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How to get to Moremi Game Reserve
Nearly every journey here runs through Maun, and for nearly everyone it ends in a light aircraft over the water.
Nearly every journey runs through Maun.
Moremi is, for nearly all of its guests, a fly-in reserve — and the map explains why. Much of it is water, or country that floods; the camps sit deep, scattered across islands and river frontage no ordinary vehicle reaches; and so the journey resolves to one pattern: a flight into Maun, a change to a light aircraft, and half an hour or so over the wetland to a dirt strip where your camp's vehicle stands waiting; or, for a journey that begins at Chobe or the Falls, a light aircraft straight from Kasane to the same strips. Driving yourself in is real — the eastern side of the reserve is solid ground and open to a properly equipped 4x4 — but it is a different kind of trip altogether, an expedition rather than a transfer, and most who make it are seasoned overlanders on a longer Botswana run. The third way in is no decision at all: if Moremi follows Chobe or Victoria Falls in a longer journey, the connecting leg is simply part of the itinerary, arranged with the rest of it.
The flight in: settled, short, scenic.
The pattern is settled and it works. Long-haul travellers reach Maun through Johannesburg, which connects most days, or on Airlink's direct Cape Town link, running several days a week. At Maun the scale changes: onward to the reserve is by light aircraft, flown by a handful of Maun operators — Mack Air, Wilderness Air, Safari Air and Moremi Air among them; which of them flies you generally follows your camp. The word shuttle is worth taking seriously: these are not scheduled flights with a timetable to plan around. Departure times move with the day's loads and the weather, and a seat-in-plane hop can put down at several strips before yours — two stops are common, four not unheard of. Count on roughly thirty to forty-five minutes in the air, luggage in a soft bag of up to 20 kg including what you carry on, and a camp vehicle at the strip when you land. The flight itself is the first game drive: channels, lagoons and palm islands unrolling below the wing.
Driving yourself: rewarding, and earned.
It can be done, it is rewarding, and it is the minority's route for good reason. The tar ends at Shorobe, north-east of Maun, and from there it is gravel giving way to sand; a capable 4x4 and experience driving one are not optional. Two gates serve the road traveller — South Gate up from Maun, typically a three-to-three-and-a-half-hour run in the dry season with more allowed after rain, and North Gate at Khwai for those working down from Chobe and Savuti. Inside, the going turns with the seasons: sand in the dry, water over the tracks after the rains. If that reads as an adventure rather than a warning, the route will suit you. We are glad to book the camps for a self-driver; the gates, the campsites and the drive itself are yours to organise.
One stop of several.
Moremi rarely stands alone in an itinerary, and if yours pairs it with Chobe, the Falls or the wider delta, the connecting leg is already part of the plan: a light-aircraft sector arranged with the rest of the trip, commonly through Kasane on the northern side. Nothing here needs deciding beyond the trip itself.
Decide where; the aircraft follows.
You don't choose an airstrip in Moremi; your lodge does. Book on the Xakanaxa lagoons and you land at Xakanaxa; a Khwai camp puts you down at Khwai; the island camps have strips of their own. So the flying is the one part of the journey that needs no planning at all — decide where in the reserve you want to be, and the aircraft follows. Which corner that should be is the real question.
Getting to Moremi, answered.
The questions we're asked most about reaching the reserve — answered plainly, with realistic timings.
Which airport do I fly to for Moremi?
Maun (MUB), in almost every case. It is the reserve's gateway and the light-aircraft hub for the whole delta. Kasane (BBK) serves travellers combining Moremi with Chobe and Victoria Falls.
How long is the flight from Maun to the lodge?
Typically thirty to forty-five minutes, depending on your camp's strip and whether the shuttle puts down elsewhere en route. Treat timings as flexible: the network runs to the day's loads and weather, not a published timetable.
Can I drive to Moremi myself?
Yes, with a proper 4x4 and the experience to handle sand and seasonal water crossings — the tar ends well short of the reserve. Most guests fly; those who drive tend to be equipped overlanders on a longer route. The gates, the going and the campsite realities have their own full answer.
What luggage can I take on the flight in?
Light-aircraft rules apply throughout: a soft duffel-type bag of up to 20 kg per person, including hand luggage and camera kit. Hard cases don't fit the holds; excess can usually be stored in Maun by arrangement.
Do I need a visa or special documents for Botswana?
Entry requirements depend on your nationality, so check them against your own passport before travelling. One rule catches families out: children entering Botswana need their birth certificate (original or certified copy) alongside their passport, with a marriage certificate where a parent's surname differs. Requirements change — verify close to travel.
What do the park fees cost?
Botswana's park and camping fees are set by the parks department and revised periodically — the current figures live with the full cost picture, kept in one place so they can be kept right.
Now you know the way in — plan around it.
Turn the route into a trip.
Once the hop from Maun is understood, the rest is choosing: browse the camps and the ready-made Moremi safaris, or tell us roughly what you have in mind and we take it from there.