CHITABE CAMP
Okavango, Botswana

Botswana Safari Camp

Chitabe (pronounced Chitaabee) is located in a 28000 hectare photographic reserve alongside the Moremi Game Reserve. The reserve's boundary in the east is the Gomoti Channel and the Santantadibe River in the west. The area is made up of a superb variety of habitats, which include waterways and marshlands, dry acacia and mopane woodland, riverine areas, open grasslands and seasonally flooded plains. Chitabe has the classic Okavango scenery. Chitabe offers guests game drives in open 4x4 vehicles during the day and at night, as well as nature walks. This is not a water activities camp. Chitabe has been operational since 1997 and has developed an outstanding reputation.

Camp Description

The camp itself is situated on one of the most beautiful islands in the Delta. Surrounded by ancient ebony, leadwood and sausage trees, Chitabe offers eight luxurious, twin~bedded, East African style tents, built on elevated wooden decks under a lush canopy of indigenous trees. Each luxury tent has en suite facilities with hot and cold running water as well as romantic outdoor showers. A separate thatched dining room, pub, lounge, reading room and pool area is linked by raised walkways. The raised decks offer superb views over the open floodplain in front of the camp.

Game Viewing

Wildlife seen here includes Elephant, Buffalo, Lion, Leopard and Cheetah. Wildog are also known to frequent the area. Guests should also see Zebra, Reedbuck, Giraffe, kudu, Impala, and all the plains game. Night drives can be very rewarding, giving rare opportunities to view animals such as Pangolin, Civet Cat, Genet Cat, Porcupine and Aardwolf.

The Owners

Chitabe (and Chitabe Trails) is owned by Dave and Hélène Hamman, two well~known and respected characters in the Okavango. Dave and Hélène have managed a number of camps in Botswana. It was during their time at Mombo that they really became enthusiastic about wild dogs. They got to know individual dogs and started to follow them on a daily basis and learnt more of their life histories, their trials and tribulations. Three years later they co~produced the book Running Wild ~ Dispelling the Myths of the African Wild Dog, the definitive book on these wonderful animals. Dave's passion for photography has developed into a career and he spends most of his time working as a photo-journalist on various wildlife and cultural articles for magazines around the world. In 1996 Dave and Helene were awarded a tender by the Botswana government to build Chitabe and Chitabe Trails camp , which was completed in July 1997. Hélène oversees the financial and accounting aspects of the company, while Dave still spends much of his time on photographic assignments.

Accomodation

Number of tents: 8 luxury tented rooms consisting of:
7 twin bedded tents
1 kingsize-bedded honeymoon tent
1 twin guide room in staff quarters, 2 single beds, more rustic, en-suite facilities.
This camp can accommodate 16 guests with tour leader.
Tent details:
o Tents on raised decks
o All tents are mosquito proof
o Door entrances
o En-suite facilities within tent
o Fans in all guest tents
o Soaps, shampoos and insect repellents are supplied in each room

Camp Description

Communal Area:
o On raised wooden platforms & walkways linking communal area with tents.
o There is a lounge and diningroom, both under thatch as well as an area for after dinner campfires.
o Plunge pool
o Curio Shop

Game Viewing

The area is a combination of open grasslands, dry forest and shallow waterways. Therefore gameviewing is varied. Buffalo, elephant, lion, warthog, lechwe, hippo, leopard, cheetah, tsessebe, serval, aardwolf and wild dog plus all the plains game.

Activities

Game Drives:
o Land game drives in open 4x4 Land Rovers - the camp has 3x 10-seater Land Rovers each accommodating a maximum of 7 guests, allowing all guests an outside seat.
o Night drives with spot light.
Walking Safaris:
o Walking Safaris are offered from camp on a request basis.
o There is a hide within walking distance of the camp.
Water Activities
o Guests see lots of water and in years of high water levels (like 2000), Chitabe can offer mokoro safaris.

