Best Hotels & Lodges

Chitabe camp is the larger of two sister camps situated in the private Chitabe Reserve on the eastern side of the Okavango Delta. Mostly a dry camp with sporadic seasonal flooding, this camp is known for its diversity and abundance of both habitats and wildlife, particularly predators. Exclusive access by light aircraft only adds to the wild feel of this island camp. The area offers a huge diversity of habitats within close proximity, and as such, a diversity of species. Besides diversity, Chitabe is most renowned for its wild dogs which are the stars of Running Wild, a book authored by the camp’s owners.

Pitched deep in NG12 — a 90,000-hectare sprawl of northern Okavango — Expeditions Camp is the brainchild of third-generation guide Ralph Bousfield, and it shows. Eight Meru tents sit directly on the forest floor (no raised decks, no frills) beneath ebony trees and facing a seasonal floodplain. The aesthetic is 1920s expedition with four-posters draped with mosquito nets, Persian rugs over levelled sand, bone-handled silver cutlery, and a well-stocked drinks cabinet that seems to refill itself. It's lightly nostalgic without overdoing it, rather letting the Delta do all the talking.

Taking the Governors' tried, tested and truly excellent formula to the next level, Il Moran is the one for honeymooners, couples and anyone looking for a little piece of secluded privacy. In a quintessential and wonderfully romantic Mara picture, the 10 tents wind their way down a bend of the Mara River in the beautiful Musiara Sector of the reserve, shaded by the branches of ancient fig trees. With handsome Victorian bathtubs to fall into at the end of an active day and long, lazy candlelit dinners under a starry sky to look forward to, you might find yourself never wanting to leave.

Saruni Mara Camp and its sister tented camp, Saruni Wild, lie in the Mara North Conservancy, a private wilderness covering more than 30,000 hectares outside the Masai Mara Reserve. The sanctuary is a partnership between conservationists, investors and 800-plus Masai landowners, for whom this is the first time they have received income from wildlife. The camps lie in the path of the Great Migration (July to November) and the less well-known Loita Hills migration (December to May), which sees thousands of wildebeest arriving at the conservancy. So there's plenty to see and, to top it all, this boutique lodge offers top-quality service.