Linkwasha Camp sits on a private Wilderness concession in the south-eastern corner of Hwange National Park, on the edge of Zimbabwe’s Ngamo Plains. Its nine tents look out over a pumped waterhole that draws elephants in great numbers through the dry months. The best way to watch them is from a sunken hide dug into the water’s edge, level with elephant feet and trunks.
A sunken hide sits at the water’s edge, level with elephant feet and trunks.
The concession runs to roughly 34,000 hectares, shared with only a handful of other Wilderness camps, so vehicles from beyond that network are rarely seen. Guests spend their days moving between vleis, lala palm islands and open savannah over Kalahari sands. Evenings are given over to the pan filling below the multi-level decks, elephants arriving through the fading light.
The sunken hide is the reason many come. Set into the bank at eye level with the water, it puts guests among elephant feet and lowered trunks as bulls and family groups drink, close enough to hear the water dripping and the low rumble of their calls. Photographers work here for hours, entirely unnoticed by the animals above them.
Elephants have been known to drink from the pool’s edge at dusk.
The design leans contemporary and light, canvas and timber under a canopy of leadwood trees, with neutral interiors lifted by bold Ndebele patterns and local textiles. Floor-to-ceiling glass and mesh doors open each tent to the plains. A swimming pool sits out on the deck, and elephants have been known to drink from its edge at dusk.
From roughly May to October, as surface water disappears across Hwange, wildlife concentrates on the pumped waterholes that Wilderness maintains across the concession. Elephant numbers around the camp pan build steadily, family groups and bulls arriving through the afternoon and on into the evening. Buffalo, zebra, wildebeest and antelope come to the same water, and lions work the edges after dark. It is one of the great dry-season gatherings in this corner of the park.
Come November the rains break and the picture inverts. The Ngamo Plains green up and the herds disperse across open grassland to graze and calve, drawing the predators out behind them. Zebra, wildebeest, sable, roan and eland spread across the savannah, with lion, cheetah and African wild dog following the movement. Hwange holds a high density of wild dog, and the open country of these months makes them far easier to find.
Night drives turn up the nocturnal species that daylight never shows.
The private concession also widens what is possible each day. Beyond daytime game drives across the plains, woodland and pans, guides run night drives and guided walking safaris. Both are restricted in the public areas of the national park, yet permitted here under concession rules. Night drives turn up the nocturnal species that daylight never shows, while a walk puts guests on foot beside a professional guide, reading tracks and signs on the ground.
Nine tented suites reflect the standards that have made Linkwasha one of Hwange’s more comfortable camps. Interiors are spacious, and a winter lounge with a fireplace and library waits for the cold mornings. Meals are taken indoors or out on the decks, always facing the pan. Wilderness maintains solar-hybrid pumped pans across the concession, the same water that holds the dry-season game, and its Children in the Wilderness programme supports several local schools.
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accommodation
Nine tented suites: eight en-suite twin or double tents and one family tent, all facing the waterhole and plains. Raised on composite decking under leadwood trees, each has canvas walls, floor-to-ceiling glass and mesh sliding doors, a private veranda, and neutral interiors lifted by Ndebele patterns and local craft.
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activities
Day game drives across the Ngamo Plains, woodland and pans, plus night drives and guided walking safaris, both permitted under the private concession rather than the public park. A sunken photographic hide sits at the camp waterhole, offering eye-level views of elephant and other game as they drink.
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conservation
Solar-hybrid pumped pans across the concession hold wildlife through the dry season, when other water disappears. Children in the Wilderness runs teacher training, Eco-Clubs and a nutritional programme across several local schools, and a women's group crochets lampshades and baskets used in camp. Most staff are drawn from surrounding communities.
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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The usual route is a flight into Victoria Falls followed by a light aircraft of about an hour to the Linkwasha airstrip, and from there a game-drive transfer across the concession to camp, often with the first sightings before you have unpacked. The shared charters confirm their departure time the day before, and luggage travels in soft bags of around twenty kilograms.
We can also put you on a private charter, typically a Cessna Caravan or Pilatus PC-12, which flies to your timetable instead. By road it is around five hours from Victoria Falls, with the final leg inside the park, an option worth considering in one direction if you like watching the country change.
Usually, yes. The park sits below the 1,200 metre altitude line under which the UK's official travel health advice rates Zimbabwe's malaria risk as high from November to June, with antimalarials recommended for those months, and while the risk eases through the dry season from July to October, the CDC advises tablets for the whole of Zimbabwe at any time of year.
The final call belongs with a travel clinic or your doctor close to departure, since guidance shifts. Either way, cover up in the evenings and use repellent once the light starts to go.
Two seasons, really. The dry winter from May to October brings cloudless days and cold nights, coldest from June to August when dawn can sit near freezing, which is exactly why the camp keeps a lounge with a fireplace for the early hours. From September the heat climbs quickly, and October is the fiercest month before the rains break.
The green season from November to March turns the plains soft and full of young animals, with storms rolling through on summer afternoons. Pack warm layers plus gloves for winter dawns, light neutral clothing and serious sun protection for the days, and a light waterproof in the green months, all in a soft bag for the flights.
From the age of six, yes, and the dedicated family tent keeps parents and children under one roof. The mix here suits slightly older children especially well, because the hide and the deck bring the wildlife to them without long hours in a vehicle.
Walking safaris are kept for teenagers, and for children under twelve we will usually recommend a private vehicle so the family can set its own rhythm without watching the clock. Give us the ages when we plan and we will shape the stay around them.
Park fees, all meals, local drinks, two guided activities a day and laundry are all inside the rate, so a stay runs on one price rather than a string of extras. Only the premium imported drinks and champagne are billed separately.
Flights and transfers are quoted on top, and we fold them into a single figure for the whole trip at the start, so you can judge the real cost before anything is booked.
Yes, wifi is provided for guests, and it is one of the better-connected camps in this corner of Hwange, comfortable for messages and the odd photograph home without pretending to be an office connection. Mobile signal remains unreliable this deep in the park.
If you need to stay properly reachable during the trip, say so when we plan and we will build the itinerary with that in mind rather than leaving it to chance.
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our approach
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.
