Gaborone
Introduction
Gaborone is the capital and largest city of Botswana, and the seat of the country's government. In older English texts and maps you may still come across the colonial-era spelling, Gaberones.
The city and its surrounding metropolitan area together account for roughly a tenth of Botswana's population, making the capital region the country's main urban centre.
Before you go
Gaborone grew from a small town into a substantial city, and its layout can confuse new arrivals: different parts of town are called blocks, extensions or phases, and the same place may have several names. The Extensions lie east of the railway line radiating out from the Government Enclave, with Extensions 9 and 11 among the wealthiest parts of the city and Extension 15, near Riverwalk Mall, known as 'the Village'. Gabs West covers the inner blocks west of the railway line inside the Western Bypass, while the Blocks lie further west, outside the bypass. The Central Business District is a patch of undeveloped land in the centre being built up with modern hotels and offices, Phakalane is a new-build suburb to the north based around a golf estate, and Broadhurst is an older suburb to the northeast. Tlokweng, east of the Notwane River, is home to several nice guesthouses.
People in Botswana are very friendly and the crime rate is relatively low, but it pays to be aware of your surroundings. When going out at night to a restaurant, take a taxi called from your hotel, keep your driver's mobile number and call when you want to go home, and avoid walking at night away from places with lots of people. Do walk around during the day. Stay alert when driving for smash and grabs if you use a mobile device near traffic lights, keep displays of wealth and tempting objects such as phones and laptops out of sight, and be cautious in crowded public areas, especially if you are a woman with a handbag. Police are honest and helpful but can be slow to respond. If you are headed north to the Okavango Delta and haven't packed anti-malaria pills, you can get a prescription filled in Gaborone.
Getting there
Most visitors reach Gaborone by air, landing at Sir Seretse Khama International Airport about 15 km north of the centre. It is Botswana's main airport, served mostly by flights from elsewhere in Southern Africa, with connections further afield to Addis Ababa and Nairobi. Air Botswana, with an office in the Main Mall, links the city to Cape Town, Harare, Johannesburg and Lusaka, plus domestic routes from Francistown, Kasane and Maun; Airlink flies in from Johannesburg, and Ethiopian Airlines arrives from Addis Ababa via Victoria Falls. Taxis meet arrivals, and it is worth knowing that a ride into the centre costs more than the trip back out to the airport.
By road, buses connect Gaborone with most large towns in Botswana, but seats fill fast and departures can be brought forward once a bus is full, so turn up early. Services are often not air conditioned, so carry water, and on busy weekends you may end up standing for part of the journey. From South Africa, Intercape runs a daily bus from Pretoria that stops in Johannesburg to pick up passengers before crossing the border; the bus is comfortable, with reclining seats and a bathroom, though the on-board entertainment leans heavily religious. At the border you take your documents through South African exit formalities, then walk across to the Botswana side for entry stamps, and you should stay alert since buses have been known to leave passengers behind. A few direct shuttles also run from Windhoek in Namibia, including a weekly Tok Tokkie Shuttle that must be booked in advance.
Getting around
Gaborone has no metro, tram or usable rail service, so getting around means road transport: taxis, cabs and combis. The city centre was laid out under Garden City principles, with pedestrian walkways and open spaces, and the Main Mall forms a long, walkable commercial strip where you'll find diplomatic missions, the Civic Centre and Pula Arch to the east, with the Government Enclave, National Assembly and National Archives to the west. Beyond that central strip the city is spread out, so treat walking as a way to cover the centre and individual neighbourhoods rather than to cross the whole city.
- Combi: White vans that work like mini-buses and form the main shared public transport. There are no route maps — different lines serve different areas, so ask the driver whether that line passes where you need to go. If you know the direction you're heading, start walking that way and combis will honk as they pass to let you know they're behind you. Fares are low and paid in cash.
- Taxi: Generally small white cars with blue licence plates, running designated routes that usually serve areas combis don't. Because they hold only a small number of passengers, they tend to finish their routes more quickly than a combi. Catch one at many combi stops and ask to be dropped off anywhere along the route; ask the driver for route information.
- Cab or "special": A private trip straight from your origin to your destination, either a public taxi with a blue licence plate or a privately run cab. Cabs are generally requested by phone, and several companies display contact information on the vehicle; you can also hail a public taxi on the road and ask for a special. Fares are negotiable, so don't be afraid to discuss a lower price. If you hail a cab that already has someone inside, offer to split the fare.
- Directions: Give plot numbers or easily identified places rather than street names, which aren't commonly used. If a driver gives you a good rate, ask for his cell phone number and remind him where you're staying — using one driver throughout your stay can save you money.
- From the airport: Sir Seretse Khama International Airport sits north of the centre, and the most straightforward way in is by taxi. A taxi from the airport into the city centre costs more than the reverse trip, so budget accordingly and be prepared to negotiate; cab companies can also be booked by phone for a private transfer.
