The Travel Net - Africa

The Sedia Riverside Hotel has recently been highlighted on The Travel Net a webside about world travel. Click on the above link and visit the site. What follows is an introduction taken from their article:

David blogs of Africa and in particular that beautiful unspolied parcel of wilderness – the Okavongo Delta. Tourists travel to the Okavongo Delta from all over the world for the amazing wildlife viewing opportunites. The elephants and hippo are especially plentiful.

The Sedia Riverside Hotel sits at the edge of the Thamalakane River and because of its location the hotel is considered a prime travel destination by travelers. In one of his posts David writes of the hippos that he saw just down river from the Sedia…
Continue reading ‘The Okavongo Delta is a Bird Lovers Paradise - Botswana’

"Ke Mo Sedia!"

Maun Celebrates Life at Sedia

Sedia Riverside Hotel is a special place in Maun. The reasons people celebrate at Sedia are as long as your arm. During any given week there are wedding reception, company parties, a child’s birthday party, training workshops in the Conference Centre, a special dinner with your wife of girlfriend or a football team celebrating their winning end to the season.

Many people arrive back in Maun for a visit. They sit at a shady terrace table and work their cell phones. “Ke mo Sedia… Ke mo Sedia…” Soon their table is full of old friends, pleasantly chatting away – their conversation mixing with the splashing coming from the pool and gentle breezes rustling the shade giving leaves. Who could ask for anything more!

Request For Information - Sedia Riverside Hotel

Botswana Prepares For Xmas

Merry Christmas Party – Maun

The holiday season is fast approaching. Santa and Sedia Riverside Hotel are busy catering to the season’s festivities. Tables are being joined together for company dinner parties – white tablecloths set with wine glasses, plates, cutlery and candles. The staff is as helpful as Santa’s elves. Ho, ho, ho!

Larger groups are catered to on the expansive lawn. Often a big tent is set-up for serving food, dancing or just in case it rains. This is the way to start the holiday season – at Sedia Riverside Hotel. Be prepared for the New Year. Merry Christmas to all!

Daily Post, Liverpool - Review

Trevor Peake Review - Sedia River-side Hotel

Trevor visited Sedia Riverside Hotel in June, 2006. Other excerpts from Trevor's visit can be found at Afro Trek Safari:

"With 28 bedrooms, all en suite, six chalets, which are sizable detached two bedroom dwellings, a couple of bungalows, ten permanently erected tents and a large caravan site with good facilities, the Sedia set-up is a big undertaking."

"Allan and Janet have furnished all the rooms and chalets with beautiful examples of African art and crafts over the years, and there are carvings, masks, pictures and basket-wear throughout the hotel, with the reception area a genuine sight to behold."

"The facing wall as you walk in is dominated by a five feet tall carving of the African continent featuring the 'big five' - lion, elephant, rhino, buffalo and leopard. I counted ten carvings of giraffes, some over siz feet tall, eight hippos, a couple of elephant, rhino and buffalo, and numerous masks and birds, a splendid introduction to the Sedia experience."

'Stormy Weather', Sedia Style

The Calm Before The Storm


October is upon us and the rainy season is quickly approaching. The photo is shot from just beside the pool and Terrace Bar. We were fortunate to have 20mm of rain at the end of September. Anytime now the serious rain storms can start. If the storm is serious enough, power can be interrupted, but fear not - candles are always in good supply.





In a country where the currency is called Pula, which means rain, you have to enjoy the rain showers when they arrive. After all, we are situated on the edges of the Kalahari Desert. The good news is Thamalakane River is still at it's peak and many of us are hoping the rains will help keep the water levels high. There is more water in the river in October than there has been for 10 or 20 years.

A Botswana September

September at Sedia Riverside Hotel

The month of September is now with us. It's dry, dusty and windy. The grass has gone, the leaves have fallen - it's the time of year when, it could be said, nature bares it's soul. This bareness is very short live, with many trees already pushing through new foliage and certain tree species actually blossoming.

