7 Day Okavango with Chobe & Vic Falls Safari

Once you’ve arrived in Johannesburg and have cleared customs and immigration, you’ll find a representative from African Sky welcoming you to South Africa. After completing a few formalities you’ll be escorted to the appropriate departure terminal where you’ll board a regional flight to Maun in Botswana. On arrival, you’ll be met and assisted in boarding a charter flight into the heart of one of Africa's most remote and untamed places. The Okavango River, rising in the highlands of Angola, never reaches the sea. Instead, its mighty waters disappear into the sands of the Kalahari. Here the thirst-land of the south meets a blue-green wilderness of fresh crystal-clear water, with emerald-green reed beds and towering trees.

Guests spend two nights at Xugana Island Lodge on a full board basis. Two game activities are conducted daily by experienced rangers and trackers in an area where the wilderness and the animals that grace it have largely survived untouched by time and humanity. Depending on water levels, you may explore the channels by boat or mokoro, enjoy guided walks on nearby islands or join vehicle-based game drives in search of elephant, antelope, predator and an impressive variety of bird.

A last morning safari in the Okavango Delta is followed by a charter flight to Kasane, where guests are met and transferred to Chobe Game Lodge. The lodge sits on a hill overlooking the Chobe River. The Chobe National Park is particularly famous for its elephant population, which is among the largest concentrations in Africa. The Chobe Riverfront is an “ecosystem within an ecosystem”, with large daily back-and-forth migrations as animals move into the surrounding woodland during the day to feed, only to return in the late afternoon again to the river to quench their thirst. This area, with the Chobe River marking its northern boundary, offers some of the best game viewing on the African continent. Large herds of plains game and elephant may be viewed in settings that can only be described as breathtaking.

Guests spend two nights at Chobe Game Lodge on a full board basis. Two game activities are conducted daily by experienced rangers and trackers. The game activities consist of either open 4x4 game drives in the national park or enjoying water-based game viewing from a boat on the Chobe River. The sounds of the wild and the cry of the African fish eagle are sure to provide the perfect backdrop to these safaris, while evenings back at the lodge combine river views with the comfort of a classic safari lodge experience.

After a last activity and breakfast in the Chobe wilderness, you’ll be met and transferred by road to the Kazungula Bridge border post. Following immigration formalities, you will cross the Zambezi River into neighboring Zambia and continue by road to Livingstone. The town was established in 1905 by the British South Africa Company and bears the name of the famous missionary-explorer Sir David Livingstone.

The Livingstone Museum still houses the largest collection of his letters and journals and bears testament to the legacy of this legendary man, who spent more than half his life in Africa. He was devoted to the exploration of the continent and the plight of its peoples, who were at the time still brutally exploited by slave traders. A glimpse of the mist rising above the thundering Victoria Falls is followed by check-in at the hotel. The late afternoon is spent at leisure.

The morning is devoted to visiting the falls section of the Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park. The name translates to “the smoke that thunders”, which is the name the locals have bestowed upon the Victoria Falls. The national park offers perfectly placed observation points from which to enjoy the falls. A visit during the dry season may include the added appeal of strolling over to Livingstone Island for a unique (and adrenalin-inducing) perspective of the falls. If time allows, have a look around the local curio market before returning to your overnight accommodation.

In the late afternoon, a sunset cruise is enjoyed on the mighty Zambezi River. Traditional cocktails and snacks are served aboard the riverboat. The sight of the sun setting over one of Africa's most impressive natural arenas will surely be remembered for a lifetime, with hippo, crocodile and birdlife often providing a fitting wild soundtrack.

After breakfast at the Royal Livingstone, there is usually time for a final stroll through the riverfront gardens or a last walk to one of the nearby viewpoints of the Victoria Falls, listening to the distant thunder of the water. Depending on your flight schedule, you may be able to browse the local craft stalls or simply relax on the terrace and watch the Zambezi flow past.

You are then transferred to Livingstone Airport to board your flight to Johannesburg, where on arrival an African Sky representative will be waiting to assist with your private transfer to your hotel or preferred address in Johannesburg or Pretoria. It is a fitting conclusion to a journey filled with water, wilderness and unforgettable safari moments.