Chobe National Park

Why Chobe National Park works

Chobe National Park holds one of the highest concentrations of elephant on the continent, an estimated 120,000 animals moving through the park across seasons, and nowhere is that abundance more visible than along the Chobe riverfront in the dry winter months, when herds numbering in the hundreds converge on the water at dusk to drink and bathe. A sunset boat cruise along the river is Chobe's signature activity, gliding close enough to photograph elephant swimming between islands, buffalo herds wading through shallows and pods of hippo grunting from midstream, all backlit by some of southern Africa's most reliably spectacular sunsets. Game drives through the park's savannah woodland turn up lion, leopard and the endangered African wild dog, alongside huge herds of Cape buffalo and puku antelope found in Botswana only here. The Savuti region, a few hours inland, has a very different character -- an ancient, marsh channel dry for decades that recently began flowing again, drawing predators and prey to newly available water in dramatic seasonal congregations. Chobe sits a short drive or boat ride from Victoria Falls and Kasane town, making it one of the easiest major safari parks to combine with Zambia or Zimbabwe on a single regional itinerary rather than requiring a dedicated trip of its own.

Trip Snapshot

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