Ganztagestour zum Chobe Nationalpark und nach Botswana

My husband and I had just done Kruger National Park and wanted to try a different safari in another country to compare. This one day option in Botswana was perfect and did not break the bank! Breakdown of the day below: 1) Given the cost, this is not a private tour. We were picked up in a van with two other couples/families on time and had to go through border formalities - the drive to the border was 1 hour+ and the border process was fairly quick, maybe 20 minutes given no lines. 2) We switched vehicles across the border and hopped on an open air safari vehicle and immediately drove to Chobe National Park. It was a 3 hour land safari and we saw a lion and two cubs, giraffes, elephants, baboons, a lilac breasted bird, and much more! 3) The open air vehicle then took us directly to lunch. It was a buffet lunch with rice, chicken, beef, fish and vegetables. The lunch was ok but did the job! Note that the drinks are not free there but you can get free water on the safari and take it to lunch with you. 4) We were then transported to the river cruise. This fit ~20 people. We got incredibly close to elephants! We watched them swim across the river and I even got a picture right in front of the elephant. We also saw hippos, buffalo, and crocodiles very close. 5) We were then transported back to the border, same border formalities as before. And then an hour or so drive back to the hotel to be dropped off. Shout out to our land guide Wilson and our river guide Tao. Both were great and very knowledgeable! I saw just as much, if not more animals than I did in Kruger and this was a cheaper option as well.

The safari today was absolutely amazing! Our guide Wilson was very knowledgeable, funny and tried best to find lions during our trip... which we did. However, the boat tour was even better! OMG! We're very impressed on seeing swimming elephants and the beauty around. The Chobe National Park is just amazing and must see on your visit in Zambia, Zimbabwe or Botswana. FYI, we had our pick up from Livingstone in Zambia, 1h drive to the border. Got help through the border checks, then switched cars and had 20mins drive to the park. Next 3h wildlife viewing drive, lunch and 2.5h boat cruise. Next drive back to the border, and to Livingstone. The only thing worth also nothing that any drinks, including water are charged at the lunch, so grab one from the car if don't want to spend money.

I highly recommend experiencing Chobe National Park. It is an amazing setting to see the animals in, both by land and water. The pick up and transfer to and from my hotel in Zambia to the park in Botswana was great. On time smooth transfer with friendly helpful staff that helps you through border crossings and getting you with the park tours. There was a bit of a hiccup with getting started with the initial game drive, but that was not the fault of this company and they worked it out and made it right. The river portion of the safari was incredible. There was great animal viewing on both land and water.

Our guides Vincent and Large were both excellent and very knowledgeable. This was truly the trip of a lifetime. We were lucky enough to see lion, elephants, giraffe, hippos and crocodiles. We also saw lots of impala, wart hogs, jackal, lilac breasted kula, African fish eagle, monitor lizard, kingfisher, and other wild fowl. Lunch at the lodge was very good, the whole trip was very well organised, tan smoothly and to time. Pickups from and to our hotel were also punctual and the driver was very polite.

We had a wonderful day with HSM Adventures on this tour. The wildlife was phenomenal, the scenery was spectacular, and we made fantastic friends, including with David, our driver, who engaged us in conversations about Zambian culture, history, customs, and life. He was an amazing driver and so mature for his age - we truly cannot wait to see what he's going to do with his career in tourism. He's going to be amazing! We also appreciated how, in general, the day was well-organized and our next steps were clearly communicated. Immigration at the border didn't take nearly as much time as I expected and the process was very smooth. A few notes to those reading these reviews: 1. Many tour groups come to the same room to eat a buffet lunch at the luxury lodge. It was very loud and difficult to hear the host's instructions about beverages - what I heard was "included." I misheard - coffee and tea are included, but soft drinks, water, and alcoholic beverages are not. When waiters came around taking drink orders, everyone began ordering and we followed suit. We should've clarified, and while the cost wasn't horrendous, $3 for a sprite and $2 for water is overpriced, and this is coming from someone living in the NYC region. It also wasn't a necessary purchase since the game drive driver stopped halfway to give us a snack of crisps and soft drinks/water, and the boat tour operator also had a cooler full of soft drinks/water for free. Just keep this in mind if you're trying to avoid unnecessary expenditures. I recommend that management make this clearer to guests upfront and consider offering coolers of soft drinks/water in the cars that transport guests from Livingstone to the Botswana border and back. 2. We came in May and it was much cooler than we expected in the morning. The game drive truck had blankets (bless!), but wearing long pants and a warm jacket is advised. 3. Having visited Kruger National Park a few days earlier, where driving is strictly confined to designated tar and gravel roads, we were appalled that the game drive drivers we experienced/witnessed in Chobe National Park all went on prohibited land just to get us closer to wildlife... While we love photography and the chance to get a closer photograph of lions was thrilling, we were deeply troubled by the drivers' actions. Driving on the grass to approach wildlife felt wrong and at one point, six drivers circled their trucks around a group of seven lionesses. The lionesses were noticeably uncomfortable and began huddling closer together until a path outside of this circle was created. This came across as very disrespectful to the wildlife, but I can't fault the drivers completely because visitors and their expectations of what to see on a game drive are likely partially complicit. I strongly urge management to discourage such behavior from drivers and empower them to remind visitors that what they see is dependent upon what the wildlife chooses to do that day... And as visitors, please humbly accept the rules of national parks and tame your expectations. Off-roading in a private game reserve is different, and we truly felt sorry for the animals that were intimidated.

Very good Tour on both Land and River. Guides and driver David were all very informative and friendly .Seen a wide variety of animals.

It was done by another company. Not HSM adventure and Safari. I have enjoy it and was done very professional by the other company.

Excellent combination of. Jeep safari and a boat experience on the river. VIncent was our land guide and he was wonderful!

It's was wonderful tour. The open safari vehicle was very comfortable and we saw quite few animals including lions. The boat tour was very interesting too. We saw crocodiles and hippos.

The tour was just PERFECTION. From the land Safari to the boat tour I’m confident to say it was one of the most memorable experiences if my life. Mateo (Jeep guide) and Large (boat guide) made this experience 10000 more incredible taking us super close to the animals and making us feel so special.