Baines' Lodge
Today, Baines’ Lodge is the most intimate and secluded property in the Sanctuary portfolio, a quietly refined retreat that blends artistic heritage with thoughtful, low‑impact design.
Location
The lodge also borders the renowned Moremi Game Reserve, at the heart of the UNESCO‑listed Delta, ensuring access to diverse habitats and abundant wildlife. Lions, leopards, and wild dogs hold territories here year‑round, making this location a true stronghold of Botswana’s most iconic safari experiences.
Accommodation
The design feels rooted in nature, with interiors that are elegant yet understated: soft tones echoing local flora, rich timbers, and muted shades that mirror the Delta’s shifting moods. Open‑plan spaces, defined by graceful columns, dissolve the boundary between indoors and outdoors, so that every view becomes a living canvas of water, sky, and wildlife.
The swimming pool, beside the bar and lounge, opens to sweeping vistas across the Delta. Yet the most romantic experience comes at night: star baths beneath Botswana’s vast skies. Immersed in warm water, gazing at constellations mirrored in the lagoons, you feel the wilderness and luxury entwine—an unforgettable harmony that defines Baines’ Lodge.
- Expert-led game drives venture out in the early morning and late afternoon.
- Enjoy walking safaris and night drives – permissible on this private concession.
- Head into the Moremi reserve’s reed-lined waterways in a punted mokoro canoe.
- Witness the staggering spectacle of the delta by rising above it in a helicopter.
- If you’re not spending your downtime by the pool, discover the Explorer’s Lounge and enhance your education.
- Indulge your taste buds by sampling the flavoursome dishes produced at the Big Green Egg, the lodge’s ceramic charcoal burner.
- Make full use of the Leica binoculars that come with each suite to spot the wildlife that passes the boardwalks.
- Inspired by the hippos? Take a star bath on your deck, or perhaps rinse in your outdoor shower.
Why We Include Baines’ Lodge in Our Journeys
A fly‑in arrival sets the tone: thrilling, immediate immersion in the Delta. With just six suites, the lodge feels genuinely exclusive, and its private concession allows walking and night drives that deepen the safari experience.
Talk to us about designing your journey >
From the Team
“Baines’ Lodge is a stunner – small, personal and beautifully crafted, it’s a genuine work of art in the Delta. It pairs intimate scale with thoughtful design, serves consistently delicious meals, and offers quiet luxuries like an outdoor bath that make the whole experience feel deeply special.”
Why Plan Your Safari with Journeysmiths
Every journey we design begins with listening. Whether you’re travelling as a family, a couple, or across generations, we take time to understand how you want your safari to feel – not just where you want to go. From there, we carefully weave together exceptional places, trusted guides, and seamless logistics to create journeys that flow naturally and feel entirely your own.Every journey we design begins with listening. Whether you’re travelling as a family, a couple, or across generations, we take time to understand how you want your safari to feel – not just where you want to go. From there, we carefully weave together exceptional places, trusted guides, and seamless logistics to create journeys that flow naturally and feel entirely your own.
We prioritise working with properties that collaborate with local communities and address location-specific needs from education to anti-poaching. We assess our partners to ensure the people we work with share our values of ensuring our trips continue to act as a force for good. Here we share some of the positive impacts your stay here contributes to.We prioritise working with properties that collaborate with local communities and address location-specific needs from education to anti-poaching. We assess our partners to ensure the people we work with share our values of ensuring our trips continue to act as a force for good. Here we share some of the positive impacts your stay here contributes to.
Baines’ Lodge Combinations
Baines’ Lodge works beautifully as part of a wider safari journey. We often pair it with contrasting environments to create a sense of flow and variety.Baines’ Lodge works beautifully as part of a wider safari journey. We often pair it with contrasting environments to create a sense of flow and variety.
Set on a hill above the Chobe River, Chilwero pairs sweeping floodplain views with intimate scale, polished comfort and consistently excellent wildlife‑watching.
With a luxury tented camp and the option of even greater privacy and exclusivity at its two riverfront villas, Mpala Jena offers laid-back indulgence on the banks of the Zambezi River – combining classic safari experiences with the relaxed rhythm of life on the water.
Sitatunga Private Island is the perfect spot for a Botswana safari that whisks you away from the mundane and plunges you deep into the wild. Unwind on this peaceful island, surrounded by nature, exploring on the water, and relaxing in your beautifully designed suite.
Combining an intimate scale with a wonderfully secluded location, this remote camp suits travellers who want the feel of true wilderness alongside the comfort, care and refinement of a high‑end safari experience.
One of just three camps sat within a one million acre private reserve, the remote and understated Camp Kalahari is the epitome of seclusion. The quality of the experience here will ensure that even the finest tastes are well catered for, but it is also a place for those with an adventurous nature. Forget the rush of the modern world and become an explorer, scouring the flats for the wildlife that’s adapted to survive the arid conditions.
