Thamalakane River Lodge

Thamalakane River Lodge sits on the banks of the Thamalakane River, 19 km from Maun on the road towards Moremi Game Reserve. That position is the point of it: you are out of town and on the water, but still close enough to Maun International Airport to make an early light-aircraft transfer into the Delta without a pre-dawn drive.

Rooms and camping

Thamalakane River Lodge has eighteen chalets, all facing the river. Each has an en-suite bathroom with a shower, a fan, a mosquito net, a safe, tea and coffee facilities, universal plug points, a desk and wardrobe, and a private patio looking out over the water. Landscaped gardens connect the chalets rather than corridors.

There is also a separate camping area with powered sites, shared ablution facilities, and two permanently pitched furnished tents for travellers who want to camp without carrying the equipment.

Facilities at Thamalakane River Lodge

A large restaurant and bar, a swimming pool set in shade, a curio shop, a guest internet station and an on-site booking centre. The riverbank in front of the lodge is lined with reeds and gives a broad view along the water, and waterfowl are regular visitors.

Location and access

19 km from Maun on the Moremi road, so roughly 20 to 25 minutes by vehicle from Maun International Airport in normal conditions. No 4×4 is needed to reach the lodge itself, although you will want one to continue into Moremi.

Where Thamalakane River Lodge sits, and why it matters

Nineteen kilometres sounds like nothing until you are doing it twice a day. The road out towards Shorobe and Moremi is tarred for this stretch, so the drive is straightforward, but it does put you outside Maun rather than in it: the supermarkets, banks, fuel and vehicle-hire yards are all back in town. That is the trade the location asks you to make, and for most travellers it is the right one, because the compensation is the river.

For distances and onward routes, our Maun guide covers the town, its airport and the 12 kg soft-bag limit on light aircraft, and our Moremi Game Reserve page covers the 92 km run to South Gate. If you are driving yourself, read 4×4 and vehicle requirements before you commit to a route.

The river is seasonal, and so is the view

The Thamalakane carries water that fell on the Angolan highlands months earlier and worked its way down through the Okavango system. Botswana government reporting has the flood typically reaching the Boro and Maun around mid-June. When it is flowing there are hippo and crocodile in it, and riverside lodges warn guests about the bank after dark; in a weak year stretches of the river can be dry. Our Okavango flood cycle page explains the mechanism, and wildlife and seasons covers what it means for game viewing.

We cannot tell you what the river will be doing when you arrive, and neither can anyone else with confidence. Ask Thamalakane River Lodge directly about current water levels rather than relying on a brochure photograph.

Who it suits

This is a practical first or last night rather than a safari destination in itself.

• Arrival and departure nights either side of a fly-in Delta camp, where being fifteen minutes from the airport without being in town is the whole point.
• Self-drivers staging for Moremi, Khwai or the Makgadikgadi, with a powered campsite alternative if you are carrying your own equipment.
• Travellers who want the river rather than the town, and are content to drive in for supplies.

It suits you less if you want to walk to restaurants and shops, or if you are only in Maun for a few hours between flights.

Plan the rest of your trip

• All accommodation in Maun
• Maun destination guide
• Moremi Game Reserve
• Accommodation in Botswana