10 Things I Learnt on a Self-Drive Adventure Across Botswana

There were five of us sitting at The Australian Brewery, catching up on the week’s events, when our friend Rashad arrived and threw us a curveball.

‘Do you guys want to go to Botswana to self-drive and camp in the bush?’ We all decided at that moment.

‘Yes.’

Over the course of two weeks, we had the trip of a lifetime, in a country filled with adventure and misconceptions. Here are ten things we learnt on our self-drive adventure through Botswana.

1. Don’t drive at night!

The roads in Botswana’s national parks are often a series of winding, criss-crossing sand tracks that are hard enough to traverse in the day time, let alone at night.

The depth of the sand in some places is enough to become immediately stuck if you don’t take the right approach, and it can be easy to follow tracks that simply disappear.

We used the Tracks for Africa GPS during our trip, which has a comprehensive map of Botswana’s roads and park areas. It’s not perfect though, which we soon found out on our way back to camp from an evening of self-drive safari. We followed the GPS, only to find a river in our way. With the sun quickly setting, our amazing evening began to turn into a nightmare…

Dusk brings stunning skies and stinging bugs

We drove in circles, attempting to find a way back, but as the sunlight disappeared we were driving blind. We followed a dirt road into an open field, which suddenly disappeared and was replaced with marshy soil. Here, one of our cars became bogged, surrounded by two herds of elephants only 20 metres away. We were forced to leave the safety of the cars to push the bogged vehicle, taking turns on sentry duty with a flashlight in hand.

We freed the car and having run out of options, returned to the river. We nervously tested the depth and decided we had to give it a shot. Ten minutes later, both cars were safely on the other side.

Testing the river crossing…

2. It’s more affordable than you think

When our friend pitched this trip to us, we immediately assumed it must be costly. After all, it’s not every day you get to see elephants up close, explore the Okavango Delta by mokoro (traditional dugout canoe) or quad bike across a salt pan; all whilst a travel agency handles your booking.

We found however, that with a group of six, our costs were surprisingly low for the trip of a lifetime.

We paid around $6000 each for our two week trip. $2000 of that was in flights, and the rest covered our 4WD hire and all activities and accommodation. Once we were there, our daily expenses for food and fuel were relatively cheap.

It’s possible to do this trip even cheaper, by camping the entire time, or by booking everything yourself. We found the latter too much of a logistical headache and instead went with a reputable 4WD travel company, who handled all of our bookings.

3. A mix of self-drive and guided safaris is the best of both worlds

Self-drive safaris and guided safaris both have their pros and cons.

Self-drive safaris give you the freedom to choose your own route, which makes animal encounters all the more exciting and rewarding. There’s nothing quite like searching for lions with your friends, and finally finding them all on your own. You can also choose how long you want to explore for, staying out later if you haven’t seen your target species yet.

Read more: I’ve Been on 10+ Wildlife Safaris – This is the Best Way to See Animals in Africa

Self-drives can however be far more mentally taxing, as the roads are challenging, and you need to be switched on and alert 100% of the time.

Whilst you don’t get the same level of freedom and decision-making with guided safaris, you do get the opportunity to sit back and take in your surroundings, and most importantly, to learn local knowledge from your expert guides.

Not only are the guides amazing at finding animals, but they often have decades worth of knowledge about the history and ecosystem of the parks.

We did a guided safari through Gweta Lodge, through nearby bushland to the Nwetwe Pan. Our amazing guide taught us about traditional bushman skills, facts about the local flora and fauna, and most crucially he taught us that if you burn elephant poo near your campsite, it keeps mosquitos away.

4. Train Your Bladder

It might sound unserious, but this is no joke. When you’re camping out in the African bush, the last thing you want to do is leave your tent in the middle of the night to pee.

If you’re used to camping in Australia, those night time sounds of twigs snapping and faint footsteps can usually be put down to kangaroos or possums. In Botswana, those same sounds could be a hyena visiting the campsite, or an elephant right next to your tent, as happened to us.

Spot the elephant…

To avoid coming face-to-face with a surprised elephant or an African big cat, it’s important to strategise your leak by not drinking before bed, or having a bottle handy in your tent (no judgement here!).

If you have no choice but to brave the bush, take someone with you to act as a sentry and stay back-to-back.

Hi!-ena

5. Stay alert on the highways!

The biggest safety risk we encountered when self-driving was the amount of livestock and potholes on highways. It’s important to drive vigilantly and always watch for movement ahead as it’s very common for a small herd of goats or cows to walk onto the road. This extends to elephants as well, who are known to spend time on the sides of some highways, especially if next to a national park.

Beep beep!

