Kubu Queen

Introducing the Kubu Queen houseboat. This privately owned houseboat operates on the Okavango River in the pan-handle section of the Okavango Delta. The boat is moored at the small village of Shakawe in north western Botswana, which is approximately 380km from the town of Maun.

Built on the water over 30 years ago, the queen has a rich history on the Okavango and is well known throughout the delta. Specialist river guide, Greg Thompson bought the boat over ten years ago and together with his crew restored her to accommodate guests and has since been operating exclusive river safaris.

The Kubu Queen is a 12x4 metre double decker riverboat ideally suited to the waterways of the Okavango. She is powered by economical twin 60 horsepower four stroke motors and gets her energy from the sun via solar power. The boat operates on a 150km stretch of Okavango river, from the Mohembo border with Namibia to the north and an area called Sepopa in the south.

This area is made up of unspoilt waterways, lush islands and thick papyrus swamps. It is not known as a game area as it is inaccessible to most animals. The waterways do however support healthy crocodile and hippo populations, elephant and the rare sitatunga antelope are the only large mammals that inhabit the papyrus swamp. These isolated islands can only accommodate small mammals like monkeys, genets , cane rats and bushbuck. What the area is famous for is its abundance in fish and birdlife, that thrive in the environment.