Itinerary

The best selling series of books by Alexander McCall Smith about Mma Ramotswe,  a traditional Botswanan lady who started her own Detective Agency have thrilled and captivated readers worldwide. The BBC have now captured the magic of these books in the film of the same name.

Small group departures (maximum of 10 per departure) 20 April 2012
Other dates also available – please enquire

Shorter, individual and tailor made tours are also available.

This tour is perfect for a women's only tour as we can arrange this if you are a solo travaller or part of a group. Let us know your needs as a woman travelling alone and we will devise the perfect trip for you.

ITINERARY

Day 1

Fly from London to Gaborone via Johannesburg on South African Airways

Day 2

Arrive Gaborone where you will be met and transferred to The Gaborone Sun Hotel.
Located in the city of Gaborone, this international hotel offers guests a sophisticated, comfortable base to relax and commence the tour
The rest of the day is at leisure.
Bed and Breakfast

Day 3

Today will see the first  tour into the life of Mma Ramotswe
We leave for Mochundi, Mma Ramotswe`s ancestral home. On arrival, we will visit the Kgotla- or traditional court. Here, in keeping with Tswana traditions, you will pay your respects to the Kgosi (or Chief). We visit the fascinating museum and there is time to purchase postcards and printed material and crafts from Mochundi. After a visit to a traditional home, we also find the spot where Mcall Smith “met” Mma Ramotswe – more accurately the lady who provided the inspiration for the charter, and hear the story behind this.
Later we return to Gaborone where we find the location of Tlokwng Road Speedy Motors,Zebra Drive, JLB Matekoni`s house and finally, the President Hotel, one of Mma Ramotswe`s favourite stops, where we sample red bush tea!
 
** A visit to the orphanage can be made by prior appointment. This project is well worth a  visit but is subject to a minimum donation of US$ 20 per person paid directly to the orphanage.

Return to the Gaborone Sun – Breakfast and lunch included

Day 4

We leave on a circuit of adventure following the exploits of Mma Ramotswe to “the edge of the Kalahari”. We pass the original home of Dr David Livingstone.
Mma Ramotswe`s investigations take us as far afield as Molepolone and Lobatsw. WE will stop at the village of Otse for lunch before arriving at Mokolodi Nature Reserve. This reserve featured heavily in “Blue Shoes and Happiness” and indeed is the focus for the new and as yet unpublished novel!
 
A special afternoon game drive followed by an evening bush braai (barbecue) under the stars and an opportunity to meet a real character from the books!.
Overnight at Mokolodi Nature Reserve.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

Day 5

After breakfast, optional opportunities to go elephant riding, or go walking with a  guide in search of rhino..or horseback riding....or simply relax and take in the beauty of this beautiful place.
 
Return to the Gaborone Sun
Breakfast  included.

Day 6

Early morning transfer to Gaborone Airport for the Air Botswana flight to Maun
On arrival, you will be met and driven to The Kalahari Desert to stay at Planet Baobab.
Planet Baobab” the Baobab capital of the world and home of the Kalahari Surf Club!
The average age of each tree; 4000 years and beyond, the boundless salt pans of the Makgadikgadi, a lunar landscape the size of Switzerland.
  Thankfully, the funkiest bar in the Kalahari awaits your pleasure, a well known watering hole for travellers of every description and the more colourful characters from Maun. At any one time, locals jostle the cross-continentals who have slogged it through the bush, and worse, to get here. Just a stone's throw from all this beer and bustle is the elephant's paddling pool. Oblivious to Guests crouching in the nearby trees, the elephants and travellers mostly ignore each other.
 At Planet Baobab, the accommodation is in individually styled Bakalanga Bushman huts with en suite showers and toilet  Base yourself here and you can take guided walks and quad bike trips into the bush and the Pans with our expert Guides discovering the geological origins of what was once the world's largest ever super lake.
  Follow the palm trail created by elephant droppings as these ancient creatures trekked across the arid waste when the super lake dried up. Pick up, (and replace!), thousand year old flint spear heads left by the Stone Age hunters who were the region’s first inhabitants.
An afternoon stroll with your guide through the surrounding bush as he explains the local ecology, geology and introduces you to aspects of his tradition and culture.

Breakfast and Dinner included

Day 7

Visit the village and Ntwetwe Pan.

After breakfast, we visit Gweta (population of 2000) to experience modern African rural culture. If you are lucky, witness the mixing of aphrodisiac droppings and roots at the Traditional Healer`s home.
 
