Month by month
Moremi in December
December commits. The storms come properly, 118 mm across 17 days of rain, the bush explodes into green, the antelope drop their young in a synchronised flood of legs, and Moremi hands the year back to the birds.
If you only want the answer
December is the green season with the volume up: newborn antelope everywhere, migrant birds in full breeding colour, storm-light photography and the year's lowest rates, set against deteriorating tracks and dispersed game. Self-sufficient parties only.
The reserve turns green
Days of 31.6°C, nights of 20.7°C and rain on more days than not. The impala lambing peak lands in this window and the predators briefly gorge on the surplus, which produces some of the year's most intense, if localised, hunting activity. Overhead and underfoot, the bird year peaks: migrants down from Eurasia, residents displaying, and the floodplain specials easy to find.
The flood clock, for its part, has reset to zero. December's storms over Angola are next July's water, and the channels in front of you are running on memory.
Driving into the wet
Track quality now degrades week by week, and the pattern is binary: perfectly driveable sand until a stretch of wet clay stops you completely. Convoy travel, sand ladders, a winch point survey before every dubious crossing, and the humility to turn around are the December toolkit. Gates run 05:30 to 19:00, and the reserve can shut temporarily after major systems, so build slack into any onward connection.
One rule catches December self-drivers heading home: the Shorobe veterinary fence lets meat travel north into the reserve but not back south, so eat your coolbox down before you exit.
Money, closures and one deadline
Rates are at their lowest and campsites go begging, with two exceptions: the Christmas and New Year fortnight books up at the lodges months ahead despite the season, and some high-end water camps, Xigera among them, begin closures that run into autumn. Confirm operating dates before you build an itinerary around a specific camp.
The tip is for anglers: the national fishing closed season starts on 1 January, so December is your last legal cast of the summer. Get the DWNP permit sorted in Maun and enjoy the year's emptiest water.