Compare 10 guided tours in Chobe National Park, from 3-hour game drives to full-day safaris combining river cruises and 4x4 drives. Most tours include hotel pickup from Victoria Falls or Livingstone, lunch, and park fees.
Free Cancellation 9-hour day trip from Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe: boat cruise, game drive, lunch and transfers in Chobe. Kids' documents needed.
Free Cancellation Full-day Chobe trip from Victoria Falls: boat cruise, jeep safari, buffet lunch, 06:50 pickup, back by 17:45.
Free Cancellation 10-hour small group safari from Victoria Falls: 4x4 game drive and river cruise in Chobe, with buffet lunch.
Free Cancellation 9-hour Chobe day trip from Victoria Falls or Livingstone: 3-hour river cruise, lunch, 3.5-hour open-jeep game drive.
Free Cancellation Full-day Zambia-to-Botswana trip with a Chobe River cruise, game drive, and buffet lunch (10 hours).
Free Cancellation 10-hour day trip from Victoria Falls or Livingstone with a 3-hour game drive, 3-hour boat cruise, lunch and park fees.
Free Cancellation Full-day Chobe safari from Victoria Falls: river cruise, buffet lunch, and two game drives.
Free Cancellation Full-day trip from Livingstone: river cruise, game drive, and lunch in Chobe, plus a drive through Mosi-oa-Tunya.
Free Cancellation Full-day Chobe tour: morning 4x4 game drive, buffet lunch at a river lodge, afternoon boat safari.
Free Cancellation A 3-hour shared game drive in Chobe National Park, with pickup anywhere in Kasane Town, water and snacks included.
Read what travelers share about their experience visiting Chobe National Park — from practical tips to personal highlights.
Most tours here run as full days split between water and land: a game drive through the Riverfront in an open 4x4, and a boat cruise on the Chobe River where elephants swim trunk-up between the banks. You'll be watching the densest elephant population on Earth — an estimated 50,000–70,000 animals in and around the park — often from close range.
In the dry season (August–October) hundreds of elephants and buffalo crowd the Chobe River to drink, with single herds of 60+ crossing sandy tracks metres from vehicles. The riverfront loop starts just 8 km from Sedudu Gate. Guides keep 300–500 m between vehicles at sightings so the animals stay calm.
A 3-hour cruise on the Chobe (~US$40 shared) drifts past hippos, crocodiles and African fish eagles. The signature sight is elephants swimming between the banks with trunks raised like snorkels. Buffalo and antelope come down to the shoreline at dusk.
Savuti Marsh in the park's west is famous for lion prides that hunt elephants, plus strong hyena populations. It's reachable only by deep-sand 4x4 tracks or light aircraft — about 195 km and 5–6 hours from Kasane in the dry season. Most day tours stick to the Riverfront instead.
Carmine bee-eaters, storks and kingfishers work the river floodplains year-round. December to March is peak, when Palaearctic migrants arrive from Europe and Asia and the species list swells. Bring binoculars — several Viator tours specifically recommend them.
Many tours pick you up in Victoria Falls (~80 km, one hour) or Livingstone (~70 km) and cross at Kazungula, where Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Namibia nearly meet. The drive from Livingstone passes through Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park, so you may spot giraffe or zebra before the border. Budget 30–60 minutes for crossing formalities.
Full-day trips typically stop for a buffet lunch at a riverside lodge such as Cresta Mowana or Chobe Safari Lodge, both overlooking the Chobe River. Vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options are usually available if you flag them at booking.
Almost every tour on this page is a guided group day trip with hotel pickup, running 3 to 11 hours and costing US$74–240 per person. The differences that matter are where you start from, whether park fees are included, and how many people share your vehicle.
Options range from a 3-hour shared game drive from Kasane (US$74, minimum 2 guests) to 10–11 hour full-day trips from Victoria Falls or Livingstone that combine a game drive with a river cruise. Small-group versions cap the vehicle at 8 guests. Private charters run around US$115 for a boat alone.
