Geography & Climate

Geographic co-ordinates 22S 24E between the equator and Tropic of Capricorn which dissects the south of the country

Area 600370 km2
Boundary 4 013km
Lowest point 513m above sea level
Highest point 1489m above sea level
Mean height above sea level 1000m

Botswana is the world’s 45th largest country being almost the same size as Texas. The Okavango Delta is the world’s largest inland delta and the Makgadigadi salt pans are so big they can be seen easily from space. Apart from The Okavango Delta, the country is mostly dry and is dominated by the Kalahari Desert which covers two thirds of the country. Towards the north and west the vegetation is more lush, with riverine forest in the Chobe National Park – although now severely damaged by the over population of elephants. The main tourist areas are served by the towns of Kasane and Maun, forming hubs that are well placed to start or end your safari.

Rainfall

Botswana’s climate can be described as semi arid, rains are variable and unpredictable, often very localised with some areas receiving huge cloud bursts while areas only a few kilometers away remain dry.

Rainfall is so critical and of such importance for the livelihood of the people that the name of the Botswana currency “The Pula” is named after it.

The rainy season falls over the summer months November through to March whilst the heaviest rainfall tends to be in January and February. The south of the country tends to be the driest with a mean of 250mm, while the north and east tend to get slightly more with a mean of up to 650mm.Incredibly though there are huge swings in the annual rainfall with some years getting more then double that of the season preceding it. There is very little rainfall between the months of May – October, accounting for less then 10%of the total.

Temperatures

Winter months from May – September tend to be mild with warm days and cool and sometimes cold evenings. During the mid winter months of July and August some night frosts are possible. Skies during this time tend to be clear with very little cloud.

Summer months are extremely hot and often humid; temperatures reaching the mid 40’s are not uncommon in October and November prior to the arrival of the rains.