best time to visit makgadikgadi pans

January is the wettest, greenest month, with the zebra and wildebeest migration spread across the new grass. Afternoon storms are frequent and the pans hold shallow water, so game viewing concentrates on the surrounding grasslands where the herds and their predators have gathered.

Birding is at its peak as migrants arrive and waterbirds work the flooded basins. The trade-offs are real: roads turn muddy and can become impassable, quad biking on the soft pans stops, and the heat and humidity are at their highest. Fly-in access is the sensible way in, and a number of camps are closed.

February stays firmly in the green season, with large zebra and wildebeest herds on the plains and strong birdlife. The pans remain full of water in most years, and greater flamingos and other waterbirds feed where the flooding suits them.

This is good wet-season game viewing rather than a classic pans visit. Quad biking is not on offer, the salt crust is too soft and muddy, and the same access difficulties as January apply. Travellers who want the open white pans and desert activities should choose another month.

March eases the rains while the migration herds are often at their largest and most concentrated. Showers become more sporadic, the grass is mature, and several specialists rate early to mid-March among the best windows for the zebra spectacle as roads begin to improve.

The pans still hold water in many years, which keeps the flamingos and waterbirds around, and Sua Pan can hold breeding greater flamingos. Quad biking remains limited while the crust firms up, so this is a month for game drives and birding rather than pans activities.

April is the turn between green and dry, with water receding and the migration starting to shift west toward the Boteti River. Days are comfortable and nights begin to cool. The herds are still moving through but no longer at their peak on the pans.

Where water lasts, flamingos and waterbirds can still be good on Sua Pan, and desert species begin to come to the fore as the grasslands dry. Late in the month some operators resume limited quad biking where the surface is firm enough. San Camp typically reopens around now.

May is the turn out of the rains, with the wet weather largely over but the pans not yet reliably hard. Days are warm and nights are cooling toward the winter chill. The salt crust is drying through the month, so quad biking and sleep-outs can resume where the surface allows, though soft and damp patches still linger early on.

The big migratory herds are leaving the central pans for the Boteti and other dry-season water, so the focus shifts to desert-adapted wildlife: brown hyena, the habituated meerkats, ostrich, springbok and jackal on the surrounding grasslands. A pleasant shoulder month, but the classic firm white pans come into their own from June.

June is cool, dry winter and prime for the pans, meerkats and brown hyena. Days are mild and sunny, the salt flats are hard and expansive, and quad biking and sleep-outs under clear skies are at their best. Nights on the open pans drop to near freezing, so warm layers matter.

The migratory herds are mostly gone from the pans, gathered instead along the Boteti River, so game is centred on desert species and the resident antelope. The short, dry grass makes the habituated meerkat colonies easy to find and watch closely.

July holds the cool, dry pattern with crisp clear days and very cold nights. The pans are firm and the stargazing on sleep-outs is exceptional. Wildlife concentrates along the Boteti, where large numbers of zebra mass at the only permanent water, giving reliable river viewing.

On the grasslands the focus is desert-adapted species: brown hyena, meerkats, ostrich and the smaller predators, with tracks easy to read on hard ground. Quad biking and walks with the San are at their most comfortable. A poor month only if your priority is the flooded pans or wet-season herds.

August keeps the firm dry pans and adds warming days as winter eases. Quad biking, sleep-outs and meerkat viewing are all at their best, and the Boteti continues to hold concentrated game as the dry season deepens.

Wind picks up from August onward and can carry dust across the open salt, which is dramatic but not to everyone's taste. Nights are still cool. This remains a strong month for the desert experience, with the migratory herds away at dry-season water rather than on the pans.

September keeps the pans dry and accessible while the heat and wind build. Midday temperatures climb and the wind continues, but the salt flats, photography and sleep-outs are all reliable, and quad biking is best taken early or late in the day.

Wildlife pressure around the Boteti is high as water stress grows, and the desert species hold on the grasslands. This is still a prime month for the dry-season experience, though heat-sensitive travellers may prefer June to August. It is not a month for green-season birding or flooded pans.

October brings the pans at their most stark alongside the hottest weather of the year. Days can be punishing, with dust and wind, and quad biking is comfortable only in the early morning and late afternoon. The concentration of zebra and wildebeest at the Boteti is at its peak as they mass at the last water.

The pans themselves are fully accessible and the desert game is reliable, but heat is the deciding factor. Many camps, San Camp among them, close around mid-October for the wet season, so anyone sensitive to heat is better suited to the cooler dry months.

November is the hot, unpredictable break of the rains, when the first storms begin to fill the pans. The intense heat starts to ease as cloud builds, and early in the month the pans can still be dry enough for quad biking before the rain shuts it down.

The zebra migration begins to move back as the new grass sprouts, usually from late November, and the first waterbirds appear on fresh standing water. It is a variable month that can deliver both the late dry pans and the start of the green-season movement, but expect heat and scattered storms.

December settles into the green season, with the migration on the pans and the first big bird gatherings. Afternoon thunderstorms are regular and the landscape turns green and vivid. Large zebra and wildebeest herds graze the new grass with predators in tow, part of Africa's second-largest migration.

The flooding pans draw waterbirds and, where levels suit, greater flamingos on the larger basins such as Sua. Quad biking on the central pans is largely off as the surface softens, so the experience moves to game drives and walks. A rewarding wet-season month, but not one for the classic dry salt-pan trip.