Safari News Travel Advisors Can Use

From a new luxury safari camp with room for just eight guests in the Okavango Delta of Botswana to a andBeyond safari homestead in Kenya and the celebration of a Zambian reserve’s successful rewilding efforts, here are several tidbits of safari news to keep you up-to-date.

Ker & Downey Botswana’s Newest Camp to Open in Okavango Delta

Ker & Downey Botswana will open its eighth luxury safari camp, the Kanana Nyana in the Okavango Delta. The camp, which opens on Oct. 15, 2026, will occupy an elevated location overlooking the Xudum River and expansive floodplains on the western edge of the Moremi Game Reserve.

Named after the Setswana word for “small,” Kanana Nyana can accommodate up to eight guests in four individually-styled thatched suites. Designed for two adults, each suite features a king-size bed and expansive windows framing sweeping views of the Delta. Outside, a spacious wooden deck provides a private sanctuary, complete with a plunge pool and a cooling thatched sala.

“Kanana Nyana is a return to what safari is meant to feel like: intimate, personal, and completely immersed in the wild,” said Kim Nixon, COO of Ker & Downey Botswana. “With just four tented suites, it offers a rare and authentic connection to the Okavango Delta, where time is given to observe, to understand, and to appreciate rather than move on.”

The camp’s shared spaces encourage guests to come together, with distinct areas for dining, relaxing, and socializing. Culinary offerings celebrate both local ingredients and Botswana’s rich flavors. Fresh produce is sourced through suppliers who prioritize locally grown ingredients whenever in season, while regular themed dining experiences showcase traditional favorites such as seswaa, pap, and morogo.

An on-site gym is equipped for both cardiovascular and resistance training, while personalized wellness treatments can be enjoyed in the privacy of each suite.

Activities offered at Kanana Nyana will include walking expeditions, game drives, and mokoro outings. A fleet of two safari vehicles—each accommodating a maximum of four guests despite having six seats—ensures ample space for wildlife viewing and photography. Mokoro excursions offer a more tranquil perspective, as guides gently pole traditional dugout canoes through meandering channels and reed-fringed waterways. Nearby, the renowned heronry provides one of the Delta’s most remarkable spectacles, with as many as 70,000 birds congregating between May and October.

andBeyond Expands Presence In Kenya

Following the successful opening of its andBeyond Suyian Lodge, andBeyond is expanding its presence in Kenya’s north with andBeyond Suyian Homestead, a new private safari home with five suites set within the 44,000-acre Suyian Conservancy.

Opening in June 2027, the sole-use safari home is designed for small groups of friends, couples, or multi-generational families looking for space, privacy, and ultra-personalized safari experiences in unfenced wilderness, including such non-traditional offerings as camel experiences, horseback-riding safaris and catch-and-release fishing. Rates will start at USD $10,200 per night. 

“This was never about building another place to visit,” says Jane Braack, andBeyond managing director, East Africa Lodges. “Suyian Homestead expands our East African portfolio and represent a personal expression of safari living. It’s about creating a home in the wild where far-reaching views invite people to slow down and spend time together.”

Suyian Homestead can accommodate up to 11 guests in five suites, including a Master bedroom and one with a triple configuration. Some 6,000 square feet of guest spaces include expansive living rooms, an open kitchen, long dining tables and shaded terraces.

Exteriors make the most of the expansive views, including from an infinity pool and multiple al fresco dining areas. 

A dedicated team of 13 staff members, plus two private safari guides and two six-seater 4×4 safari vehicles are all exclusively available for Homestead guests. 

Beyond traditional safari activities, guests may also explore the landscape through camel experiences, horseback riding safaris, catch-and-release fishing, scenic helicopter flights, and cattle ranching. For those seeking to slow down, there are in-suite wellness treatments, gym sessions, and poolside afternoons. Plus, guests have access to the facilities at nearby Suyian Lodge, including a wellness center for additional treatments and the Safari Shop for picking up handcrafted mementos.

Zambian Private Reserve Celebrates Rewilding Effort

Zambia’s first fully-fenced private reserve celebrated its recent rewilding effort with the country’s first successful reintroduction of captive-bred lions and a growing cheetah population, regrown after the species has long disappeared from the region. At the same time, the property prepares for black rhino reintroductions later this year.

Lolelunga Private Reserve, part of the part of the Zambia Luxury Lodge Collection, is located on the banks of the Lunga River. It is operated as an evolving landscape where guests can witness and engage with one of Zambia’s most ambitious private rewilding projects to date. It has accommodations for just 14 guests in seven suites, including three standard king rooms, two junior suites, and one family suite, all with uninterrupted views of the Lunga River.

Spanning 30,000 hectares, approximately twice the size of Washington DC, in Zambia’s lesser-visited northern Kafue region, Lolelunga is the country’s first fully fenced private reserve dedicated to large-scale ecological restoration. Once severely degraded and depleted by poaching, deforestation, and overfishing, the reserve has been methodically transformed through habitat rehabilitation, intensive anti-poaching initiatives, and carefully managed species reintroductions.

Guests can immerse themselves in the rewilding story through twice-daily game drives, walking safaris, guided canoeing on the Lunga River, catch-and-release fishing, and expert-led birdwatching across more than 340 recorded species.