July–October is peak season and tours from Victoria Falls with 250+ reviews sell out ahead of time — book at least a few weeks out. If you're staying overnight, unfenced campsites like Ihaha (US$50/night for internationals) are routinely full 4–5 months ahead. Reserve campsites before locking in your dates.
Some tours fold park entry into the price; others don't. The Small Group Day Safari from Victoria Falls (US$170) excludes the Botswana park entrance fee of US$20 per person, payable in cash, while the US$240 Chobe Day Trip ex Victoria Falls or Livingstone and the US$190 Livingstone full-day tour include it. Check before comparing prices.
Botswana requires an unabridged birth certificate for every traveller under 18, plus a parental consent affidavit if one parent isn't travelling — a digital copy on your phone is accepted on some tours but not all. You'll need a valid passport, and a KAZA visa (US$50, multi-entry across Zambia, Zimbabwe and Botswana) suits cross-border day trips if your nationality requires one.
Every tour listed follows the same policy: full refund if you cancel at least 24 hours before departure. Same-day cancellations and missed departures (including late cruise ships) get nothing. That's forgiving, but border-day plans can still unravel on paperwork, so sort visas and birth certificates before you arrive.
Several full-day tours from Victoria Falls and Livingstone are marked wheelchair accessible, including vehicles and surfaces, and river cruise boats can generally be boarded with crew assistance. Independent visits with a rental vehicle are not realistic for wheelchair users — book with an operator instead. The 5–6 hour deep-sand drive to Savuti is best avoided if you have limited mobility.
Children under 8 enter the park free (ages 8–17 pay a child rate), and infants sit on laps on most tours. Many lodges and camps set a minimum age of 12, largely because of malaria prophylaxis recommendations and 3–4 hour drives. Boat cruises suit children best — hippos, crocodiles and elephants at water level hold their attention.
Chobe sits about an hour from Victoria Falls and Livingstone, so most visitors pair a safari day with a falls day. The falls are at their most dramatic in high-water months, while Chobe game viewing peaks August–October — a dry-season trip gets you both. Makgadikgadi Pans lie 4–5 hours away en route to Maun if you're extending to the Okavango.
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| Kasane game drive (3 hours) | Full-day trip from Victoria Falls | Full-day trip from Livingstone | Small-group safari (max 8) | Premium all-inclusive day trip | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Duration | 3 hours | 9–11 hours | 10 hours | 10 hours | 10 hours |
| Starts from | Any location in Kasane town | Hotels in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe (pickup 06:50–07:30) | Livingstone hotels, Zambia (pickup 06:50–07:00) | Victoria Falls hotel lobby (07:00–07:30) | Victoria Falls or Livingstone |
| Price from | US$74 | US$164–170 | US$190–205 | US$170 | US$240 |
| Includes | Entrance fees, bottled water, snacks, round-trip shared transfer | Game drive, boat cruise, lunch, transfers; park fee US$20 cash on some departures | Game drive, boat cruise, lunch, all park fees and taxes | Open 4x4 drive, boat cruise, buffet lunch at Cresta Mowana, border assistance; park fee excluded | 3-hour game drive, 3-hour cruise, lunch, park fees, road transfers from both towns |
| Best for | Short on time or already based in Kasane; minimum 2 guests to run | First-time visitors combining the falls with a safari day; rated 4.6–4.7 from 141–259 reviews | Zambia-based travellers; drive passes through Mosi-oa-Tunya NP with rhino and giraffe sightings en route | Photographers and anyone who hates sharing a vehicle with 20 others | Travellers who want zero extras to pay; rated 4.98 from 44 reviews |
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Gates: April–September 06:00–18:30; October–March 05:30–19:00. No driving after sunset, and night drives are prohibited inside the park — plan to be back at your camp or out of the gate before dark.