- Long-distance buses: These connect Gaborone with other major towns and cities in Botswana, useful if you're arriving from elsewhere in the country rather than moving around the city. Arrive at the bus station early, as buses can fill up and sometimes leave as soon as they are full, and bring water — they are often not air conditioned and you may end up standing.
Where to stay
Gaborone offers a similar range of accommodation to South Africa, in both choice and cost. Large chain hotels with conference facilities, curio shops, evening restaurants, gyms and bars sit alongside dozens of smaller guesthouses, lodges and bed & breakfasts that vary in quality, cleanliness and price. Budget travellers should note that it is difficult to find a room much below P400 per night. If you are staying for months rather than days, a handful of serviced apartments are available, though these are often full. With your own car, you can also base yourself out in the bush about 15 km south of the city, at rates roughly equal to a guesthouse in town. There is one backpackers hostel in Gaborone.
For longer stays, serviced apartments such as Motheo Apartments off Independence Avenue and Innisfree Apartments in The Village near Riverwalk Mall offer studio, one- and two-bed options on monthly terms, and both are popular enough that you should book well in advance. Hantom House in G-West Phase 1 runs an expat houseshare for multi-month stays, while Mokolodi Backpackers Hostel, 10 km south just off the Gaborone–Lobatse highway, is the most low-cost option, with camping and dorm beds. Mid-range choices include African Home on Nyerere Drive, the boutique Linville B&B in Block 7, Riverside Lodge on the Tlokweng road with air-conditioned rooms and DSTV but no internet, Royal Apartments Lodge behind Senn Foods with a small pool and garden birdlife, and the long-established Oasis Motel further along Tlokweng Road. At the top end, the Protea Hotel by Marriott in the New CBD is the city's flashy business landmark with a rooftop pool; the Gaborone Sun next to the golf course has a lovely pool and bar area but is showing its age; the Grand Palm – Peermont Walmont west of the centre borders on five-star with a casino, conference centre, pool, lake and braai boma; and the Peermont Metcourt Inn on the same site is the cheaper option while still giving you access to the Walmont's facilities. Cresta Lodge, Cresta President's Hotel in the city centre, and Mondior Summit round out the chain offerings.
Food & drink
Gaborone is not a thrilling eating city, and South African culinary influence looms large, so keep your expectations modest and you'll still find interesting corners to explore. In the government district on weekdays, white box food is sold all over: a quick lunch of rice and veg, or rice, veg and meat, tasty and filling. Elsewhere the city spreads its options by compass point. To the north-east, Deli's in the Craft Centre at Broadhurst Mall does real Italian cooking with imported products, amazing pastas and pizzas, and a particularly good beef lasagne; Funyama Holdings Chinese Restaurant in Marua Pula mall serves authentic, good-value Chinese with an extensive menu, from crispy pork intestines with hot dry chili to more standard beef in black bean sauce; Bull & Bush, down a track north of Sebone Road just east of the railway line, is a bar and restaurant doing a pretty good job with meat-centred dishes; and Par 5 Indian Restaurant in the Gaborone Golf Club, Phala, serves unfussy south Asian meat and veg dishes, including several daals, with indoor and outdoor seating overlooking the golf course. North-west brings the Beef Baron in the Grand Palm Walmont hotel, perhaps the city's most expensive restaurant, with excellent and huge meat dishes including some game, beef in the ascendancy, and good desserts such as malva pudding, plus Chutney's next to OK Foods on the Western Bypass, excellent Indian food including southern dishes such as dosas, with not much ambiance but great food.
To the south-east, Caravela off Kgasa Road is one of the few suburban house restaurants in the city, with a nominally Portuguese menu, a good selection of seafood and Mozambican beer, and a very nice outdoor patio; Sanitas, about 2 km southeast of Fairgrounds Mall, is a garden centre with a large cafe for breakfast, lunch or brunch and a children's playground; News Café in the Village district at the Mondior Summit Hotel centres on European-style dishes with interesting twists and really shines in the cocktail department, though the music is often cranked up loud on Friday and Saturday nights, so sit outside if you want to make conversation; the Pavilion Restaurant in the Fairgrounds Office Park is an upmarket spot serving buffet and à la carte lunch and dinner, with a terrace and a bar for snacks and beverages; Embassy in the Riverwalk Mall does excellent Indian food, though it can take up to an hour, especially with a large group; and Abyssinia Ethiopian Cafe, also in Riverwalk mall, is Botswana's only Ethiopian restaurant, serving pretty good injera with all the trimmings on Fridays through Sundays, plus great coffee, and it's cleaner and quieter than Equatorial Coffee around the corner. In Tlokweng, The Moghul inside the Oasis Motel serves flavoursome Indian and Pakistani cooking under a thatched roof, with takeaway and delivery possible. To the south-west, Cafe Dijo in Kgale Mall, the small mall next to Game City, has free wireless, great coffee and delicious, healthy food, and is frequented by expats, while Mugg & Bean upstairs in Game City Mall is a South African chain coffee and lunch place with a noisy indoor shopping mall vibe and adequate coffee. Chains with multiple outlets include Nando's Chicken, a bit