What does it cost to go on safari in the Okavango Delta?
Okavango Delta safaris start from around US$150 per day for an all-inclusive package - everything including your shuttle service to and from the delta, accommodation, game viewing and meals. You can, however, spend much more than this if you would like to customize the trip or scale up a bit.
Know the safari cost factors before you book
Which month you travel, how luxurious your accommodation is, and the area of the delta you're visiting all make a difference, as we will break down for you below. Knowledge is power, enabling you to spend more on what matters to you, and less on the things that don't. The news is good: there is an Okavango safari to suit every budget.
The Okavango Delta is a wild, pristine, watery paradise. Spread over about 15 000 km2 in the north-western region of Botswana, this emerald oasis is made up of thousands of islands amongst the waterways and lagoons, in stark contrast to the rest of the country’s desert. Filled with wildlife and birds, the beauty of this area has to be seen to be believed.
Here, life moves slowly and gently along waterways, hippos grunting, crocodiles watching with beady eyes and a plethora of birds flitting amongst the bush. It’s an idyllic place and our trips that include the Okavango are extremely popular.
Okavango Delta elephant
A question we’re often asked is what an Okavango Delta safari costs in this unspoiled region of southern Africa. The answer is not a simple one and takes numerous factors into consideration. In this blog, we’ll go through them one-by-one, so that you can get your budget organized and book your dream Okavango trip through one of our knowledgeable consultants.
Please note: The prices quoted here are correct at the time of going to press (April 2019). Price ranges quoted are per person sharing, per day (range: low to high season).
Accommodation type
Are you willing to rough it a little (it is Africa, after all!) or do you need all your creature comforts to survive? Whatever your needs, there’s an accommodation type to suit you. As to be expected, though, the fancier and more upmarket, the more expensive.
Basic camping: US$150 to US$200 (full participation); US$200 to US$300 (semi-participation)
Don’t expect flushing toilets and hot showers here. The basic camping option is just that: basic. It involves a 2-man dome tent, which you’ll need to set up and pack away yourself. Inside the tent, you’ll have a sleeping mattress and sleeping bag and more-often-than-not, ablutions will consist of a bucket and spade.
Camping safari costs
Some camping safaris are full participation i.e. you’ll be involved in the daily running of camp, too, like cooking and cleaning (cheapest option), while others are semi-participation, i.e. cooking, cleaning and other chores are taken care of by the safari team traveling with you (slightly more expensive).
This is proper living in the wild, and we love it. It’s also the cheapest accommodation option.
Examples of our trips that include basic camping offerings in Okavango
- Botswana Wildlife, Okavango Delta & Victoria Falls Safari
- Cape Town to Serengeti Adventure Safari
Standard camping tours: US$350 to US$450
With the standard camping option, you get the best of both worlds: a truly ‘wild’ bush experience but with basic creature comforts. The tent is bigger, they are furnished with fully made-up sleeping cots and an en-suite ‘bathroom’ is equipped with (warm) bucket showers, hand basin, and chemical portaloos.
Tent with 'en-suite' in Botswana
The camp crew will set up everything for you and a camp chef will keep you fed. All you need to do is sit back, relax and enjoy the African bush as your guide points out the galaxies in the star-spattered sky above.
Examples of our standard camping offerings in Okavango:
- Botswana Mobile Camping Safari to Okavango Delta and Khwai trip
- 5 Day Moremi & Okavango Delta Tented Safari
- 4 Day Okavango Delta & Moremi - Mobile Tented Safari
Lodge style: US$380 to US$4 000
As we said, if roughing it isn’t your style, there’s something that is. Lodge-style accommodation includes permanent tented camps – you wouldn’t believe how luxurious a tent can be! – and fixed permanent lodges.
Permanent tents in delta
These can range from 2-star to 5-star places, with an increasing price tag as the star rating increases. While ratings may differ between countries, a general standard is as below:
2-star: US$380 to US$480
Usually, permanent budget tented camps usually have simple, comfortable canvas rooms on elevated decks, each with en-suite bathroom facilities with hot water.
Examples of our 2-star lodge options in Okavango:
3-star: US$450 to US$650
Lodgings with a few more creature comforts, at some you stay in mini-Meru-style tents on elevated decks, each with a semi-detached, en-suite bathroom.
