Leopards are the reason most guests make the flight. The Xudum holds one of the highest recorded leopard densities anywhere in Botswana, and years of filming here have habituated many of the resident cats to vehicles. There is no airstrip. Access is by helicopter, thirty minutes over water and islands, and no other camp operates within it.
Elephants shake the trunks for the nuts right beneath the guest decks.
Rebuilt on this site as a photographic and walking camp, Mokolwane runs to seven canvas tents raised on timber platforms three metres above the ground, set among ilala palms, jackalberry and sycamore fig. The name comes from the mokolwane palm. Elephants shake the trunks for the nuts right beneath the guest decks. Power is mostly solar, backed by a generator, and a small pool has its own raised deck.
Floodwaters reach the concession in April and May and recede by the end of September. Three river systems run through this landscape, the Xudum, the Matsebi and the Kiri, and through the flood months the Matsebi channels fill until the floodplain in front of camp becomes a lagoon. Mokoro and boat trips open through the reeds. Red lechwe feed at the edges, and hippos work the deeper water after dark.
Night drives turn up porcupine, civet and aardwolf.
From October the water pulls back and the same ground reads as grassland with a waterhole at its centre, which shifts the balance toward game drives, by day and after dark. Night drives turn up porcupine, civet and aardwolf. Walking with an armed guide and driving off-road are both possible here, because this is a private concession, not a national park.
In 2024 a resident lion pride was running with two dominant males, and wild dogs worked the woodlands and floodplains through the same year. Many of the leopards and lions here have grown used to vehicles after years of filming in the concession, including Netflix’s Living with Leopards and the BBC’s Big Cats 24/7. Off-road driving is permitted here, so a leopard on the move can be followed through the woodland. That habituation is what allows the long, close sightings photographers plan their trips around.
Between 5,000 and 10,000 elephants move through the concession over the course of a year, and large buffalo herds cross the floodplains behind them. Giraffe, zebra, tsessebe, kudu, wildebeest and bushbuck hold the open country, with spotted hyena and honey badger working the margins. Birdlife runs past 350 species across the wider Okavango Delta. Wattled crane, martial eagle and Pel’s fishing owl are the birds guides work hardest for. Quelea flocks pull falcons low over the grass.
That habituation is what allows the long, close sightings photographers plan their trips around
Camp life is unhurried and unfussy. Tented structures share a raised deck, with the bar and lounge running into the dining room and a fire mound alongside where canvas chairs get pulled round after dinner. Meals come at individual tables, indoors or out on the deck, and the cooking is straightforward and well done: mushroom soup with bruschetta, spiced chicken with rocket, mille-feuille with blackberry and honey. The tents cover the comforts properly without reaching for polish.
Arrival is by helicopter, low over channels and islands, and it sets the tone before the safari has begun. Scenic flights can be arranged from the camp helipad, including a landing on an island for a drink with the Delta laid out below. With seven tents and no neighbouring camp for miles, exclusive-use bookings are straightforward, and a single party can have the place to itself. The fly-in access and the night-time animal traffic through camp suit families with children of six and over better than very young children.
accommodation
Mokolwane has seven tents: six twin or double, and one family tent with a master bedroom and a twin room either side of a shared bathroom. All stand on timber platforms about three metres up, with mosquito-netted beds, cane chairs, a writing desk, an indoor shower, a flush loo, a ceiling fan and a private viewing deck.
activities
Day and night game drives run in open 4x4s, with off-road tracking of leopard and lion permitted on this private concession. Walking safaris go out with an armed guide. Mokoro and boat trips run while the flood holds, roughly June to September. Guided birding and scenic helicopter flights over the Delta are available from the camp helipad.
conservation
A giraffe research programme supported from camp tracks movement, habitat use and behaviour, and works to reduce conflict with people. Botswana Predator Conservation's BioBoundary project is developing plant-based elephant deterrents to protect crops. Coaching Conservation runs wildlife education for schoolchildren in the region.
