San Camp
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San Camp

Makgadikgadi Salt Pans, Botswana

  • Price on request
  • Camps
  • 6 Tent/s

Situated on the edge of the vast and mysterious Makgadikgadi Salt Pans in the midst of the Kalahari Desert, is one of Botswana’s most romantic camps, San Camp. The camp lies amongst sparsely dotted fan palms and grasslands, with 360 degrees of nothing-ness crossing the eye but the bowl of the sky and curvature of the earth.

Six large, white traditional canvas tents face the shore of a sparkling salt pan, privately set apart in dramatic locations. Pared down safari elegance with minimal ecological impact and spectacular vistas is what makes this such a special place to relax, unwind and retreat.

The tents boast high beds and en-suite facilities including a flush toilet, hot and cold running water showers and a washing basin cabinet. In keeping with the tradition of a by-gone era lighting is simple with traditional old spirit lamps.

The mess tent is open-sided with billowing white curtains adding to the romance and contains a small natural history museum and library. The nearby tea tent is spread with cushions and provides a sheltering sanctuary, and there is also a tented yoga pavilion and a small plunge pool.

Regular activities from San Camp include magic encounters with the habituated Meerkats, informative Bushman interactions, visits to Chapman’s Baobab, expert guiding of the unique desert wildlife and star gazing.

San Camp is a dry season camp which operates from mid April until the end of October. The dry season allows guests the opportunity to explore the vast Makgadikgadi saltpans on quad bikes. You could even explore the Makgadikgadi Salt Pans on horseback (a 2 two hour optional extra activity).

At A Glance
  • 6 classic safari tents
  • Desert camp reminiscent of a bygone era
  • Dramatic, stark setting
  • Open sided mess tent with museum and library
  • Tented yoga pavillion
  • Small plunge pool
  • Desert-adapted wildlife, habituated meerkats
  • Numerous activities to choose from
  • Incredible night-skies: planetarium display
  • Remote, romantic, unique
Features:
  • ✓ Daily Maid Service
  • ✓ Laundry Service
  • ✓ Wood Fireplace

Region

Once a water source larger than the size of Sweden, the remains of Lake Makgadikgadi are rather impressive.

Situated in the North East of Botswana in the dry Savannah lies the Makgadikgadi Salt Pans. Comprising of many salt pans clustered together with sandy deserts between them, the pans are surrounded by the Kalahari desert, and prove to be an important habitat for animals migrating (such as wildebeest, zebra and birdlife) once the rains have been.

Here you will find Makgadikgadi Pans National Park, a slightly different park to that of most in Botswana. This park offers safari experiences amongst the salt pans, which prove to be very different to other safari experiences, one you will absolutely not forget.

 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Annual
Temperature Avg
Precipitation Avg
Precipitation (Avg Days) 16 14 9 3 0 0 0 0 1 4 10 14 71

If you don't want scorching temperatures, and would prefer a getaway with no rain, the best months to visit the Makgadikgadi Salt Pans are the months of May through to August. Read More

If you don't want scorching temperatures, and would prefer a getaway with no rain, the best months to visit the Makgadikgadi Salt Pans are the months of May through to August. Daily temperatures average of around 16 degrees centigrade in these months, however it can get rather cold in the mornings and evenings.

If you'd prefer to bask in the heat and don't mind a moderate amount of rainfall, October to March produce the hottest daytime temperatures, although you will probably encounter a thunderstorm and some rain, although these don't last particularly long and can add to the authenticity and experience of your visit.

Read More

Rates

Pricing available on request.
Please contact your Destination Specialist for more information on +44 (0) 1993 824198.

Included:
All meals, local brand drinks, 2 scheduled safari activities daily, park fees and laundry.

Lodge activities differ depending on the season:

Jan - mid April & Nov - end December (wet season): Nature drive in search of unique desert inhabitants, meerkat interaction, visit a remote cattle post and Chapman’s baobabs, search for the zebra and wildebeest migration and spend a morning walking with Zu/’hoasi bushman.

mid April - end October (dry season): Nature drive in search of unique desert inhabitants, meerkat interaction, visit a remote cattle post and Chapman’s baobabs, quad bike across the pans and spend a morning walking with Zu/’hoasi bushman.

Preferred Dates

Select your preferred dates below and then click Submit Enquiry, we will check the availabilty and get back to you shortly.

Or speak to your Destination Specialist on:

+44 (0) 1993 824 198