spicy and much better than KFC, in the African Mall, Game City Mall, BBS Mall and Riverwalk Mall, with Barcelos just across from Nando's in African Mall for a different taste; Pie Time in the Main Mall and the African Mall, selling flaky dough pies filled with meat or vegetables in a wide variety of fillings; and Debonairs on Segoditshane Way, a popular pizza restaurant that also does deliveries. For groceries, prices for Western goods are at EU levels while local goods such as corn meal are inexpensive; Choppies and OK Foods are local chains with the cheapest prices in all areas of the city, Woolworths in several main malls has higher quality produce and more European selections and is the store for exotic fruits or vegetables or good cheese, Pick-and-Pay has better quality and is more expensive than Choppies, ShopRite has stores all over with lower prices, and SPAR in the Main Mall seems cheapest for fruit juices. For drinks, Bull and Bush is an English pub in the north of the city, a common ex-pat hangout with big-screen TV and pool tables, excellent food especially the pizza and ribs, quiz night on the last Wednesday of the month, and rib night on Mondays; Club Satchmo on Ntimbale Road is a jazz club with decent drinks and great music; and the Gaborone Yacht Club, off the old Lobatse road near the railway crossing, hidden down a dusty track beside the dam, makes a great sundowner location with limited opening hours and simple food such as steak-burger and chips. Clubs cover a range of entry charges and many have dress codes, and the popular nights vary, so check with local Batswana for current information; Notwane Club is used mainly for private or special DJ events such as the Thursday hip hop night, a good chance to taste local music and drinks at special prices.
What to see and do
For a sense of the city's history and its planned character, start with the monuments: the Three Dikgosi Monument, with its bronze statues of chiefs Khama III, Sebele I and Bathoeng I, who travelled to Great Britain in 1895 to ask for direct British rule, and the Statue of Seretse Khama, honouring the country's first president. The Hindu hall of the BAPS Swaminarayan Hindu Mission is a large temple and a major landmark where major Hindu festivals are celebrated. Gaborone was built as a planned city in the 1960s, much like Brasilia, so you will find a great deal of modern architecture, particularly in the Government Enclave, including the parliament, the Southern African Development Community headquarters, the National Stadium, the New Ministry Building and the Debswana headquarters. South-east of the city centre, the National Botanical Garden is run by the National Museum and displays indigenous plants from all six of Botswana's ecological regions. For outdoor activity, climb Kgale Hill, one of Botswana's highest, for a magnificent view over the city and surrounding areas - but be careful of the baboons, do not stray off the path, and only go when there are other cars in the parking lot, as going up alone risks robbery. The Gaborone Dam is the only large body of water near the city, a recreational area with yacht and fishing clubs, playgrounds and parks, and a good spot for birdwatching, windsurfing or angling, though unsuitable for swimming. The Gaborone Cycling Club is in fact a mountain biking club. For wildlife, Mokolodi offers a cheetah visit where you can pet a cheetah, and a two-hour game drive where you might see baboons, giraffe, wart hogs, zebra, elephant and hippo; the smaller Gaborone Game Reserve can be driven around yourself and is mostly birds, with some monkeys, wart hog, ostrich, zebras, wild boars and kudus, plus picnic spots where you should be careful of monkeys and ostriches. There are cinemas in Riverwalk Mall, Game City Mall and Masa Centre, and the Maitisong Festival takes place in April.When to go
Gaborone has a hot semi-arid climate with sunny weather most of the year, so you can plan a visit around either the rainy summer or the dry, cool winter. If you come for the rainy season, expect hot days, cool nights and frequent thunderstorms, with the year's scanty, erratic rain falling in these months. In a normal year the hottest temperatures arrive in October, just before the rain begins, and September to November is also the windiest stretch. The dry winter suits you if you prefer calm, sunny conditions: days stay warm while nights turn cold, and this is when the few fog days occur. Winds are at their calmest, humidity and solar irradiance are at their lowest, and rain is rare.Three days in Gaborone
Day one: Start in the Central Business District, where the Government Enclave and Main Mall give you a first feel for the city. Browse the Main Mall for crafts and everyday street life, then walk east to the Village, the old heart of Gaborone, to see where the city began. In the evening, head to Riverwalk Mall for dinner and a relaxed introduction to the city's modern side.
Day two: Spend the morning in The Extensions, the collective name for the neighbourhoods spreading north of the centre, and continue into Broadhurst and Gabs West to see how everyday Gaborone lives. Cross the Notwane River and carry on to Tlokweng on the eastern edge, a good place to slow down and eat. If you have time, follow the Western Bypass out to Phakalane for a quieter end to the day.
Day three: Use your last day for the wider region. Sir Seretse Khama International Airport connects Gaborone with Johannesburg, Cape Town, Harare, Lusaka, Nairobi and Addis Ababa, and Air Botswana links the city to the Okavango Delta, so you can pair the capital with a safari. If you are staying in the city, revisit the Blocks and the Central Business District for anything you missed before you leave.