Moremi Game Reserve

 Read about our trips to Moremi here

Moremi GR - December 2007

Moremi GR - July 2024

Moremi GR - July 2025

Overview

The Okavango Delta is a remarkable inland delta where the river empties in to to the Kalahari sands. The Moremi game reserve offers the only land based access to the Okavango Delta. Moremi consists of 4 distinct areas with its own campsites and game driving circuits. 

Red Lechwe are a Moremi special, Paradise Pools, Xakanaxa.  

The feature of Moremi is the winding delta channels and the network of roads and habitat one gets to explore in search of wildlife. Moremi is home to the some of the best wildlife and birdlife in Africa including the rarest of them all, the Sitatunga, the water based antelope.  

Slow moving channels is a feature of the delta. 

Located deep in Moremi, Third Bridge is the most remote and hardest to reach area. Surrounded by channels, Third Bridge is the wildest of them all with the landscape thick and bushy. During the high water season, both Second and Fourth bridge have known to be impassable limiting access to Third Bridge. The sand traps in the dryer month are also a major challenge to reach Third Bridge. 

The legendary 3rd bridge in Moremi. 

Xakanaxa is also located deep in Moremi but has three approaches including the main service access from South Gate which is usually passable year round as it services 3 lodges located in Xakanaxa. The terrain is network of roads crisscross the delta channels with old growth forest. 

Kwai or North Gate, as the name suggests is one of the entrances to Moremi thus borders the park and two game driving circuits on either side of the main road. The terrain here is open plains and savannah like with pockets of forest dotted around. 

The iconic Kwai bridge at North gate. 

South gate or Maqwee is the main entrance to Moremi and this accessible via the main road from Maun. The main game driving circuits are Black Pool and Xini Lagoon with the terrain a mix of open plains and woodlands.      

South gate is padlocked overnight!

When did we go

Getting there

The two main entrances to Moremi are South and North gate, both via public roads which are maintained and graded, however, they are bush roads and can vary in degree of challenge based on the time of the year. The closest town is Maun which is about a 3 hour drive from South Gate and 5 hour drive from North gate. 

The tarmac ends Shorobe, let your tryes down and take on the dust.

There are no river channels that impact the access roads to Maun but it can get very sandy in the dry and awfully wet with the rains. The rainy season can we get very tricky with the puddles of water going over the bonnet and long stretches of waterlogged roads being offering a major challenge and risk to the most experienced off road drivers and vehicles. 

Sand in the dry but this turn in to deep water pools in the wet. 

There are airstrips at Xakanaxa and Kwai servicing the lodges around these areas if you fancy the easy way in and fancy a lodge stay. 

Roads in the park

The roads in the park are not maintained and wild and left to nature and the drivers to take care of. Thankfully the bridges are maintained (mostly) and always check with the gate and fellow travelers on road conditions and which bridges are open as it's along way round. Make sure you follow Drive Bots or Moremi sightings well in advance of your arrival to ensure you have current information on road conditions. 

In the dry, the sand traps will test you and your 4x4. 

Current being the key works as the delta waters rise and fall throughout the year and what was passable today may not be tomorrow. If one of the key bridges are down, Third Bridge for example could only be accessible from one side and you need to know this before you leave as coming back and going around could be a half day affair, if you don't get stuck anywhere. 

1st bridge July 2024, best drive was in the sand next to the bridge. 

1st bridge July 2024, only drive was on the bridge. 

The roads in the park are a battle with sand in the dry, for which you need to have your tyre pressures low and 4x4 high. This is not about getting through, yes one could get through on tarmac tyre pressure on 2x4 but the track will be dug up and messed up. 

There is enough trouble in the sand traps to catch you out. 

Also in the dry is the high waters when the Delta waters peak and will flood Moremi which is an on going never ending process. A road you went down could be flooded on return so be aware of where you are traversing, especially close to the main channels, where a dry channel get flood out in a flash. 

This flooded before our eyes at Zini Lagoon. It was impassable within hours. 

The approach roads to Third Bridge and the game driving circuits around Xakanaxa towards Dead Tree island are subject to flooding to make sure you are well informed of the water flows. This information is not readily available to the everyday tourist so ask around and stay away from the channels and on the main game driving roads which are usually the safest. 

To cross or not to cross! Don't fool around and try to walk it, this is real wild. 

