Bwabwata Game Drive Routes Stay Open, Ministry Says

Namibia's Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism has denied plans to close the game drive routes in Bwabwata National Park, The Namibian reported on October 10, 2026. For travelers with safaris booked in the country's far northeast, the message is simple: plans can go ahead as normal.

Bwabwata stretches along the Caprivi Strip between the Okavango and Kwando rivers, bordering Angola and Botswana. Protected in various forms since the 1960s, it was gazetted as a national park in 2007, uniting the former Caprivi Game Park and Mahango Game Reserve. Today it is managed in three core areas, Mahango, Buffalo and Kwando, alongside communities who live within the park.

The park is known for large herds of elephant and buffalo, sable and roan antelope, and it remains one of Namibia's last refuges for African wild dogs. It also sits at the heart of the Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area, forming a vital corridor for elephants moving between Botswana, Angola and Zambia.

Most visitors explore Bwabwata on game drives, boat trips and walks run by lodges and operators along the park's borders, or as self-drive campers. The dry season, roughly May to September, offers the most comfortable travel and the best wildlife viewing, as animals gather near the rivers.

With the routes confirmed open, travelers can keep their Bwabwata plans as booked and travel as normal through the park's core areas.

If Bwabwata is on your list, EcoVoyager can help you plan a visit, from choosing the right season to arranging guides and lodges near the park.