Hwange National Park Holidays

Along the north-eastern boundary of Hwange National Park, remnants of Africa’s colonial history can be seen peeping out of the terrain. This section of the railway line, built in 1904 as part of the British imperial dream to run a railway from Cape to Cairo, links the small village of Dete to the open grassland of the Ngamo plains and Bomani Tented Lodge. The Elephant Express is a 24-seater railcar that transports guests to the south-east remoter regions of Zimbabwe’s largest national park. Breezing over the plains in this open-sided railcar feels like no ordinary transfer.

It takes two hours cruising along at 25 miles per hour, three hours if you count the minutes spent stopping for your first glimpse of Hwange’s extraordinary creatures. You might think that the animals would be deterred by the sight of a railcar but the trainline has been part of Hwange’s scenery since 1904 slicing through the land on its way to Victoria Falls. It even pre-dates the park itself, which wasn’t officially declared until 1928. On your journey you might come across a couple of lion or even families of cheetah who use the raised track as vantage points to scout for prey. Or it could be elephant plodding across the way, wildebeest cantering through the tall grass and if you’re lucky, you might catch a thrilling encounter between predator and prey. Your driver will glide you along slowly to get a good look or completely stop for you to relish the moment.

Hwange National Park offers a glimpse into the Africa of old. Its 5,657 square miles still feels wonderfully preserved with that feeling of empty space, few people and animals as far as the eye can see. This sense of exclusivity is powerfully enhanced in the private concession encompassing Bomani Tented Lodge located in the remote south-east part of Hwange.

On safari you’ll find extravagant natural beauty; watery pans alive with diverse wildlife from baboons to big cats, plains frequented with predators such as lion and packs of African painted dog. Then there’s the record amount of elephant – in the late, dry season nearly 50,000 – so easy to see in the flat open grassland. For close encounters, you can often spy these fascinating creatures from behind the two water-level photography hides by the very active Stophie’s Pan.

Off-roading in the national park is forbidden, but in the private concession, Bomani guests can veer off track and follow game on foot. The guides here are some of the best in the continent due to the many years it takes them to simply acquire a walking safari license. Those who have ever experienced animal-spotting on foot will know that these types of safaris can be the most thrilling. You can tread silently up to a Cape buffalo, so closely you’ll be in awe of the sheer size of its torso, and observe a waterhole during the dry season when animals appear from all directions to lap the dwindling water. The smaller wildlife is equally inspiring like the cute looking dwarf mongoose that in their packs can even take down a cobra. Night time brings a whole new dimension. Using the gentle beam of red torchlight you might spot the shy-natured aardvark or the holy grail of safari animals that is the leopard stalking its prey at night. You’re a long way from civilization but that’s what makes it so exciting.

One of the biggest draws for guests to Hwange is the park’s wonderful elephant herds – the tusker elephant population numbers more than 40,000. Activities at Somalisa Camp include walking safaris, game drives and birding trips. When walking you get to bond with nature without the sound of an engine. Walking around the waterholes your guide will show you how to identify tracks of insects, birds and mammals.

Hwange National Park is the largest in Zimbabwe. It is named after a local Nhanzwa chief and was once the royal hunting ground for the Ndebele warrior-king Mzilikazi. The wildlife is astounding. Over 100 species of mammals live here and there are more than 400 species of birds. One of the biggest draws for guests is the park’s wonderful elephant herds – the tusker elephant population numbers more than 40,000. Activities at Somalisa Camp include walking safaris, game drives and birding trips. When walking you get to bond with nature without the sound of an engine. Walking around the waterholes your guide will show you how to identify tracks of insects, birds and mammals.

The dry season (July to October) is the best time to visit as large concentrations of wildlife descend to drink from the waterholes. You can get between seven and 10 species – sable, elephant, buffalo, lion and others – around a waterhole at one time, giving each other time to drink. The Zimbabwe national flower, the flame lily, is in bloom too. In the wet season, the rains turn everything green and migrating birds arrive from the Northern Hemisphere. Hwange National Park truly is a year-round spectacle.

After nearly 20 years, white rhinos have been reintroduced into Hwange National Park. As part of your stay at Bomani, you’ll can join the rhino experience, which starts at the sanctuary headquarters. Here, you’ll meet the special rhino guards, the Cobras, who’ve been recruited from local villages and trained to protect the animals 24/7 and alleviate human-wildlife conflicts. They’ll give you a short talk about the project before seeing the rhinos. Each Cobra has a story to tell; some were even former poachers who’ve now dedicated their lives to saving rhinos.

Back in the 80s, rhinos were part of the scenery but all were sadly lost to poachers. Thanks to the Community Rhino Conservation Initiative (CRCI) two male rhinos, Thuza and Kusasa are in the park and visitors may be able to spot the Big Five in Hwange.

Next, you’ll take a short walk to find Thuza and Kusasa, who live on former cattle grazing land that belongs to villages in the Tsholotsho area. CRCI works with the community to create sustainable conservation; funds raised by the visits go directly towards projects such as school improvements, boreholes and healthcare, meaning that villagers have an incentive to cherish wildlife.

Approaching rhinos in their natural environment is an absolute privilege. You’ll come away humbled and inspired by this remarkable conservation story with the aim to safely reintroduce white rhinos into the wider national park.

When Ted Davidson, the first warden to work in Hwange National Park, arrived in 1928, you can only imagine his surprise when he discovered there was no reliable surface water available for the wildlife during Hwange’s long dry seasons. During the wet season, the wildlife would flourish but when the rain ceased and the pans dried up, the animals would vanish, migrating to rivers outside the boundaries of the park. Davidson, pressured the colonial authorities to release funding so he could establish year-round waterholes fed by windmills. The wildlife quickly responded and flourished under this new system. Seeing how these pumps sustain wildlife in Zimbabwe's largest park is an interesting activity between safari game drives.

After some five years of mapping terrain and studying the environment while every dry season feeling frustrated by his inability to sustain his wildlife and in particular the elephants under his protection, it became clear that something needed to change and the introduction of windmills was the best solution.

Over the years, windmills were replaced with diesel engine-driven pumps, more effective at pumping the requisite amount of water needed to sustain the larger population of wildlife now inhabiting the park. From the remote outpost of Bomani, guests can actually see these pumps in action on a pump run while delivering fresh food and technical supplies to the pump attendants. From May to November every year, enthusiastic youngsters, all hailing from the front-line villages, man each of the 19 waterholes across 120km.

Today most of the diesel engines have been replaced by solar hybrid pumps. The solar component pumps water during the day time and the diesel hybrid component takes over in the evening as much of Hwange’s wildlife, in particular the famous elephant herds, drink all through the night.