Our 7-day Okavango & Savuti Botswana Lodge Safari is an example of one of our 3-star lodge options in Okavango.
Sundowner spot deluxe
4-star: US$550 to US$900
Now we’re stepping up the ante, with mid-range to higher-end properties, where carefully-decorated rooms often have air-conditioning, en-suite bathrooms and private verandas. These places usually have a pool and some have added luxuries such as spas.
On our 5-Day Chobe & Okavango Delta Lodge Tour we stay at 4-star lodges Okavango.
5-star: US$1 500 to US$4 000
This is high-end luxury, with pretty much anything your heart could desire, and a price tag to match. They are usually located in the private concession areas of the Delta and offer an exclusive Okavango experience (with as few as three tents). The accommodation is luxurious and spacious and usually includes a living room and high-end bathroom fittings.
Area of the Delta you visit
The Okavango Delta spreads over an enormous area and, while the northern parts generally have sections which remain wet throughout the year, the southern parts dry up during the dry season. For a full explanation of the wet and dry seasons, see our blog The Okavango Delta Explained.
Moremi Game Reserve
The Moremi Game Reserve (a national park) covers 500 km2, 70% of which is in the eastern side of the Delta. It includes both permanent water and drier areas and, therefore, boasts an amazing array of habitats including mopane woodlands, acacia forests and, obviously, floodplains. It is possible to drive into the area – both driven and self-drive, which is much gentler on the purse.
Moremi has mostly good value lodges, guided camping and self-drive options.
On safari in Botswana
Example of our trips staying in Moremi:
Private concessions: US$1 500 TO US$4 000
The rest of the Delta is made up of private concessions, most of which are only accessible via small aircraft and, some, by boat. The camps in the private concessions tend to be more high-end and, therefore, have a higher cost. Prices vary by season and lodge.
Views on safari
Our 7-Day Chobe, Okavango Delta & Moremi Lodge Tour includes a stay in one of the concessions.
Time of year you visit the Delta
In northern Botswana, the ‘wet season’ occurs from November to around April. This is when the rains come, usually in the form of dramatic afternoon thunderstorms, precluded and followed by bright sunshine and heat.
Delta after rains
High water season in Okavango, though, occurs when the flood waters from Angola slowly fill the delta, usually from May/June into August/September. This is the ‘dry season’, climatically, but the flood season for the Delta.
Green season 1 December – 31 March (50% of high season rates)
This is the hot, rainy season, although not the ‘wet season’ in terms of the Delta being waterlogged. It’s the most affordable time to visit the area and is great for birding and fishing.
Birding season, Okavango Delta
Shoulder season 1 April – 30 June and 1 November to 30 November (75% of high season rates)
Fewer crowds, temperatures are more bearable – prices too – and the Delta waters are beginning to rise.
High season 1 July to 31 October (Top dollar)
The delta is spectacular at full flood and mokoro activities are available.
How you plan to get to the Okavango Delta
Large parts of the Okavango Delta are unreachable by car or 4x4. This is part of its magic – inaccessibility means that you really see wild, untouched Africa and minimal people. It does, however, make getting to those parts expensive.
There are two main departure points for the Delta: Maun in the South and Kasane in the North. From both, it is possible to organize both air and land transfers and self-drive options to camps accessible by road. Your choice depends on your budget, time and, to an extent, driving skills.
Land transfers
Maun is closer to the Delta, so land transfers are more budget-friendly from here. Most safari operators include transfer into the Delta in the tour package price. View upcoming tours departing from Maun to see some budget-wise options.
Safari vehicle, ready for sundowners
From Kasane, which is North of Chobe, on the Zimbabwe border, the distance is further, so it is more expensive and is usually part of a trip covering more of Botswana. Again, most safari operators include transfer into the Delta in the tour package price. For trips combining Chobe and the Delta see our calendar listing of upcoming tours starting in Kasane.
Flights: US$150 to US$400 one-way
If you can manage to fit a fly-in on your budget, we’d highly recommend it. Seeing the Okavango Delta from above is a breathtaking experience. Pricing is based on the distance from Maun/Kasane to the lodge. A short flight costs around US$150 each way, and longer distances around US$400.
Small planes, Botswana
Flights from Maun are shorter, so less dear than those from Kasane but the flight from Kasane allows you to see both Chobe and the Delta from above: it’s spectacular!
