After one of southern Africa’s wettest rainy seasons in years, Botswana’s Okavango Delta is experiencing exceptional flood levels, creating some of the most dramatic water-based safari conditions seen for a long time.
What makes the Okavango so fascinating is that the floods do not originate in Botswana itself. The Delta is fed by rain falling hundreds of kilometres away in Angola’s highlands. From there, water slowly travels south through the Okavango River system before finally spilling out across northern Botswana in the annual “arrival of the flood”.
In most years, Botswana’s own rains have long since faded by the time these floodwaters arrive, typically peaking between June and August. This year, however, unusually heavy local rains combined with a particularly strong Angolan flood pulse, leaving already-green landscapes flooded further by rising Delta waters.
The result is one of the fullest Okavango systems seen for years.
Channels have widened into lagoons, floodplains are full, and some routes that would normally be driven are currently accessible only by boat. In many areas, the Delta feels transformed into a vast floating landscape of palms, reedbeds and mirror-like, blue water.
For wildlife, these floods constantly reshape movement patterns. As water spreads across the Delta, animals are funnelled onto islands and pockets of higher ground, often concentrating game in surprisingly productive areas. Elephants swim between islands, red lechwe splash through shallow floodplains, and predators patrol the dry fringes where prey gathers.
For safari travellers, this creates extraordinary opportunities, but also makes camp choice more important than usual.
Some camps are delivering spectacular boating and mokoro excursions but with more limited driving access. Others still retain large areas of dry land, combining excellent game viewing with beautiful flood scenery. A few are managing to offer both exceptionally well.
Here are some of the best camps to consider for experiencing this year’s remarkable Okavango floods.
Mombo Camp, Moremi Game Reserve, Botswana
Best for predator sightings during high water
High flood years can produce exceptional predator viewing in the right areas, and Mombo is proving exactly why it has such a legendary reputation.
As rising water pushes wildlife onto larger islands and drier ridges, predator-prey interactions can become especially intense. Recent reports suggest outstanding lion and leopard sightings, alongside large concentrations of buffalo and plains game gathering on available grazing areas.
This is not necessarily the place for the most immersive water activities; instead, Mombo excels because of how the floods are concentrating wildlife around its accessible dry terrain.
For serious safari enthusiasts, this may be one of the most exciting camps in Botswana right now.
Experience it for yourself: Mombo remains one of Africa’s benchmark safari camps, combining extraordinary game viewing with a front-row seat to this year’s shifting flood dynamics.
4 Rivers, Okavango Delta Safari Reserves, Botswana
Best for classic Okavango flood scenery
For many visitors, this is exactly how they imagine the Okavango Delta.
At 4 Rivers, high water levels have transformed the surrounding landscape into a maze of navigable channels, lagoons and palm-fringed islands. Mokoro excursions have been particularly spectacular this year, with calm waters reflecting the Delta’s changing light throughout the day.
The experience here is immersive and atmospheric rather than relentlessly focused on ticking off wildlife sightings. In years like this, simply travelling through the Delta on the water is the safari experience in itself.
Birdlife has also been exceptional, with kingfishers, herons and fish eagles thriving in the expanded waterways.
Experience it for yourself: 4 Rivers, as its name suggests, offers a beautifully water-focused Delta safari, ideal for travellers wanting to experience the Okavango at its fullest and most scenic.
Splash Camp, Okavango Delta Safari Reserves, Botswana
Best for balancing land and water activities
One challenge during exceptionally high floods is that some camps become increasingly restricted in where vehicles can operate: roads are just too deeply submerged and the land is inundated. Splash has the advantage of retaining access to productive dry areas while still enjoying impressive surrounding water levels.
That flexibility makes it one of the Delta’s most versatile camps this year.
Guests are still able to enjoy varied game drives alongside boating and mokoro excursions, creating a more balanced safari than in some heavily flooded regions. Wildlife remains excellent, while the floodwaters add a spectacular sense of atmosphere to the landscape.
For many travellers, this combination offers the best of both worlds.
Experience it for yourself: Splash Camp is an excellent choice for travellers wanting a varied Okavango safari with both classic game viewing and memorable water experiences.
Selinda Camp, Kwando-Linyanti area, Botswana
Best for waterside safari scenery
This year’s high water levels have made Selinda Camp particularly beautiful. Set beside the Selinda Spillway, the camp is overlooking a broad lagoon once again, with water stretching out directly in front of camp and wildlife gathering along its edges throughout the day.
