# Chobe Safari Guide URL: https://emptvl.vercel.app/africa/parks/chobe Publisher: Empyrean Travel (https://emptvl.vercel.app/) Last reviewed: 2026-10-19 Plan Chobe National Park: elephant herds on the Chobe riverfront, boat and photo safaris, Savuti’s predators, when to go and easy links to Victoria Falls. **Quick answer:** Chobe National Park in northern Botswana is best known for huge dry-season elephant herds along the Chobe River, seen by game drive and boat from the town of Kasane. Farther south, Savuti offers remote predator country. Chobe is about 90 minutes by road from Victoria Falls, so two or three nights make an ideal add-on to a wider Southern Africa trip. - Country: Botswana (Chobe District), bordering Namibia’s Zambezi Region - Best for: Elephants, boat safaris, photography, Victoria Falls add-ons - Best time: August–October for elephant concentrations; green season for birds - Getting there: Kasane (BBK) via Johannesburg, or about 90 minutes by road from Victoria Falls - Ideal stay: 2–3 nights on the riverfront; add 2–3 in Savuti or the Linyanti - Malaria: Yes — CDC lists the Chobe district, including the park, as a transmission area ## Why visit Chobe National Park? Chobe has one of the greatest concentrations of elephants in Africa, and northern Botswana holds the world’s largest elephant population. In the late dry season, herds walk down to the Chobe River in their hundreds to drink, swim and cross between islands — a scene best appreciated from water level. Unlike the fly-in Okavango, Chobe’s riverfront sits next to the town of Kasane, so it’s accessible and flexible as part of a wider Botswana or Victoria Falls trip. The park has a wild side, too: Savuti, and the Linyanti region beyond it, feel remote and see far fewer visitors. ## What can you see in Chobe, and when? From about August to October, elephants and buffalo crowd the riverfront, joined by sable, giraffe and puku — an antelope rarely seen elsewhere in Botswana. Lions and leopards are regularly found along the river, and hippos and crocodiles are everywhere. Savuti is known for predator action, especially lions and spotted hyenas, and its marsh fills or dries with the famously erratic Savuti Channel. In the green season, roughly November to April, the riverfront is quieter, migrant birds arrive, zebra move through the Savuti area and rates are lower. ## Where should you stay in Chobe? Stay where you’ll spend your time: the riverfront for boats and elephants, the interior for wilderness. - Inside the park on the riverfront: Chobe Game Lodge, open since the 1970s, is the only permanent lodge on this stretch of the park, handy for early drives and cruises. - Kasane and the river: lodges just outside the park run boat trips from their own jetties and make the easiest base for a Victoria Falls day trip. - Houseboats: several houseboats cruise the Chobe River, with game viewing from your deck and quiet moorings at night. - Savuti and the Linyanti: tented camps in remote country, reached by light aircraft, for predators and solitude. ## How do you get to Chobe, and what does it combine with? Kasane International Airport has flights from Johannesburg, and road transfers from Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe or Livingstone in Zambia take around 90 minutes including border formalities. Light aircraft connect Kasane with Savuti, the Linyanti and the Okavango Delta. A classic route spends two nights at Victoria Falls, two or three on the Chobe riverfront and three or more in the delta. If you’re choosing between the two Botswana highlights, see Okavango Delta vs Chobe. ## What should you know about Chobe’s rules and crowds? The riverfront is Chobe’s busiest area, with fixed gate times and set loop roads, and vehicles must stay on tracks. Afternoon cruises on the large boats can be crowded; a small photographic boat booked through your lodge gives a calmer, lower-angle experience. Our photographic safari guide explains why. Night drives and off-road driving aren’t permitted inside the national park, which is one reason travelers often pair Chobe with a private-concession camp elsewhere. Park entry fees are charged per person per day by Botswana’s Department of Wildlife and National Parks; confirm as of 2026. ## Chobe highlights - **Riverfront boat safari** (Chobe River · best August–October): Drift alongside elephants swimming between islands, with hippos and crocodiles close by. - **Photographic boats** (Kasane lodges): Small boats with swivel camera mounts put you at water level for striking elephant and bird images. — https://emptvl.vercel.app/africa/experiences/photographic-safari - **Savuti predators** (Central Chobe): Lions and hyenas in a remote landscape of marsh, dead trees and rocky outcrops. - **Victoria Falls day trip** (Zimbabwe or Zambia · about 90 minutes): Pair a morning at the falls with an afternoon on the river — or base yourself at the falls and visit Chobe. — https://emptvl.vercel.app/africa/victoria-falls ## Frequently asked questions **Q: When is the best time to visit Chobe?** A: August to October is best for the riverfront, when the bush is dry and elephants and buffalo gather along the Chobe River in huge numbers. May to July is cooler and still very good. The green season, November to April, brings birds, newborns and a zebra movement through Savuti, with fewer vehicles and lower rates. **Q: Can you visit Chobe as a day trip from Victoria Falls?** A: Yes. Day trips from Victoria Falls or Livingstone typically include a morning boat cruise and an afternoon game drive on the riverfront, with roughly 90 minutes of road transfer each way plus border formalities. It’s a good taste, but staying two or three nights lets you enjoy quieter early mornings and late afternoons on the river. **Q: Is Chobe or the Okavango Delta better?** A: They do different things. Chobe’s riverfront offers spectacular elephant viewing and boat safaris with easy access from Kasane and Victoria Falls, but it’s busier. The Okavango Delta offers exclusive fly-in camps, mokoro trips and private concessions with walking and night drives. Many travelers combine both: two or three nights in Chobe, then three or more in the delta. **Q: What is Savuti known for?** A: Savuti, in the center of Chobe National Park, is known for powerful predator dynamics — especially lions and spotted hyenas — and for the Savuti Channel, which has flowed and dried in unpredictable cycles over decades. It’s remote, reached by light aircraft or long 4x4 tracks, and suits travelers who want wilderness after the busier riverfront. ## Sources - [Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area](https://kavangozambezi.org) - [CDC: Travelers’ Health — Botswana](https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/traveler/none/botswana)