Sanctuary Chobe Chilwero Lodge

There are 14 thatched suites, each with an en-suite bathroom with a large, luxurious free-standing bathtub and refreshing indoor and outdoor showers. The suites are also equipped with coffee-making facilities, a mini-bar, a hairdryer and access to wi-fi. Air conditioning and overhead fans have been fitted to ensure your comfort. Each suite also has a private garden for guests to relax and unwind in between exciting safari trips. Dinner can be served out here under the dazzling starry sky. Three of the suites are Family Suites, which feature a spare bedroom.

The outstanding Pool Suite at Sanctuary Chobe Chilwero is designed to make the most of the outdoors. As well as including the same amenities as the other suites, the Pool Suite features a private deck area, complete with sun loungers and your very own plunge pool. Sit back and relax beside the cooling water, indulge in a cocktail under the shade of the gazebo, and enjoy a private dinner for two under the stars – a perfect secluded escape for guests celebrating their honeymoon.

Full English Breakfast is served before the morning game viewing activity, and refreshments such as tea, coffee and pastries will be available during the morning activities before you return to the lodge for lunch. Guests are able to enjoy three-course meals, or get creative in the kitchen and craft their own pizzas. Indulge in afternoon tea and the selection of sweets and cakes that will be on offer, before embarking on afternoon and evening game drives with cocktails and canapes. An all-day snack menu is also available.

Meals are prepared by Sanctuary Chobe Chilwero’s Chef Phinias. His signature dish is a Botswana beef fillet served with seasonal vegetables, although many guests have also enjoyed his grilled impala with port wine and roast sweet potatoes. A variety of vegetarian dishes are also available. Match your meal with one of a range of selected South African wines and enjoy freshly prepared cuisine with a view of the Chobe River.

Get closer to Africa’s amazing wildlife in an open-sided 4×4 safari vehicle. Weave amongst huge herds of elephants and capture incredible photographs of bathing hippos, grazing impalas and sleeping lions. The lodge’s professional guides will be able to teach you about the many creatures that call Chobe National Park their home as you spot a variety of game and predators carrying out their daily routines. A range of exciting experiences await you: perhaps you will catch sight of wild dogs, or witness a predator hunting. No two game drives are the same. Morning game drives depart between 6:30 and 7 am, and afternoon drives depart between 4 pm and 4:30.

Drift along the still waters of the great Chobe River in one of Sanctuary Chobe Chilwero’s comfortable riverboats on a sundowner cruise. Enjoy a refreshing beverage while the African sunset turns the water golden and red, and watch herds of buffalo emerge from the shade for their evening graze. The riverboat is an amazing spot to capture photographs of elephants as they wade into the river or sable and antelopes as they run through swamps to escape the prowling lions.

The photographic safari boat can cater for up to 18 guests on its completely rotational swivel seats. The boat is divided into the lower and upper decks. The upper deck is perfect for photography enthusiasts, offering a brilliant vantage point of the Chobe River and its surrounding wildlife. The lower deck is the perfect spot to relax and enjoy a delicious meal on the river, and drinks from the boat’s bar area.

Guests can meet their guide at reception before driving through to the jetty and doing some fishing. The best time for fishing in the Chobe area is during Botswana’s winter, particularly from May until August. Cast your line and hook some Bream and Tiger Fish. All fishing is done on a catch and release basis and there is a maximum of 3 people per boat.

Venture across the border into Zimbabwe and visit the beautiful frothing waters of Victoria Falls. Follow professional guides as they teach you about the waterfall and its history. The rainforest walk is approximately an hour and a half long, and gives guests the opportunity to stop at a number of stunning viewing points to take in the spectacular views. Sanctuary Retreats will supply raincoats to prevent you from getting soaked by the waterfall spray. Victoria Falls is an hour and a half drive from Sanctuary Chobe Chilwero, and guests will have the chance to shop at the adjacent open-air markets before returning to the lodge.

Meet the people of Botswana and learn about the local community. Visit the Dipetsana Woman’s Bike Shop, set up through Sanctuary Retreats Philanthropy, which provides employment for five women – giving them an income that is crucial for supporting their families. The bike shop also means that the community has access to an essential form of transport. The women will be happy to give you a tour of their shop before loaning you a bike so that you can explore more of Kasane. From there, guests can visit the neighbouring women’s basketry shop and learn about weaving baskets, or drop in at the CARACAL animal rescue centre and meet the injured animals and birds that are being rehabilitated before their release back into the wild.

Sanctuary Retreats Philanthropy works with local communities to identify long-lasting sustainable projects that will benefit people from the local community and their well-being. An example of this is the Bike Shop Program, which has provided health care workers with an easier way of reaching patients, and students with a way to get to school. Each bike shop employs five women and receives donated bikes, which the women fix up using the bike mechanic skills they have learned through extensive training. Sanctuary Retreats continue to support the bike shops with regular stock shipments along with their bike collection partner, Working Bikes, to ensure that these women can continue to work and earn an income to support their families.

Sanctuary Retreats Philanthropy is working with Rhino Conservation Botswana, the Botswana Defence Forces, and other partners in the hopes of saving the critically endangered Black and White Rhinos from the threat of poaching that could wipe both species out. Over a thousand rhino are killed for their horns every year in South Africa alone. The Rhino Conservation Project has translocated 20 rhino, both black and white, to the Moremi Reserve, Botswana where they have protection from poachers around the clock. Sanctuary Retreats hope to expand their support for monitoring and protecting these great creatures and give guests staying at Sanctuary Chief’s Camp the chance to learn about rhino and the process of translocating them, as well as the wonderful opportunity to venture into the reserve and see the rhino in their new, safer habitat.

The Elephant Outreach Program is an educational program delivered to the youth from local communities in Botswana. The program addresses human and animal conflicts and teaches children to appreciate elephants, rather than viewing them as a nuisance that could trample their fields. Both children from nearby villages and Sanctuary guests are given the unique opportunity to interact with elephants during two-day excursions, aiming to give everyone a personal connection to these grey giants, and inspiring people to protect them.