Flying Times

to/from Maun 20 minutes
to/from Kasane 1hr 20 minutes
Kasane to Victoria Falls 20 minutes but allow additional time for customs and immigration

Air Strip Details

Located 20 minutes' drive from camp
Licensed for heavier aircraft up to 5700kg MAUW (maximum all up weight), can take aircraft up to King Air size.
Air strip co-ordinates: S19.27.86, E023.22.45

Laundry policy

Laundry is done on a daily basis and inclusive in the nightly tariff with the exception of 'smalls' ie underwear, which are not washed due to local customs.

Extras payment

Curios and or imported drinks will be billed to the guest and settled on check out. Payment can be effected by cash (US$), travellers' cheques or the following credit cards: Visa or MasterCard. If guests feel that they want to tip, our recommended tipping schedule is as follows:
Guides - US$5.00 per person per day
General Camp Staff - US$3.00 per person per day
Specialist Guides (if applicable) - US$10.00 per person per day
(This is the suggested gratuity schedule only and is subject to service standards)

Electricity

o Camp has a 220v generator. Electricity is run in the kitchen and main areas when guests are not in camp. When guests return from daily activities, generators generally switched off (for peace in camp).
o 12v battery power (charged by the generator) is used for lighting and fans in each guest tent 24hrs a day. Hairdryers etc cannot work here.
o Video battery can be charged by the generator when guests on game drives. Hence bring spare battery and charging unit.
o Solar heated water for showers etc.

Guest Comments

The rooms were so comfortable and had a pleaseant atmosphere. The food was fantastic; the table settings so beautiful. I like the way the day was arranged so that there was a lot of time for the game drives. The total ambience of the camp was wonderfol a real "get away from it all" place.
B.B. & C.B., USA

Chitabe Trails what a camp ( long may you keep a few like this) The staff were simply the best, cheerful, friendly and great fun. Carol and Kerry , how luck you are to have such "stars" nothing was too much trouble. Ben is an exceptional guide and his knowledge of birds was second to none. A special place indeed!
P.S.,UK

The Chitabe team have outdone themselves in creating the perfect ambiance. We were made to feel like part of the family. the food was superb and the game fantastic. We will return. B.S. and V.K/, USA The whole experience was wonderful it is difficult to isolate any particular thing, especially meditating in the loo with a view.
J.R.

This has been without a doubt the most memorable experience (outside of giving birth to my son) of my life - very thrilling. Chitabe is a beautiful place and you are all super.
K.S.W., Florida, USA

OT was one of the best guides we have ever had in Africa. He knows everything, and can see invisible animals. He really made each drive an interesting, rewarding and unique experience.
T., USA

The whole experience at Chitabe was phenomenal, the service was friendly, sincere and above and beyond the call of duty.
D.K. and E.K., San Francisco, USA

The private dinner by candlelight that was arranged for us on our balcony was such a wonderful special touch.
J.T. and G.C., NYC, USA

Enrique and I got back from Africa on Sunday and truly had a WONDERFUL TIME......all the preparation that Enrique did for the past year surely paid off........Everything was perfect. The Safari in the 3 different camps in Botswana was something to behold.........These "Tented Camps" were nothing like Girl Scout camp back in the 60's. King Size beds, in door plumbing.....the only thing that resembled a tent was that the walls were Canvas!!!! Food was great and Animal Viewing was at an all time HIGH!!!! Can't seem to say enough about our trip to do you justice on all your advice on the camps. They were all so different. Jao, of course being our favorite and Chitabe, best animal viewing. There is NOTHING that we would have changed. Certainly a lovely experience which we will treasure for many years.
Thanks for helping make our 3rd Safari so Wonderful!!!!

Thank you very much for all the arrangements on our trip. Everything went like clock work and our experience was fantastic. This was the best trip we ever had. Fell in love with Africa, with the people and with their demeanor. Derek and Gordon were great and very informative. It is wonderful to deal with people that enjoy their job. Our guides were excellent, very knowledgeable and extremely accommodating. We saw just about everything that we wanted to see and then some. Please be advised that we stand ready to be in your reference list and won't hesitate to recommend your company, you and the services that you provide. Once again thank you very much.
C.V. and R. V., USA

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