Busanga Bush Camp

The canvas tents at Busanga Lodge are all built in traditional Meru style and are spacious and comfortable. The tents are nestled in amongst trees, placing them in the very heart of nature and wide doors on one side of the tent fills the space with natural light and fresh breezes. Two cosy queen size beds sit in the centre of the room with crisp white bed linens and scatter cushions which are covered in authentic African patterns.

The beds are draped in mosquito netting so guests can sleep comfortably, and squishy pillows and duvets guarantee a night of deep rest. All the tents come with an outdoor en-suite bathroom complete with flushing toilet and a hot water shower. The tents all have a private veranda area, with director style deck chairs where guests can relax after a long day and enjoy the sun setting whilst gazing over the vista.

Meals are served in the main dining area which is open sided, yet covered by a canvas roof, offering uninterrupted views while guests enjoy deliciously prepared and served meals. Drinks can be enjoyed around the boma during sunset or after dinner, recounting stories of the day to your fellow guests. If weather is nice guests can enjoy a private and romantic dinner under the wide starry sky.

Guests can enjoy a day spent exploring the area in the comfort of a 4WD safari vehicle. This offers guests a chance to see some of the amazing wildlife of the Busanga Plains, such as lion, elephant, wildebeest and antelope – all in their natural habitat. Guests can also choose a nighttime game drive for the opportunity to see some of the more elusive nocturnal creatures of the national park.

Make the most of the flood waters when they are high by sending time gliding serenely along them on a boating excursion. Explore the winding waterways and you may be lucky enough to come up alongside a lazy bloat of hippos, lounging in the water.

For a once-in-a-lifetime experience take to the skies in a hot air balloon. Create long lasting memories from your birds eye perspective of the plains, and enjoy uninterrupted views over the rolling grasslands and across the horizon.

Wilderness Safaris created their own Trust in 2003, this is an independent entity that fund-raises for money to be put into various conservation projects. This engages with projects which can be beyond the scope of the areas in which Wilderness Safaris operate, ensuring that “conservation is a driving force in reaching more people, wildlife and places.” A total of 25 different projects are funded by the Trust annually, the past 10 years has seen the Trust finance more than 100 different projects throughout 8 different countries in Africa. Whilst Wilderness Safaris contributes to these projects logistically, the Trust “is involved financially in the projects, supporting research, habitat management and community upliftment.”

Wilderness Safaris serves to protect and conserve the land in which they operate. The continent of Africa is unique, with over 1000 different mammal species, fauna and humans living side by side. With a commitment to ecotourism, they are helping to conserve biodiversity. Currently, Wilderness Safaris helps to protect over 2.5million hectares of African wilderness and in 2015 they were awarded a medal by the government of Botswana for Meritorious Service to the country.

One of the ways they try to protect the environment is by making sure their camps have a light footprint. Trying to achieve “purposeful luxury” their camps are all built with environmentally-sensitive architecture. Understanding the fragility of the wilderness they operate in, they make sure they minimise any negative impact they might have on the environment and the camps are thoughtfully placed in locations where they don’t take away from the wilderness of the area.

Wilderness Safaris have a commitment to community engagement in the areas surrounding their camps. Through community employment, Wilderness Safaris currently have more than 100 staff members from local communities throughout their camps, and with the average staff member supporting 7 other people each, 700 further people benefit. 85% of staff members at Wilderness Safaris Camps come from rural communities and working for Wilderness Safaris “represents their first formal employment.”

Community partnerships can also help to protect and conserve the land. For example, Wilderness Safaris Damaraland Camp is located in the Torra Conservancy, and through community work and ecotourism they protect around 350 hectares of land within the Torra Conservancy. As a result of this protected land the wildlife is prospering and “‘problem animals’ are now seen as a resource that can bring money into the community via ecotourism.”

This is an educational programme created by Wilderness Safaris which aims to educate and inspire the next generation of environmental leaders by teaching them life skills and environmental issues. This programme aims to “create a network of learning sanctuaries that uplifts and cares for our children and conserves the planet.” Great numbers of children are involved in these programmes – 2,500 children attend rural, school-based clubs per year; more than 300 children per year are granted a scholarship which pays for their education and Wilderness Safaris and their partner destination host annual camps, which more than 500 children attend.

Wilderness Safaris partner properties all work under the sustainability ethos of conservation, culture, commerce and community. Pack for a Purpose is one of the community projects that Wilderness Safaris has partnered with, it is “a non-profit organisation that provides travellers with up-to-date information about required supplies for community-based projects.” With no one inhabiting these rural areas of Africa accurate recordings of species could not be undertaken.

Wilderness Safaris are present throughout the whole year which allows them to provide not just financial support but also logistical support to anti-poaching initiatives. Due to their presence wildlife numbers have increased dramatically with elephant, lechwe and puku growing markedly. The emphasis on ecotourism is changing lives “camps and lodges bring employment and training, opportunities for growth and travel, and exposure to another world.”

Wilderness Safaris aim is that if the camps ever needed to be moved they could do so without leaving an imprint on the land. All Wilderness Safari camps are built in the most eco-friendly way possible. To reduce their carbon footprint and to help them become carbon neutral in their operations, they invest in new technologies to reduce their dependence on fossil fuels. Also provided by Wilderness Safaris is “logistical and financial support for local anti-poaching activities” making sure their impact on the environment is as positive as possible.

Wilderness Safaris works in partnership with Save the Rhino Trust and three separate Namibian conservancies to help conserve and protect the rare species of the desert-adapted black rhino. These rhinos play a vital role in shaping the landscape of Africa, by grazing lawns and vegetation they help protect plant biodiversity and keep the plains hospitable to other herbivore species. Without them, whole ecosystems would begin to die out.

Wilderness Safaris Desert Rhino Camp works specifically in partnership with Save the Rhino Trust and acts as rhino monitoring post, as well as a camp, to help increase rhino security in an otherwise unmonitored area. Due to an increase in recruitment, Wilderness Safaris and their partners have “dramatically and sustainably increased the range of desert-adapted black rhino in the north-west.”

With animals and humans living side by side there is a risk of human-wildlife conflict, and Wilderness Safaris seek to address this issue. The Skeleton Coast has seen its desert-adapted lion population grow considerably in the past 15 years. Lion mortalities are declining as attitudes in the community are changing due in part to Wilderness Safaris’ help. A research centre was built at Hoanib Skeleton Coast Camp for their Desert Lion Project, and the attention gained from an acclaimed documentary have helped local communities and guests understand the importance of the desert-adapted lions and a greater understanding has allowed rural communities to live peacefully with the lions.

Wilderness Safaris has partnered with the Lion Recovery Fund along with other ecotourism operators to launch the Lionscape Coalition. Established in 2017 by the Wildlife Conservation Network, The Lion Recovery Fund works alongside the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation in order to help re-establish lion populations. Due to habitat loss/fragmentation, poaching and human and wildlife conflict, lion populations have halved in numbers within the last 25 years. The Lionscape Coalition is an initiative that encourages ecotourism competitors to collaborate to show their dedication to conservation and restoring lion habitats.

Due to the remote location of many Wilderness Safaris camps, producing their own energy is a requirement. Photovoltaic solar power is used as “the primary energy source”, negating the need for diesel powered generators that are detrimental to the surrounding wilderness and environment. 12 out of 37 camps owned by Wilderness Safaris run on 100% solar power and due to this use of sustainable energy Wilderness Safaris saves “nearly 2500 tons of carbon a year.”