The combination of permanent water, open floodplains and surrounding woodland creates a wonderfully varied landscape. Elephants regularly move through the shallows, hippos can often be heard from camp, and the changing light across the lagoon makes this one of the Delta’s most atmospheric places to stay during high flood years.
Despite the water, Selinda still offers excellent game viewing on surrounding dry areas, with strong predator sightings and varied safari activities balancing the scenic boating opportunities.
There is also a real sense here of watching the Okavango system at work — floodwaters reshaping the landscape day by day as wildlife adapts around them.
Experience it for yourself: Selinda Camp combines luxurious accommodation, excellent wildlife viewing and spectacular lagoon-front scenery during this year’s exceptional floods.
Nxamaseri Lodge, North-west Kalahari & Panhandle, Botswana
Best for water safaris and cultural discovery
In very high-water years, the Okavango Panhandle comes into its own, and few camps are better placed to enjoy it than Nxamaseri.
This is a safari focused less on conventional game drives and more on the Delta’s waterways themselves: boating through papyrus-lined channels, spotting rare birds, fishing quiet lagoons and absorbing the rhythms of life on the water.
The atmosphere is wonderfully remote and peaceful. In places, the Delta feels almost untouched, with journeys unfolding slowly through narrow channels and flooded reedbeds.
For experienced Africa travellers especially, this quieter and more immersive style of safari can be deeply rewarding. Nxamaseri also offers the rare chance to step briefly away from the waterways to visit the ancient Tsodilo Hills, where San rock art and local Bushman culture add a fascinating cultural dimension to a Delta safari.
Experience it for yourself: Nxamaseri Lodge offers one of Botswana’s most authentic water-based safari experiences, particularly magical during years of exceptional flood.
Tawana, Moremi Game Reserve, Botswana
Best for combining flood scenery with outstanding wildlife
Tawana has emerged as one of the Delta’s standout camps this season. Its location beside perennial water of the Gomoti River, combined with access to productive dry areas nearby, has created a superb balance between scenic flood conditions and consistently strong game viewing.
This year, guests are finding elephants wading through channels close to camp, while lions, leopards and buffalo remain highly active on the surrounding islands and grasslands.
For travellers wanting the atmosphere of a flooded Delta without sacrificing classic wildlife viewing, Tawana is hard to beat.
Experience it for yourself: Tawana combines beautifully designed accommodation with access to both boating and game driving in one of the Okavango’s most dynamic areas this flood season.
Sandibe Safari Lodge, Okavango Delta Safari Reserves, Botswana
Best for seeing wildlife adapt to the floods
Sandibe’s location beside permanent water and dry woodland makes it particularly fascinating during years like this.
As floodwaters rise and retreat, wildlife movement patterns shift constantly around camp. Elephants move through flooded channels, antelope gather on islands, and predators patrol the edges between water and dry land.
The combination of varied habitats helps maintain strong wildlife viewing despite changing conditions, while the camp itself offers beautiful views over the surrounding floodplains.
This year especially, Sandibe feels alive with movement and change — a reminder that the Okavango is never static.
Experience it for yourself: Sandibe combines striking design, excellent guiding and front-row access to one of the Delta’s most dynamic flood landscapes.
Can I still book for this year?
Yes, although availability varies between camps and dates.
Peak-season Botswana is rarely inexpensive, which means there is often still some space available even relatively late in the booking cycle. Occasionally camps may quietly release short-notice offers – so ask us if there are any to slot into your trip, though availability in the most sought-after areas can change quickly once flood conditions become widely known.
The more important question this year is not simply where has space, but which camps best match the kind of safari you want.
Some travellers will prioritise boating, mokoros and classic flood scenery. Others will want camps with enough accessible dry terrain to maximise game drives and predator viewing. In some areas, guests are even reaching safari vehicles by boat before beginning drives – an experience that can feel wonderfully adventurous, though not necessarily right for everyone.
Because conditions are evolving across the season, local knowledge matters more than ever.
If you’re considering a last-minute Botswana safari, speak to our team. With decades of experience watching the Delta through both high and low flood years, and very recent on-the-ground travel, we can help match you to the camps currently offering the best combination of water levels, wildlife and safari activities for your travel dates.
