"Full board" is one of those hospitality terms that sounds precise and often isn't. At many properties it means three meals a day, breakfast, lunch, and dinner, bundled into the nightly rate. At others, it means something narrower. The only way to actually know is to ask, so here is the specific answer for this property.
At The Elephant Oasis, full board means breakfast and dinner, included daily as part of every stay. Packed lunch is available separately, arranged the evening before for guests heading out on a full-day excursion, rather than served as a fixed midday meal back at the lodge. For most guests spending the middle of the day out on activities, a packed lunch in the field fits the day better than a formal lunch would, which is the actual reasoning behind the structure, not simply a narrower definition for its own sake.
Breakfast itself runs from 7:00 AM, built around fresh seasonal fruit, eggs cooked to order, and locally made chicken sausage, with coffee or chai poured black or "African," meaning with milk. For guests heading out on an early game drive, as early as 5:30 AM, the kitchen shifts breakfast earlier to match rather than making an early departure mean skipping it.
Dinner runs from 7:30 PM, a genuine four-course meal composed fresh each evening by a professional chef working from what the season offers, not a repeated hotel menu. Drinks are the one thing full board here doesn't cover, charged individually at the bar, with an all-inclusive drinks package available for guests who'd rather not track a running tab.
Read the full dining overview on the Dining page, and see what's included in the nightly rate on the Rates and Inclusions page.
