Julian Brookstein and his wife Ashley opened Camp Chitubu in June 2022, on a ridge in the Sinamatella region of northwestern Hwange National Park. Julian is a licensed Zimbabwean professional guide with close to two decades in the bush, and the camp reads as an expression of that. Six tented suites and a separate family suite look down over a spring that holds its water through the driest months.
Game drives run too, in open 4×4 vehicles, but the pace is set on foot
The walking safaris are the heart of it, led by Zimbabwean professional guides trained to read the ground: slow tracking that pays attention to spoor, scent and the small signs animals leave behind. Game drives run too, in open 4×4 vehicles, but the pace is set on foot. Day to day, the camp turns on what happens outside the tents rather than inside them.
The spring below the ridge draws animals through the year, and that changes how a day works here. Elephant herds move in to drink, often heard splashing and gurgling below the tents long after dark, and the game keeps arriving whether or not anyone leaves camp. Lions are seen regularly around the camp and heard most nights.
Kudu, waterbuck and impala are common company
Mandavu Dam lies about two kilometres away, the largest permanent water source in Hwange and a magnet for concentrated game. Buffalo gather here in large herds, while hippos and crocodiles hold the water and fish eagles and kingfishers work the margins. Kudu, waterbuck and impala are common company. Roan, eland and sable turn up less often, and are all the more prized for it.
Camp Chitubu lies inside Hwange National Park rather than a private concession, and much of its character follows from that. Off-road driving is not permitted, and drives after dark are restricted once the park gates close, so evenings turn instead to the fire pit and the wide sky above the ridge. The walking suits this rhythm exactly. Guests cover ground slowly with a guide reading tracks, scent and wind, moving at the pace of the country rather than the pace of a vehicle, and seeing it the closer for it.
The tents sit on raised wooden platforms, built with heavy canvas and large gauze windows that open the rooms to the valley below. Teak runs through the floors, the shower decks and the vanities, with brass fittings in the bathrooms. The main lounge and dining area keep a sandy earth floor and an open plan, arranged so the spring and the salt pan stay in view throughout the day. It reads as an old-school bush camp given serious comfort, rather than a lodge dressed up as one.
Chitubu means spring in the local language, and the whole camp orients toward its water
The Sinamatella region is rugged, hilly country of mopane woodland and basalt seeps. Chitubu means spring in the local language, and the whole camp orients toward its water, from the tents on the ridge to the lounge below. Evenings settle around the open-air fire pit, with music and storytelling carrying into the dark alongside the lions and the elephants at the water. Dinners run to three courses under canvas or out in the bush, with lighter buffet lunches and afternoon tea in the hours between activities.
The camp draws on solar power and cuts its reliance on trucked-in supplies, so the ridge stays quiet and the sky above it dark. Children are welcome in camp under supervision, and the walking safaris are open to those aged fourteen and over, at the guide’s discretion. The Brooksteins run Camp Chitubu with Mutondo Safaris, a partnership with the investment group Southsea Africa, though little of that machinery shows from the fireside.
accommodation
Six double or twin tented suites and one separate two-bedroom family suite, set on raised wooden platforms with heavy canvas walls and large gauze windows framing the spring and salt pan. Beds are king-size or twin, with mosquito nets, en-suite bathrooms, teak vanities, brass rain showers, private safes and charging ports.
activities
Walking safaris led by Zimbabwean professional guides are the core of Camp Chitubu, open to guests aged fourteen and over. Game drives run in open 4x4 vehicles, along with birdwatching and trips to Mandavu Dam. Because the camp sits inside the national park, off-road driving and drives after dark are not permitted.
conservation
Camp Chitubu keeps things deliberately small: a walking-safari camp run by its owners, guides Julian and Ashley Brookstein, and powered around the clock by an on-site solar farm. The camp sits above a natural spring that holds water all year, two kilometres from Mandavu Dam, the largest body of water in Hwange, so the wildlife comes to the water below the rooms.
Get in touch and let’s start the conversation. An initial consultation helps us understand what you’re looking for, whether that’s specific experiences, luxury touches, or marking a special occasion, and from there we’ll guide you through what’s possible so you can decide if we’re the right fit.
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There are two ways in. By air, a light aircraft charter from Victoria Falls lands at an airstrip in Hwange's north, and the camp's vehicle finishes the journey as a game drive; we can arrange the charter privately, typically a Cessna Caravan or Pilatus PC-12, and light aircraft take soft bags only, around twenty kilograms per person including hand luggage.
By road, allow around four hours from Victoria Falls, the first stretch on tar and the last hours inside the park, which the camp treats as your first game drive rather than a transfer. Tell us your arrival time into Victoria Falls and we will make the whole day join up.
Yes, count on it in your planning. The park sits below the 1,200 metre line under which the UK's official travel health advice rates Zimbabwe's malaria risk as high from November to June, when tablets are usually recommended, with a lower risk through the dry months of July to October. The CDC advises antimalarials for travel anywhere in Zimbabwe at any time of year, so plenty of guests take them in every season.
A travel clinic or your doctor will settle the right choice for you. Either way, long sleeves, long trousers and repellent after dark are the habits that count.
Stays are fully inclusive: accommodation, all meals, drinks apart from premium labels, the guided activities and laundry all sit inside the rate, so days pass without much reaching for a wallet.
Park fees and any levies are charged alongside, and we build them into your quote with the transfers or charter flights from the start, so the figure you approve is the figure you pay.
The camp is open all year. June to October is the classic window, when the park dries and the spring below camp and Mandavu Dam nearby hold some of the only water for miles, concentrating game into the valley in numbers. Those cool, dry months are also the most comfortable for the walking that is the heart of a stay here, with clear mornings and open sightlines.
The green season from November to April is quieter and greener, with the birding at its peak, dramatic skies and newborn antelope on the move. You trade the dense dry-season concentrations for having this corner of Hwange almost to yourself.
Pack for the walking first: comfortable closed shoes already worn in, long trousers for the grass, and clothing in quiet, neutral colours. A hat, strong sun protection and a water bottle carry you through the middle of the day.
Winter mornings from June to August start near freezing before warming fast, so bring a proper jacket, a beanie and gloves for dawn, and light layers underneath. From September the heat builds hard and breathable fabrics take over. If you are flying in, keep it all to a soft bag of around twenty kilograms including hand luggage.
Three nights is the sweet spot. Walking safaris reward patience: the first day settles you into the country, and it is on the second and third that the slow tracking starts to pay, when you begin reading the ground the way the guides do and the camp's rhythm takes over from the clock.
Three nights also leaves room for unhurried time at Mandavu Dam and an afternoon simply watching the spring below camp. We usually pair the stay with Victoria Falls, or with a camp in another corner of Hwange for a different cut of the park.
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our approach
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