The Kalahari Desert is a sandy semi-arid basin of about 900,000 square kilometres that covers most of Botswana and reaches into Namibia and South Africa. Grass, acacia scrub and dry riverbeds cover much of it, unlike the dune seas of the Sahara, which is why it supports black-maned lions, cheetahs, gemsbok and huge herds after the rains. This guide explains where to go in the Kalahari, when, how to get around and what to expect from the remote reserves.
If you are building a wider southern Africa trip, start with flights into Johannesburg, Gaborone, Maun or Windhoek through our flight search, and look at guided tours if you would rather not drive remote tracks yourself.
Kalahari Desert: essential facts at a glance
- Size: About 900,000 km²
- Countries: Botswana, Namibia, South Africa
- Largest reserve: Central Kalahari GR, about 52,800 km²
- Cross-border park: Kgalagadi, opened 12 May 2000
- Green season: December to March
- Dry season: Roughly May to October
- Vehicle: 4x4 with high clearance for reserves
- Entry: Depends on passport; check each country's official immigration portal
What kind of desert is the Kalahari?
The Kalahari is a semi-desert. Rain falls mainly in summer, which lets grasses and thorn trees grow on the deep red and pale sands, so geographers often describe it as a sandy savanna. Water drains into dry fossil river valleys and pans, the largest being the Makgadikgadi salt pans in northern Botswana.
For travellers, this changes the planning. Wildlife moves with the rains, gathering on grassy pans after storms and scattering in the dry months, so the time of year shapes your trip far more than in a true sand desert. The San people, who have lived in the region for thousands of years, are the Kalahari's best-known inhabitants, and some community-run cultural walks are open to visitors.
In numbers, the Kalahari covers about 900,000 km² across Botswana, Namibia and South Africa, inside a wider sand-filled Kalahari Basin of more than 2.5 million km². The driest south-western parts receive only 110 to 200 mm of rain a year, while the wetter north gets just over 500 mm, which is why the vegetation thickens as you travel north towards the Okavango.
Where to go in the Kalahari Desert
Four areas of the Kalahari Desert cover most of what visitors come for, and each one needs a different plan. The largest is the Central Kalahari Game Reserve in Botswana, about 52,800 square kilometres, where Deception Valley is the most visited section and springbok, gemsbok and wildebeest gather on the grassy pans in the green season.
Central Kalahari Game Reserve and Deception Valley, Botswana
At about 52,800 square kilometres, the Central Kalahari Game Reserve (CKGR) is one of the largest protected areas in Africa. Deception Valley, a fossil river valley in the north of the reserve, is the most visited section. In the green season, springbok, gemsbok and wildebeest gather on the grassy pans, and lions and cheetahs follow them.
Facilities are minimal: designated campsites with little more than a clearing, and a handful of lodges near the edges. Self-drivers must be fully self-sufficient for fuel, water and recovery gear, and campsites must be booked in advance. Summer rains make some tracks muddy and slow.
Give it three to five days, sleeping at booked campsites or one of the edge lodges. Access is by 4x4 only, usually via Maun or Rakops, and the reward is big cats and real solitude.
Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa and Botswana
On 12 May 2000 the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park was formally by joining South Africa's Kalahari Gemsbok National Park with Botswana's Gemsbok National Park. Around three-quarters of it lies in Botswana. It is often called Africa's first transfrontier peace park.
The South African side is the most accessible part of the Kalahari: camps such as Twee Rivieren have chalets and fuel, and the main roads follow the dry Auob and Nossob riverbeds, where predators patrol between waterholes. The roads are gravel and sand: from Twee Rivieren it takes about 3.5 hours to Mata Mata and 4.5 hours to Nossob camp, and SANParks advises that the roads are not sedan friendly, so hire a high-clearance vehicle.
For a first Kalahari trip this is the easiest choice. Allow three to six days in the national park camps and chalets, and expect a long drive from Upington to reach the gate.
Makgadikgadi Pans, Botswana
Left behind by an ancient lake, the Makgadikgadi Pans in northern Botswana are among the largest salt pans in the world. In the dry months they are blinding white and flat to the horizon, and some lodges run quad-bike and sleep-out trips on the pan surface.
After good rains, shallow water spreads over parts of the pans and draws large flocks of flamingos, along with zebra and wildebeest on the grasslands around Makgadikgadi Pans National Park. Plan the pan surface trips for the dry season and the wildlife viewing for the wet season.
Two or three days is enough, based at lodges near Gweta and Nata and reached from Maun or Nata. Photographers and anyone who loves wide landscapes get the most from the pans.
Namibian Kalahari
In eastern Namibia the Kalahari reaches within a few hours' drive of Windhoek. The landscape here is long parallel red dunes with grass between them, and most accommodation is on private reserves and guest farms that offer sundowner drives, walks with San guides and stargazing.
It is the easiest part of the Kalahari to fit into a self-drive Namibia trip on good roads, but the wildlife is more managed than in Botswana's big reserves. Treat it as a scenic stopover; for big cats, head to Botswana.
One or two nights at a lodge or guest farm, reached on paved and gravel roads from Windhoek, gives a short taste of the Kalahari.
Best time to visit the Kalahari
Pick the green season (December to March) for wildlife on the pans of the Central Kalahari and dramatic storm skies. Choose the dry months (roughly May to October) for cooler days, easier driving and animals concentrated at waterholes in the Kgalagadi. Winter nights in the dry season are cold and can fall close to freezing, so pack warm layers.
