Kalahari San Tribes Expedition

Join Trip Leaders Adam Hedges and Mike Main for this unique expedition which brings us deep into the fabled Kalahari to meet the San people, the skilled hunter-gatherers whose African heritage dates back 30,000 years. To sit around the fire in the evening and listen to their songs, and perhaps witness a trance dance, is to travel back in time to the dawn of humankind. In our three days with the San, we stay in full-service tented camps. After our cultural expedition, we head out for a superb gameviewing safari on the jewel-green waterways of the Okavango Delta in Moremi Game Reserve, with its high game densities, in ethereal Xugana Lagoon, the quintessential Delta setting, and in the great Central Kalahari Game Reserve of Cry of the Kalahari fame. On safari we track game by open vehicle and by dugout canoe in a spectacular array of Botswana’s richest gamelands.

Itinerary at a Glance

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Days 1-4
San Tribes / Xai Xai Camp

In very remote Xai Xai village in the Kalahari, our extended stay with the San people of the Ju/’hoansi and Babanderu tribes offers an exclusive chance for a glimpse into the life of hunter-gatherers in the beautiful setting of the Aha Hills. We enjoy dinners around our campfire under the starry sky.

Days 5-7
Nxamaseri / Tsodilo Hills

We travel to the Okavango River and overnight at the intimate Nxamaseri Lodge, then head out to experience the mystery and wonder of Tsodilo, a World Heritage Site. Here thousands of exquisite San rock paintings adorn the stone faces of the hills, chronicling a human presence tens of thousands of years old. The San consider Tsodilo a place of worship and home of their ancestral spirits.

Days 8-9
Okavango Delta / Xugana Lagoon

A spectacular charter flight over a green patchwork of islands brings us to delightful Xugana Lodge, with its comfortable en-suite chalets, open-air dining overlooking the lagoon, and setting sun. It has a perfect locale deep in the Okavango for our game walks and mokoro explorations as we savor the rich Delta ecosystem.

Days 10-12
Moremi Game Reserve / Xakanaxa Camp

We journey by boat to our remote private camp in Moremi, an ornithologist's delight. Moremi hosts almost every species of central and southern Africa’s famous birds, along with game including tsessebe and Burchell's zebra and predators such as lion, wild dog, and spotted hyena.

Days 13
Makgadikgadi National Park

From Laroo Le Tau Bush Lodge, we explore the spectacular desert environment of Makgadikgadi National Park.

Days 14-17
Central Kalahari Game Reserve

We head to this remote and spectacular reserve for splendid gameviewing over dunes and fossil pans, and a chance to see some rare desert species. Depart via Maun on Day 17.

For a more complete description, Download Full Trip Brochure

What the Trip is Like

This trip is rated Level 2, easy to moderate. It is a vehicle-based safari with mobile tented camps interspersed with accommodations in permanent tented camps. This journey will enjoyed by anyone in reasonably good health. Please note that there are long driving days over rough roads and dusty, sandy game tracks, all in a desert environment. Our mobile camps provide a true bush experience without sacrificing comfort. We travel by 4WD “go-anywhere” safari vehicles equipped with a refrigerator for cold drinks and a reference library on flora, fauna, and avifauna. The vehicles carry five trip members per vehicle, with guaranteed window seating.

Explanation of Trip Levels