Within our complex at Sedia Riverside hotel, we are fortunate in having one Kigelia africana or Sausage tree. Not only is it sporting new leaves, but also boasting several flowers in the bud stage on their hanging racemes. These are in full blossom within a day or two, no doubt to the delight of Peters Epauletted Fruit Bats. They will devour the fruit and also feed on the nectar of the large flowers. The flowers are cup shaped and very vivid in colour, being dark red to maroon.

The large sausage shaped fruit which eventually materializes, up to 500mm long and 150mm in diameter are very heavy - made up of a fibrous pulp with seeds embedded inside. These large, heavy fruits have a tendency to fall at the most unsuspecting moments and could prove lethal to an innocent by-stander taking a breather in the shade beneath a Kigelia africana.

David Livingstone camped under one such tree in a village in Northern Botswana, before setting eyes the next day on a magnificent waterfall 70 km away. That waterfall is now known as the Victoria Falls and the village, where he camped the night before coming across the falls , is known as Kazungula.

Maybe it's a pity he didn't have an encounter with one of these sausages during his stopover that night. Just think, the whole course of recent African history could have been changed by a falling sausage!

Wildlife Extremes Sedia Style

Many of our guests go on safari during part of there stay. The majority want to see and shoot photos of the 'Big 5.' They are in search of Lion, Leopard, Buffalo, Elephant and Rhino. In particular people seem to want to see the big cats. What about the 'Small 5?'

For people who like the contrarian view, humour or just something different - think about the Small 5 the next time you are on safari. Check with your guides, reference books and fellow guests. Make sure these Small 5 are not missed:

1. The Ant Lion is an insect wit four wings and looks like a dragon fly. They create funnel shaped traps to catch their ant prey.



2. The Leopard Tourtoise is the biggest land tortoise in Southern Africa at ever 20kg. We can see the shell pattern in the photo.



3. The Buffalo Weaver nests high in trees where the branch forks and makes it nest from twigs and course grasses.



4. The Rock Elephant Shrew can weigh in at over 50 grams and up to 250mm in length.



5. The Rhino Beetle has a horn in it's head, much like the Rhinoceros.

You will probably have to get closer to the Small 5 to get good pictures. Regardless, it provides good diverion during tea breaks, meals or around the campfire at night. If you get a good photo, I would be happy to show it here.

Home Made Chef = Home Made Cooking

Here we have "Captain" surrounded by his staff. Starting from the left, we have Mary Kgwathisi, Moitsholi "Dollars" Ngore, "Captain" and Dievenge "Dicks". Together they make the kitchen hummm.

Born and bred in Sedia Ward, Maun, Botswana Mompoloki "Captain" Bakwadi is the Sedia Riverside Hotel Chef. Cooking is a family tradition. His father has been a Chef with well known lodges and safari operation in Ngamiland.

Soon after joining Sedia in 2001, Captain was moved to the kitchen and trained under Edward Jakie - a chef of regional renown. The following year he was sent to the famous Victoria Falls Hotel for two weeks of on the job training. Shaka, Mary, Dollars and Dicks back up and support Captain in the modern and spacious kitchen.

Captain's favourite meal to present to guests is prawns - stir fried with butter, garlic and other secret herbs. Most visitors believe his best dish is fillet steak. For my tastes, he has taken the preparation of pizza in Maun to a new level - his 'Quattro' is hard to beat.

Traditional food is most often eaten by visitors from the bordering countries of Namibia, Zinbabwe and South Africa. Listen to Captain when he says to those who travel, "When you visit Botswana, I would really like to prepare a traditional African meal for you!"

Beware - Hippopotamus Crossing

It's late on a Sunday morning and I'm watching these two hippos from across the Thamalakane River - about 300 metres down stream from the hotel. They have been eating the river grasses and wading along the far shore for the last half hour.

