The care and dedication that goes into the string of over 60 horses is a credit to Barney and her team. The horses of Okavango Horse Safaris are chosen with temperament and suitability at the forefront. Many of the horses have either been sourced through close friends in Harare, Zimbabwe or are selected from well-known breeders in South Africa.

The string is made up of thoroughbreds and thoroughbred crosses, Arabians and
Arabian crosses and Boerperds. In recent years the Bestelink’s have carefully selected mares to join the team and using Lamu, an American Saddlebred, they are breeding more of their own horses now.

When not on safari the horses freely graze the grassy molapos of the delta through the day. They graze loose and this truly is one of the amazing sights you will see while on safari with Okavango Horse Safaris.

The minimum riding ability required is mastery of the basic aids, ability to post to the trot for stretches of 10 minutes at a time, to be comfortable at all paces and to be able to gallop out of trouble. It is a great advantage if you are a fit and a proficient rider. If you do have members of your group that do not meet these requirements we have a fantastic non-riding itinerary available.

We can accommodate non-riders but they must be booked in as such. Non-riders have their own guide and enjoy game drives, powerboats, fishing, walks and mokoros. They move with the riding guests to the various fly camps and join non-riding activities and picnics.

Although our priority is riding, we offer alternative activities during the afternoons that are not day rides. A 6 hour morning can be tiring so some afternoons are spent at leisure with evening bird / game walks, mokoro expeditions (water levels permitting), power boats and fishing if the season allows. Afternoon game drives and night spotting are also offered.

Maximum weight is 200 lbs (14.7 stone or 90 kg). Guests may be required to step on the scales.

We have an exceptional safety record, and safety is our priority. All rides are led by qualified profession guides. A .375 rifle is carried on all the rides for added security. All camps and vehicles have radio communication and guides ride with a hand held radios.
A demonstration is given at the beginning of the safari with a talk on how to handle big game situations. Should an accident happen all guests are registered with a helicopter evacuation service which can get you to a hospital within 20 minutes.

We have two different types of saddle; English style with seat saver for comfort or South African trail saddles. The tack is of high quality and kept in good condition. Saddles are well known makes such as Ideals, Barnsby, and Symonds. Most horses are in snaffle bridles.

Between 4-6 hours in the saddle a day. This is broken by refreshment stops – picnic breakfast or lunch and a 10-minute walk for every two hours spent in the saddle. (This eases up the rider using different muscles, and helps the horse from constant pressure of the rider’s weight).

We do accept children but they must be strong competent riders. They should have a certificate from a pony club or qualified teacher to attest this. No adjustment in price of children. Our minimum recommended age is 12 years old.

Game is plentiful, including elephant, buffalo, giraffe, zebra, wildebeest, kudu, lechwe, reedbuck, bushbuck, steenbok, impala, roan antelope, duiker, waterbuck, tsesebe, bat-eared fox, sidestriped and blackbacked jackal, African wildcat, baboon, vervet monkey, honey badger, spotted hyena, mongoose, meerkat, warthog, tortoise and ostrich; special nocturnal creatures – porcupine, aardwolf, aardvark, civet, genet, serval, spring hare; water species – hippo, crocodile, cape clawless and spotted necked otter; predators – leopard, lion, cheetah, wild dog. Safety precautions are taken when viewing any dangerous game.

We like to keep rides to a maximum of 8 people however we can provide larger rides on request.

Absolutely, and we don’t charge a single supplement for accommodation. However if there are no other riders on the safari you would have to pay a single supplement on certain transfer options.