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Central Kalahari Game Reserve

the Central Kalahari Game Reserve, Botswana, experience a place of golden plains and exceptional diversity of wildlife.

lions

The Central Kalahari Game Reserve is within the Ghanzi District, and together with the Khutse Game Reserve they form the largest Game Reserve Complex in Botswana and the third largest in the world.

The 52 800 sq.km Game Reserve consists of fossil valleys and short shrub savannah type vegetation.

Forming part of the Kalahari ecosystem it supports a wide variety of animals such as wildebeest, hartebeest, eland, springbok, kudu, giraffe, brown hyena, warthog, cheetah, wild dog, leopard, lion, blue wildebeest, eland, gemsbok, kudu,
red hartebeest and springbok,

Best viewing times are between December and April, when the animals congregate in the pans and valleys.

Sleeping in the open without a tent is dangerous and tents should be fastened to prevent snakes, and scorpions from gaining entry.

Foodstuffs should not be kept in the tent but in vehicles to avoid the unwanted attentions of lions and hyenas.

Visitors may walk in pan areas where visibility is good, but walking in areas of tall grass or thick bush is potentially dangerous and not encouraged.

It is always wise to stay within easy reach of the vehicle. There are three entry points to the reserve, the one through Khutse in the south, then a western entrance through Xade, and also in the north-east through Matswere.

map of Central Kalahari park

Getting There

From Gaborone it is a 250 km road journey.

You will need a 4 x 4 and the journey will take over four hours.

General Information

Campsites

There are nine undeveloped public camping sites within the Central Kalahari. Matswere is the access point for designated but undeveloped campsites in the region of Deception Valley, Sunday Pan, Leopard Pan and Passage Valley.

The campsites at Piper Pan can be accessed from either Matswere or Xade. While these sites remain undeveloped with no toilets, visitors are requested to dig their own mini-latrine to ensure they leave no signs of being there.

Firewood may be collected from wooded areas but not from tree islands.
The ashes from campfires must he buried before vacating a campsite, combustible rubbish burnt and non-combustible carried back to the pit at the entrance gate.

Water for purposes other than drinking is available from the Wildlife Camp at Xade and at the Matswere entrance gate/tourist office.