The 'far shore' is the best place to watch hippos. They can be very territorial. Males like to mark their territory so that other hippos are aware and act appropriately. It is said that they kill more humans than any two other animals, in Africa. When the ears start to flick quickly and the mild, deep grunts become loud snorts - its time to move away.

Although hippos look fat and seem to have a smile on their face, they are all muscle and very serious. Top sped on the open malapo can be over 30 kilometres per hour. Reaching lengths of up to four metres, hippos will at times attack a boat twice their length.

When you see a group of hippos sleeping together on a river bank, it is hard to believe they can be so reactionary. Field glasses give you the freedom to be at a safe distance and see closely inside their mouth's when they yawn.

Do you want to work up a hunger for lunch? Tha 'Old Bridge' is just about two kilomentres up stream and a picturesque walk. When you stand in the middle of the bridge and look downstream, you are looking at the Hippo Pool. If you are lucky a group of hippos will we lounging on the banks.

Bird Lovers Paradise

Mid-June and the Quelas' are flying in their dynamic formations over the Thamalakane River - here they are in front of Sedia. Two years ago, when Lake Ngami finally refilled, the numbers were in the 10's of thousands. Now they are just in the thousands - but still a marvel to watch.

Sundown is an active time, with many flocks all returning at the same time from the day of foraging. The occasional flash of silver as they swoop and dive is eyecatching. With their special navigation skills, they all seen to find the right temporary rousting tree. The chatter escalates each time a new flock joins a tree. It seems that there is much to talk about after a day on the wing.

A late afternoon walk down to the river is often rewarded with a view of the 'high priest' of river fishing - the African Fish Eagle. What could be better than two in one tree. Few fishing trips are complete without a story of the Fish Eagle stealing a fish from a boat. With a good storyteller, you can almost see the extended talons ready to grab it's catch of the day.

Bird lovers have identified over 130 different birds in and around Sedia. They mark the seasons and for many make the trip. A checklist is available for the enthusist, to help keep track of their sightings and sounds

Your welcome at Sedia Riverside Hotel

It is a unique hotel, small with just 24 rooms and 8 chalets and a delight for those in search of something with character. Extensive lawns and gardens back onto Sedia Riverside Hotel, in which a large swimming pool is the principal feature.

Step inside the cool reception area and enter an oasis of relaxation with a very welcoming, cosy ambience. This atmosphere of contentment is made complete with a splendid cross -cultural mix of Euro-Afro cuisine, prepared with a contemporary flair by expert chefs and served either indoors or al fresco on the poolside deck.

This shady poolside deck area offers a good relaxation area, overlooking the lawns with refreshments always available. It is the perfect place to unwind and relax, all discreetly hidden behind the Hotel.

Whatever the reason for your visit, you are sure to have a very comfortable stay at Sedia. No matter if you’re a business person seeking a comfortable and quiet place to rest after a hard days work, someone participating in a meeting at our Conference Centre, or just passing through to one of the many National Parks and Game Reserves in the area, our individually styled rooms should suit your requirements.

We have singles, doubles and twins all are readily available with private verandas overlooking our lawns and gardens. The guest rooms, all en suite, have been cheerfully decorated with an individualistic African theme each with its own private veranda overlooking the lawns.

The rooms provide contemporary facilities and fittings including air conditioning, satellite television and complimentary tea and coffee. The Chalets are fully self-contained and include air-conditioning, spacious lounge with T.V. (digital satellite) kitchenette with fridge and veranda overlooking the lawns. The life style at Sedia Riverside Hotel can be al fresco, with breakfast taken in the garden, while lunch and dinner may be enjoyed under mulberry trees on the poolside deck or inside the restaurant. But where to eat and drink is a matter of mood and appetite, coolly casual or a bit smarter perhaps with light Euro-African cuisine, ideally suited to the climate.

You choose either from the buffet or a la carte - taken in the garden, on the pool deck or in the candle-lit air conditioned restaurant, embraced by the moody African decor. Our quality chefs and their team are always prepared to tempt you to an array of gourmet delights.