Splash Camp

unusually serious safari guiding and big predator action

Located in the Kwara Concession in the Okavango Delta, Splash Camp is one of the very best safari camps in Botswana.

This particular area of the Okavango Delta is, undoubtedly, the most productive for predator sightings. Between us, we have visited dozens of times and never have we been disappointed.

At times the sightings have been truly extraordinary, with regular hunting sequences, sometimes involving two or three different predator species (such as lions taking a kill off a leopard, then being faced off by spotted hyenas).

Apart from this being a naturally good area for wildlife, the main reason for the reliability of sightings here is the quality of the safari guiding. The owners are arguably the only operators in the country who really take their safari seriously, as most clearly demonstrated by their continued use of spotters on the front of their vehicles, an essential practice that has been conveniently forgotten at most lodges.

Splash Camp was previously used for hunting safaris. Over the decades we regularly visited the spooky dilapidated site. It has been such a delight to see it brought back to life for photographic purposes.

Having witnessed the relentless trend to ever more luxurious properties in Botswana, the owners of Splash Camp have been drawn into following suit. But super-luxury rooms and haute cuisine is not really their strength. What we have here is a perfectly pleasant little property, not too flashy.

With twelve rooms, it’s definitely larger than we would like in a perfect world.

Nevertheless, Splash Camp is one of our primary go-to properties in Botswana. The combination of intense sightings, a lodge which is comfortable without being over-the-top and a price point in the lower third, perfectly hits the spot for so many of our guests.

Out of all the wonderful safari areas in Africa, the Kwara Concession, along with the sister Kwando Concession, would be right up there in our top ten. Top five even. And that’s really saying something.

If you find the very prices here in Botswana a little difficult to swallow, then talk to us about the Nov-Mar low season, when rates are reduced by up to 75% at this family of camps.

Activities

Splash Camp provides the following guided activities …

• Vehicle safari
• Mokoro canoe safari
• Motorboat safari
• Walking safari
• Night vehicle safari

When it comes to trip shapes and durations in Botswana, most visitors combine 2, 3 or 4 lodges by light aircraft over 6-12 nights, one or two of which will usually be here in Okavango Delta, combined with the Linyanti Waterfront and/or Makgadikgadi areas.

These trips are often done in combination with further nights at the Victoria Falls and/or down in the Cape.

The usual stay duration on the Kwando Concession is 3-6 nights, with longer stays often being split between two camps.

Seasonality

The Kwara Concession can be visited year-round, but does experience considerable seasonal variations.

The May-Jun flood season is considered to be a great time to visit, with verdant landscapes and lots of baby animals. Temperatures can drop towards freezing during the night, but the days are gorgeous and there are virtually no insects around. The camps here are primarily focused on vehicle safari, which should be very strong throughout this period. This period is a little early for full flood and mokoro canoe safari, but the camps are usually able to offer motorboat safari in the permanent water channels.

The Jul-Sep dry season is the classic time to visit the Okavango Delta and is considered to be the best time for wildlife viewing as animals are drawn to the floodwaters which are at their peak. This is the high season in terms of prices and visitor numbers but, due to restrictions, traffic issues are only an issue in the public access areas. As well as strong vehicle safari and motorboat safari, mokoro canoe safari should be possible during the early part of this season, but by the middle of August the waters have usually receded.

The Oct-Dec hot season is the transition period between the peak of the dry season and the start of the rains. Temperatures and humidities can become uncomfortably high in advance of the rains. With the floods having receded in most areas, the wildlife becomes very concentrated around the few remaining water sources, making for very strong wildlife viewing. If the rains arrive, the wildlife may disperse somewhat, but sightings remain strong. Water-based activities are unlikely to be available. The camps are significantly discounted during this period.

Jan-Apr is the main green season when the area experiences the majority of its rainfall and temperatures drop slightly. The landscapes tend to be verdant and beautiful, the animals well fed and there’s lots of babies around. Conditions prove dramatically through these months, making late March and the whole of April particularly attractive, especially given the often dramatically discounted prices.

Getting there

The camps in the Kwara area are almost always accessed by light aircraft into the local bush airstrip.

From the airstrip it is a drive of around 45 minutes to Splash Camp, with good chances of some early animal sightings.

Unusually the camp can also be reached by motorboat from the end of the Mopane Tongue. Penetrating the delta by boat can be fun and provide a heightened sense of adventure.

usually combined with sister camps in the Linyanti Kwando area