About us

Our journey 

When Marjan Blom and her husband Raphaël Del Sarte decided to build a safari lodge in Botswana's Kalahari, it would have been easy to label them as completely mad.


Off the beaten track where tourism was concerned and literally in the middle of nowhere, the only thing going for them was the incredible beauty of the desert environment and the senses of remoteness and absolute peace. All these years later, Feline Fields Lodge is finally coming into its own, and accompanied by its sister camp in the Okavango, Feline Fields Vintage Camp, the brand Marjan and Raphaël created is now steadily redefining Botswana safaris.

The Vision

The path to Feline Fields evolved naturally. There was never a plan to build a lodge in Africa, just a determination to do something good and meaningful that would contribute to making a positive impact on the lives of people and on the environment.


Marjan and Raphaël lived in Paris. Originally from the Netherlands, Marjan had spent 20 years in the French capital. Raphaël is French and a financier and had spent all of his life in the City of Light. 


In 2010 the search began for something the couple could do to make a difference, aligned to nature and conservation and they began travelling, looking for opportunities. They eventually landed in Botswana in 2011. Africa was everything they thought it would be, having dreamed of it for years after watching "Out of Africa" and the usual Hollywood hits about pioneering families overcoming the challenges of the African wilderness. 


The intrepid couple spent time in Maun where every day they saw local children walking long distances from neighbouring communities, which was far from ideal. This led to the establishment of a trust, the purchase of a school bus and the hiring of a driver and their first project was born in 2012. 


Marjan and Raphaël's next "project" was to start a safari lodge...

The Vision

The path to Feline Fields evolved naturally. There was never a plan to build a lodge in Africa, just a determination to do something good and meaningful that would contribute to making a positive impact on the lives of people and on the environment.


Marjan and Raphaël lived in Paris. Originally from the Netherlands, Marjan had spent 20 years in the French capital. Raphaël is French and a financier and had spent all of his life in the City of Light. 


In 2010 the search began for something the couple could do to make a difference, aligned to nature and conservation and they began travelling, looking for opportunities. They eventually landed in Botswana in 2011. Africa was everything they thought it would be, having dreamed of it for years after watching "Out of Africa" and the usual Hollywood hits about pioneering families overcoming the challenges of the African wilderness. 


The intrepid couple spent time in Maun where every day they saw local children walking long distances from neighbouring communities, which was far from ideal. This led to the establishment of a trust, the purchase of a school bus and the hiring of a driver and their first project was born in 2012. 


Marjan and Raphaël's next "project" was to start a safari lodge...


The start of Feline Fields

When Marjan and Raphaël decided to "get a 'little' lodge" they were looking for something to sink their money into that would become a self-sustaining business creating opportunities for local people and helping to fund community and conservation projects.

The ethos was one of giving back, having a business that paid for itself and stimulated local economies through empowering people while at the same time helping to protect and conserve wilderness areas.


They wanted to pioneer and open up a forgotten area, not merely repeat what everyone else was doing, eventually discovering the Kalahari in the north-west of the country, close to the border with neighbouring Namibia. At first glance it was a terrible choice in terms of tourism as there was nothing there except vast expanses of remote, devastatingly beautiful desert. 


However, the ethos for the fledgling Feline Fields Lodge was to offer something completely different in safari terms - a destination that did not focus on big game but rather on authentic, immersive experiences and activities that got people out of their rooms and into nature, communing with the environment and with the local, indigenous San Bushmen. 


Designed by architect Alwyn Petersen, it took four years to build Feline Fields Lodge but now it's turning heads with what has been achieved in an area that's become renowned for its stark beauty and loved for its remoteness and the stillness only the desert provides. It's also an area that's now attracting more and more wildlife, drawn to permanent waterholes and saltlicks.


Feline Fields would not have been possible without the friends and family that came to help Marjan and Raphaël realise their dream, in particular Serge and Latifa Benardin who came on board during the global pandemic and had the courage to plunge into this adventure, share in the vision and create something truly beautiful in the process.

The start of Feline Fields

When Marjan and Raphaël decided to "get a 'little' lodge" they were looking for something to sink their money into that would become a self-sustaining business creating opportunities for local people and helping to fund community and conservation projects.

The ethos was one of giving back, having a business that paid for itself and stimulated local economies through empowering people while at the same time helping to protect and conserve wilderness areas.