Fantastic Itinerary
"From the very beginning Ross guided and advised and really took the time to understand what we were looking to achieve from our African Adventure. He put together a fantastic itinerary combining a variety of camps in Botswana and then a little gem of a lodge on the banks of the Zambezi river near Victoria Falls."
From the pristine wilderness of Linyanti, to the glistening floodplains of the Okavango Delta, and beyond to the shimmering salt flats of Makgadikgadi - this Botswana safari will leave you with incredible memories from beginning to end. Experience the diverse ecosystems and wildlife Botswana has to offer in this epic journey from plains, to delta to desert.
This memorable safari combines a journey through one of Africa’s most game rich areas, with a visit to one of the seven natural wonders of the world. Experience Botswana’s abundant wildlife in the spectacular Okavango Delta and Linyanti, before heading to the winding Zambezi River to see the astonishing Victoria Falls.
Travel across Southern Africa in complete luxury, staying at some of the most exclusive properties on the continent. With every single detail taken care of by exceptional guides and staff at each location, you can concentrate on what really matters - immersing yourself in an exclusive African safari experience.
From the glistening floodplains of the Okavango Delta, to the pristine wilderness of Linyanti, and beyond to the shimmering salt flats of Makgadikgadi - this family friendly safari will leave you all with lifelong memories. Experience the diverse ecosystems and wildlife Botswana has to offer in this spectacular journey from Delta to Desert.
Botswana is Africa’s most exclusive safari destination. Each enormous private reserve has just one or two luxury lodges guaranteeing a series of private experiences as you travel from one exquisite location to the next. Expert guides will take your family on safari among big cats and vast elephant herds in beautiful deltas and deserts.
Imagine gliding silently along an Okavango waterway in a mokoro canoe as zebra and impala graze the grasslands. Or cantering on horseback with your guide alongside giraffe. In the Kalahari, take an early morning walk with a San Bushman as he explains the ancestral secrets of survival.
Here’s something you might not expect. The people looking after you on safari might create some of your happiest safari memories. You’ll remember laughter and those after dinner stories and jokes around the campfire. During a three-night stay in a luxury camp, you’ll get to make friends with your guide, the chef, the vegetable gardener and the other people who love their work.
Botswana is a great choice for an exclusive family safari. Roaming the spectacular deserts, deltas and savannahs are literally millions of animals. The fertility and abundant water of the Okavango and Linyanti Deltas supports an incredible 200 different mammal species. The Government’s high value, low volume tourism policy helps conservation and enables you to enjoy a top quality private safari.
Between safaris there is plenty for children to do in camp while the adults relax. Safari lodges may be small and in remote locations, but they have excellent facilities and your hosts’ purpose is to give you the best possible time. In this section we also suggest a couple of places that combine easily to complement your Botswana safari.
We’ve compiled a list of our favourite experiences to inspire your imagination.
The best way to give your family the facilities it seeks may be to book out an entire camp or lodge. Perhaps you are planning a multi-generation safari. Or you may want to fulfil a dream of walking, mokoroing and camping out in the Okavango. You may simply crave an extra degree of privacy. Most lodges we use take fewer than 16 guests, some take only eight, so booking a whole lodge is a viable option.
Booking your family safari to Botswana opens a door to a world of exciting adventure. From the minute your Cessna touches the bush strip, your family will be in the wilds with expert guides. We curated the top 10 family experiences in Botswana to whet your appetite.
Escape into the wilds of Botswana, where the pristine landscape and varied wildlife abound. On a luxury safari in Botswana, you can expect to share your safari with only a handful of other guests, as our travel insider Philippa Page discovered.
Botswana is one of the best places for a family holiday of a lifetime! There are millions of animals across plains, deserts and deltas.
The Kalahari is a fascinating place for a family safari. The children can sit by a meerkat den watching these curious little creatures foraging and playing as one stands guard on its hind legs looking out for eagles. They can watch enthralled as a San Bushman reveals hidden secrets that have enabled them to survive here for thousands of years.
Botswana, a land of contrasts, captivates travelers with its seasonal transformations. The Okavango Delta floods draw abundant wildlife, while rains blanket the Makgadikgadi and Nxai salt pans in green. Chobe National Park hosts vast elephant herds, and the north's lush landscapes contrast with the Kalahari's stark beauty in the south. This unforgettable journey offers Africa’s most exclusive safari in complete luxury.
When seeking advice, we all agree that we should trust someone with first-hand experience. A frequent visitor to Botswana, Laura knows the luxury lodges and camps that reveal Botswana’s remarkable wildlife and the distinct landscapes that shape each safari experience.