Though it has been periodically reinvented, Xugana is one of the Delta’s older camps; it is said that it may have been started as a hunting camp as early as the 1960s, probably by Henry Selby (of the hunting company Ker, Downey & Selby). Subsequently, in the early 1980s, it was bought by a local businessman, David Harvey, as a private family retreat in the Delta. This eventually became more commercial and in 1986 Tsaro Elephant Lodge (see page 259) became a sister-camp for Xugana. Both were marketed under the banner of Hartley’s Safaris. Finally both were bought by Desert & Delta Safaris in 2000.
One of the few things that hasn’t changed about Xugana over the years is its location (GPS: XUGANA 19°04.097’S; 23°06.014’E) on the banks of a forested island beside a large, deep lagoon. It’s a spectacular site, fitting for a camp that concentrates entirely on water-based activities. It’s about 7.5km north of Camp Okavango (and yet the most direct route by boat covers about 16.8km of waterways).
The camp’s lounge, bar and dining areas are set back slightly under fig and leadwood trees; all have thatched roofs and open sides which face the water. That said, the camp often makes a point of arranging their dinners al fresco, either around camp or at locations nearby.
For many years Xugana used the lagoon itself as a swimming pool, suspending a crocodile-proof wire cage in the lagoon for bathers to cool off in. Whilst environmentally admirable, some of the camp’s less enlightened guests clearly found this pool’s occasional murkiness off-putting, and so in 2001 a new swimming pool was built amongst the landscaped lawns at the centre of camp. These are dotted with natural vegetation, with everything protected from hungry elephants by an electric fence. (What remains of the old swimming pool is now a floating deck, used for the odd al fresco dinner on the lagoon.)
Along with the new pool, Xugana’s eight chalets were completely refurbished in 2001, basically to bring their standards up to compete with more modern camps. Each is built of reed and thatch, raised up on wooden decking, with twin beds or a double under a large, walk-in mosquito net. Each has a ceiling fan under its high ceiling, which operates from the camp’s generator during the day. There’s a 12V lighting system in the rooms for use at night. Their bathrooms are en suite with a walk-in hot shower, flush toilet and washbasin, and outside, facing the lagoon, is a private wooden deck with a pair of canvas safari chairs.
The camp has a good small curio shop, the ‘Xugana Gallery’, with a fair selection of local books and wildlife guides, plus a few T-shirts, handicrafts and postcards.