest and most reliable wildlife viewing on the continent, comparable with the nearby Okavango Delta.

Prices during this season are unavoidably high, in the range USD 1000-4500 per person per night.

These prices are around 30% higher than equivalent properties in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Kenya and Tanzania, around 50% more than South Africa.

The Linyanti Waterfront is so rich that even the converse months can deliver prolific sightings.

During this Nov-Mar green season, discounts of over 50% are not uncommon, with prices from as low as USD 500 per person per night.

The conditions in the early part of that season can be a little challenging, but Feb-Mar is much improved, with lots of wildflowers and baby animals, making this something of a ‘secret season’.

The intermediate Apr-May season is a really nice time to be in the bush, with prices towards the upper end of the range. Notably the wild-dogs often go to den during May, which is a major highlight of the safari calendar.

Getting there

Access to the Linyanti Waterfront is usually by light aircraft from Kasane, Maun and other camp airstrips.

great value in the green season