They wanted to pioneer and open up a forgotten area, not merely repeat what everyone else was doing, eventually discovering the Kalahari in the north-west of the country, close to the border with neighbouring Namibia. At first glance it was a terrible choice in terms of tourism as there was nothing there except vast expanses of remote, devastatingly beautiful desert. 


However, the ethos for the fledgling Feline Fields Lodge was to offer something completely different in safari terms - a destination that did not focus on big game but rather on authentic, immersive experiences and activities that got people out of their rooms and into nature, communing with the environment and with the local, indigenous San Bushmen. 


Designed by architect Alwyn Petersen, it took four years to build Feline Fields Lodge but now it's turning heads with what has been achieved in an area that's become renowned for its stark beauty and loved for its remoteness and the stillness only the desert provides. It's also an area that's now attracting more and more wildlife, drawn to permanent waterholes and saltlicks.


Feline Fields would not have been possible without the friends and family that came to help Marjan and Raphaël realise their dream, in particular Serge and Latifa Benardin who came on board during the global pandemic and had the courage to plunge into this adventure, share in the vision and create something truly beautiful in the process.

"When we came to Africa, we were

two people wanting to do something else

with our lives, something good, to set an

example for our children. It changed the

way we view the world and put our privilege

into perspective. We are humbled by

Africa every day. And we love it."


Marjan Blom & Raphaël Del Sarte



"When we came to Africa, we were two people wanting to do something else with our lives, something good, to set an example for our children. It changed the way we view the world and put our privilege into perspective. We are humbled by Africa every day. And we love it."


Marjan Blom & Raphaël Del Sarte


The present day...

More than a decade down the road Feline Fields has come into its own. With Feline Fields Lodge continuing to turn heads and make positive impacts, it has been joined by Feline Fields Vintage Camp in the Okavango Delta, again doing things differently.

The Feline Fields Trust is blossoming, thanks to the success of the two destinations that support it. The brand survived the COVID19 pandemic intact, with all of its people cared for during the global lockdown, now its team is its biggest asset, along with a sense of belonging. 


Marjan and Raphaël can now look back on what some thought was a classic midlife crisis and smile, knowing that the journey they have undertaken is more of a midlife awakening for them and their family. They had always dreamed of Africa and now they are living their dreams, poorer financially, but richer by far in every other respect.


Their Feline Fields journey has taught them that Africa has a curious way of levelling egos and making people feel less significant than they think they are. They've learned so much along the way and the "safari" has changed the way they view the world. 


Now they enable others to undergo the journey they've taken by offering them the chance to really retreat and find themselves by taking a Feline Fields safari of their own.


The present day...

More than a decade down the road Feline Fields has come into its own. With Feline Fields Lodge continuing to turn heads and make positive impacts, it has been joined by Feline Fields Vintage Camp in the Okavango Delta, again doing things differently.

The Feline Fields Trust is blossoming, thanks to the success of the two destinations that support it. The brand survived the COVID19 pandemic intact, with all of its people cared for during the global lockdown, now its team is its biggest asset, along with a sense of belonging. 


Marjan and Raphaël can now look back on what some thought was a classic midlife crisis and smile, knowing that the journey they have undertaken is more of a midlife awakening for them and their family. They had always dreamed of Africa and now they are living their dreams, poorer financially, but richer by far in every other respect.


Their Feline Fields journey has taught them that Africa has a curious way of levelling egos and making people feel less significant than they think they are. They've learned so much along the way and the "safari" has changed the way they view the world. 


Now they enable others to undergo the journey they've taken by offering them the chance to really retreat and find themselves by taking a Feline Fields safari of their own.


The present day...

More than a decade down the road Feline Fields has come into its own. With Feline Fields Lodge continuing to turn heads and make positive impacts, it has been joined by Feline Fields Vintage Camp in the Okavango Delta, again doing things differently.

The Feline Fields Trust is blossoming, thanks to the success of the two destinations that support it. The brand survived the COVID19 pandemic intact, with all of its people cared for during the global lockdown, now its team is its biggest asset, along with a sense of belonging. 


Marjan and Raphaël can now look back on what some thought was a classic midlife crisis and smile, knowing that the journey they have undertaken is more of a midlife awakening for them and their family. They had always dreamed of Africa and now they are living their dreams, poorer financially, but richer by far in every other respect.


Their Feline Fields journey has taught them that Africa has a curious way of levelling egos and making people feel less significant than they think they are. They've learned so much along the way and the "safari" has changed the way they view the world. 


Now they enable others to undergo the journey they've taken by offering them the chance to really retreat and find themselves by taking a Feline Fields safari of their own.


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