Four operational gates: Sedudu Gate (the main tourist gate, ~8 km west of Kasane and 10 km from Kasane Airport, handling 90%+ of day-trip and Riverfront visitors), Ngoma Gate (western Riverfront end at the Namibian border), Ghoha Gate (remote northern access to Savuti via Linyanti) and Mababe Gate (southern Savuti entrance from Maun). Ihaha, Savuti and Linyanti gates also serve the campsites.
Campsite check-out is 11:00 on departure day. Enter at gate opening for the best predator activity — the 06:00 game drive from Kasane costs BWP 498 per person, with an afternoon departure at 15:00.
Tour pickups from Victoria Falls and Livingstone run 06:50–07:30, with days finishing back around 17:30–18:00 depending on border formalities.
By air: Kasane International Airport (BBK) sits 10 km from Sedudu Gate. Air Botswana flies Johannesburg–Kasane daily and Kenya Airways flies Nairobi–Kasane four times weekly; one-way fares from Johannesburg run about US$224 (roughly US$197–394). Most lodges provide airport transfers.
Drive on the left; foreign drivers need an international driving permit along with vehicle registration, insurance and customs documents at borders. Public buses don't enter the park — minibuses connect Kasane with Victoria Falls and tours transfer you to Sedudu Gate.
May–October is prime. Animals concentrate at the permanent Chobe River, vegetation thins, and August–October delivers the strongest viewing as elephants, buffalo, lions and giraffe crowd the riverfront and the Linyanti and Savuti waterholes. July–October is also peak season — book lodges and tours well ahead.
Weather: May–August afternoons sit at 27–29 °C with nights of 6–8 °C, and July–August has the fewest mosquitoes. October, just before the rains, is the hottest month at up to ~35 °C.
November–March (green season) brings hot, humid afternoons around 33 °C, with January and February the wettest months and some Savuti and Linyanti roads turning muddy or impassable. The payoff: December–March is the best birding window, with migrants from Europe and Asia swelling the park's 450+ species, and roughly November–March the zebra migration moves between the Chobe/Linyanti rivers and the Makgadikgadi pans — one of Africa's longest mammal migrations.
Combine a morning cruise with an afternoon drive: elephants converge on the river in the late afternoon, so the boat or an evening riverbank drive catches the biggest spectacle.
There is no paved or wheelchair-specific trail infrastructure inside the park — terrain is deep sand and rough tracks, and public campsites are rustic. The practical route in is vehicle-based: several full-day tours from Victoria Falls and Livingstone are listed as wheelchair accessible, with accessible vehicles and surfaces, and cruise boats can generally be boarded with crew assistance. Specialist operators such as Endeavour Safaris run wheelchair-friendly 4x4s with lifts and adapted tents on Chobe and Savuti itineraries.
Independent visits with standard rental vehicles aren't realistic for wheelchair users — book through an operator.
For older visitors: a Kasane-based trip is very manageable. Riverside lodges offer 3-hour boat cruises and 3-hour game drives (BWP 498/person) with minimal walking, plus airport transfers. Budget for cold early-morning starts on open vehicles and malaria prophylaxis, and skip the 5–6 hour deep-sand run to Savuti. Fenced, serviced lodges beat unfenced public campsites.
Children: under-8s enter free, ages 8–17 pay the child rate. Many camps set a minimum age of 12, and boat cruises — hippos, crocodiles and elephants at water level — suit kids best. Botswana immigration requires an unabridged birth certificate for under-18s at border crossings.
Campsites: Ihaha on the Chobe River (US$50/night for international visitors), plus Savuti and Linyanti. All are unfenced — elephants walk between the ablution block and the water at Ihaha. Overnight stays require a pre-booked campsite reservation, checked at the gate; no wild camping. Check-out is 11:00.
Money: no ATMs inside the park, and card machines at gates frequently fail. Withdraw pula in Kasane first (Standard Chartered, ABSA and FNB ATMs take international cards). Keep your entry receipt for your whole stay — re-entry means paying the daily fee again.
