Belmond Khwai River Lodge

Each of the luxury tents is positioned on a raised wooden platform that peers down at the floodplains and wildlife surrounding the Khwai River. The traditional African thatched roofs provide shade for guests to relax in. Each room has a soft four-poster bed for guests to rest on, as well as a large private deck with chairs and a hammock – perfect for lying back and gazing at the stars. Private dinners can also be served on your deck for guests who want some time to themselves.

The tents are fitted with electric heaters, overhead fans and air-conditioning facilities so that the climate can be kept comfortable. Tents are also furnished with a wide range of conveniences such as a mini-bar, binoculars, facilities for charging batteries, safes, hairdryers, tea and coffee making facilities, and an intercom system to reception. The en-suite bathrooms include twin vanity units and plugs for electric razors.

The Private Suite is secluded from the other rooms at the Belmond Khwai River Lodge, and perfect for guests who are looking for an exclusive experience. The suite features all of the luxuries of the tented rooms, such as the oversized four-poster bed and total climate control. However, the Private Suite also has open-air double showers, and a deep, copper-framed Victorian bath. Guests staying in the Private Suite will also receive fluffy bathrobes, slippers and quality bathroom toiletries.

The suite leads out onto an extended viewing deck with chairs for observing the incredible wildlife and beautiful floodplains, as well as sun loungers and a hammock for kicking back and relaxing. Enjoy a refreshing dip in your private plunge pool and listen to the snorting and honking of hippos, or enjoy a candle-lit dinner on the deck with a backdrop of parading elephants.

Start the day with a light breakfast and fresh coffee, brought to your tent, before setting off on an early morning game drive. Picnics are brought to be enjoyed while exploring out in the bush, before returning to the camp for Afternoon Tea. Drinks and snacks are also provided during afternoon activities, and Dinner is served at 8pm. Food is prepared by the lodge’s skilled chefs, and every evening you can expect to enjoy delicious local delicacies. Food is served in the covered dining area or can be brought directly to your room’s deck for a meal surrounded by passing herds of elephants and prowling predators. Beverages are included, and premium alcoholic brands and imported champagnes are offered at additional cost. Special dietary requirements are catered for on request.

Delight in a traditional African dining experience with the other guests at the lodge at Mothupi’s Boma. Sit down around a fire pit and enjoy and meal while local musicians perform traditional rhythms. The Boma provides amazing views of the starry skies, as well as an opportunity to swap stories with other guests and form connections. Typically, a Boma would be a meeting place for the senior tribe and community members. The Boma has two entrances, one of which is concealed, as traditionally this would provide a safe exit for tribe elders of the chief if they were in any danger.

Travel across the plains in the comfort of a safari vehicle and get up close to the stunning wildlife that lives in the Moremi Game Reserve. On an early morning game drive, guests will likely see big cats such as lions and leopards as they rest after a night of hunting. Travel along beside roaming antelope and giant elephants, and capture amazing photographs of these wonderful creatures. Game viewing vehicles are designed to seat 6 guests at a time, ensuring that everyone can enjoy a window seat and will get a good view of the action.

With over 300 species of birds to see, Belmond Khwai River Lodge is an ideal place to observe the rich birdlife of Botswana. Tucked away in the lodge’s private hide, enjoy the exciting chance to spot malachite kingfishers and open-billed storks. Or venture out into the bush and search for the endangered wattled crane, Arnot’s Chat and Hartlub’s Babbler. The varieties of birdlife visiting the Okavango Delta may depend on the season, and so guests are advised to contact the lodge and ask ahead if there is a particular bird they wish to see. For example, the green season brings in huge volumes of the colourful and vivid carmine bee-eaters, as they migrate for the season.

Look up at the night sky through one of the lodge’s telescopes, and observe constellations never seen in the northern hemisphere. Out in this natural landscape, the stars are unaffected by the city light pollution, and guests will be able to experience the vast reaches of the African night sky and stars that glimmer like diamonds. With the help of a guide, learn how bushmen used the stars to locate true south, and navigate their way across the plains.

Explore the local San bushmen’s village and meet the local community. You may be invited to the homes of the villages and be taught about the villagers’ way of life. Learn about people who have had to adapt from ancient traditions to more modern ways of life, and how villagers once would have lived.

Get closer to wildlife without the sound of engines, and sneak through spaces to areas that the safari vehicles cannot access on a walking safari through the delta. Witness the truly giant size of elephants in person, and watch animals behaving naturally in their home environment. Your guide will be able to teach you how to spot marks in the bush and the tracks of various species, which will lead you to find many of the huge range of game that lives on the reserve. Neutral-coloured clothing is recommended to prevent startling the game.

Belmond works with local farmers, and shop locally whenever possible in order to support the communities closest to their holiday destinations. Belmond says that ‘All our hotels, trains and river cruises run initiatives to support the places and people that surround them. As part of our “Think Global, Act Local” approach we: purchase as much food as possible from sustainable sources, run and support educational programmes, follow sustainable practices to reduce the impact of our operations on the environment, and to ensure energy efficiency.’ This means that the tourism that Belmond receive is able to benefit the local community, and the resulting carbon footprint from tourism is reduced.

The Belmond Hiram Bingham and Belmond Andean Explorer teams work with their operator, PeruRail in order to take children aged between 5 and 12 to the historic archaeological site of Machu Picchu in Peru. These children are from families with limited economic means, and for many of them, it is the first time that they get to travel by train, as well as their first visit to a heritage site. The trips are bi-monthly and are able to transport 45 passengers at a time. This includes teachers, parents and members of the PeruRail team. The train travels through the Sacred Valley and along the Urubamba River to the famous site of Machu Picchu, which was built for the Inca emperor Pachacuti in the 1400s. The children are supplied with food, snacks and, most importantly, guides who provide them with the opportunity to learn more about their own heritage and culture.

In Indonesia, Belmond’s Jimbaran Puri resort has teamed up with the Bali Sea Turtle Society in order to protect sea turtle nests. Guests are able to aid hatchlings in their first perilous journey from their eggs to the safety of the sea.

‘To ensure the eggs are well looked after, we remove them from the original nesting site and bury them at the appropriate depth above the high-tide mark. We then fence off the area. Approximately 60 days later, the turtles hatch. We collect them and hold them for three to seven days while they gain strength. Then, with the help of participating guests, we release them onto the sand near the water’s edge.’

Belmond continues to protect turtles after their release by removing plastic from the bay, and their resort has a strict zero-tolerance policy on single-use plastics, which can end up in the ocean and cause serious harm to marine life.