Zimbabwe Safari IS5A

Special 5 Night Safari which includes Victoria Falls & Hwange National Park

3 Nights Hwange National Park
2 Nights Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
6 Days / 5 Nights
Reference: IS-5A
Starts Victoria Falls Airport / Ends Victoria Falls Airport

Total Price 5 nights: US$ 2238 (high season ) / US$ 1846 (low season)
per person sharing

Safari Overview

Experience the magnificence of Victoria Falls combined with a world class safari in Hwange National park. This great value package is offered by the sister camps of Bomani and Gorges lodge. Bomani is a superb tented lodge on the boundary of Hwange National Park in its own private game concession. In the Victoria Falls, Gorges Lodge is situated on the very edge of the Batoka gorge, with views that will literally take your breath away. Just 22kms from the mighty Victoria Falls, this lodge offers peace and tranquillity, yet is within easy reach of Victoria Falls for daily activities.

Zimbabwe Safari IS5A Inspired Journey Overview

Day 1 to 3

Hwange National Park

Hwange National Park is Zimbabwe’s biggest reserve, home to a profusion of wildlife, including giraffe, lion, zebra and approximately 40 000 elephants. It provides sanctuary for all the country’s endangered species, including a population of wild dogs thought to be among the most sizeable surviving groups on the continent. Terrain ranges from desert dunes and savannah lands to rocky outcrops and sparse forests, and visitors have the choice of game drives, guided walks or horseback safaris as a means of experiencing the park and its creatures.

Overnight: Bomani Tented Lodge

This comfortable and well-appointed lodge is nestled in a remote and untouched corner on the edge of Hwange National Park in a 5000-acre private reserve, and is famous for its impressive sightings of herds of elephant, not to mention many other spectacular species of wildlife.

The main lodge is built on a spectacular viewing platform and overlooks Bomani Pan. You can enjoy your breakfast while watching zebra and wildebeest quietly graze or sip a sundowner as giraffe and elephant soak up the day’s final rays.

Of course the main pastime at Bomani is game viewing, and whether you choose to go on a guided game walk in the lodge’s private concession or a game drive in the national park, you will not be disappointed - these spectacular landscapes teem with a rich array of unique African wildlife and flora.

Notes: Day 1, 2 & 3

DAY 1
When you arrive at Victoria Falls Airport, you will be met by one of our representatives and transferred by air-conditioned minibus to Halfway House (2.5 hours). You will be collected from Halfway House by one of the Bomani 4 x 4 game drive vehicles for your transfer into Bomani Tented Lodge (1.5 hours). Settle into your tent and then have sundowners and canapés by the Pan. Later enjoy a 3 course supper out under the stars.

DAY 2
Wake up for an early morning game drive and walk in Hwange National Park’s acacia forests surrounding Ngamo Plains. Return to Bomani for brunch and either a siesta or an hour or two in the blind over the waterhole. An afternoon game drive will be followed by sundowners and snacks at Major Pan. Then a night drive takes you back to the lodge for showers, then cocktails and snacks around the campfire with a 3 course dinner to follow in the main lodge area.

DAY 3
Early this morning, prepare for an all day trip into the park on a one of a kind ‘pump run’, with a picnic and siesta under the trees at Mfagazaan Pan. Imvelo’s trademark pump runs combine game viewing in remote areas of the park with practical hands-on conservation. You can assist the guide with day-to-day maintenance at the borehole pumps which are the heartbeat of Hwange National Park and its wildlife. Leisurely take an afternoon game drive back to the lodge going from pan to pan, weaving our way between the throngs of jostling elephant that come pouring in for the fresh water. It makes for a fun, memorable and extremely rewarding day. Return to camp and freshen up, and then have refreshments around the campfire and supper in the main lodge area.

**Please note that the above activity schedule is a guideline and you can tailor-make your itinerary with the camp managers onsite, to suit your exact needs.

Activities at Bomani

Game Drives
Game drives are conducted by experienced guides in traditional open safari vehicles. On your morning game drives pause to enjoy tea, coffee and biscuits and in the afternoons cool drinks and cooked snacks will be provided. Bomani land Cruisers seat up to 9 guests and Land Rovers seat up to 7 guests. Game drives in this remote portion of Hwange National Park seldom see another vehicle and are a spectacular insight into the wildlife and environment unique to this part of the park.

Game Walks
Game walks are an exciting option for photography of big game on foot. They are usually undertaken in the mornings and are conducted by a fully licensed and highly experienced armed professional guide. In this remote and wild area every walk provides fascinating insights into Hwange’s circle of life; watch Hwange’s elephants shake acacia trees to loosen and then eat the pods while on a smaller scale dung beetles roll up the elephant dung containing acacia seeds into balls. Dung beetles bury these balls and the acacia seed is now ready to germinate and grow into a new tree!

Night Drives
It’s well worth joining one of the shorter night drives through Bomani's private concession. Trackers operate powerful spotlights to seek out some of the less-seen nocturnal creatures. The light’s red filter lessens the disturbance, thus creating a unique opportunity to watch the fascinating behaviour of the nocturnal world. Unusual highlights include ant bears, porcupines, genets, springhares, lesser bushbabies and pennant winged nightjars.

Game viewing blinds
For the hard core photographers, the lodge's game viewing blinds at some of the waterholes are ideal for wildlife photography.

