The beauty of spontaneity in tourism

Source : Kutlwano

Author : Calviniah Kgautlhe

Location : MAUN

Event : Interview

Up north, just at the pinnacle of Botswana map, as one travels within the purview of the Okavango Delta, it is a given to spot groups of tourists roving the thick hoar dust in Land Cruisers heading to various tourism destinations.

German nationals, Thomas Dederer, 24 and Stefan Dederer, 25, can be spotted in Maun old mall buying bottled water and other camping necessities.

Dressed in portable earthy, khakhi tourism gear, it suddenly strikes the mind that these are part of millions of tourists who throng Botswana each year to enjoy pristine flora and fauna.

“We have travelled to Kgalagadi, we have seen the Okavango Delta, we are now heading to Moremi Game Reserve, Savuti, Chobe National Park and we will end our journey in Zambia, and all the way, so far, we see something new and exciting as we go along which is really exciting, we will be touring Botswana for 17 days!” says Thomas excitedly about their Okavango safari.

Along with other tourists from other countries such as Canada, United States of America (USA) and United Kingdom (UK) packed in a Bushway Safaris Land Cruiser, the Dederes tell  Kutlwano that they are visiting Africa for the very first time and Botswana is their first stopover.

“We live mostly in built-up areas in Germany and we cannot see the stars, here the sky is much clearer, and it is a wonderful experience to be closer to nature!” explains Thomas.

“I really enjoy seeing the natural landscape, everything is just so natural which is great!” adds Stefan who is filled with joy to share his experience with Kutlwano.

The duo shares that they stayed in camps all the way to Zambia which gave them a true African experience as they felt closer to nature.
“So far we`ve had a wonderful experience we would like to visit Botswana again, get away from city lights in Germany and sleep under the beautiful stars and the moon,” says Stefan.

Their tour guide, Marks Kehaletswe, 38, tells Kutlwano that he has been a tour guide for over 16 years and enjoys interacting with tourists.

“Most tourists that I meet say they enjoy the fact that Botswana`s tourism is different from other countries.

Tours here are not planned and boring. Things are left to happen naturally which makes it exciting for tourists when they do not know what they will see next or which animal they will see next, this becomes really exciting.” Ends