Shinde Enclave

The Shinde Enclave is an exclusive-use Camp catering for a maximum of six guests. It is a complete offering including ultimate personal service and an indelible wilderness experience. The private main area offers a bar, lounge, dining room, mini library, outside fire deck and sun lounger sitting area, it is the perfect retreat after a day’s activities. The Shinde Enclave is an intimate hideaway offering guests the services of a private waiter, housekeeper and a professional guide and game drive vehicle.

The lodge boasts an authentic classic safari style, with the tents providing a luxury experience coupled with a touch of historical charm. Each tent features a large bedroom, en-suite bathroom with indoor and outdoor showers. Guests have the choice of either a double or twin bed configuration on comfortable three-quarter, extra length or king-sized beds. At Shinde Enclave, every need has been catered for from full solar electricity, standing and ceiling fans to yoga mats and hair dryers!

For families looking for a more intimate stay, they the choice of being accommodated in a custom-built two-bedroom shared en-suite bathroom family tent sleeping a maximum of 5 people.

Situated on the Shinde Private Concession, this stunning property offers a choice of land and water-based activities and is home to an abundant population of predators, notably the leopard. Activities include morning and afternoon game drives in open safari vehicles, with night drives being conducted after the evening meal. Alternatively, climb aboard a Mokoro with a ‘poler’ and enjoy exploring the Okavango Delta’s tranquil waterways. Thrilling motorboat trips, walking safaris and fishing are other optional activities, all to be planned and taken with your private professional guide.

The Shinde Private Concession features a blend of environments provides the habitat for a wide variety of wildlife, including the elusive sitatunga antelope and a healthy population of lion. Fishing is available throughout the year with the exception of January and February, with excellent bream fishing from May to September and superb chances of landing tigerfish during September to mid-November.

This area offers an exclusive hideaway and perfect location from which a family or small group of friends can explore the Okavango Delta.

About the Okavango Delta

The largest inland delta in the world, the Okavango Delta is the most unexpected wonder – water present in a desert. The broad Okavango River sinks into the dry sands of the Kalahari Desert, creating a lush and waterlogged oasis with crystal clear lagoons and channels, reeded islands and fertile floodplains. Dubbed “the river that never finds the sea”, this magical oasis spreads over more than 15 500 km² (almost 6 000 square miles) and yet is so fragile that, if it were denied water for even a decade, it would revert to a semi-desert.

This breath-taking environment constantly adapts and changes with the ebb and flow of the floodwaters that seasonally inundate large portions of the Delta. Although dry for two-thirds of the year, during the winter months the rising floodwaters create a maze of marshes, small wooded islands and shallow lagoons. Water lilies and other aquatic plants flourish in the shallow water, while water birds inhabit the banks of papyrus. As relatively little water can be found elsewhere during this time, the wildlife is drawn to the clear waters of the Delta.

On the edges of the Delta, where land blurs with water, breeding herds of elephant splash gently through shallow channels, the long necks of a family of giraffe materialise slowly out of the Delta skyline and graceful sitatunga antelope hide in the reeds. It is a place where you can wonder at the antics of wild dog in the morning and cast a line for tiger fish in the afternoon, wake in the dappled shade of a forest and enjoy dinner beneath the boughs of a massive baobab at full moon.

Beautiful little reed frogs cling to the water grasses and a variety of incredible bird species make their appearance, from jewelled kingfishers and bee-eaters to ponderous herons and cranes and solemn-looking owls. Red lechwe scamper through the shallows and wild cat, serval and pangolin can be spotted at night, when the moon reflects off the backs of a family of hippo coming out of the water to graze, turning them into slabs of shining silver.

Wildlife
The Okavango Delta is home to a large number of species, including some that are specially adapted to the semi-aquatic lifestyle, like the elegant red lechwe and shy sitatunga antelope. Lion prides, cheetah, leopard and African wild dog may be encountered, while hippo resides in deeper channels and lagoons. Honey badgers are observed during daylight hours. Roan and sable antelope favour taller grass in open woodlands and families of dwarf and banded mongoose occupy large termite mounds.

Graceful giraffe, with their impossibly long necks, and herds of zebra can be encountered on the floodplains. Lion, as well as other predators, can also be found in the area, particularly in the drier areas. Although predominantly nocturnal and difficult to spot, leopard occurs in the dense forest are the water’s edge. The sparkling channels teem with a variety of fish, while hundreds of bird species, frogs and insects inhabit the reeded banks.