Pump runs
Imvelo Safari Lodges operate 8 waterholes for the wildlife in this region of the National Park, the furthest of which is 55 km away. A popular activity is to take an all day trip into the Park to visit the waterholes to drop off fuel and oil for the motors as well as rations and supplies for the pump attendants. A picnic lunch is then enjoyed near one of the waterholes followed by a leisurely game drive back to lodge in the afternoon.

School tours and village visits
Fifteen minutes’ drive from the lodge our guests have the opportunity to enjoy a real life look at village life in rural Matabeleland. A fascinating experience of a variety of typical daily village activities is followed by a tour of one of the nearby schools conducted by the Headmaster where guests are given the opportunity to hear traditional songs sung by the children and enjoy a ‘class interaction’.

Day 4 to 6

Victoria Falls

One of the original natural wonders of the world, the Victoria Falls is a World Heritage Site and an extremely popular tourism attraction. Known locally as ‘The Smoke that Thunders’, this spectacle is accessible from both Zambia and Zimbabwe and it is an ideal place to combine a game viewing and water sports. There is excellent fishing, a terrifying bungee jump and arguably the best commercial white water rafting in the world.

Overnight: Gorges Lodge

Gorges Lodge is built on the edge of the Batoka Gorge, some 200 awe-inspiring metres above the mighty Zambezi River. Each stone under thatch cottage boasts a private indigenous garden and a private decked veranda: the ideal place to watch the sunrise – or set – over the Zambezi. The cottages have en-suite bathrooms, minibars, overhead fans and tea and coffee making facilities. Gorges Lodge is a 30-minute drive from the town centre; far enough away to allow you the chance to relax and absorb the incredible views whilst enjoying delicious homemade cuisine and sipping on a delectable African wine, but still close enough to allow you to easily travel into town to take part in any number of the exciting activities that are on offer, from elephant back safaris to enjoying a delectable dinner while cruising down the Zambezi River at sunset.

Notes: Day 4, 5 & 6

DAY 4
Take a morning village visit and school tour at Ngamo Village and a tour of the Imvelo Community projects. Then return to the lodge for breakfast and then catch your road transfer to Halfway House (1.5 hours). You will then continue on by road to Gorges Lodge (2.5 hrs) with a packed lunch for the journey. Alternatively, guests can take the Elephant Express rail car from Ngamo Siding to Impofu Siding near Hwange Main Camp and then road transfer from Impofu to Victoria Falls. This cuts out quite a bit of the long road transfer and is a truly remarkable experience but does cost a little extra. Settle into Gorges and then enjoy the evening overlooking the gorge with a delicious supper in the main lodge dining room.

DAY 5
After breakfast catch the lodge shuttle and spend the day in Victoria Falls town. Enjoy the multitude of activities on offer and of-course take a tour of the of the magnificent Victoria Falls. Although these activities are not included in the package price, please let us help you to arrange an itinerary of activities suitable for you. Have a look at this page Victoria Falls activities to see what is on offer.

DAY 6
After breakfast, you will be picked up at Gorges Lodge for your transport to the airport for your onward flight.

A couple of worthwhile specific activities are available at the Gorges Lodge, please see details below:-

Activities at Gorges Lodge

Traditional dancing
Our talented team of dancers come from villages within walking distance of Gorges Lodge and love to entertain our guests in the evenings. Sebenze and his troupe perform just after sundown and their energetic dance and drum routine is vibrant and interactive - so don’t be surprised if you get pulled in to join the fun!

Gorge walk
The lodge is set in a magnificent and lush indigenous garden with stunning views across the gorge and of the pounding Zambezi River 200 metres below. Explore the area around the lodge accompanied by a guide and when you’re done enjoy refreshments and freshly prepared snacks while you watch the sun set at Peregrine Point.

Black Eagle Viewing
A pair of Verreaux's Eagles nest in the gorge at the lodge and provide our guests with amazing displays of their aerobatic skills and courtship rituals, often at eye level. Evenings are their hunting time so sit back with sundowners and snacks as these magnificent birds soar past on thermals whilst hunting in the gorge. The eagles are not the only birds resident here – lanner falcons, peregrine falcons and augur buzzards also call the gorge home and the inter-specific interactions are a highlight when the eagles stray too close to the falcons’ nests.

Price

Total Price for 5 Nights: US$ 2238 (high season ) / US$ 1846 (low season)
Per person sharing

Included in this safari

BOMANI TENTED LODGE
• Accommodation in a luxury tented room overlooking Bomani Pan
• All meals and non-premium beverages
• Laundry
• Service of a licensed guide
• Activities: game walks, game drives, all day excursions, hit sits, night drives, visit to local village and school tour
• Park fees

GORGES LODGE
• Accommodation in a magnificent room on the edge of the gorges with private garden and viewing deck
• Dinner, bed and breakfast, soft drinks, beers, wines & local spirits
• Laundry
• Activities at Gorges lodge

TRANSFERS
• Return road transfers between Hwange and Victoria Falls
• Return Victoria Falls Airport transfers

Excluded

GORGES LODGE & BOMANI TENTED LODGE
• Elephant express rail journey
• Premium imported beverages
• Activities in Victoria Falls
• Gratuities and items of a personal nature

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