If your picture of a pothole is anything like mine used to be, the potholes in Botswana will astound you. They’re craters, sometimes stretching the entire width of a highway and requiring you to slow all the way down. When you’re driving 120km/h, the last thing you want to do is to hit one. Staying completely focussed and alert whilst driving isn’t just good common sense, it’s essential if you have a tent attached to the roof.

Looking ahead for cars with their hazards on can help warn you of obstacles around, and it’s important to do the same for the cars behind you.

All good under the hood

6. If an elephant is trumpeting, it’s time to back up the car…

There’s nothing quite like hearing a wild elephant in person. Not only do they have their classic trumpeting sound, they can also make a rather terrifying roar (fun fact, this roar was used to help create the classic T-Rex raw in Jurassic Park!).

Whilst it’s thrilling and incredible to be so close to such amazing animals, it’s important to respect their space and power. If an elephant lifts its trunk at you, or begins to trumpet or roar, it’s giving you a warning: ‘You’re too close’.

When you’re metres away from an African elephant, it becomes clear that if it wanted to charge, a car is no match. Make sure to always respect wild animals when self driving by keeping a safe distance away and if an animal is showing signs of stress or anxiety, leave it alone and get out of there.

7. Don’t Expect Convenience

Botswana is a progressive and wealthy country in Africa, but it still has quirks and limitations that you might not be used to back home.

Border crossings in Botswana and its neighbouring countries often aren’t straight forward. A lack of signage and cohesiveness means it can be easy to get lost in the procedure. We walked back and forth between different buildings when entering Botswana, filling out one form here, another form there, and a health screening around the corner. It can be a time-consuming process and something to consider in your itinerary.

Also supermarkets are far more limited than back home, and when planning multiple days worth of food to camp with, it can be a challenge finding your ingredients. A large amount of fruit and vegetables are simply unavailable most of the time, and it’s a common occurrence to visit a fast food joint like Nandos, only to find out that they’re unable to make half the menu.

Whilst the lack of convenience can sometimes be a pain, it was a minimal disruption to our trip and more importantly, it showed us just how much we took for granted back home. Since coming back from this trip, I’ve consistently found myself appreciating just how lucky and privileged I am to have incredible access to such a large variety of high quality food.

8. It’s Far Safer Than People Think

When telling our friends and family that we were going to Botswana, we saw a lot of raised eyebrows. 

‘Aren’t you scared?’, they’d ask. 

Or, ‘You’re brave, I could never!’, they’d say.

Africa has a reputation in western countries for being a risky continent to travel to. You hear about how it’s high in crime, sickness, and dysfunctional services, and that’s often enough for most people to write it off.

But Africa is a BIG continent, and to paint every African country with the same brush does an incredible disservice to the variety of people, cultures, and successes each country has.

Our experience in Botswana showed us that it’s an incredibly safe place to travel. We never felt unsafe in any towns or cities, and were instead met with a level of kindness, generosity, and warmth that we were unprepared for. 

Selfie for the boys!

Self-driving and camping in Botswana both come with their risks, but with proper preparation, you can have an incredibly safe trip. Our group received the recommended vaccines prior to going, and we took malaria medication every day (despite only being bitten twice the whole trip!). We also learnt how to use our emergency equipment such as our satellite phone and recovery tracks in case of any problems.

Overall Botswana is a very safe place to visit, but it’s important to come prepared, especially if you plan on self-driving.

9. Beware the monkeys!

Botswana is home to both Vervet monkeys and Chacma baboons, which both tend to invite themselves to your campsite in the hopes of an easy snack.

It’s important to keep your food securely locked in your cars and your tent zipped closed, as these monkeys are as smart as they are hungry. Our friend Tom accidentally left his tent open whilst we ate lunch, and had to wait for an intrusive Vervet monkey to finish raiding the place.

Ensuring your campsite bin is secure will help keep more than monkeys away too, as hyenas and honey badgers are known to come scavenging late at night.

Baboons in particular aren’t to be messed with, as they move in packs and have some serious power behind them. If you see a troop of baboons approaching, it’s important to stay calm and not to fight them over anything they might snatch.

The most important advice is to never feed these wild animals. When they’re used to being fed, they start seeking out campsites to raid and become fearless of humans. To keep both yourself, other travellers, and the animals safe, never feed or invite these animals into your spaces.

10. Once you’re home, you’ll be counting down the days until your next visit

None of us had ever considered a trip to Botswana before that legendary pub dinner, but each of us left with a profoundly new perspective of the country, a closer connection to nature, and some incredible, lifelong memories made together. I can’t recommend this trip enough, especially if you’re able to self-drive and camp in the incredible national parks.

If you and your mates are looking for your next big adventure, bring up Botswana next time you’re at the pub.

Touring the Chobe River

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