Get in touch and let’s start the conversation. An initial consultation helps us understand what you’re looking for, whether that’s specific experiences, luxury touches, or marking a special occasion, and from there we’ll guide you through what’s possible so you can decide if we’re the right fit.
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Yes. There is no airstrip in the Xudum that a guest can use, so the helicopter carries you the whole way from Maun, about thirty minutes over water and islands. It is booked as part of the stay rather than arranged by you, and it is priced per person, so we build it into the quote from the start rather than let it appear later.
One thing worth planning around: three nights here taken with at least three nights at one of the camp's sister camps in Botswana earns the arrival helicopter transfer at no charge, one way, from Maun, the Delta or the Linyanti.
Direct flights from the Makgadikgadi, Chobe or Kasane do not qualify. If the shape of your trip allows it, we build it that way. The helicopter takes soft bags and a modest weight per person, so pack accordingly and we will confirm the allowance for your party.
Yes. TravelHealthPro, the UK's official travel health service, classes the northern half of Botswana, the Okavango Delta included, as high risk for malaria from October to May and recommends antimalarial tablets for those months, then as low risk for the rest of the year, when it advises awareness of the risk and avoiding bites.
The CDC names the Okavango and Ngamiland districts among the parts of the country for which it recommends prescription medicine to prevent malaria. Low risk is not the same as no risk.
We do not make medical recommendations, and we would not want to. We arrange travel; we are not doctors. Which tablets suit you, how they sit with anything else you take, and what is right for a child are questions for your own doctor or a travel clinic.
On the practical part, dusk is the hour that matters, so long sleeves, long trousers and repellent are worth the packing space.
Yes, from six years old, and one of the seven tents is built for a family. Children of six to eighteen sharing with an adult are charged at a child rate, which we price for your dates.
Two things to weigh before you book with younger children. The only way in is a thirty minute helicopter flight, which most children love and a few do not, so it is worth being honest with yourself about that.
And a family travelling with a child of nine or younger has to take a private vehicle for the whole stay, charged per vehicle per night, which we put in the quote from the start. The camp is unfenced and elephants feed right beneath the guest decks, so children need an adult with them whenever they are outside the tent.
Yes, in the tents, and it is covered by the nightly rate rather than charged on top, so messages and email go out from your own deck rather than only from the main area.
Mobile coverage in a concession this remote is another matter, and we would rather confirm the current position with the camp than tell you something that has since changed.
If someone in your party has to be reachable at set times, say so before you book. For everyone else, download maps, books and anything you want to listen to before you leave Maun, because the helicopter is the only way anything reaches you.
June to August is the most comfortable stretch: dry, afternoons in the middle twenties, mornings near eight degrees, and the water high enough for the mokoro and the boat.
September and October are hotter, October afternoons into the middle thirties, and the leopards for which this concession is known are easier to find as the bush thins. November to March brings the rain, green country, newborn animals and migrant birds, with the game spread out rather than concentrated.
Pack a warm windproof jacket, a hat and gloves for winter mornings, because a dawn drive in June or July is genuinely cold before the sun gets up.
Then neutral colours and closed shoes for the walking, a light rain jacket from November to March, strong sun cream and a wide brimmed hat for the middle of the day, and binoculars. Keep it in soft bags and keep the weight down, because everything you bring comes in by helicopter.
Three at least, and three is also the number that unlocks the free arrival helicopter when the rest of the trip is built with the camp's sister properties. The Xudum holds one of the highest leopard densities recorded in Botswana and many of the resident cats are used to vehicles, but a leopard is still a leopard: give it three mornings rather than one.
The rate is fully inclusive:
Outside it sit the flights and the helicopter transfer unless the combination above applies, premium spirits and wines, gratuities, comprehensive travel insurance, the scenic helicopter flights, a private vehicle where one is needed or wanted, and a community, conservation and reserve fee charged per person per night that applies to everyone aged six and over.
rated five stars by our clients
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our approach
Every journey starts with a conversation. We take the time to understand your vision before we start planning.
Whether by phone or in person, we work with you directly to shape something that is considered, personal, and expertly delivered.
