Okavango Delta Private Concessions
Most of the Okavango Delta outside Moremi Game Reserve is divided into numbered concessions leased to safari operators or held by community trusts, and the distinction matters because concessions permit off-road driving, night drives and guided walking that the reserve cannot. Vehicle numbers at a sighting are capped by lease agreement rather than by chance. Concessions carry NG numbers, short for Ngamiland, and each has its own character, rules and price.
How the Concession System Works
Botswana manages wildlife land outside the national parks through a leasing system, and once you understand it the map of the Delta makes far more sense.
Land is divided into Wildlife Management Areas, each given an NG number. Leases are granted for photographic tourism, and the holder gains exclusive use of that block, along with responsibility for anti-poaching, road maintenance and community obligations.
Some concessions are leased directly to safari operators. Others are held by community trusts representing the villages whose ancestral land it is, with the trust either running tourism itself or subleasing to an operator and taking the lease fees.
Crucially, the leaseholder controls how many camps operate and how many vehicles may attend a sighting. That is why a concession camp of eight tents might sit alone in an area the size of a small county.
Hunting concessions were converted to photographic use across much of the country, which is how several of these areas came into their current form.
You are not paying concession rates for a better tent. You are paying for permission to leave the road, to drive after dark, to walk, and for a lease agreement that caps how many other vehicles can join your sighting.
What Concessions Allow That Moremi Does Not
This is the practical heart of the matter and the reason experienced travellers pay the difference.
Moremi Game Reserve, as a reserve under Department management, prohibits off-road driving, prohibits night drives, restricts guided walking and closes its gates at set hours. Chobe National Park applies the same rules.
Private and community concessions permit all of it. Off-road driving means a guide can follow a leopard into the treeline or a wild dog pack across country rather than losing them at the track edge. Night drives with a spotlight open up aardvark, porcupine, civet, genet, serval and hunting cats. Guided walking puts you on foot with a licensed armed guide.
Several concessions also allow mokoro and boating where water permits, and some have built photographic hides at water level, including underground designs.
Add the vehicle caps and the difference across a three-night stay compounds considerably.
The Main Okavango Delta Concessions
A number of concessions carry reputations worth knowing, and they differ in habitat as much as in style.
The Jao Reserve in the western Delta covers around 60,000 hectares of permanent water, islands and floodplain bordering Moremi, and is water-focused with strong mokoro and boating.
The Vumbura and Duba concessions in the north hold seasonal floodplains with exceptional lion and buffalo interaction, and Duba in particular is known for lion and elephant.
The Abu Concession runs to around 180,000 hectares and is associated with its resident elephant herd.
The Kwara Concession in the northern Delta offers both land and water with strong predator sightings.
The Selinda Reserve to the north, around 1,350 square kilometres, straddles the spillway linking the Okavango with the Linyanti, and offers canoeing when water allows.
Qorokwe, Pom Pom, Shinde, Chitabe and Gomoti all hold established camps with their own character.
Community Concessions in the Okavango
Not all concessions are commercial leases, and the community-held ones are among the more interesting places to spend money.
The Khwai area beside Moremi’s northern boundary is the best known. It splits into the Khwai Private Reserve, NG18, at around 200,000 hectares with a handful of lodges and no self-drive access, and the smaller Khwai Community Concession, NG19, at roughly 30,000 hectares along the river, owned and managed by Khwai Village through a community trust with lease revenue flowing directly to residents.
The community concession also runs its own campsites and offers mokoro, walking and cultural tours to self-drive visitors and mobile operators, which makes it one of the few areas of this quality open to independent travellers.
Other community areas operate on similar models across Ngamiland, with trusts negotiating leases and distributing revenue.
For travellers who want their spending to reach people living alongside the wildlife, these are the most direct option available.
Private operator concessions. Leased to safari companies, few camps, strict vehicle caps, full activity range including night drives and walking. Highest rates and the fewest other vehicles.
Community concessions. Held by village trusts with lease revenue going to residents. Khwai NG19 is the best known, with camps, community campsites, mokoro and cultural tours, and self-drive access.
Moremi Game Reserve. State-managed, lower rates on the whole, exceptional game viewing, open to self-drivers and campers. No off-road driving, no night drives, restricted walking, fixed gate hours.
Water Concessions Versus Land Concessions
The second decision after concession versus reserve is where in the Delta that concession sits, and it changes your days entirely.
Concessions in the permanent inner Delta run mokoro, motorboat and island walking year round regardless of flood level. Wildlife leans toward lechwe, sitatunga, hippo, crocodile and birds, with fewer big cats simply because a boat cannot follow them.
Concessions on drier ground and seasonal floodplain run game drives, and this is where the predator viewing concentrates.
Several concessions hold both, with camps offering land and water activities year round, and those are worth seeking out for a short stay where you would rather not move.