Bush pilots are fantastic, as seen on the popular series, Bush Pilots – last-minute decisions need to be made if a herd of elephants decides to hang out on the landing strip, birds of prey need to be avoided and wild thunderstorms can change plans in seconds – it’s a constant test of the highly-skilled pilots’ skills, and they love it!
Self-drive: Rentals US$250 to US$350
This, obviously, is the cheapest way to travel into the Okavango Delta, both in your own or in fully-equipped rental 4X4s (US$250 to US$300 per day in low season; US$350 per day in high season, including insurance: becoming cheaper, the more people you share with).
If choosing self-drive, remember to include not only car rental costs but park fees and conservation levies, campsite fees, and your fuel costs, too.
The green season in Botswana
Self-drive options are generally restricted to the Moremi Game Reserve and a degree of 4X4 experience is necessary to drive many of the roads.
Activities you want to do in the Okavango Delta
There are loads of activities offered in the Okavango Delta. Each camp has different offerings and each activity has a different price tag. If there’s a specific activity you want to do, speak to one of our travel consultants and they’ll direct you to the trip that gives you everything your heart desires! Many of our safari trips include a couple of activities, so be sure to ask what's included and what costs extra, to keep your budget in check.
Giraffe on Botswana safari
Most trips include some activities, with others being an add-on cost, so check with us about what is and isn’t included in the trip(s) you’re contemplating.
We recommend doing a combination of activities and making sure you leave enough time to relax in camp, appreciating the sounds of the bush! Some of the activities offered include:
Mokoro trips: US$150 to US$180 for a 1-day trip from Maun
Mokoros are traditional hollowed-out boats made from the local trees that are designed specifically to allow passage through even the shallowest of canals and are maneuvered by a man standing at the back of the boat with a pole.
Mokoro in Okavango Delta
Mokoro trips are offered throughout the Delta and are well worth doing. With only the sound of the pole going into the water, you can fully appreciate the birdsong, hippo grunts and other truly African sounds. You can’t get closer to nature than this!
Motorized boat trips: US$150 to US$180 for a 1-day trip from Maun
Boating in the Okavango
Enables one to travel further into the Delta, but not able to go along the smaller, shallower tributaries like on the Mokoro trips.
Horse riding: US$600 to US$1 000 per day
Horse riding, Botswana safari
Offered at a couple of places, horse riding safaris are usually a specialist trip lasting five to ten days. It allows one to really experience nature without any mechanized noise, which means the birds and game are unbothered by you.
Fishing: US$400 to US$700 per day
Fishermen's paradise
The Okavango Delta is a fisherman’s paradise and is known as one of Africa’s top fishing destinations. African pike, bream, bass and huge Tigerfish are just some of the fish species which call the Delta ‘home’. Here, too, fishing trips are usually a specialist package, offered by fishing lodges.
Guided bush walks
Fish eagle, Botswana
Wanting to get ‘up close and personal’ with the Okavango bush? A guided bush walk is for you. Knowledgeable guides walk you through the bush, showing you the fauna, birds and insect life that you might otherwise miss. Bush walks are often included in the cost of your tour package.
Game viewing drive:s US$150 to US$200 for a 1-day trip from Maun
Lion, Okavango Delta safari
From camps that have land-based activities, like Moremi, guided game viewing drives can be taken. Moremi is home to all of the Big Five and plenty more.
Scenic flights: From US$120
Scenic flight, delta
As mentioned above, a flight over the Okavango Delta is superb. They are relatively costly but are totally worth it! Most of the small planes seat six people and the more people who go together, the less the price, so get a group together and soar!
Birdwatching Speciality Safaris: US$430 to US$450 per day
If you’re a ‘twitcher’, the Okavango Delta is your paradise, especially during the green season when over 500 species of bird are in full plumage and voice. The cry of the African Fish Eagle, which is synonymous with safaris, is heard across the Delta and, if you’re lucky, you may see one catch a fish.
Birding safaris focus on activities that allow one to see the wide range of birds that live in the Okavango and accommodation is usually in fully-serviced, en-suite tented camps.
Specialist Photographic Safaris: US$430 to US$450 per day
Whether you’re an amateur or a professional, photographic safaris are led by people who know photography.
