Choosing a place to camp at Chobe National Park in Botswana isn’t as easy as you might think, as I showed in my previous blog. We may have hit on Toro Safari Lodge purely by luck or default, but we were more than happy, as it turned out. Here’s why.
Update: Note that Toro Safari Lodge no longer exists. The facility has been taken over and now trades as Big 5 Chobe Lodge. It still has camping and on a visit in May 2016 I noted that the chalets were being renovated. We went back in May 2019 and enjoyed the peace and quiet once again. You can book for this lodge through Temba, tel +27 21 8550395.
1. The campsite is about 12km east of Kasane and less ‘in town’ than Chobe Safari Lodge. Although this does make for a slightly longer drive to the park, which is on the other side of Kasane, we felt it was a small price to pay for the peace we enjoyed.
2. Yes, we did hear a barking dog one night, but we also heard hippos most nights, which more than made up for it. Our campsite was even visited by a nagapie (bushbaby) leaping through the trees.
3. Although the campsite itself isn’t on the river, you only have to take a short walk to the main reception/restaurant complex to find some nice green grass to sit on to watch the sun set over the river.
2. Yes, we did hear a barking dog one night, but we also heard hippos most nights, which more than made up for it. Our campsite was even visited by a nagapie (bushbaby) leaping through the trees.
3. Although the campsite itself isn’t on the river, you only have to take a short walk to the main reception/restaurant complex to find some nice green grass to sit on to watch the sun set over the river.
Sunset on the Chobe River
4. Although the campsite is all sand, without a blade of grass (admittedly in the dry season), it is hard sand so not as messy as ‘soft sand’ sites. In terms of comparison, both Ihaha (inside the national park) and Chobe Safari Lodge camp sites are on sand too; in truth, there’s not much choice around Chobe. [But see update note above.]
5. We loved the luxury of having our own private thatched kitchen/bathroom hut right there next to our site. It was great not to have to plan our shower time, and not to have to shower after someone else had already made the floor a sopping mess.
6. We were impressed with the maintenance and care of the campsite. Every morning a member of staff came by to check that everything was okay. I did have a small niggle one day and it was resolved within five minutes. That’s pretty special.
5. We loved the luxury of having our own private thatched kitchen/bathroom hut right there next to our site. It was great not to have to plan our shower time, and not to have to shower after someone else had already made the floor a sopping mess.
6. We were impressed with the maintenance and care of the campsite. Every morning a member of staff came by to check that everything was okay. I did have a small niggle one day and it was resolved within five minutes. That’s pretty special.
7. If you’re tired of braaing, it’s a short walk to the main lodge’s restaurant. We treated ourselves to dinner one night and both our meals were delicious (which is more than I can say for a lunch we had at Chobe Safari Lodge, where my order was muddled and my husband’s steak was as tough as an old boot).
8. There’s an Internet café so you can keep tabs on friends, family, work, whatever you need to.
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Copyright © Roxanne Reid - No words or photographs on this site may be used without permission from roxannereid.co.za
8. There’s an Internet café so you can keep tabs on friends, family, work, whatever you need to.
More about Botswana
Copyright © Roxanne Reid - No words or photographs on this site may be used without permission from roxannereid.co.za
