No.1 Ladies Detective Agency Tour: Precious Ramotswe's Investigation Locations in Gaborone

Embark on a literary tour of Gaborone and explore the investigation locations of Precious Ramotswe, the beloved detective from the No.1 Ladies Detective Agency series. Follow in her footsteps as you visit Zebra Drive, the Anglican church, Speedy Motors, and more. Optional extra: Tea at the Mma Ramotswe tea corner.

Duration: 3 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Three Chiefs’ Statues - Here we start the Story of Botswana where we find Obed Ramotswe’s story in Botswana’s history and why cattle were/are such an important part of Botswana and Precious’s life.
  • Zebra Way - Referred to as Zebra Drive in the Book Series, this street is where Mma Ramotswe would have had her house. We cannot access the house,…
What's Included
  • Bottled water provided
  • Air-conditioned vehicles
What's Not Included
  • Lunch
  • Tea and coffee
Additional Information

Embark on a literary journey exploring the various locations in Gaborone where Precious Ramotswe unraveled her mysteries. Enjoy a scenic drive to ‘Zebra drive’, make a stop at the Anglican church where the actual Trevor Mwamba served as bishop, visit Speedy Motors, among others. Optional add-on: Enjoy a cup of tea at the Mma Ramotswe tea corner. Kindly…

Location
Three Chiefs' Statues
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.9
(19 Ratings)
5 stars
4 stars
3 stars
2 stars
1 star
Stephen
Sep 28, 2025
A great morning for book lovers - If you are a fan of the book this is a great tour. We were picked up from the hotel by our guide Andy who drove us around the capital. Some interesting history of the country and a tour of all the important sites in the books like Zebra Drive, Speedy motors and we had a cup of tea at the President Hotel overlooking the market. It took all morning and was well worth it.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
David_m
Aug 9, 2025
The facts behind the fiction on a fascinating tour - You would need to have read the books to get the most out of this tour, but you learn a lot about Botswana’s eventful history along the way. Our guide Andy was very knowledgeable, and the tour combined the nostalgia of the books with a flavour of modern-day Gaborone. Highlights included the Three Dikgosi monument, a visit to Zebra Way, and the real-life inspiration for Speedy Motors. We even saw a tiny white van on the way! Highly recommended for fans of the books who want to find out more about the inspiration for the characters and stories, as well as Botswana’s rich heritage. Top marks to Andy.
Review provided by Viator
Alison_g
Jun 17, 2025
Number One Tour - Thoroughly enjoyable and Andy explained a lot of Botswana history as well. We saw all the literary locations we wanted to and had tea at the President Hotel. Brilliant.
Review provided by Viator
V5250oisusanneh
Jan 19, 2025
In the footsteps of Mma Ramotswe....with heart and mind - My sister and I - both Mma Ramotswe fans - were very fond from the interesting and entertaining tour with Andy. He was able to answer questions about Botswana’s history, present and population in a committed and informed manner. And by visiting some locations of the books, Mma Ramotswe's story became Almost tangible. Last but not least, it was just nice to realize that Andy - like Mma Ramotswe - loves his country. --
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Lightpacker72152
Nov 12, 2024
Excellent Literary and Historical Tour! - The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency tour was fantastic! Our guide Andy showed us so many important sites from the books and also shared Botswana’s history with us. Highly recommend!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Nicola
Jul 19, 2024
A great day out in Botswana - This experience was excellent. It brought the places in the stories to life and made me enjoy them all over again. I was also given the history of Botswana, lots of local insight and I was introduced to local food and craft producers. An excellent day out. My guide was exceptional in every way.
Review provided by Viator
Travelling_tweeter
Jun 30, 2024
See the book places for real - This gave me a very helpful overview of the history of Gabarone and Botswana as well as seeing some of the places mentioned in the books. We drove to Zebra ‘drive’ to see the outside of the house that gave inspiration for Mma Ramostwe’s home, and also saw a garage on Tlokleng Road which sparked the location for J L B Matekone’s work location and the later detectives’ office. We also drove round the university, past the civil servants’ training centre / secretarial college (much larger than I was expecting) and went near the orphan farm (obviously not actually going there as there are vulnerable children inside!) My favourite bit was going to the Anglican cathedral as we were able to explore inside. It would have been nice to finish at the President Hotel but that wasn’t an option to book on TripAdvisor so I went separately on another day. Definitely a good way to get an introduction to Botswana and learning the history really helped give me some context for me week working in this lovely country. Can thoroughly recommend the tour!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Mary_n
May 26, 2024
Best tour of entire 30 day trip - Andy read portions of the book as we approached the sites. But the real highlight was Andy and his wife Auto who owns the company, their kindliness and insights about life in Botswana
Review provided by Viator
Zalawo
May 8, 2024
Mma Ramotswe and history of Botswana - We were lucky to have two guides for the two of us! Both Andy and Oto were super friendly and knowledgeable and they were responsive to our many questions about Botswana. The trip was focused on Number One Ladies but also had lots of history and cultural information and references. There isn’t really enough to fill 3 hours just about Mma Ramotswe and Co but it was a good hook to hang the tour on. We really enjoyed our 3 hours and would recommend this trip.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Anna_p
Nov 9, 2023
The world of Mma Ramotswe brought to life. - Andy was such a wonderful guide. We were totally immersed in the world of Mma Ramotswe. We really appreciated learning about beautiful Botswana. We found that, as Canadians, we had a lot in common with the people of this land, believe it or not.
Review provided by Viator
From $95
up to 12 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).