The failure mode is booking a seasonal water camp for November expecting a mokoro. Ask directly whether the camp sits on permanent water, seasonal water or dry ground, and what runs in your specific month.
Costs and Levies on Concession Land
Concession camps sit at the upper end of Botswana pricing and it is worth knowing what the money covers.
Rates are all-inclusive of accommodation, meals, most drinks, laundry and two activities daily. Concession and community levies are usually built into the nightly rate rather than charged separately, and these fund anti-poaching work, road maintenance and community payments. Four nights on a concession is the usual minimum, which is what the 4 day Okavango Delta safari is built around.
What sits outside is international flights, internal charter legs unless bundled, insurance, premium imported wines, tips and specialist activities such as helicopter flights.
Because leaseholders cap bed numbers, availability rather than price is often the binding constraint, and the better concession camps take bookings twelve to eighteen months ahead for July through September.
Green season rates between November and April can fall by up to 40 percent, with single supplements frequently waived.
Ask three questions of any concession camp: is it permanent or seasonal water, does the concession permit night drives and walking, and how many vehicles can attend a sighting. Those three answers tell you more than any amount of photography on a website.
Choosing a Concession for Your Delta Trip
A few practical principles cut through what is otherwise a confusing map.
If big cats and wild dog are the priority, choose a land-based concession or one on seasonal floodplain, and confirm off-road driving is permitted.
If mokoro is the picture in your head, choose permanent inner Delta water and confirm it directly.
If night drives and walking matter, that rules out Moremi and Chobe entirely and decides the question for you.
If budget is the constraint, the Khwai community concession delivers concession privileges at lower rates than the private leases, and Moremi delivers exceptional game viewing at lower rates still with fewer activity options.
If solitude is the priority, look at the concessions with the fewest camps across the largest areas, which tend to be north of the Delta proper in the Linyanti, Selinda and Kwando blocks.
Frequently Asked Questions About Okavango Delta Concessions
What is a concession in the Okavango Delta?
A block of wildlife land outside the national parks, leased for photographic tourism, each carrying an NG number standing for Ngamiland. Leases go either to safari operators or to community trusts representing the villages whose ancestral land it is. The leaseholder gains exclusive use and takes on responsibility for anti-poaching, road maintenance and community obligations, while controlling how many camps operate and how many vehicles may attend a sighting.
Why are private concessions better than Moremi Game Reserve?
Not better, differently permitted. Moremi as a state-managed reserve prohibits off-road driving and night drives, restricts guided walking and closes gates at set hours. Concessions permit all of it, so a guide can follow a leopard into the treeline, run spotlit night drives that reveal aardvark, civet, genet and serval, and take you walking. Vehicle numbers at a sighting are also capped by lease agreement, so wildlife is frequently yours alone.
How much do Okavango concession camps cost?
Private concession camps typically start around 1,500 US dollars per person per night and reach beyond 4,000 at the top end, against roughly 600 to 1,100 for mid-range camps and lower rates inside Moremi. Concession and community levies are usually built into the nightly rate and fund anti-poaching and community payments. Green season rates from November to April can fall by up to 40 percent, often with single supplements waived.
Which Okavango concession is best?
It depends what you want. Jao in the west is water-focused with strong mokoro and boating across permanent channels. Vumbura and Duba in the north hold seasonal floodplains with exceptional lion and buffalo interaction. Abu is associated with its resident elephant herd across around 180,000 hectares. Kwara offers both land and water with strong predators. Selinda to the north adds canoeing along the spillway when water allows.
Can you self-drive in Okavango Delta concessions?
Almost never. Private concessions restrict access to guests of their camps, with no self-drivers, mobile safaris or day visitors permitted, which is precisely what keeps vehicle numbers low. The exception is the Khwai Community Concession, NG19, which is open to self-drive visitors and mobile operators and runs its own community campsites. Moremi Game Reserve is also open to self-drivers, with the trade-off of no night drives or off-road driving.
What is the difference between a private and a community concession?
Ownership and where the money goes. Private concessions are leased to safari operators who run camps and pay lease fees. Community concessions are held by trusts representing local villages, with revenue from lodge lease fees flowing directly to residents, and the trust often running campsites, mokoro trips and cultural tours itself. Khwai NG19 is the best-known community example. Both permit the same activities, since the distinction is legal rather than regulatory.
Booking Your Botswana Trip
The safari companies and tour operators listed on this website put trips like this together for a living and know which camps, guides and routes actually deliver. We are an independent guide to Botswana; we do not book or sell tours ourselves.
When you are ready, arrange your safari, tour or holiday with one of the recognised operators listed here. Tell them your dates and what matters most, and a real person, not a form, will handle the itinerary, park bookings and logistics for you.