Describing the roads in Botswana is like describing Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. The tarred main routes, and most of the roads in the towns, are beautifully smooth roads with excellent signposts. They're often delightfully free of traffic; a dream to drive on. They're eminently suitable to potter around in a normal 2WD Toyota Corolla or Citi Golf.

However, by contrast the tracks through the national parks and more remote areas can become nightmares. Inexperienced or badly prepared drivers will find deep sand in the dry season, and glutinous mud when it's wet – often compounded by a complete lack of signposts or directions.

If you want to hire a self-drive vehicle for the trip, then you must treat Botswana's two personas very differently. Your biggest decision is your vehicle, as this will make or break your trip.

Hiring a 2WD

If you are sticking to the towns and tar roads then hire a 2WD from one of the normal hire companies – Avis, Budget or Imperial would be the obvious three. Contacting them directly, a small saloon (Group A) for about two weeks will cost you around P220 (US$37/£25) per day, including comprehensive CDW insurance cover. This includes a free mileage allowance of 120km per day, but outside that you'll pay an extra P1.21 per kilometre – and if you're travelling around then you'll find the mileage will add up!

Hiring a 4WD

If you want to explore Botswana in your own 4WD, then the obvious solution would appear to be to hire one locally. Again, contacting them directly you'll find a twin-cab 4WD hired for about two weeks will cost you around P450 (US$75/£50) per day, including comprehensive CDW insurance cover. Again, this includes a free mileage allowance of 120km per day, but outside that you'll pay an extra P2.17 per kilometre.

However, think carefully. What you need to drive into the bush in Botswana is a serious, fully equipped vehicle – and what you'd be hiring off-the-peg isn't, in my view, up to the job. You need a vehicle that you can rely on, with long-range tanks, a high-lift jack, a spade and decent tow-rope, extra fuel cans if necessary and all the other bits and pieces that make all the difference. Perhaps most vitally, you need to have confidence that if anything goes wrong, there's a system in place to help you swiftly.

South African 4WDs
One South African company to consider is Britz; it has offices in Australia, New Zealand and Johannesburg (PO Box 4300, Kempton Park 1620, Jo'burg, South Africa; tel: (2711) 396 1860; fax: (2711) 396 1937; email: info@britz.co.za; web: www.britz.co.za). They offer five different types of vehicles, including their 'Nomad' Land Rovers and their 'Safari 4WD' which is basically a twin-cab Toyota Hilux. The Land Rovers cost about R1,225 per day (US$153/£102), the Toyota R1,115 (US$139/£93) per day, including unlimited mileage. These come with stoves, fridges and roof tents.

As with many apparently cheaper car deals, expect there to be various additions – in this case start with R220 per day (US$28/£18) for their full CDW cover, and R500 for their '4WD recovery kit' (tow-ropes, tyre repair, radiator repair, torch, safety triangle, spanners, and screwdrivers).

The main drawbacks are that they don't have an office in Botswana, and the drive from Maun to Jo'burg is well over 1,000km – realistically that's a two- to three-day drive in a Land Rover. This lack of back-up is also reflected in the small print of their hire agreement – which means that you would pay a heavy price for serious accidents (see below).

Backed-up 4WDs
The companies mentioned above simply deal with hiring out vehicles; they don't get involved with helping you plan your trip or give you any advice. A step up from this, in both price and completeness, are a few companies that provide not only a vehicle, but also put their expertise at your disposal. They cost more, but if you're not living in southern Africa then it's probably what you need.

Africa Explorer, Safari Drive and Sunvil Africa are all specialist African operators based in the UK. They're the only overseas companies that I know of who regularly send self-driving clients to Botswana. All can advise you on self-drive trips from personal experience.

Safari Drive and Sunvil Africa use probably the region's best fleet of bush-equipped Land Rovers, and their support team has bases in Maun, Kasane, Victoria Falls and Windhoek. I've used these for all my research trips to Botswana, and they come fully equipped with everything that you'll need for comfortable bush camping, from long-range fuel tanks, roof (or ground) tents and fridges to the washing up bowls, condiments and crockery that really make a trip comfortable.

Probably more important than the kit is that they provide you with a service before you leave, planning your trip based on their detailed local knowledge. Their team in Maun makes the tricky campsite bookings with the National Parks office. Most importantly, they offer first-rate back-up in Botswana – based around a well-connected team on the ground who know all the local operators, and have the contacts and know-how to help you speedily if any problems occur.

Expect these Land Rovers and the service to cost around US$220/£145 per day, including all the equipment and full insurance cover. The only added extras might be an optional satellite phone, for which they charge around £10 per day (plus call charges).

Africa Explorer offers a similarly expert level of first-rate local knowledge – but use much larger, converted six-wheeled vehicles. These cost around US$300/£200 per day, plus US$48/£32 per day for vehicle insurance and CDW. Because of the sheer size of these vehicles, these trips often use a driver/guide, who costs a further US$150/£100 per day.

Checking the fine print

The devil's in the detail, especially if you're looking at any of the cheaper options. You should check any rental agreement very carefully, so that you know your position. Preferably also discuss any questions or queries with someone within the company that is supplying you with the vehicle. A few specific pointers may help:

CDW Insurance
The insurance and the Collision Damage Waiver (CDW) clauses are worth studying particularly closely. These spell out the 'excess' that you will pay in the event of an accident. These CDW excesses vary widely, and often explain the difference between cheap rental deals and better, but more costly, options.