Lodges: riverside lodges around Kasane, including Cresta Mowana and Chobe Safari Lodge (both buffet-lunch stops on day tours), offer restaurants, pools and airport transfers. Kasane town, 8 km from Sedudu Gate, has taxis, shops and fuel.
There are no shops, fuel stations or restaurants inside the park itself — guided tours bring water and lunch with them.
On the road: speed limit 40 km/h (30 km/h in high-wildlife areas), no driving after sunset, no night drives, no off-road driving. Stay in your vehicle except at designated picnic sites and campsites.
At sightings: keep 300–500 m between vehicles, never encircle animals, stay at least 10 m from elephants and always give them an exit path — never position yourself between a herd and the river. Feeding or harassing wildlife is banned with zero tolerance.
Enforcement: DWNP rangers issue on-the-spot fines of BWP 500–5,000 for speeding, off-road driving, littering and sighting violations; serious or repeat offences bring vehicle impoundment, and dangerous driving near wildlife, drones or feeding animals can get you expelled. Poaching and weapons offences go to court under the Wildlife and National Parks Act, with imprisonment possible.
Personal photography from vehicles and boats is unrestricted. Commercial filming needs a separate DWNP permit.
Full-day trips from Victoria Falls run US$164–240 per person, typically including hotel pickup, a game drive, a river cruise, lunch and transfers across the Kazungula border. Some operators exclude the US$20 park entrance fee, payable in cash — check the inclusions before booking. The highest-rated option (4.98 from 44 reviews) costs US$240 and includes park fees.
It varies by operator. Tours at US$190–240 from Livingstone and the premium Victoria Falls trips fold park fees into the price, while the US$170 small-group safari from Victoria Falls lists the Botswana park fee (US$20 per person, cash) as an exclusion. Direct entry for independent visitors is BWP 120 (~US$11) per adult per day under the long-standing schedule.
Yes — this is the most common way to visit. Victoria Falls is about 80 km (one hour) away via the Kazungula Border Post, and Livingstone about 70 km via the Kazungula Bridge. Tours run 9–11 hours with pickup around 06:50–07:30 and return by roughly 17:30–18:00, splitting the day between a game drive and a boat cruise.
A valid passport is required, and many nationalities should get a KAZA visa (US$50, multi-entry across Zambia, Zimbabwe and Botswana) or a double-entry visa. Children under 18 need an unabridged birth certificate, plus a parental consent affidavit if one parent isn't travelling — Botswana immigration can turn families away without them.
No operator guarantees sightings since animals roam free, but the odds at Chobe are about as good as safari gets: the park carries an estimated 50,000–70,000 elephants, the densest concentration on Earth. In the dry season (August–October), herds of 60+ routinely cross the riverfront tracks. Boat cruises regularly pass elephants swimming the river with trunks raised.
Do both if you can — nearly every full-day tour pairs them. The drive gets you elephants, lions and leopards on land; the cruise gets you hippos, crocodiles and fish eagles at water level, plus elephants swimming. Short on time? The cruise is the one to pick, since the riverbanks hold some of the densest game viewing in the park.
Yes, with caveats. Several full-day tours from Victoria Falls and Livingstone are wheelchair accessible with adapted vehicles, infants ride on laps, and boat cruises suit children well. Many lodges set a minimum age of 12, malaria prophylaxis is recommended, and every child under 18 needs an unabridged birth certificate to cross the border.
Every tour listed uses the same terms: cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund. Missed departures — including late or non-arriving cruise ships — get no refund, so leave buffer time if you're connecting from other travel plans.
Yes. Chobe district, including the park, is a CDC-listed malaria transmission area with risk highest roughly November to June. Take prescribed antimalarials, use repellent with at least 30% DEET, cover up at dawn and dusk, and see a doctor quickly for any fever during or after your trip. Most tours recommend bringing repellent in their kit lists.
You can, but it demands a proper 4x4 and self-sufficiency — park roads are deep Kalahari sand, and the Linyanti transfer road to Savuti is particularly testing. Pay fees per person per day at Sedudu Gate (cash preferred), pre-book any campsite, and note there are no ATMs inside the park. If you lack 4x4 experience, a guided day trip from Kasane (~US$130–180 with cruise, drive, lunch and fees) is the better call.
