Neighboured in the south by the Makgadikgadi Pans National Park, Botswana's Nxai Pan National Park covers a total surface area of almost 3,000 sq km. The park originally consisted of 1676 sq km of state land when it was declared a game reserve in 1972, but in 1992 the boundaries of the reserve were extended to include the the well-known landmark, Baines baobabs. Along with its new increase in size, the area also gained status as a national park.

Nxai Pan National Park lies situated on the northern fringe of the Makgadikgadi Basin and includes Nxai Pan, part of the ancient lake Makgadikgadi which once covered most of Botswana. Nxai Pan, Lake Ngami, Lake Xau, the Mababe Depression, Ntwetwe Pan, Sua Pan and the Okavango Delta are all remnants of this enormous lake. The Makgadikgadi Lake covered an area of 80,000 sq km, and started drying up almost ten centuries ago. As the water evaporated, all that remained were huge salt covered pans. The Nxai Pan National Park houses two of these Pans - Nxai pan, which is a fossil lake bed about 15 km wide and covered with short grass, and Kgama-Kgama Pan in the South-East. On the pans are islands of Acacia trees which the animals use for shade during the day.

A major attraction of the Nxai Pan is the waterhole, located within a large grassy plain lined with umbrella thorn trees. Both at the waterhole, and within the mopane woodlands in the park, a wide and interesting variety of wildlife makes its home. These species include lion, cheetah, jackal, bat eared fox, giraffe, kudu, hartebeest, an abundance of springbok, impala, ostrich, and an impressive display of bird species. With the onset of the rainy season, elephant, gemsbok and zebra make their way into the region. Worth a special mention is the annual zebra migration, which sees thousands of zebra and their young making their way to the Nxai pan in search of food.

Many of Botswana's parks and reserves are considered better for game viewing in the dry season due to the fact that the wildlife concentrates near water, however the Nxai Pan National Park springs to life in the rainy season and provides visitors with excellent photographic and game viewing opportunities.