Hwange is Zimbabwe’s flagship park — 14,600 square kilometers of Kalahari sandveld holding around 30,000 elephant, strong lion prides and one of Africa’s most important populations of endangered painted dog.
Zimbabwe’s professional-guide license is the hardest to earn in Africa, and it shows: walking here is superb, and the private concessions run pumped waterholes where the dry-season procession of elephant is continuous. The park sits two hours from Victoria Falls.
Hwange is Zimbabwe’s flagship park and one of Africa’s great elephant strongholds — 40,000 or more in the dry season, drawn to pumped waterholes where lodges set their hides. It is quietly one of the best-value Big Five safaris in Southern Africa, and just two hours from Victoria Falls.
Highlights of Hwange National Park
Elephant at the waterholes
Dry-season herds queue at the pans in their hundreds — watched from sunken hides.
Painted dogs
Hwange is a stronghold for Africa’s most endangered large carnivore.
Walking with pro guides
Zimbabwe’s full professional guides are licensed to walk you close — safely.
Victoria Falls gateway
Two hours by road from the Falls — an easy, natural combination.
Explore Victoria Falls gateway →Best time to visit Hwange
Dry season — the waterhole spectacle at its peak.
Green season — migrant birds, newborn game and painted-dog denning later in the year.
In the green months rates ease at many of these camps, the plains empty of vehicles and the light turns dramatic. What each season gives, and what it trades, is set out in our Safari Planning Guide.
Planning & cost
Fully tailor-made — priced privately to your camps, season and travel style. No fixed packages.
Every journey is privately designed, with private guides and vehicles arranged where specified, the finest lodges, and a specialist on call throughout. At fly-in camps, game drives may be shared unless a private vehicle is reserved.
Everything else,
answered before you ask
The practical details that apply to every safari we plan — so this page is the only one you need.
US dollars and cards cover nearly everything, and tips are the only real cash need — exact amounts and etiquette are in our Safari Planning Guide.
See a travel clinic 6–8 weeks before departure for routine shots and malaria advice (most safari regions require prophylaxis; parts of South Africa are malaria-free). Camps are remote but professionally run, with radio contact and evacuation cover — we require travel insurance that includes emergency medical evacuation.
Connected in camp, gloriously offline on the drives — the full connectivity picture is in our Safari Planning Guide.
Soft duffel bags only (light aircraft cap luggage around 33 lb / 15 kg), neutral-colored layers for cold mornings and warm afternoons, and binoculars. Laundry is included at almost every camp, so pack for 4–5 days no matter the trip length.
Full packing list →Continue exploring
Zimbabwe
A Zimbabwe safari runs from Victoria Falls to Hwange’s elephants and the wild canoeing of Mana Pools.
Explore → ExperienceVictoria Falls
The largest sheet of falling water on earth — a natural wonder.
Explore → ZimbabweMana Pools National Park
Mana Pools — canoe the Zambezi through a UNESCO World Heritage wilderness.
Explore → RegionSouthern Africa
The desert, the delta and the falls — Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe and South Africa.
Explore →Hwange National Park FAQs
Getting to Zimbabwe — flights, visas and health
Current at the time of writing. We re-confirm every requirement for your exact routing before you travel — and we will tell you what to apply for, and when.
Let's design your Hwange National Park journey.
Hwange National Park suits travelers who want space, elephants and very few other vehicles.
Tell us how you like to travel and start with a complimentary consultation. When you are ready, a $500 USD planning fee covers your personalized itinerary and revisions, and is deducted from your booking deposit when you book.
Inquire now