Wilderness Little Vumbura
WILDERNESS Little Vumbura is an exclusive tented lodge located on a very small island in the heart of the beautiful Vumbura Concession in the northern Okavango Delta.
Wilderness Little Vumbura is an old favourite and offers a really idyllic, exclusive and all round wonderful Okavango experience. The arrival by boat (a 5 minute ride from the boat station or a 15 minute ride from the airstrip when the flood is in) adds to the feeling of escapism whilst the ambience in camp is peaceful and relaxed. The accommodation is very comfortable but not over the top and the camp retains an intimate, close to nature feel, with friendly staff and a high level of personal service. The Vumbura Concession is varied and whilst super for game viewing, it also offers good wetland Okavango experiences with boating, mekoro excursions and fishing (March to December) all possible. This makes Little Vumbura one of the best lodges from which to enjoy the full range of Okavango habitats and activities. Due to its popularity, the lodge is expensive, especially in high season from June to October.
Rooms
Wilderness Little Vumbura caters for up to 14 guests in six luxuriously appointed tents, each privately positioned on wooden decks looking out over the floodplains of the delta. Each open-plan tent has a spacious sleeping area, inside lounge area and en suite facilities including a plumbed toilet, shower and double vanity. One of the tents also has an outside bath (known as the honeymoon tent) and another, their family tent, consists of two en suite tents side by side on a larger deck (linked internally by a small hallway). To the front of each tent is a small verandah furnished with comfortable chairs from which to enjoy the lovely views out over the floodplains.
Central Areas
The main areas of the lodge, also tucked into the edge of the island, include an open plan dining room, bar and lounge area, an elevated library and a small swimming pool with a sun deck set amongst the reeds.
Facilities
Wi-Fi – Yes
Power for charging – Yes
Swimming pool – Yes
Habitat & Wildlife
The Vumbura private concession is extremely exclusive with some 230 sq. miles of pristine big game territory and waterways to explore. The habitat is a wonderful mix or permanent waterways, seasonal floodplains, mature woodland, scrub bush and open plains. Game drives are very productive with all major predators seen regularly and night drives can be good too with nocturnal creatures such as honey badger, leopard, civet, serval, genet and porcupine often encountered. The area is also a good place to see the rare and beautiful Sable antelope – a particular part of the concession is known for them.
A permanent channel flows past Little Vumbura so water activities are available year round, though more extensive exploration of the delta is possible during the flood season from May to August (during this time, game drives often require driving through shallow water in areas close to the permanent water). Birdlife is excellent and varied with woodland, grassland and wetland species all in abundance.
Activities
Wilderness Little Vumbura offers the full range of Okavango activities, including nature walks, mekoro safaris (dugout canoes), boating trips, fishing (March to December) and game drives by open four-wheel drive vehicles (by day and night). Helicopter scenic trips and hot air balloon flights (seasonal between April and October) are available at an additional cost.
Seasons
Wilderness Little Vumbura is open all year round, though game viewing is best from May through to early November. Water activities are best from May to October when water levels are highest. Fishing is not permitted in Botswana during January and February.
Wilderness Little Vumbura accepts children from six years old and their two bedroomed family unit is ideal with both internal and external access between the bedrooms. The variety of activities on offer and the stunning location of the lodge make Wilderness Little Vumbura an exceptional safari and wilderness experience for any family, though taking into the account the fairly mature and exclusive nature of the property, we would naturally recommend the property to families with older children. A complimentary, and optional, Bush Buddy service is offered where children may be paired with a local mentor for the duration of their stay who is experienced in childcare and engaging with children.
Wilderness Safaris established the Children in the Wilderness programme (CITW) focusing on the children from villages close to the remote areas in which they operate, educating them in environmental awareness and training them in the life skills needed to care for and nurture their natural environment. Some of these programmes include operating annual camps for up to 30 children at a time in their lodges, running regular Eco-Clubs in rural schools, Youth Environmental Stewardship (YES) which mentors particular children who have shown a strong interest in their environment and scholarship programmes for primary, secondary and tertiary education.
The Wilderness Wildlife Trust is involved in conservation, anti-poaching, community empowerment and education. The Trust has many projects throughout Botswana (Wildlife Research Increasing Capacity), Namibia (Desert Dwelling Giraffe Study), Zimbabwe (Hwange Elephant Movement Study), Zambia (Zambian Carnivore Program), Malawi (Mobile Response Unit) and Rwanda (Shoebill Arial Survey).
In 2019 Wilderness Safaris joined the Lion Recovery Fund and several of Africa’s other safari operators to form the Lionscape Coalition to raise funds for and awareness of lion conservation.
Projects closer to Little Vumbura include the Botswana Lion Genetics Study which is funded by the Trust and researches the past and present genetic structure of lions in the Okavango Delta. The Vumbura Concession is in a Wildlife Management area and is leased to Wilderness Safaris through The Okavango Community Trust ensuring the five local villages benefit from the operation (for example, all staff members that are employed on the concession must be from one of the villages). CITW focuses on the children from these villages, with 10,000 rural children across seven African countries have benefited from CITW. Wilderness Safaris also offers its guests the option bring a donation of supplies in partnership with Pack For A Purpose which will assist the ongoing Little Vumbura community projects.