Some hire companies have very high excesses (ie: the amounts that you pay if you have a major accident). An 80% CDW is normal – which means that you will always pay 20% of the cost of any damage. However, look around and you should be able to reduce this to zero – although most hiring companies will still want a deposit, in case you damage or lose any of their vehicle's equipment.

Other fine print
Though accidents are fortunately uncommon, they do happen. Then it's very important to get the situation resolved swiftly and carry on with your trip. Some of the companies have quite onerous terms – so be aware of these before you agree to take the vehicle. For example, Britz state that if you have a single-vehicle accident, then a replacement vehicle can be collected from the closest branch – which is likely to be at least two days' drive away from most of Botswana's parks.

However, you are responsible for the costs of getting there, and also for the costs of returning the damaged vehicle to the original rental station (usually Jo'burg). There's no refund if you can't reach a replacement vehicle – and if you do take a replacement, then a new rental contract and insurance conditions will apply.

Suggested self-drive itineraries

If you're driving yourself outside the national parks, and have lots of time, then you can afford to have total flexibility in your route, and plan very little. However, if you're coming for a shorter time, and want to use any of the campsites in the national parks, then you would be wise to arrange your trip carefully in advance. Note that campsite bookings in the national parks can be quite difficult to get, and are fixed when you have them. Effectively, this commits you to a specific route and schedule.
Perhaps the most obvious and instantly rewarding trip for your first self-drive trip across Botswana would be between Livingstone and Maun. This is best done in the dry season.

Livingstone, Chobe, Moremi and Maun: 11 nights/12 days
• 2n Livingstone – hotel/lodge (or campsite)
• 2n Ihaha Campsite, Chobe
• 2n Savuti Campsite, Chobe
• 2n North Gate Campsite, Moremi
• 2n Xakanaxa or Third Bridge Campsite, Moremi
• 1n Maun – hotel/lodge (or campsite)

This really is the fastest trip that you should consider through this area if you want to have time to enjoy the parks. Allowing more time would be better, and another 3–4 nights camping in the parks (including both Third Bridge and Xakanaxa for a few nights each) would improve it enormously.

Of course it can easily be reversed. Some prefer Livingstone at the start, to relax after the flight. Others prefer to leave it until the end, with the highlight of seeing Victoria Falls (and buying curios) at the end. If you do start at Livingstone, then consider picking up your vehicle on the day that you leave for Ihaha, as this could save you a few days of vehicle hire.

I recommend that you use a hotel or lodge, rather than camp, for your first and last few days – I find that this makes my trips much easier and gives me time to get organised more easily at the start and end.

To visit the hills of the northwest Kalahari, ideally consider a trip based out of Maun:

The Panhandle plus Tsodilo, Aha & Gcwihaba Hills: 14 nights/15 days
• 1n Maun – hotel/lodge (or campsite)
• 2n Drotsky's Cabins, Shakawe
• 3n Tsodilo Hills – camping (spend longer here if possible)
• 3n Nxamaseri Lodge or Guma Lagoon Camp, Panhandle
• 2n Aha Hills – camping
• 2n Gcwihaba Hills – camping
• 1n Maun – campsite or hotel/lodge

If you plan to do this trip during the rains then I'd reduce the time at Drotsky's and Nxamaseri (or Guma) and increase my time in the hills of the Kalahari. I love the Tsodilo Hills – and could spend a lot longer there than three days – but you might not feel the same!

If done in the dry season, August or after, then you might tag on a few days after Maun to visit the Boteti River area, where the game concentrations should then be good. Certainly whenever you go, I'd visit Tsodilo before Aha; it's that little bit more accessible. Do remember to fill up with fuel at Etsha 6 between your time in Tsodilo and the Aha/ Gcwihaba area.

If you're experienced in the African bush, feel a lot more adventurous, and don't mind the idea of spending hours digging yourself out of mud, then consider a trip to Nxai and the northern part of the Central Kalahari Game Reserve. This would probably be at its best between February and May, though going later in that period will make the travelling much easier.

Nxai Pan and the Central Kalahari Game Reserve: 20 nights/21 days
• 1n Maun – hotel/lodge (or campsite)
• 2n South Camp, Nxai Pan
• 2n North Camp, Nxai Pan
• 3n Nata Lodge – lodge (or campsite)
• 1n Leroo-La-Tau – campsite (or lodge)
• 1n Deception Valley, CKGR – campsite at north end, CKD1-6
• 2n Sunday Pan, CKGR – campsite
• 1n Tau Pan, CKGR – campsite
• 1n Phokoje Pan, CKGR – campsite
• 2n Piper Pans, CKGR – campsite
• 2n Deception Valley, CKGR – campsite towards the south side, CKL2 or 3
• 1n Leroo-La-Tau – lodge (or campsite)
• 1n Maun – hotel/lodge (or campsite)

As with any rainy-season trip, or excursion into the Central Kalahari Game Reserve, you should be doing this with a minimum of two vehicles, and safety precautions like taking a satellite phone might be a good idea.

Making bookings

If you're driving a 2WD on the tar, then you can afford to find a campsite in Maun or Kasane when you get there. If you need a room, then you only need to book one in advance during the busy season. For the rest of the year you shouldn't have a problem finding one.

Generally, finding a campsite outside the national parks is not a problem. Even at places like Tsodilo and Gcwihaba Hills, there are currently no regulations. There you can just turn up and camp.

However, campsites within the national parks must be booked in advance – or you simply will not be allowed to stay there.