Jack’s Camp, Makgadikgadi Salt Pans, Botswana

A Luxury Tented Camp in Botswana

Camp Details

Jack’s Camp is a Kalahari Desert camp, located in Botswana’s Makgadikgadi Salt Pans, the remnants of an enormous super-lake that used to cover most of Southern Africa. Jack Bousfield himself described the area as the “savage beauty of a forgotten Africa”, and truly, the Makgadikgadi is like nowhere on earth. It’s a landscape of space and remoteness, and the spectacular, otherworldly vistas, unique desert wildlife, and old-world glamour of Jack’s Camp all come together to create an experience that is unlike any other on the continent.

There aren’t many camps in Africa quite like Jack’s. The ten, Bedouin-style tents are scattered below a soft canopy of molokwane palms, each one an ode to safaris of old. Expect Persian rugs atop polished floors, vintage lithographs and muslin-draped walls, and the comfiest four-posters we’ve ever slept in. Outside, private verandas and velvet-clad chairs look out over the ethereal landscape, where glittering salt and sun-baked plains stretch as far as the eye can see. And then there’s the bathrooms. As exquisite and quirky as a bathroom can be, you’ll find free-standing, copper bathtubs, splashy sinks, and wooden throne toilets.

At the mess tent, a museum of vintage artefacts, maps, photos, and manuscripts all collected by the Bousfield family, is the centre piece of the 1940s-style canvas pavilion. Separate tents contain an antique pool table, library, and a bar with an excellent selection of fine wines. And if you weren’t already completely and utterly blown away, wait until we mention the sleek swimming pool tent, and the fact that it’s the only one of its kind on the continent. We did say there was nowhere quite like it!

WHY CHOOSE JACK’S CAMP?

• Jack’s is one of Africa’s most storied and iconic camps and just one of just three in a one million-acre private wildlife reserve.
• The only camp in Africa with a swimming pool tent – and a tea tent!
• A blockbuster of activities, including quad biking, horseback riding, bushman walks, traditional game drives and meerkat encounters with some of the best and most experienced guides in Botswana.
• 50,000 zebra and wildebeest migrate through the area from January to April.
• Year-round wildlife includes zebra, wildebeest, springbok, steenbok, elephant, brown hyena, oryx, Kalahari lion and cheetah.
• The camp has one of the most comprehensive collections of ancient artefacts in Botswana, collected by the Bousfield family over decades.