Chobe covers 11,000 sq km (4300 sq mi) and has a greater variety of wildlife than anywhere else in Botswana. Kasane, at the northern tip of the park, is the park's gateway and its administrative centre. The town itself doesn't offer much to see, but it's a good place to base yourself for quick visits to the park, and it's also where you'll arrive if you fly into Chobe.For those in a hurry, the most popular recreation is a cruise or drive along the riverfront, where the bulk of the park's animals congregate. Elephants - around 73,000 of them, in herds of up to 500 - are the main attraction, and the most memorable thing about a visit to the riverfront is seeing just how much damage a herd can do. The place looks like it's been bombed. Here, you also have an excellent chance of spotting lion, cheetah, hippo, buffalo, giraffe, antelope, jackal, warthog, hyena, crocodile, otter, zebra and any number of species of bird.The Mababe Depression - a remnant of a large lake that once covered northern Botswana - is home to the park's next big attraction, the Savuti Marshes. Savuti presents an intensely flat, harsh landscape, but you'll be overwhelmed by the amount of wildlife, particularly elephant. Lions, wild dogs and hyena prowl through immense herds of impala, wildebeest, buffalo and zebra, while antelopes are present in numbers you won't see anywhere else. Ngwezumba doesn't have the hordes of animals you'll see at the riverfront or Savuti, but the area's clay pans and mopane forests do support buffalo, elephant and some antelope species, including the rare oribi.At the upper end of Chobe, Kasane is also the northernmost point of the country, about 800km (500mi) north of Gaborone. You can fly to Kasane from Maun, Gaborone or Victoria Falls, and buses run to Kasane from Nata, about 250km (150mi) to the south. Once there, you'll need a high-clearance 4WD to get around most areas. There are camps and lodges throughout the park.

It's pushing the definition to label Gaborone an attraction, but as you'll probably have to pass through here on your way to someplace more attractive, it's worth knowing a little about Botswana's capital. The first thing to know is that it's not somewhere you'll want to linger - distances in Gaborone are long and uninteresting, there's heavy traffic, no footpaths and the city is a mess of suburbs and highrises. And as there's no central business district, the action tends to gravitate to suburban malls. If Los Angeles without the glitz sounds like your cup of tea, visit Gaborone.Gaborone's premier attraction is the National Museum & Art Gallery, offering the usual collection of historic artefacts and stuffed animals. The museum's displays of San culture thoroughly cover the desert dwellers, while other ethnographic installations provide background on Botswana's diverse cultural groups. The small national gallery is a repository for both traditional and modern African and European pieces, including some San artwork.The Gaborone Game Reserve is designed for those who want a safari to go. About a kilometre outside Gaborone, the reserve is really just a bunch of antelopes and a fenced-in white rhino. If you'd rather do your range roving au naturel, you can take a horseback safari into the scrubby bush north-west of Gaborone. There are several places to stay in Gaborone, but very few budget options. Gaborone lies midway along Botswana's south-eastern border with South Africa.

Described as 'the river which never finds the sea', the Okavango disappears into a 15,000 sq km (5850 sq mi) maze of lagoons, channels and islands in north-western Botswana. It's the largest inland delta in the world, and it teems with wildlife. Most obvious are the birds - thousands upon thousands of them - but there are also elephant, zebra, buffalo, wildebeest, giraffe, hippo and kudu. In the centre of the delta, the Moremi Wildlife Reserve totals around 3000 sq km (1170 sq mi) and is officially cordoned off for wildlife preservation. Outside of Moremi you won't see much in the way of wildlife, but there are fewer tourists and the landscape is no less lovely.

About 60km (40mi) south-east of Moremi, Maun is the administrative centre of the delta and home to the main airstrip. The cheapest area to visit is the Eastern Delta, as there aren't as many controls on operators here, and most of the guides and boat pilots are unlicensed freelancers.If you want to stay where the wild things are, a number of camp sites are available in Moremi. Don't camp outside them, or you may end up as a local lion's midnight snack. There are also plenty of camps and lodges elsewhere in the delta and in Maun. If you're booked at one of these, transport to Okavango is usually organised by the camp. Otherwise, you can fly or bus from Gaborone - about 600km (400mi) south-east of Maun - and join a safari once you get there. The best way to see the delta is by mokoro (dugout canoe), which are generally poled through the waterways by experienced guides. The most agreeable time to visit is July to September, when water levels are high and the weather is dry.

With a population of around 90,000, sprawling Serowe, in eastern Botswana, is the country's largest village. It has been the capital of the Ngwato people since King Khama moved here in 1902. Serowe is also home to the Botswana Brigades, a movement that, since 1965, has brought vocational education to the most remote parts of the country.The Khama III Memorial Museum tells the story of the Khama family, the chiefs of the Ngwato people. Leapeetswe Khama donated his home, the Red House, for the museum premises. Displays include the personal effects of King Khama III and his descendants, as well as artefacts illustrating the history of Serowe. There is also a growing natural history display, featuring a large collection of African insects and a display on snakes of the region.For more Khamabilia, visit the Royal Cemetery on a hill in the centre of the village. As well as the grave of Khama III and his family, you can see the ruins of an 11th-century village. About 20km (13mi) north-west of Serowe, the Khama Rhino Sanctuary is a safe house for 16 of Botswana's score or so of remaining rhino. Serowe has a few decent hotels. To get there by public transport, you have to get to Palapye (there are buses and a train from Gaborone) and then catch one of the local buses running to Serowe. Serowe is about 250km (150mi) from the capital.