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A 9-hour day trip that starts with hotel or lodge pickup anywhere in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. Coffee and tea are served before the morning activity begins. The day runs on the Chobe River and inside Chobe National Park, with roughly nine hours split between a boat cruise and a game drive. Lunch, mineral water and refreshments during the activities are included, as are park fees, transfers and a professional English-speaking guide. The drive from Victoria Falls passes through the park itself, so wildlife sightings can start before you've even begun the formal activities. Two things to sort out before you go. Children 16 and under need their birth certificates, and if only one parent is travelling, an affidavit from the absent parent is required. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund. Gratuities are not included.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
English
Pickup runs 6:50–7:30 AM from hotels and lodges around Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, followed by a 70 km road transfer to the Kazungula border. From about 9:00 AM you get roughly three and a half hours of game viewing — either a boat cruise on the Chobe River or a jeep safari inside the park — before lunch, a buffet with refreshments at Cresta Mowana Lodge. The afternoon session swaps the format: if you boated in the morning, you take the jeep, and vice versa. It runs until about 4:20 PM, when the Botswana operator drops you at the border for the transfer back. You're back at your hotel around 5:45 PM. Total trip length is about 10 hours. Included are lunch, bottled water, a professional driver/guide (English-speaking), and round-trip shared transfers. Gratuities are extra. Note there's no default pickup from the Zambia side — it can be arranged for an added fee paid directly to a Zambian company, which shuttles you to the Zimbabwe-side border crossing in the morning and back in the evening. Cancel at least 24 hours ahead for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
English
This 10-hour day trip runs from Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, into Botswana's Chobe National Park. You're picked up at your hotel lobby and driven to the Kazungula border, where a Botswana-based guide takes over and handles the crossing paperwork with you. From there it's straight into the park for the day. The tour splits time between land and water: an open 4x4 game drive inside Chobe and a boat cruise on the Chobe River, so you see the animals from both angles. Chobe has one of the densest elephant populations in Africa, so sightings are close to a sure thing. A buffet lunch at Cresta Mowana Safari Lodge breaks up the day. Bottled water is provided during the activities, and the guide speaks English. Not covered: the Botswana park entrance fee, USD 20 per person, payable in cash at the gate — bring the exact notes. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
English
Roughly nine hours in the park, split between water and land. You're picked up from your lodge or hotel in Victoria Falls or Livingstone in the morning and driven into Botswana via the Kazungula border. From Livingstone the transfer goes straight into Botswana, with no transit through Zimbabwe. A guide meets you on arrival. First up is a three-hour boat safari on the Chobe River inside the park, then a buffet lunch back on land. In the afternoon the search continues with a three-and-a-half-hour game drive in an open 4x4 jeep. Expect elephants, buffalo, lions and giraffe among the regulars. Price covers hotel pickup and drop-off, lunch, the game drives, bottled water and the driver/guide. Gratuities are extra. Guides work in English, German, French, Italian and Spanish. If you're picked up from Zimbabwe, a KAZA visa is recommended, and families crossing the border with children should carry birth certificates. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
German, English, Italian, French, Spanish
Pickup from your Livingstone hotel runs 6:50–7:00 am, so be ready 15 minutes early. From there it's a 45–60 minute road transfer to the Kazungula border, passing through Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park on the way — you may spot wildlife from the vehicle before you've even crossed. At Kazungula, allow about 20 minutes for passport formalities on both the Zambian and Botswana sides, then cross the new Kazungula Bridge into Botswana. A Botswana-side guide meets you at the border and takes you to the operator's office for a short briefing. The day in Chobe lasts around 7 hours, split between a river safari cruise on the Chobe River and game drives in an open-sided 360-degree-view vehicle, with a fresh buffet lunch at a lodge on the riverbank. The guides decide the order on the day — cruise first or game drive first. Expect elephants and Cape buffalo along the river, plus lions and antelope further in. Included: both the boat cruise and game drive, buffet lunch, bottled water, soft drinks, tea and coffee, all fees and taxes, and air-conditioned vehicles. Guiding is in English. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund. Total duration is about 10 hours.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
