Hwange Explorer by Air

Today you transfer via by road (or by air for an extra cost) from Victoria Falls Airport to Davison’s Camp in Hwange National Park.

Hwange National Park is Zimbabwe’s largest and oldest game park and lies only two hours’ drive south of Victoria Falls. Hwange is big game country with massive herds of elephants, especially visible at the end of the dry season in September, as well as lion, buffalo, hyena, giraffe, zebra, wildebeest sable, roan and other antelope. The private game lodges are mostly adjacent to the park. Here you take part in early morning and late afternoon game drives in open 4×4 vehicles and game walks.

Game-viewing in Hwange is made easier by the shallow salt pans throughout the park. These natural salt pans offer the perfect cooling mud bath for elephants. Ultimately the pans develop into small ponds. The best time to visit Hwange is in the dry winter months from June to October when the animals are forced to congregate around these water pans and ponds for much-needed water.

Davisons Camp is a classic African tented camp, with the nine tents shaded by a grove of false mopane trees overlooking a productive waterhole and the open plains beyond. As one of the few camps located within park boundaries, Davison’s Camp offers total privacy. The Linkwasha Concession offers a mix of diverse wildlife, ensuring one of the best game experiences in Hwange. Davison’s Camp is a simple and well-operated camp which offers an authentic bush experience. The mess area is very simple, but light and airy, with lounge and dining room both open to the front to make the most of the views over the waterhole.

Guests at Davison’s can choose two activities per day which include morning or afternoon game drives in open 4×4 vehicles, or guided walks in the early mornings. Game viewing is productive year-round in the Linkwasha Concession and wildlife frequently encountered here includes lion, large herds of elephant, buffalo, leopard, white rhino, spotted hyena, southern giraffe, sable, blue wildebeest, waterbuck and reedbuck. In summer, wildebeest, zebra and eland love the open plains, while in winter nearby waterholes are magnets for elephants in massive numbers. Bird life is prolific and varied, with species which favour the teak woodlands as well as those typical of the drier Kalahari.

Today you transfer back from Davidson’s Camp to Victoria Falls Airport by road (or air at extra cost).

Alternatively you could extend this tour by adding 2 nights (or more) at Camp Amalinda in the Matobo Hills National Park close to Bulawayo.

You return to the Park gates where you say farewell to your guide and take a road transfer south to Bulawayo and on to Camp Amalinda. This will take approx 3.5 hours. The granite domes and koppies of the Matobo hills in Zimbabwe are among the most majestic rock landscapes in the world.

Nestled in this unique setting is the romantic Camp Amalinda. The lodge is built around some of the granite boulders of the Matobo Hills, a former ancient Bushman’s shelter. Stone steps link 7 thatched rooms and 2 newly built honeymoon suites, all of which have expansive views over the impressive rock swimming pool to the hills beyond. Enjoy game-viewing on foot or on horse-back as well as visits to impressive Bushmen rock art sites.

The Matobo Hills National Park is the ancestral home of the Matabele people. This majestic landscape of massive granite boulders is imbued with great spiritual significance. The numerous giant granite outcrops (‘koppies’) have eroded over thousands of years and conjure up spectacular balancing acts, perched on each other at gravity-defying angles. The surrounding woodland savanna is home to a rich wildlife and cultural heritage with a large number of black and white rhino and antelope. It also has some of the best-preserved San (Bushmen) paintings in Southern Africa.

Following your stay at Camp Amalinda, you transfer back to Bulawayo Airport for your onward flight arrangements.