Adventures afloat
Get up close to the life-giving waters of the Okavango Delta
Water is life at Xigera. As the floodwaters ebb and flow, they provide unforgettable opportunities to discover the wilderness from an entirely new perspective.
An experience unique to the Delta is a morning spent gliding along flooded channels by mokoro, the dugout canoe used by generations for transport in a region where there are many more rivers than roads. Traditionally carved from a single tree trunk, our mokoro tours allow for incredible views of the Delta both above and below.
While mokoro are perfect for discovering the filigree of smaller channels, catching fleeting glimpses of African pike or bright-green nembwe fish, motorboat excursions allow for exploration of the deeper rivers and lagoons that are home to crocodile and large pods of hippo. In-season, catch-and-release fishing can be enjoyed just outside the Moremi Game Reserve.
With years of experience in the Okavango Delta, our team of experienced safari guides will reveal the unique views from this watery ecosystem and the hidden charms of the Delta on both mokoro excursions and motorboat safaris.
Our mokoro are pushed along by experienced polers who grew up in these unique boats. Our polers stand to navigate through the water, and because the mokoro have no motor they are essentially silent, allowing us to approach even the shyest species without disturbing them.
A combination of ancient tectonic movements and contrary hydrology have given rise to rivers that never reach the sea, but rather flow inland to create a stunning mosaic of ecosystems.
The annual flooding of the Okavango Delta is driven not by local rainfall, but by the rains that fall in the far-off highlands of Angola. These floodwaters meander more than 1000 kilometres to Botswana, flooding the Delta before soaking into the sands of the Kalahari. Along the way they create a unique habitat for a myriad aquatic species, supporting an abundant ecosystem.