The rainy season is a real challenge and not to be taken lightly with road flooded overnight. Deep puddles with thick mud and water over the bonnet will be a norm in the wet so don't mess around unless your prepared for a real challenge. 

Yes that is the road between the lodges and campsite at Xakanaxa. 

It is easy to get disoriented in Moremi due to the lack of noticeable landmarks and a road network than winds around the channels. Also, you are constantly having to take detours due to road conditions which can leave you confused and lost. If you are armed with GPS trackers or the like this is less of an issue, but without them, one can get lost quickly and one wanders how we undertook these challenges in the past with just a paper map. 

Everything can look similar and you can get disoriented soon. 

Accommodation

Just camp to get the best out of Moremi.

There are campsites located in all the major areas of Moremi with lodges inside the park located only in Xakanaxa serviced by an airstrip. There are also lodges outside the gate at Kwai, also serviced by an airstrip. 

In and around the Kwai village (outside the gate) there are a variety of lower priced accommodation options including budget options. There are a couple of accommodation options on route to South gate too but we feel they are too far from the gate, however, areas outside both North and South gate are wild life areas with lots of game. 

There is a tented camp at Third Bridge but it doesn't offer food or drink but safari tent on stilts and a good option if you don't want to bother with camping but still be out there. (https://www.xomaesites.com/).  

Camping facilities

Unfortunately despite being in Moremi, South Gate (https://www.kwalatesafaris.com/maqwee.html) is more of a camp ground poorly located next to the National Parks staff village. The staff village can get noisy, has bright lights and a generator spoiling what is a wild experience. The camp sites offer little privacy but they do have shade and a firepit. There is no water at site but there is a bin but take care to close it as resident honey badgers will test it. There are two ablutions blocks with running water. 

South Gate campsite #2, not the greatest campsite but lots of game.

North gate (https://sklcamps.com/) has good camp sites which offer decent privacy and shade set amongst a grove of old growth trees. There is a fire pit, bin and water at the camp site with the water tap in a small concrete block. There are two ablution blocks with running water and there is a waterhole within the camp ground which is an odd option but the channel just around the corner, there is no shortage of water. Like South gate, the staff village is just around the corner but the Kwai village on the opposite bank is a typical African village, loud and full of life taking away any wild feeling despite being in one of the wildest places. 

Campsite #3 Kwai, shade and on the bank of the channel. 

Despite being next to staff quarters and the village, don't get fooled in to thinking there is no game around. We have had Leopard, Hyena and Wild Dogs in the Kwai campsite with Lion, Hyena and Honey Badgers in the South gate camp. Elephants have gone through both campsites and impala will often hand around campsites for the shade so despite the human activity, game is plentiful. 

Xakanaxa camp site (https://www.kwalatesafaris.com/maqwee.html) is on the river bank and set under good shade trees but they are on top of each other with no privacy. There are two ablutions blocks with running water and each camp site has a fire pit and bin which for some reason is located as an attraction right in front of the campsite. The lodges and the Boat shed are in the vicinity of the campsites so there is a lot of traffic around.

Xakanaxa #5, good shade and next to the ablutions. 

Third Bridge (https://www.xomaesites.com/) is probably the best campsite in Moremi with privacy and shade. It is also a hot spot for game and with no lodges or traffic around, this the quietest part of the park. There are two ablution blocks and all campsites have a fire pit and water tap. The national parks office runs a decently stocked shop at the Third Bridge office with camping basics but no food other than a few dry food items like biscuits. 

3rd bridge campsite #5, plenty shade and privacy. 

There are camping options outside the North Gate in and around the Kwai village. We have tried Hippo Pools (https://www.khwaihippopoolcampsite.com/) and Magotho (https://khwaitrust.co.bw/camp-sites.html). Both offer individual campsites with good shade and common ablutions blocks outside the national park but in wild country with resident game including predators. The key difference between the two is distance from the North Gate entrance with Hippo Pools located just 15 minutes from the gate while Mogotho is a good 1 hour and 25 KMS one way to the gate which offers fuel issues with no fuel available in the area. Mogotho offers better game viewing with decent river front driving and other game driving options within the area which Hippo Pools doesn't. 

Viewing wildlife

Moremi offers some of the best game viewing in Africa and with it's varying terrain of flood plains, open plains, thick bush, woodland and forests complimented by a network of permanent fresh water channels. The resident prides are large, often with more than 3 males and multiple breeding females.