Both seasons have their extremes. Frost is common from June to August, while summer days occasionally approach 45 °C; Twee Rivieren Rest Camp, the main entrance to the Kgalagadi on the South African side, recorded 44.8 °C in 2012. Even so, the average for the warmest month stays below 29 °C.
Kalahari seasons, side by side
| Green season (Dec to Mar) | Dry season (May to Oct) | |
|---|---|---|
| Wildlife | Herds on CKGR pans, newborn antelope | Animals near waterholes, easier to find in Kgalagadi |
| Driving | Muddy tracks in places | Sandy but predictable |
| Temperature | Hot days, thunderstorms | Warm days, cold nights |
| Makgadikgadi | Flamingos if pans flood | Dry salt surface, pan trips |
| Crowds | Few visitors | Busiest period, still quiet by safari standards |
A sample route through the Botswana Kalahari
Seven days: Maun, Makgadikgadi and the Central Kalahari
- Day 1, Maun: Arrive, collect a 4x4 or meet your guide, buy fuel, water and food for the reserve.
- Day 2 to 3, Makgadikgadi Pans: Drive east to lodges near Gweta or Nata for the pans and grasslands.
- Day 4 to 6, Central Kalahari Game Reserve: Enter via the northern gates and camp at booked sites near Deception Valley.
- Day 7, Return to Maun: Exit the reserve, refuel and connect to the Okavango Delta or your flight.
The Central Kalahari Game Reserve is the core of this route. Established in 1961, it covers about 52,800 km², close to 10 percent of Botswana and larger than the Netherlands, and Deception Valley is one of four fossil river valleys that cross it. No fuel is sold inside, campsites have no water, and sites must be booked and paid in advance through Botswana's Department of Wildlife and National Parks or the private operators who run some of them, so fill tanks and jerrycans in Maun. Operators quote around three hours from Maun to Matswere Gate on the northern side, before the slow sand tracks inside the reserve.
Driving times on sand are slow, so a route like this suits travellers with off-road experience or a guide. Flying into a lodge on a light aircraft is the alternative if your budget allows.
Getting to the Kalahari: self-drive 4x4, guided safari or fly-in lodge
How you travel decides which parts of the Kalahari you can reach, how much you pay and how much planning falls on you. The main gateways are Maun for the Central Kalahari and the Makgadikgadi, Upington in South Africa's Northern Cape for the Kgalagadi, and Windhoek for the Namibian Kalahari. Johannesburg is the usual international hub, with onward flights to Maun, Upington and Windhoek.
Self-drive 4x4
Most freedom, most responsibility
- Hire a fully equipped 4x4 with rooftop tent, fridge, recovery kit and long-range fuel tank in Maun, Johannesburg or Windhoek
- Suits travellers with sand-driving experience; the South African side of the Kgalagadi is the gentlest start
- You book every campsite yourself and must be self-sufficient inside the reserves
Guided mobile safari
The safe middle ground
- An operator from Maun supplies the vehicle, guide, camp crew, permits and campsite bookings
- Best way to see the Central Kalahari without off-road experience
- Small-group departures cost less than a private trip; check the group size before booking
Fly-in lodge
Least effort, highest cost
- Light-aircraft transfers from Maun to lodges on the edge of the Central Kalahari and the Makgadikgadi
- Rates usually include meals, guided drives and walks with San trackers
- Strict soft-bag luggage limits on small aircraft; check them before packing
What a Kalahari trip costs: park fees and budget drivers
Park fees in all three countries are charged per person per day, with higher rates for non-residents, plus a vehicle fee and a separate charge for each night of camping. Botswana's reserves are run by the Department of Wildlife and National Parks, and some campsites in the Central Kalahari are operated by private concessionaires who set their own rates, so a self-drive night inside the reserve involves several small payments. On the South African side, the Kgalagadi is a SANParks park: international visitors pay a daily conservation fee per adult, and travellers visiting several South African parks in one trip should compare the total with a SANParks Wild Card. Fees are revised annually, so check the current tariff on the official park websites before you budget.
Park fees are rarely the biggest cost. The main budget drivers, roughly in order, are the type of travel (a fly-in lodge costs many times more per night than camping), vehicle hire with camping equipment, which is priced per day and often has a minimum rental period, one-way drop fees if you collect a vehicle in one country and leave it in another, and fuel, which you must carry in quantity because there is none inside the big reserves. For a realistic quote, decide on your route and travel style first, then ask two or three Maun or Upington operators for a full price that lists fees, fuel and equipment separately.
Practical tips for a Kalahari trip
- Fuel and water. There are no fuel stations inside the big reserves. Carry enough fuel and water for the whole stay plus a safety margin.
- Communication. Mobile coverage disappears inside the reserves. Many self-drivers rent a satellite phone with the vehicle.
- Book campsites early. Campsites in the CKGR and Kgalagadi are limited and must be booked before entry.
- Visas and borders. Entry rules depend on your passport. Check the official immigration portals of Botswana, Namibia and South Africa, especially for cross-border routes.
- Health. Northern Botswana has malaria risk in the wet season. Ask a travel clinic about prevention before you go.
- Night rules. Driving after dark is not allowed in national parks. Plan to reach camp before gates close.
Read this before self-driving: The Kalahari reserves are remote: breakdowns can mean a day or more before another vehicle passes. Always tell someone your route, never leave the vehicle to walk for help, and stay inside unfenced campsites at night. Lions and hyenas pass through camps.
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