zimbabwe
rhino in the save valley
Nine nights in south-eastern Zimbabwe, from the Save River and Gonarezhou to rhino tracking in the Sango Conservancy.
- Private Safari
- From $11,015 pp
- 2 guests
- 9 nights
trip highlights
- Track elephant and buffalo on foot in Mana Pools, one of Africa's strongholds of the painted dog.
- Follow the rim rainforest footpaths at Victoria Falls, where the gorge comes clearest from August to October.
- Walk the Selinda Spillway with armed guides in a reserve regarded as one of Botswana's finest for predators.
- Follow the Gomoti channels of the south-eastern Okavango, where guides can leave the road and run night drives.
Scroll for the full itinerary
Four Waters Across Two Countries
Twelve nights link four distinct pieces of country. It opens on the Zambezi floodplain of Mana Pools, a park walked and paddled rather than driven, then moves to Victoria Falls, where the river drops into the Batoka Gorge along a curtain nearly 1.7 kilometres across. From there it crosses into Botswana, first to the private Selinda Reserve and its ancient spillway, then to the Gomoti channels in the south-eastern Okavango Delta.
You travel on foot, by canoe and mokoro, by boat and by vehicle, following the water as it rises and falls. Each of the four camps is small and holds its ground to itself, from tented suites on a private concession to a four-tent walking camp on the spillway. The accommodation is comfortable and low-key, placed to keep the river and floodplain in view.
Daily Itinerary Breakdown
Mana Pools: Walking and Canoeing the Zambezi
You spend these days on foot and on the water, in the old Mana Pools tradition of tracking elephant and buffalo with a guide, then drifting past drinking herds by canoe or heading out for tiger fishing by boat. This is one of Africa's strongholds of the painted dog, and through the dry months the winterthorn pods pull elephants close, some rearing onto their hind legs to reach the higher branches. Your base sits on a private concession at the Sapi-Zambezi confluence, its seven tented suites raised on decks beneath albida and Natal mahogany. Because the ground lies outside the park's core, night drives and river outings are open to you here.
- Accommodation at Chikwenya Camp
Victoria Falls: The Curtain and the Gorge
The Zambezi reaches Victoria Falls as a wide, slow river before dropping into the Batoka Gorge, and footpaths thread through the rim rainforest to a run of viewpoints. From June the flow lowers and the gorge and its cataracts come clearer, sharpest from August to October. Sunset cruises drift past hippos, crocodiles and elephants above the falls, while game drives explore Zambezi National Park. Your suites stand on a private island upstream, reached only by boat and kept adults-only, with plunge pools facing the water and hippos audible in the channels after dark.
- Accommodation at Island Treehouse Suites
Selinda Reserve: Walking the Spillway
Walking is the whole point in this private Botswana reserve, led by armed and trained guides who read tracks, dung and birdsong at a pace that brings the smaller detail into focus. When the Selinda Spillway carries water, two-person canoes replace part of the route back to camp and birdlife concentrates along the banks. Selinda is regarded as one of the finest stretches for predators in Botswana, with lion, leopard, cheetah and a resident pack of painted dogs. Your camp is four canvas tents under African ebony and mopane on the spillway's edge, the work of Dereck and Beverly Joubert.
- Accommodation at Selinda Explorers Camp
Okavango Delta: Predators on the Gomoti
The Gomoti river runs through the south-eastern Delta across a private concession, where permanent channels give way to acacia and mopane woodland and the game moves with the water. Lions, leopards, cheetah and wild dog cross freely between here and neighbouring Moremi, and because this is private land, guides can leave the road, run night drives after dinner and walk you out on foot. When the annual flood fills the channels, the mokoro come out. Ten canvas tents stand raised on decks among the water figs that give the camp its name, run in partnership with six Bayei villages.
- Accommodation at Gomoti Plains
Ed Charles, BBC Producer
Fitzroy are true specialists in accessing the wilderness. They know where to go and importantly, when to go there. Highly recommended.
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zimbabwe
walking with elephants
Twelve nights across Zimbabwe, from Victoria Falls and Mana Pools to Lake Kariba, Hwange and the granite of Matobo.
- Private Safari
- From $9,986 pp
- 2 guests
- 12 nights
zimbabwe
the zambezi, hwange and rhino
Twelve nights across northwest Zimbabwe, from Victoria Falls to Hwange's plains and springs and the upper Zambezi.
- Private Safari
- From $10,635 pp
- 2 guests
- 12 nights
rated five stars by our clients
our approach
remote, exclusive
& personal
Every journey starts with a conversation. We take the time to understand your vision before we start planning.
Whether by phone or in person, we work with you directly to shape something that is considered, personal, and expertly delivered.
Every journey starts with a conversation. We favour a direct, personal approach: understanding your vision before anything else.
Whether by phone or in person, we work with you directly to shape a journey that is both thoughtfully considered and expertly delivered.
Get in touch to start planning yours.