Finding your way around Maun used to be simple. Now it's more complex, though perhaps part of this is that on any one trip, one never quite spends enough time there to really get an intuitive understanding of it.

Though the town stands astride the (often-dry) Thamalakane River, the main places of interest are all on the north bank. Here there are two focal points: the old Duck Inn/airport area, and main banks/Riley's Hotel area.

Maps

Though it's grown a lot in recent years, there aren't any really good maps of Maun apart from the detailed town planners' survey maps, which are too detailed for most purposes, and the sketch maps in this book.

However, whilst you are in Maun if you really want to head anywhere 'off-piste' in Botswana's bush, then consider a visit to:

Dept of Survey & Mapping
PO Box 74, Maun; tel: 6860272; fax: 6860993. Proper survey maps may be useful if you are driving yourself into more offbeat parts – although the Shell maps, by Veronica Roodt, and the new Contimap (see Further Reading), have become the standard references for most travellers. Open: Monday to Friday. Closed on Saturday

If you want to track down some more traditional survey maps in Maun, then seek out the Surveyor General's Office. This is cunningly disguised as an unused building, just to the right of the stylish Air Botswana office on the road to the airport. Despite its appearance, at the back you'll find an office where a very helpful team will arrange any number of maps for you for about P10 each. These survey maps are only otherwise available in Gaborone, so make the most of this convenient office.

Even if you're not exploring, the large 1:350,000 map of the Okavango Delta makes a great souvenir – though many of the camps on it are long gone.