Lions are scattered across the park.

There are multiple packs of Wild Dogs who den in Moremi with regular Leopard and Cheetah sightings throughout the park. Hyenas are heard almost daily at night but we are yet to see large packs of Hyena's in Moremi. 

Found a Wild Dog den which provided some of the best sightings. 

Of the rare game sightings we have had the Sitatunga tops the list. We had heard of the Sitatunga in the Paradise Pools at Xakanaxa and was lucky enough to get a sighting. We have also seen the elusive Caracal in Moremi and have heard of Serval sightings. This is one of the few places in Botswana we have seen the Roan antelope. 

Cheetah are rare and mainly in the south of the park. 

Moremi is also one of the few places where you can have a sighting for yourself due to the sheer remoteness of the place and low traffic. We once sat with a pack of 20 Wild Dogs and their pups who slept in the shade of our car with no one around for a hours. 

The rarest of them all, Sitatunga, this at Paradise pools, Xakanaxa. 

In terms of birding Moremi offers the opportunity to tick off the Southern extend of the some of the East African birds and water based birds who inhabit the marshes. There is plenty of forest, woodland and open plains offering habitat to a wide array of birds including the migrants.  

Wattled Crane lines up an impressive of birds for Moremi. 

Wilderness factor

The wilderness factor of Moremi is unparallel due to it's remoteness, wild roads and low traffic. The Third Bridge area is wildest of them all with little or no through traffic, challenging road and resident predators. Due to the river channels, the road network in the Third Bridge are is limited, however, in other areas there is large network of roads to get you lost in the swamps. 

Hyena ate my slipper at 3rd bridge. 

With open campsites where walking to the ablution block at night may not be an option, there are fewer wilder places left in Africa. Hyenas road the campsites looking for scraps while Honey Badgers raid bins while your watching. I think we heard lion every night in Moremi which makes everything just that much more tense at nights. 

Visitors arrived while were still unpacking.

The wild roads of Moremi adds hugely to the wilderness factor. The first time we went to Moremi in 2005, only Third Bridge was up which meant you had to cross the channel at all the other bridges and with no information on under tyre or depth, it was wilderness at its best. The last time in 2025 we arrived at Second Bridge to find it was down with directions to an alternative crossing. After inspecting what appeared to be uncertain and lengthy water crossing we turned around and never reached Third Bridge. 

Locals chill at the Kwai channel in front of our camp at Mogotho. 

An unforgettable experience we had was at Xini lagoon where upon arrival we noted a large flock of water birds gathered around what looked like a dried up flood plain. Upon closer inspection, we could see a small stream of water coming out and the birds were at the head waters. To our amazement, this small body of water just kept growing before eyes and the next morning, was a huge lake. It was an up close encounter of the delta waters moving to its own rhythm across this wild landscape. 

Wild dog pups play in the shade of our car, Zini lagoon, Moremi. 

Other logistics

There are boat rides offered at both Third Bridge and Xakanaxa which we haven't done but those that have tell us it's well worth it. There are also boat and mokoro rides outside the Kwai gate with plenty of options and this will be in around the Kwai channel which is proper wild terrain. The guys offering Mokoro rides out of Maun are not really wildlife based but a Mokoro experience. 

Fuel, water, firewood, gas, recovery gear - pack everything!

There is no fuel or provisions once you leave Maun. There are stories of fuel in the Kwai village sold out of jerry cans which should only be a desperate option. Fuel in Moremi is a major challenge if you plan a week for a week across the delta with game drives. We carry 80 extra liters and have got back to Maun on a last can of fuel so this needs to be planned, especially if you have unexcepted detours like when we couldn't reach Third Bridge and the only accommodation we could find was outside Kwai River. 

4th Bridge was up but barely drivable in July 2024. 

You also need to carry sufficient firewood for the trip. While you are able to buy some firewood at Third Bridge and in the Kwai Village, you need a better plan. It's best to get your firewood in Maun or along the road with Buffalo fence having a fair collection. 

Our impression

Moremi is top on our list of destinations and we will keep coming back to this wild corner of Africa at every given opportunity. Our plan would be to do a one week mission taking in all the main campsites across Moremi and they each have their own charm. We would stay away in the wet season given we are solo travelers and rather take our chances in the dry season and hope the flood waters are low. 

The scene in front our camp at Mogotho, Moremi is just special.