Welcome to Sanctuary Baines Camp Moremi
email: book@go.botswanatravelservice.com
Sanctuary
Baines' Camp is located on a huge private concession bordering the
Moremi Game Reserve in the Okavango Delta, home to some of the most
spectacular wildlife on Earth. This is Sanctuary's smallest and
most intimate camp, with only five luxurious suites.
Overview:
Set in a grove of trees, and surrounded by papyrus beds, this low
environmental impact camp has been built using commercially grown
wood and recycled tin cans.
The local community in Maun were invited to collect as many cans
as they could, and paid a fee for every can collected. These cans
were then incorporated into the camp buildings, forming the backbone
of the structures.
There is a communal swimming pool, and the wide wooden deck that
surrounds the main dining and sitting room is the ideal place to
relax while observing the varied wildlife present here.
See prowling lions looking for prey at the edge of the lagoon that
the camp overlooks, or watch one of the many elephants who live
in the area.
The five suites at Sanctuary Baines' are opulent and luxurious,
with ensuite facilities and four-poster beds swathed in mosquito
netting. Traditional safari ceiling fans create a cooling breeze
at even the hottest times of the year. Should you wish, your bed
can be wheeled out onto the private wooden deck for a night under
the stars, overlooking the shimmering waters of the Boro River where
hippo can often be spotted.
Sanctuary Retreats and Living With Elephants invite you to explore
Africa with us from an elephant's perspective, walking in the gigantic
and silent footsteps of nature's great masterpiece. For more information
please see our additional activities page.
Included Activities
GAME DRIVES
Here in the Okavango Delta lives some of the most spectacular and
varied wildlife on Earth. Famed for its big cat and bird population,
the delta is a peaceful haven where animals have been protected
for decades and know they will not be disturbed. Guests have the
opportunity to see animals up close when expert guides accompany
them on morning and evening game drives in open 4 x 4 vehicles.
A night game drive is the perfect means to see some of the nocturnal
animals one wouldn’t see during the day time. The park also
boasts a diversity of landscape with desert, dry savannah, lagoon
and swamps in close proximity – cheetah, crocodile and elephant
can also be seen on a game drive.
WALKING SAFARIS
The wildlife is spectacular all year round and because Sanctuary
Baines’ is set in a private concession guests can get very
close in perfect safety with one of the guides. Highly trained English
speakers, the guides show visitors all the signs of the bush on
exciting walks along the animal paths that surround the camp. They
can show travellers how to track and follow even the most elusive
of animals in the Okavango or introduce guests to some of the 500
bird species that live at this confluence of habitats.
Looking at the size of a rhino’s footprint, and tracking
the animals nocturnal perambulations is informative, exciting and
a little nerve wracking for first-timers. Walking is a levelling
experience for many guests, who have only ever driven around in
a safari vehicle and enjoyed sitting above lion, elephants and other
animals. On foot, one cannot approach these animals, obviously,
but learning about them, walking their walk and seeing the bush
at their level is a wonderful and educational experience.
MOKORO AND MOTORISED BOAT EXCURSIONS
One of the best ways to see the wildlife around Sanctuary Baines’
Camp is in one of the locally made dugout canoes. These used to
be carved from ebony but are now made from commercially grown wood
and fibreglass to protect the fragile environment of the Okavango.
In one of these traditional crafts it is possible to float around
the waterways and lagoons that make up the delta, looking for hippos
and crocodiles in the water, but also getting a remarkable view
of the plains game from a new and exciting angle. This gentle and
informative mode of safari is unique to the river bushmen, comprising
three different tribes who made the Delta their home. This activity
is subject to water levels. For the less intrepid, Sanctuary Baines'
also has motorised speedboats that can be used when the rivers are
in flood.
Additional Activities
ELEPHANT INTERACTION
An extraordinary treat available at Sanctuary Baines’ Camp
is the opportunity to go walking in the bush with three semi-habituated
elephants. Jabu, Thembi and Morula are elephants that were orphaned
nearby and adopted by Doug and Sandi Groves. The elephants ‘take’
guests on long walks, foraging in the area in absolute safety.
They show travellers how they look for food, strip leaves from
branches with their long trunks and take showers in the lagoons
of the delta. What better guide to the African bush than a fully-grown
African elephant?
Even Sanctuary’s famously brilliant guides bow to these elephants’
innate knowledge and bush-sense. This activity includes a leisurely
paced walk with a trio of semi-habituated elephants, observing and
interacting with them, and a picnic lunch in their company
SCENIC HELICOPTER FLIGHTS OVER THE DELTA
Experiencing Botswana’s Okavango Delta by helicopter is an
incredible and unrivalled experience, one in which a large variety
of game as well as the region's stunning landscape can be easily
viewed. Together with our preferred partner in Botswana, Mack Air,
we now offer scenic helicopter flights over the Okavango Delta,
allowing you to venture to parts of the Delta which are inaccessible
by game vehicle providing an excellent opportunity to explore an
array of truly unspoilt wildlife and scenery. The helicopter used
provides incomparable comfort with air conditioning, leather seats
and a large cabin, easily seating 6 passengers. Each passenger is
provided with a David Clarke headset which allows guests to freely
talk to each other as well as the pilot.
In terms of the environmental aspect, both Sanctuary Retreats and
Mack Air are mindful of the sensitive areas in which we operate.
This helicopter is arguably one of the quietest and most technologically
advanced civil helicopters in the world which will minimise impact
on the surrounding environment.
email: book@go.botswanatravelservice.com
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