ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW • POPULATION (2024): 2,521,139 • CAPITAL: Gaborone • VISA: Passport must be valid for six months and contain three or more blank pages; no visa required. A $30 tourist tax must be paid per person on arrival • HEALTH: Vaccinations against hepatitis A and B, polio, rabies and typhoid recommended; yellow fever vaccination required for those arriving from high-risk countries; medication to prevent malaria is recommended for travel to certain areas • CURRENCY: Pula (BWP). Major credit cards accepted
• TIPPING: $10-15 per day or 10% of total bill for guides; for hotel staff, $1-2 per bag or day; 10% is customary for good service in restaurants • TIME: GMT+2 • ELECTRICITY: 230 volts; adapter required • DRIVING: On the left. US driver’s license accepted • PUBLIC HOLIDAYS (2025): Jan 1-2; Apr 18-19, 21; May 1, 29; Jul 1, 21-22; Sep 30; Oct 1; Dec 25-26 • LANGUAGE: English; Setswana • RELIGION: Christian; Indigenous • DIAL CODE: +267
CLIMATE Hot and dry with any showers or thunderstorms mostly occurring between October and April. When they occur, rainy spells are usually brief. Temperatures range from average winter lows of around 67F to average highs of 95F in summer
GETTING THERE • MAJOR GATEWAYS: Sir Seretse Khama (GBE) • TYPICAL FLYING TIME: Two layovers: 25h+ from New York; 26h+ from Los Angeles; 29h+ from Miami
African spoonbills fl y across sunset over a river in Botswana
ANGOLA
ZAMBIA
Kasane CHOBE
NGAMILAND Tsau
Lake Ngami Ghanzi GHANZI B O TSWANA CENTRAL KWENENG KGATLENG KGALAGADI Tshabong SOUTH AFRICA SOUTHERN Kanye Gaborone Makgadikgadi ZIMBABWE Francistown