You’ve heard the hype about Chobe National Park, but is it really worth visiting?
Chobe National Park has a lot of unique appeals that everyone should experience at least once in their lifetime. Keep reading to discover the seven most exciting reasons to visit Chobe National Park.
Chobe National Park boasts massive herds of elephants and a diverse range of other wildlife species that makes it worth visiting. These animals are accessible within a day tour of the park. After your safari ends, spend the night in the comfy beds at Chobe’s luxurious lodges.
Book our Botswana Safari Tours for an exciting trip to Chobe National Park and other tourist attractions in Botswana.
Chobe National Park contains a large variety of wildlife species, especially during the dry season. Some common animals at the park are:
When the land is dry, these animals can be seen gathering around the Chobe River to quench their thirst. But when it’s rainy, wildlife sightings become more challenging. Even elephants, the resident wildlife of Chobe National Park, hide in the bushes in the wet season.
This is why we consider the dry season to be the best time to visit Chobe. (Link to best time to Chobe when publishing).
Chobe is also one of the few places where you can catch all the Big Five animals. Elephants have the largest population in the park, and buffaloes often appear in massive herds.
Rhinos are few, but with some luck, you can spot them in the grassland areas in the park. Lions and leopards are most visible at dawn or in the night. With a visit to Chobe National Park around 5-6 am or 6~7 pm, you should be able to catch the big cats hunting for prey, or even making a kill.
The best way to see this wildlife is to book a guided game drive, where you’re driven in an open-air 4×4 safari jeep, and an experienced guide provides detailed, interesting information about the animals you see. Some guides are exceptionally skilled at tracking animal footprints and tracing them.
At Good Earth Tours, we offer guided game drives around Chobe National Park, on our Botswana Safari Tours.
Another way to watch wildlife in Chobe National Park is to join a 3-hour boat safari along the Chobe River. This is the most exciting part of Chobe National Park, because it lets you see the animals up close, and you get that powerful adrenaline rush out of fear that they might lunge at you.
But the boat safaris are generally safe, and most animals go about their business, even with humans in sight.
As you sail along the river, you can catch elephants crossing the river, and observe hippos and crocodiles swimming. When it gets hotter, the crocodiles leave the river and move to the riverbank to bask in the sun or catch their prey (buffaloes and antelopes). If you want to witness this event, schedule your boat trip for the afternoon.
Check the riverbank for impalas, zebras, buffaloes, and wildebeests.
Chobe National Park isn’t just the home of elephants, it’s also a paradise for bird lovers. It boasts a sighting record of over 400 bird species, such as:
Chobe River cruises provide excellent opportunities for finding and taking pictures of these birds. African skimmers and African spoonbills are especially renowned for constantly dipping their beaks in the river to drink or feed.
Look around the riverbank to see herons, darters, kingfishers, and geese lounging by the small trees on the shore. Occasionally, an African fish eagle may also fly past your boat.
While spotting wildlife on a game drive, you may experience long stretches of time where you don’t see any animal. You can spend the break watching birds flying around your location, and learning about them from your tour guide.
Although Chobe National Park is mainly known for the majestic 10-foot Chobe River, the surrounding landscape also exudes a pristine, tropical beauty you can’t ignore. Little wonder the park attracts animals of different species to its river.
The terrain covers notable vegetation types like floodplains, marshes, grasslands, savannahs, and rocky outcrops.
Trees like Mopane, Jackalberry, baobab, and teak line different areas of the park. Even the soil on Chobe is a mixture of clay, sand, and waterholes.
Chobe National Park is surrounded by several cultural villages with ornate customs and traditions. Visiting one or two of these villages will enrich your experience of Chobe. It will also expose you to the culture and history of the Batswana people.
One of the most notable villages near Chobe National Park is the Seboba Cultural Village in Kasane, which houses four different tribes: Basubiya, Basarwa, Batawan, and Bambukushu. Each tribe has unique lifestyles, food, cultures, and history.
While touring the village, you’ll learn how each tribe sleeps and stores food. You’ll also be taken to their communal area to watch them tell traditional stories, tell local legends, dance, and perform music.
On your way back from the village, you’ll spot a curios shop that sells local crafts, cultural artifacts, books, and traditional clothing. You can admire these items or purchase them as souvenirs for yourself and your friends back home.
After a long day of game drives and boat safaris, the upscale lodges at Chobe National Park provide you with a comfy bed and relaxing atmosphere to spend the night.
These lodges contain luxury tents that are fully furnished with wooden floors, plush chairs, ensuite bathrooms, and even air conditioning. A staff member is always available on-site to serve your every whim. During each mealtime, guests enjoy tasty buffet dishes with a variety of vegetarian and intercontinental options.
The pristine views of nature are the icing on the cake. Right from your room, you can watch the rays of the sun reflecting on the Chobe River. You might also see wildlife galloping, drinking, and bathing by the river.
This beautiful scenery instills that soothing feeling we all crave while escaping our busy everyday life.
Once you are done touring Chobe National Park, you don’t have to travel far to visit other tourist attractions. Victoria Falls, known for its high sheet of falling water and thunderous roar, is a 4-hour road trip away from Chobe National Park.
You can also transfer to other exciting tourist hot spots like Okavango Delta and Moremi Game Reserve in less than 8 hours. Luckily, tours like Botswana Delta and Desert Safaris integrate visits to these sites.
Ready to visit Chobe National Park?
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At Good Earth Tours, we work with experienced tour guides who understand the lay of the land at Chobe and the behaviors of its resident animals. These guides will ensure that you get the full experience of the park and see as many wild animals as possible.
