6-Day Glamping Mana & Chitake Pop-Roof Cruiser + Chef

• A transfer from the airport can be arranged for an extra cost.
• Accommodation before the tour starts can be arranged for an extra cost.

4x4 Transfer to Mana Pools

The trip departs from Sunbird Guest House in Harare at 06:00 sharp. Your assistant will drive you through the rolling bush and farmlands north of Harare, stopping at Saucy Sue's for brunch. You should arrive at Mana around 14:30, just in time to set up camp before heading out on a recce game drive to familiarize yourself with the area.

Please note that Mana is all about living in the bush, and guests will be expected to chip in with cooking and camp chores. Families will find themselves far away from Instagram and email where the simple camp routine of rising early, walking, cooking, chatting & eating together in the wild is a huge part of the fun. Teenagers return with stories of eggs lost to monkeys at breakfast, and elephant encounters on the way to the bathroom. These are the memories we have of our own childhood in the Zambezi Valley. We prefer these adventures over a generic private bush camp experience where guests lounge around being fed and watered, looking slightly bored!

Main Destination:

Mana Pools National Park

Best Time To Visit June to October (Best wildlife viewing)

High Season July to September

Best Weather April to September (Rains rarely fall)

Wildlife in Mana Pools NP

ElephantAbundant

LionCommon

BuffaloCommon

ZebraCommon

HippoCommon

HyenaCommon

Show more

LeopardOccasional

Wild DogOccasional

CheetahRare

GiraffeNone

White RhinoNone

Black RhinoNone

WildebeestNone

Accommodation:

Budget camping

• Inside Mana Pools NP

Meals & Drinks:

• Lunch & dinner (Breakfast not included)
• Drinks not included

Explore Mana Pools

You will be wakened by the grunting of hippos and the dawn chorus of abundant birdlife, with the sounds of the previous night's lion and hyena calls still echoing in your ears. Head out to the bush to drive yourself for a private game drive followed by brunch in a clearing in the wild. Return to camp to rest up during the heat of the day, watch birds or simply take in the sight of the Zambezi flowing past. Late afternoon, collect a Zimparks Ranger for a guided bushwalk. There is so much more to see on foot than in a car, as you are up close and personal with all the plants and animals that the sound of a car drowns out. You don't need to go far to see a lot on foot.

Main Destination:

Mana Pools National Park

Accommodation:

Budget camping

• Inside Mana Pools NP

Meals & Drinks:

• Lunch & dinner (Breakfast not included)
• Drinks not included

Explore Mana Pools

Today is a repeat of Day 1, which is no bad thing! We wake up early, do a game drive, have brunch in the bush somewhere that is remote and amazing. We siesta through the heat of the day, then arrange an afternoon walk with a guide. You will start to relax and fit in with the rhythm of nature, this just does not get boring.

Main Destination:

Mana Pools National Park

Accommodation:

Budget camping

• Inside Mana Pools NP

Meals & Drinks:

• All meals included
• Drinks not included

Drive to Chitake Spring

After your normal Mana morning routine, we break up camp and drive 60km through deep bush to the amazing Chitake Spring. Make sure you have full water tanks before you head off to this remote site. On arrival, set up camp in one of two exclusive campsites at Chitake. This is lion and buffalo country, so walking is not advised. Rather view the incredible baobab forest or just wait at the spring for the animals to come to you. Herds of up to 1,000 buffalo come through the bush to drink from the spring below you, preceded by a cloud of dust. Up to 30 individual lions lie in wait for them in the gullies of the riverbed. Action is very likely and you will have front-row seats.

Main Destination:

Chitake Springs (Mana Pools NP)

Accommodation:

Budget camping

• Inside Chitake Springs (Mana Pools NP)

Meals & Drinks:

• All meals included
• Drinks not included

Explore Chitake Spring

After a night filled with the sounds of lions roaring very close, wake up and head to the fig tree overlooking the spring for dawn. If you are lucky, a herd of buffalo will come down to drink in front of you with the early morning light filtering through the dust - a photographer's delight. Spend all day at the fig tree watching all manner of animals and birds coming to the only water for miles around.

Main Destination:

Chitake Springs (Mana Pools NP)

Accommodation:

Budget camping

• Inside Chitake Springs (Mana Pools NP)

Meals & Drinks:

• All meals included
• Drinks not included

4x4 Transfer to Harare

After a final early-morning visit to the spring, reluctantly break up camp and depart for Harare before 09:00. Your mind will be filled with surreal memories of the wildest place in Africa by far. You should arrive in Harare before 17:00. If required, we can arrange Harare Accommodation, onward transfers, etc.

Main Destination:

No major destination visited

Accommodation:

No accommodation (End of tour)

Meals & Drinks:

• Breakfast (Lunch & dinner not included)
• Drinks not included

• Additional accommodation can be arranged for an extra cost.
• A transfer back to the airport can be arranged for an extra cost.