The ultimate sunset cruise
After a bow-to-stern refurbishment, the Zambezi Queen is once more gracing the waters of the Chobe River
With fish eagles calling and the water a burnished orange, there are, I’d wager, few places in Africa that lay on a sunset quite like the Chobe River. These waters begin in the highlands of Angola, flowing through the famed Linyanti Wetlands to form a sinuous border between Namibia and Botswana, before joining the Zambezi River at Kazungula, Zambia. Upstream of here, with the grasslands of Namibia to the north and the lush bushveld of Chobe National Park to the south, there’s a remarkable landscape of water and wildlife to discover — and few better ways to discover it than aboard the Zambezi Queen, a 42m houseboat.
It sails as far as 25km up-river from Kasane, Botswana — the tourist hub of the region where guests join the boat for three- and four-night sailings. With 14 suites and communal areas spread across three decks, the Zambezi Queen is billed as a houseboat, but has more of the feel of a floating boutique hotel. And a rather good-looking one at that.
The Zambezi Queen relaunched in March after a major refurbishment, infusing contemporary elegance into both private and public spaces. The new aesthetic is the work of Maurette van Eyssen, founder of the interior-architectural design house Mi Designs, who took her cue from the colours and textures on both banks of the river. Nguni hides are a nod to villagers’ cattle grazing on the Namibian shore, while natural textures and tones echo the lush Chobe landscape in Botswana.
And now is perhaps the best time of year to visit, as the dry season — May to September — brings vast herds of herbivores to the water, and grazing, of the Chobe River. Wildlife aside, you can also cast a line for hard-fighting tiger fish or enjoy some cultural immersion with a visit to local villages. Whichever way you spend your daylight hours, just be sure you’re back in time for sunset. With a G&T in hand and the Zambezi Queen anchored gently in the stream, tell me that isn’t the most beautiful one you’ve seen in Africa.