Month by month
Katavi in February: the last wet month with the lights on
February closes out the run of wet months when the camps still take guests, and it does so on a staggered clock: some properties wind down mid-month, others hold on to the very last day. Treat it as the tail end of an open season rather than the start of the shutdown, because the shutdown itself does not begin until March.
If you only want the answer
February is your last chance at green-season Katavi with camps operating, but not all of them stay open the same length of time. Confirm your camp's exact closing date before you book, since Chada Katavi finishes earlier in the month than Katavi Wildlife Camp does.
A river still in flood, on a countdown
Rainfall eases slightly from January, 122 mm over 19 days against January's 151, but the Katuma is still well outside its dry-season channel and the Katisunga and Chada plains still carry standing water in places. Nothing about the landscape looks like a season about to end; the closures that follow are a calendar decision, not a weather one.
Game viewing keeps the same wet-season shape as earlier months: dispersed animals, harder to predict, offset by strong birdlife while migrants are still present ahead of their April departure window.
A staggered shutdown, camp by camp
Chada Katavi's published season runs to roughly mid-February, while Katavi Wildlife Camp keeps going to the end of the month, and Mbali Mbali Katavi holds on longer still, closing only for March, April and May. That gap of two or three weeks between camps matters if you are choosing between them for a late-February date, since one may already be shut while another is still receiving guests.
Flights follow the same rhythm as January: Safari Air Link's on-request window for this route runs to 28 February, its last day before the route goes dark entirely for the closure. Book your charter with your camp rather than assuming a seat will be there.
One thing to do differently
Ask your chosen camp directly for its last operating date this year rather than trusting a generic season label; the difference between mid-February and end-February availability has decided more than one itinerary. If you want the very last days of the open season, book as soon as your dates firm up, since camps reduce staff and services in the run-up to closing rather than operating at full capacity right to the door.