Sitatunga Private Island

Welcome to Sitatunga Private Island

Sitatunga Private Island (opened mid-July 2023) in Botswana's Okavango Delta has been designed by Dereck Joubert, CEO of Great Plains with interiors by Beverly Joubert, co-founder of Great Plains.

Built on a raised, wrap-around railway sleeper private deck using entirely recycled materials, Sitatunga Private Island can accommodate up to eight guests as part of Great Plains latest Okavango Delta water-based Réserve-Collection Safari Camp.

Sitatunga’s design tells the story of the Okavango, a camp surrounded by water referenced to a Robinson Crusoe experience, and one that has had indigenous fishermen in the region for over 200 years. Those fishermen designed and used fishing baskets and traps made from reeds in the shape of a funnel so Dereck Joubert took this reference and designed the rooms as tents hanging inside of giant bamboo fisherman baskets. The interiors as a result draw on a colour range that you can see by looking out at the Okavango, misty greens, and light-bleached woods.

Wood is one of the more dangerous elements when constructing a camp from a sustainability perspective. So, Great Plains built this camp with no new cut wood, and only recycled or reclaimed wood from old cuts or railway lines. But sustainability goes deeper than that. The Jouberts have removed plastics from their world almost entirely and that extends to the building and design process at Great Plains. The new Sitatunga Private Island seamlessly blends into the natural landscape of the Okavango Delta, conjuring a strong imagining of its ancestral origins.

Sitatunga Private Island is unlike any other Great Plains property. The exquisite Réserve level camp is pushing the eco-design boundary in a remote region in Botswana whilst also offering the highest level of hospitality and accommodation with incredible activities to enjoy in the wilderness.

“Sitatunga Private Island is an extraordinary place. It is a private island and is one of the few locations where one can still see sitatunga, the rare aquatic antelope from camp and by boat, which is the main activity here in addition to walking. It is deep Okavango Delta and, as such, is rich in birding. Sitatunga is the perfect camp to slow down in, to walk, to get on the very-soothing water. Get on the river. Let its pace determine yours, give yourself to it and find silent moments on your safari. Because like the river, it is not about the water itself but the journey.”
– Dereck Joubert, CEO of Great Plains

Project Ranger
Through Project Ranger Great Plains supports the anti-poaching operations of NGOs across Africa. Project Ranger focuses on those on the front lines of conservation, filling critical gaps and supporting wildlife monitors, rangers, and anti-poaching operations in Africa. Because poaching and trafficking continue to threaten wildlife across Africa and many rangers continue to be woefully under-resourced, Project Ranger’s work and grant-making emphasizes ensuring rangers have the resources they need to do their best work in conservation and trafficking hotspots. www.greatplainsfoundation.com/project-ranger

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