Botswana, Africa travel resource.

Botswana,Africa.

Botswana is a diamond in the rough -- scratch the surface and it positively sparkles. One of the few remaining destinations in Africa where the adventuresome safari spirit still survives, Botswana has lots of wide-open spaces -- and lots of wildlife to fill them. More than 80% of its rather small population of 1.7 million people live in a scattering of towns and large villages, leaving plenty of room for animals -- and travelers -- to roam the countryside unhindered. Yet, despite its allure, Botswana requires time, effort and money to enjoy it to the fullest. Traveling by road through the parched desert can be tedious and dusty, with long, long stretches of nothing but thornbush to look at and no towns in sight to relieve the monotony -- or hunger and thirst. But then you might find yourself racing an ostrich or a herd of zebras down a dusty track, and you'll get what you pay for -- and more.
To protect the country's natural assets, the government has instituted a policy of promoting and encouraging low-volume, high-cost tourism. Botswana's travel fees may be high, but you're rewarded with an arkful of colorful birds and large game. The country has some of the largest remaining herds of wildlife in Africa. And you get to see them in the wild -- lazing in the waters of the Okavango Delta, grazing on the grasslands of Chobe National Park and tracking the arid salt pans of the Kalahari Desert.
What you won't encounter in Botswana are large flocks of travelers. The high fees discourage large crowds and keep tourist density low and the sense of being surrounded by nature high. Botswana can afford to be so exclusive because its mineral wealth has made it less dependent upon tourist dollars than its poorer neighbors. (It is one of the world's largest diamond producers, and it has reserves of gold, copper and nickel.) You can enjoy Botswana's attractions from a tented campsite along a riverbank or in the comfort of one of the plushest lodges on the continent.