Nxai Pan National Park is a salt pan - a fossilised salt lake  that's only flooded during the rainy season.  Its border's on the north side of the road linking Nata to Maun, as opposed to its sister park, the Makgadikgadi Pan, which is to the south of the road.

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Nxai Pan

Makgadikgadi Pans is a salt pan, meaning a fossilised salt lake that's only flooded during the rainy season.  Its border is on the southern part of the road linking Nata to Maun, as opposed to its sister park, the Nxai Pans National Park , which is to the north of the road.

Magkadikgadi

Moremi Game Reserve is a protected zone in the western Okavango Delta,which includes, among other things, the major island of the delta, Chief's Island and the Moremi language. It spans close to 5000km², of which only 30% is dry land.

Moremi

 Maun is mainly a transit town  for safaris.

Maun

The immense desert covers almost half of Botswana and crosses both the Namibian and South African borders. Most tourists cross it little by little, stopping at bush camps along the way.

Kalahari

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I loved exploring the Kalahari Desert and only have great memories of my time there! Most of the time I crossed immense desert plains and, once in a while, would come across a cheetah, an antelope, a lion... The colours are amazing! Red, white, or grey sand and the only trees that grow in these arid lands - acacias and kokerbooms, the latter being weird trees that the local bushmen use to make their hunting bows. Take the time to visit one of their villages, which are part of the country's sustainable tourist drive and fascinating to see. 
For me, the most impressive part was the cross-border Kgalagadi Transfrontier National Park. I started out in South Africa and ended up in Botswana. Entry formalities are dealt with at the park's entrance, next to the base camp. That very morning three cheetah crossed the road right in front of my car. My window was down and, to be honest, I got scared when one of them got up close to have a look. In all fairness, all he wanted to do was cross the road and have a drink. We slept in a bush camp on the border and the following morning spotted lions as we headed into Botswana! 
Another highlight was our trip to the Central Kalahari Game Reserve, a sprawling landscape that stretches over 50,000km2! It was, without a shadow of a doubt, the biggest game park I've visited. It's breathtaking with a varied landscape, which is probably why the park was established in this region. The best bits were Deception Valley and the Khutse Game Reserve (further away, but worth the effort !). 

To be honest is was a tiring trip, not least because of the heat and the time it took (7 days). If you only want to spend 2 or 3 days in the Kalahari, then you're better off leaving from <a href="/botswana/">Maun</a> and exploring the northern area, where the lands are greener and the wildlife abundant.

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Kalahari: How to get there?

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