Francistown
Botswana
- Population
- 89,979
- Currency
- BWPP14.3/$
Francistown is a city in the east of Botswana, near the border with Zimbabwe. In our division of Botswana into regions, it is in Southeast Botswana.
Guide content adapted from the Wikivoyage article "Francistown". Source · CC BY-SA 4.0
Weather
Live20°C
Clear sky · feels like 18°C
- 63%
- 16 km/h
- AQI 26
- ThuOvercast17° / 31°
- FriPartly cloudy18° / 29°
- SatOvercast16° / 32°
- SunOvercast17° / 35°
- MonPartly cloudy21° / 34°
Measured at -21.170, 27.508 · Africa/Gaborone
Getting there
Francistown is a major transportation hub in Northeastern Botswana and is the gateway to northern Botswana.
A1: Connects Francistown to Gaborone in the south and to Zimbabwe in the north.
A3: Connects Francistown to Nata and Maun to the west.
Buses about every hour from Gaborone and the trip takes 5-7 hours. Buses from Kasane via Nata.
Because it is a transportation hub, Francistown connects to most other villages and towns in the northern part of the country. Direct buses travel to tourist destinations like Maun and Kasane.
There are also several buses that arrive daily from Bulawayo and Harare in Zimbabwe.
Khanda Express bus services to Francistown from Johannesburg in South Africa via Martins Drift border post.
Francistown has its own international airport which is undergoing a P500 million expansion.
The airport is only served commercially by Air Botswana.
Air Botswana offers two daily flights from Gaborone, and flights from Johannesburg, South Africa on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Trains run nightly from Lobate, near the border with South Africa, via the capital Gaborone. Journey time is about 10 hours, arriving in Francistown early next morning. The formerly daily cross-border train from Bulawayo, Zimbabwe ended in 2020. Botswana Railways offers timetables and online booking. UPDATE (as of Mar 2024) all passenger services in country are suspended!
Getting around
There is a daily night train each way between Francistown and Lobatse using refurbished trains from South Africa.
What to see
What to do
Where to eat
- Barbara's Bistro (at the Sport Club), ☏ .
- Calabash Coffee Shop (on the corner of Baines and St Patrick), ☏ .
- Nando's Chicken. The chicken at Nando's is excellent.
- Spur Restaurant. Spur has decent burgers and steaks.
Drinking & nightlife
Shopping
Prices are comparable to the U.S.
- FNB First National Bank. Mastercard and Visa card ATM. no fee.
- Shoprite supermarket, Plot 16186 Blue Jacket Street (city centre). 08:00-20:00. A supermarket.
Where to stay
Camping with your own tent is the most low-cost way.
- 1 Woodlands Stop Over, Plots 9/10/11 24NQ Gerald Estates (10 km north of town), ☏ . Check-in: 15:00, check-out: 11:00. Camping with own tents. Has a swimming pool, nice grounds and shaded campsites. P115 per person per night.
- Tati River Lodge Campground, Plot 16076 block 6 old Gaborone Road (2km from the centre). A lovely hotel on the banks of the Tati River. It has lush greenery surrounding a swimming pool and bar. Camping with water and open fire facilities. It's a lovely place to stop off and the restaurant at the far end of the hotel does lovely food. camping with own tent for P150.
- Abrama Bed & Breakfast, Orian ces, ☏ , naleditnleya@gmail.com. One of the cheapest guesthouses in Francistown. 350.
- Lee Bed & Breakfast, Tatisding 4169 (9.5 miles from the centre.). Check-in: 12,00, check-out: 11.00. A/C single/double room own bathroom, free wifi, flat screen TV. 250.
- Eros Guesthouse, Plot 26445 Gerald Estate (3.5 miles from the centre). Budget single/double room with own bathroom, TV, Wifi. P350.
All guide text on this page is adapted from Wikivoyage and reused under CC BY-SA 4.0. Prices and opening hours change — verify anything that matters before you rely on it.