Okavango Delta safari cost
They will take you to the perfect spots at the right time of day so that you can take incredible shots in gorgeous light. Accommodation is usually in fully-serviced, en-suite tented camps.
Okavango tour type you choose
There are many different types of tours that you can go on in the Okavango Delta, each with a different price tag.
Small Group Lodge Tours: US$500 to US$2 000
These more exclusive tours are usually fly-in or boat-in, with accommodation at one of the various permanent camps in the Delta. At these camps, a guide is usually assigned to you for the duration of your time in the Delta.
Our Okavango Delta & Chobe Botswana Lodge Safari is a small group lodge tour.
Small Group Camping Tours: US$300 to US$380
Small group camping tours are usually offered into Moremi, by vehicle, with semi-participation, wild bush camping in two-man dome tents with mattresses. Ablutions are normally bucket and spade and the shower is bucket-style, shared between the campers.
Examples of our small group lodge tours that include Okavango:
Mixture: Accommodated and Camping (Overlanding) US$400 to US$500
Delta excursions are usually an add-on package for overland tours that go through Botswana. They are usually 3-day trips – either fly-in or boat-in – into the Delta during which you’ll be separated from the rest of the group, who will remain in Maun.
Overland trips that offer Delta add-ons include:
- Joburg to Vic Falls & Delta Accommodated Overland Safari
- Okavango, Chobe & Victoria Falls Overland Safari
Delta camp in the bush
Fully-serviced Mobile Camping: US$400 to US$450
Similar to small group camping tours, these offer more creature comforts. Access the Delta is usually into Moremi, via 4X4 land transfer in a 4x4 vehicle.
Examples of our fully-serviced mobile camping trips that include Okavango:
- Okavango Delta & Chobe Luxury Camping Safari
- Botswana Exclusive Camping Safari to Chobe & Okavango
- Botswana Mobile Camping Safari to Okavango Delta & Khwai
Day Trips
If your budget – both money- and/or time-wise – is not huge, affordable day trips are available into the Delta. These are usually for clients who are doing self-drives or a longer safari where the clients, so have limited time. They are usually done from one of the boat stations in the Moremi Game Reserve. Be warned, you’ll want to come back for more!
Fantastic Delta Safari Add-ons
The Okavango Delta is situated close to many other ‘Bucket List’ destinations and we’d advise visiting one (or all) of them before/after visiting the Delta.
Chobe National Park
One of Africa’s best ‘Big 5’ destinations, Chobe offers visitors incredible game viewing as it has one of the highest concentrations of game on the continent. With large elephant and lion populations and loads of plains game, it’s a dream safari destination.
Botswana safari, zebras
One of the (many) best things about Chobe is that your game viewing can take multiple forms – think river-boating and safari-vehicle.
Some of ABS’s safaris include Chobe and Okavango:
- 7 Day Chobe, Okavango Delta & Moremi Lodge Tour
- Delta & Chobe Small Group Adventure Safari
- Okavango Delta & Chobe Luxury Camping Safari
Victoria Falls
Just over the border from Chobe, are the spectacular Victoria Falls, otherwise known as ‘The Smoke that Thunders’. The falls have to be seen to be believed and the surrounding area is an adrenaline junkie’s dream. Dubbed the 'Adventure Capital of Africa', you can white water raft, bungee jump, kayak, fish, go on a helicopter flip or just stare at the beautiful scenery for hours.
Victoria Falls tour
Some of ABS’s safaris that include Vic Falls and Okavango:
- Namibia, Botswana & Vic Falls Classical Lodge Safari
- Cape Town to Victoria Falls Safari Adventure
- Best of Botswana Small Group Adventure Safari
Okavango Delta costs
So, now you know what you need to budget for ... get planning. Compare various affordable Botswana Safaris or contact one of our knowledgeable travel consultants and book your dream Okavango safari today.
For more about safari costs and prices in different countries, see our African Safari Cost Guide.
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- Budget Botswana Safari - Camping Adventure
Briony is a qualified pharmacist, published author and travel blogger living in Cape Town. She writes her own blog about travel, the arts, music and the good things in life, with a focus on accessibility. She likes watching the world go by, and sometimes it makes her nose twitchy, but mostly it provides golden nuggets with which to light up the page.