English
This 10-hour day combines two activities on the Chobe: a three-hour game drive in a specially adapted safari vehicle and a three-hour boat cruise on the river. Road transfers from both Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe and Livingstone, Zambia are included, so you cross into Botswana for the day and get picked up and dropped back at your lodging — give the operator your facility's full name and address when booking. Lunch, refreshments and tea or coffee are covered, along with park fees, so the only extra money you'd carry is personal spending. Guides run in English. The operator, Kalahari Tours, has run Chobe trips for over 25 years. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund. Anything later and you won't get your money back.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
English
Pickup is at 07:00 from your hotel or lodge anywhere around Victoria Falls town, followed by the drive to the Kazungula border, where you're assisted through immigration on both the Zimbabwe and Botswana sides. The day runs about eight hours inside Chobe: a three-hour mid-morning game drive, an hour for lunch, then another three-hour drive in the afternoon. The order flips from the usual format — you start with a boat cruise up the Chobe River from the jetty, then head to Chobe Safari Lodge for a full buffet lunch, and only after lunch do you take the second game drive, in a 4x4 vehicle. Expect the standard Chobe species list: elephant, giraffe, zebra, buffalo, kudu, and impala are near-certain, with lion, hyena, and jackal likely; cheetah and wild dog are possible but not promised. Mineral water and soft drinks are served on both the boat and the game drives, and the price covers lunch, all park fees and taxes, and air-conditioned vehicles. Guiding is in English. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
English
This day trip leaves Livingstone at 07:00 sharp, daily, with an accredited driver-guide meeting you in your hotel lobby or at an agreed pickup point anywhere in or around Livingstone. The route to Botswana runs through Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park, where rhinos, giraffe, zebras, and impalas are commonly spotted from the vehicle, before a 20-minute stop at Kazungula, the border town between Zambia and Botswana. A Botswanan guide takes over after immigration. From 09:30 to 12:30 you're out on the Chobe River or a game drive; lunch runs 12:30 to 13:30; then the second session runs 13:30 to 16:30. The cruise covers the river and its banks, known for elephants and lions, and the game drive uses an open-sided vehicle with 360-degree views, in parkland holding elephants, Cape buffalo, lions, and antelopes. A buffet lunch with several options is served at a lodge on the riverbank, and refreshments are provided throughout the day. The return drive to Livingstone takes about an hour, dropping you back between 17:30 and 18:00. Included are the driver/guide (English-speaking), lunch, Chobe National Park entry, all fees and taxes, and air-conditioned transport. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
English
An 11-hour day that stacks both of Chobe's formats: a morning game drive in a 4x4, then an afternoon boat safari on the river. Between the two, you stop for a buffet lunch at Moana Safari Lodge, which sits overlooking the Chobe River. The drive is the slot for elephants, lions and leopards; the cruise brings you close to hippos, crocodiles and the birdlife on the water. A single English-speaking guide runs the day. Park entry fees, lunch, bottled water and drinks, and both the drive and the boat safari are included — nothing extra to pay on the day. Pickup works like this: you're contacted the day before, and the driver arrives at your hotel or lodge with a sign carrying your name, checking with reception on arrival. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
English
This is a 3-hour game drive (180 minutes in the park) in an open shared vehicle, running with a minimum of 2 guests. Pickup is included from any location within Kasane Town, round trip, so you don't need to arrange your own transport to the gate. Guides speak English. Entrance fees, bottled water, beverages, and snacks are all covered — you won't pay park fees on arrival. The drive focuses on the park's elephant herds and general wildlife along the riverfront roads, with over 460 bird species recorded in the park for those keeping an eye out. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
English