- Where adventure meets serenity in the unexplored wild
Out in the north eastern, less explored and wildlife rich part of the Okavango Delta lies a new camp, a latest addition to Ker & Downey Botswana’s portfolio which has essentially redefined the safari architecture.
A safari game changer, located in which also serves as the source of the Selinda Spillway, – Maxa has been in operation for just under six months and has already started attracting attention in the travel space, due to its appealing architectural appearance, which is a shift from the usual model that have become popular in safari.
The main area structures feature partial walls made of clay soil which are covered with stretch tents – with handmade furniture that topping up.
Here, the camp is petched on the banks and overlooking the magnificent Maxa lagoon to the west – giving beautiful view of some amazing sunsets ever.
Maxa has 5 rooms, including a family unit and all the rooms have incredible views of the lagoon, allowing the guest a rare connection with nature – from a ground level perspective. The rooms are made of stretch tents set on decks – all with a luxury finish and most of the furniture handmade from locally sourced materials.
Access to Maxa is by a direct under 40 minutes scenic helicopter flight right across the Okavango Delta, or alternatively a 20-minute light aircraft from Maun to Shinde, then another 20 minutes onward by helicopter.
Maxa provides that grounded, feet on the sand safari experience where even the structures give a luxury feel that seamlessly blend with the natural environment where its located. From conception to completion, there was no doubt the camp would be a special project.
Maxa offers an informal atmosphere where the guest is King, and flexibility of activity times. The location of the camp allows for both land and water activities – with the Mokoro (traditional dugout canoe) as the most sought after. Game drives offer guest endless sightings of large herds of elephants, zebras, wild dogs, lions, leopard and other many bird species among others.
One of the three co-founders of Maxa, Daniel Crous reflected in an interview on the story of Maxa, revealing that the Maxa concept was deliberate, to build something that would be unique and a talking point in the tourism industry. The Camp had to derive its uniqueness from the design – and building a never before done product, he said. This has without doubt been achieved. Maxa – is a partnership between Ker & Downey Botswana – a luxury eco-tourism operator and a subsidiary of Chobe Holdings Limited with the cofounders of the project. The project also involves the communities who are the custodians of the land. Communities have been critical to Maxa from construction when workers and contractors were engaged from the villages. Currently, the camp employs about 80 % of its staff compliment from the communities.
