Chobe National Park is one of the most accessible wilderness areas in Botswana and is home to the world's largest concentration of elephants (roughly 126,000).

We spent time with the passionate people behind Elephants Without Borders and cruised the rich waterways of this wild pachyderm paradise.

On our way north, we pulled over for many more unmissable sights in this beautiful country.

In most parts of Africa, a safari takes place aboard a rattling 4WD vehicle, but Botswana’s most iconic safari transport offers a more serene means of communing with nature.

The Okavango Delta is Botswana's crown jewel, and the best way to explore this wondrous, watery UNESCO World Heritage site is on board a traditional mokoro canoe.

We headed into the Delta for a two-night adventure to camp on an island and then set out on foot to experience a walking safari.

Did you know? Meerkats are matriarchal too!

Colonies of meerkats that are well habituated to humans occupy the fringes of the Makgadikgadi Salt Pans, burrowing tunnels into the golden grasslands. These animals are wild but are very used to human presence, and each colony has a dedicated caretaker. We woke early, and these curious critters clambered up to meet us.

The last vestiges of Africa's largest inland sea, this area incorporates boundless plains dotted by palm islands forming the great Makgadikgadi Salt Pan network.

It is an epic expanse of antiquity and mystery.

Most famous for its thriving flamingo population and ephemeral lake, the community-run Nata Bird Sanctuary is set inside the Makgadikgadi Salt Pan network and is the easiest way to access this fantastic landscape.

Co-founder Melanie has done this trip countless times and we had her help to here navigate our neighbouring country with a supportive crew.