Mombo

Described by some guests as canvas 'pavilions' and not tents, the accommodation at Mombo is some of the most luxurious to be found throughout Africa.

Nowhere is this more obvious than in the rooms. Mombo itself has nine luxuriously furnished 'pavilions', all raised off the ground and connected by wooden walkways (that provide cover for the resident buffalo herd at night, amongst other things!!); they are perfection in enabling guests to feel at home and in harmony with their surroundings.

Each 'pavilion' opens up through a solid wooden panelled door into a cool and tranquil environment. The rooms are beautifully designed with private balconies giving you your very own view of the floodplain in front, double headed power showers in each of the en suite bathrooms and huge four poster beds (and an additional outdoor shower for those of you wanting to shower under the stars!). Each room has a hallway that gives potential guests some idea of just how vast these rooms actually are.

Attention to the finest detail is obvious throughout each room; guinea fowl feathered lampshades provide the light around your mahogany writing desk whilst porcupine quill lampshades provide the night time light around your four poster bed.

Crisp white linen and duck down pillows make up the bed clothes and polished mahogany floors lead you all the way through the hallway to the en-suite bathroom and out to the outside shower.

Each en-suite comes with his and hers washbasins (along with the twin headed power showers), a flush toilet, full length mirrors and an array of organic bath salts and lotions that compliment the constantly fresh and fluffy bath towels.

Walk outside onto your veranda, past your reclining deckchairs and a walkway takes you further out over the floodplain to your private sala. Here you can spend languorous afternoons lazing around listening to the sounds of the surrounding bush - it is not uncommon for people to be woken up here after falling asleep during siesta time!

Activities

The Moremi Game Reserve
Well regarded as one of Africa's finest and most beautiful reserves the Moremi Game Reserve covers an area of untouched wilderness including approximately twenty percent of the Okavango Delta itself. Reachable by a 30 minute flight from Maun and located in the centre of the Okavango Delta, Moremi is principally made up of two large landmasses; Chiefs Island and the Mopane Tongue.

The reserve has a wide diversity of ecosystems ranging from dense mopane woodland and acacia forests to vast floodplains and lagoons. This broad range of habitat creates a stunning place to be on safari but the game here is the principle attraction; Moremi is widely acknowledged as the predator capital of the world.

Literally teeming with other game the reserve is also the only place in Botswana where the big five can be seen. Elephant and both species of rhinocerous are present along with good herds of buffalo, wildebeest and zebra. Plenty of antelope such as waterbuck, kudu and red lechwe provide ample opportunity for the vast numbers of predators with large prides of lion, leopard and cheetah regularly spotted on game drives along with resident packs of wild dog and hyena.

Game viewing in the reserve is at its peak from July to October when the areas water dries up and animals start focusing around the areas of permanent water. As the Delta floods recede and temperatures saw, the plains dry up and lush grass is left in their wake providing fresh supplies for the resident game and excellent photographic opportunities for those on safari.

The Okavango Delta
Botswana's Okavango Delta has to be one of the most incredible places to view wildlife in the world. As a wetland paradise, containing roughly 95 percent of Botswana's surface water located within the arid Kalahari Desert, this unique eco-system is an area of unbelievable natural beauty.

Each year, flood waters from the Angolan highlands come down in 2 main thrusts ending in the Kalahari desert, spreading over a vast area creating a wetland paradise that supports a huge diversity of flora and fauna including swamps, reed beds, flood plains, vast papyrus beds and long stretches of clear water, filtered through the sand until it is fine enough to drink.

The heart of the Okavango Delta is the Moremi Game Reserve, an area of land that is mostly dry throughout the year. On its circumference however are hundreds of palm fringed islands truly untouched and deserted offering some of Africa's last pristine game viewing environments. Mombo is built on one of these islands and although part of the Moremi Game Reserve, is at its Northern most point and therefore is affected by the flood levels of the Okavango itself.

At Mombo, the flood waters usually arrive at the end of April and last until the end of August. 2006 looks like it will be a very high year for the flood because of the large amount of rain coming down from Angola. The flood is therefore expected to last through until September.