After lunch and a  siesta, we take the quad bikes to reach an area known as “the moon”!
On reaching the lunar landscape of Ntwetwe, explore the wilderness of vast and empty salt pans. Tonight is a  magical and very special experience as we have dinner under the satrs – marvelling at the 360- degree view of the Southern Hemisphere.
 
A delicious barbecue dinner cooked to perfection and rounded off with wine and liquors.
 
Breakfast, lunch and dinner

Day 8

MEERKAT MISSION

Up at sunrise for coffee and then the magical opportunity to visit an area known as “Sweet Waters” – the only permanent water in the vicinity of Ntwetwe, a magnet for desert birdlife and livestock. We search for the meerkats, bat eared foxes, ground squirrels and other desert species as we head bac to Planet Baobab for our transport to Maun.
 
At Maun, we take a light aircraft to KANANA.
Kanana means “paradise” in Setswana – and truly it is aptly named!
    
Kanana Camp is a jewel set on the Xudum River - in the south west Okavango. Kanana Camp is set in a private concession, encompassing a number of islands dotted with palm, fig, ebony and knobthorn trees, and is home to diverse species of wildlife, including numerous species of birds - including many migratory species. This is, indeed, a perfect place to experience the diversity of species found within the Okavango Delta.

Guests are accommodated in eight spacious, twin-bedded 'Meru' (East African) style tents, each set on a raised teak deck, offering breathtaking views across the waterways and islands. All tents offer en-suite bathrooms with hot and cold running water, shower and flush toilet. The tents are placed in such a way as to afford privacy, yet are still within comfortable distance from the central dining and lounge area.

The annual flood transforms this dry camp into a true water experience and in the early months of the year you may actually enjoy the visible spectacle of the water rising around the camp. Being in a private concession a wide variety of activities is available at Kanana Camp and the focus of activities varies with the rising and falling levels of the Okavango Delta. Your guide will assist you in planning your days to best enjoy and explore the area.

There are game drives, in specially designed vehicles, in the morning and late afternoon, which continue into the evening as night drives. You can explore the crystal clear waterways by mekoro (dug-out canoe) or small powerboat, and enjoy the diversity of species around the Camp. Birding, in particular, is excellent, as Kanana hosts a seasonal heronry that teems with activity from August through to March - truly a highlight of a visit to this Camp. In addition, guided walks are highly recommended, and you might also wish to try your hand at fly or spin fishing for tilapia (bream), African pike and sharptooth catfish.

Breakfast, lunch and Dinner.

Day 9

A day to relax and enjoy this amazing place

Breakfast, lunch and dinner included

Day 10

After your morning safari activity, we are flown by light aircraft to  Little Kwara Lodge

Kwara is located in the remote northern part of the stunning Okavango Delta within the private Kwara concession. The camp fronts onto a huge floodplain, adjacent to the permanent water of the Delta and is backed by extensive bush. It is a magnificent wilderness area in excess of 1,700 square kilometres, bordering the Moremi Reserve. No trip to Botswana is complete without a visit to the Delta, the shimmering and unique watery jewel in the middle of the Kalahari desert. Kwara encompasses a wide diversity of habitats, ranging from the clear Delta waters with reed-lined lagoons and channels, to open grasslands, mopane woodlands and palm-fringed islands. The forested island on which the camp sits is typical of those encountered throughout the vast 1.6 million hectares of the Okavango Delta. At Kwara, you will discover why the Okavango is considered one of the ecological wonders of Africa and indeed the world. It is mysterious, calming, unpredictable and very wild.

Little Kwara offers mekoro trips and 4x4 safari drives (day and night), and the team here are enthusiastic about tracking predators. Drives always have a tracker as well as a driver-guide, which helps to produce some excellent game sightings. Note that the vehicles are completely open - this is good for photographers but be sure to take a sun hat! The four spacious and stylishly furnished en-suite tents, with their large shaded verandas, are raised onto individual wooden platforms. Each room has an indoors bath, partly-covered outside shower and separate toilet. The balconies are accessed by large sliding doors which allow great views of your surroundings. Please note that the beds do not have mosquito nets, but as far as they possibly can be, the tents are “insect-proof”. Ample storage space is provided, along with all the usual complementary items including mosquito repellent, bug spray, shampoo and shower gel.

Breakfast, lunch and Dinner included

Day 11

A day to enjoy the safari opportunities

Breakfast, lunch and dinner included

Day 12

We fly to Kasane – where the holiday ends  

OR  an optional 3 nights at VICTORIA FALLS ( from the Zambian side).