Best Safari Camp in Zimbabwe

If you ever talk to someone who’s been on safari, they’ll probably tell you it’s one of (if not THE) best things they’ve ever done in their life and it’s an experience not to miss. For our trip, we stayed at the best safari camp in Zimbabwe!

I have absolutely nothing different to say. As you can imagine after seeing our visit to Wild is Life and then our day trip to The Chobe in Botswana, our trip to Zimbabwe was nothing short of amazing long before we ever arrived at Hwange National Park for our safari.

Planning the trip, we wanted to stay in Zimbabwe as much as possible, to really see as much as we could of the country. When we asked where to stay in Hwange, a family friend in Harare highly recommended we stay at The Hide and after checking out the website, we couldn’t resist…

Where to Stay in Hwange

If you research safari camps in Africa, you’ll find that the price per person is not cheap. These prices are all-inclusive, however, including your lodgings, all your food (see below how much that really is), your guide and jeep with two to three game drives per day, and just about anything you could ask for.

Though the price is hefty, the experience is priceless and I encourage you with all my heart to do it.

We stayed at the safari camp for three nights, giving us two full days and a part day to get the full safari experience. I tell you that the time was barely enough and by the last evening of sundowners, watching a most epic sunset, I was on the verge of tears because I didn’t want to leave. 

Now that we’re back home, there are parts of us still longing to go out on game drives. I think going on safari is what leads you to fall in love with Africa and especially with the country you’re in.

The Hide is pictured in the background of the picture above – yep, behind that giraffe out for a snack-run!

While you won’t find too many large animals in camp during the day, they can certainly trespass at night, but you’re so tired, you’ll be sleeping and you won’t be bothered!

Where is the Hide in Hwange?

Located on a private concession, The Hide sits on the edge of the park. With a watering hole out front, you’re apt to see a fair number of animals coming for a drink of fresh water. This is even truer as dry season takes its toll on the water resources.

If you look below that large building toward the left of the photo, you’ll see ‘the hide.’ It’s here that you can see the watering hole and any passersby below eye level.

On our last night at camp, my mom and I were out on a night drive. My brother stayed behind and saw an elephant and her baby come up for water. He was so close to the animals, it really took him by surprise.

There was something in the air that night, I think. We saw at least thirty elephants out on our drive which was quite spectacular.

This was the view from our tent cabin where you can see animals walking to the watering hole if you’re lucky. Usually we were out on game drives when they were thirsty, however.

You can start to imagine why we wanted to spend more time in Hwange. No matter how many elephants, giraffe, zebra, and yes even impala we saw, we were giddy to see even more!

Tent Cabins at The Hide

The Hide offers cabins that sleep two to four guests each (you can coordinate adjacent rooms or cabins depending on your needs). Toilets, sinks, and a bathtub (all with hot water and electricity) are in the cabin itself.

Our shower was just off the side of the cabin outside. It’s completely private, but you do get a view of the bush in front of the safari camp in case you’re able to catch some animals wandering by!

Can you imagine taking a bath with this view? Especially if some cute creature wandered by to the watering hole? Sadly, we didn’t have time to try this out. Well, honestly, we went on every game drive and/or walk possible and usually napped during siesta, but I think it’s reason enough to go back…

What do you do on Safari?

As for safari schedule – it’s a bit different. Wake up call is around 5:30. Breakfast (light with fruits, yogurts, and a few pastries) is at 6:00 in the main A-frame building (pictured below).

At 6:30, you load up for your drive. Depending on the season, you’ll share the jeep and guide with other guests, but that’s where the fun is. We shared our jeep with a lovely couple from Australia and we couldn’t have asked for better safari-mates.

Safari Guides

You’ll have the same guide for the duration of your stay, so you really have a tight-knit experience. Safari guides have been through specialized training and have tons of experience in being around animals in the bush.

Drivers know an astounding amount of information on characteristics and tendencies of everything from lions and wildebeests to banana birds, baboons, and helmeted guinea fowl.

Our guide, Sean was wonderful (linking to his Instagram so you can follow all his great photos when he’s out of safari). He humored all my crazy stops to snap photos for Instagram and mini photo shoots (a huge thank you to my brother for snapping all my pictures!!).

He also was incredibly knowledgeable about all the animals, including the amazing variety of birds. And most importantly, at times, he was also very calming  for us and the animals (including the time when an elephant got a little unhappy with us). We each had a wonderful time with him at the helm and never felt unsafe.

Safari Schedules | Morning

Ok, so 6:30 departure time. You’ll wander around the park, looking for animals (don’t worry, you always see them) until about 8 or 9ish.

Then you’ll stop at the “local coffee shop.” Your guide finds a great, safe place. Then comes the table, tablecloth, coffee/tea/hot chocolate (whatever you requested), muffins, fruit, and hard boiled eggs. And you enjoy coffee and coffee shop banter as part of a welcome break from all that hard work looking for animals!

You’ll head back to the main camp around 11:30 when you’ll have a little time to freshen up before lunch.

Meals are enjoyed with all other Hide guests. It’s a great time to compare notes on everyone’s safari trips and meet people from all around the world!

Then it’s siesta time. Siesta time is 3-4 hours. You wouldn’t think you need it, but let me tell you, that 5:30am wakeup call lends itself wonderfully to a nap, perhaps a shower, some reading, whatever you heart desires.

You can even hop on the wifi (located in one small part of camp and not the fastest thing in town, but it does the trick most days)!

Gather back at the main camp around 4 for afternoon coffee, tea, and homemade pastries that are divine. The cake and donuts we had were scrumptious!

Safari Schedules | Afternoon

At 4:30 it’s back in the jeep and out for the evening drive. It’s about the same protocol as the morning drive.

Instead of the “cafe,” you’ll enjoy sundowners (my new favorite thing). You can sip on whatever you ordered to drink. And they always provide snacks while watching the sun go down over the bush.

You all, this was my favorite part of each day. And if you’re wondering how to hold a glass of white wine, a phone in one hand to snap photos, and an actual camera in the other, the truth is that I don’t know, but I certainly tried.

One of the two things I highly recommend at The Hide is to go on a walk in lieu of an afternoon drive. You walk with your guide out from the camp, around the watering hole about a half-mile. We didn’t see many large animals (you’ll never guess, some impala in the distance).

It was, however, a wonderful change of pace. You end your walk over by the treehouse where you can spend a night (pictured at the bottom). And then members of the staff drive over a very upgraded sundowners bar – below as well. 

Safari Schedules | Evenings

After the afternoon drive, head back to the main camp, again for time to freshen up and then dinner. After dinner you can sit around the fire, head to bed, or head out on a night drive around 9:00.

We did two night drives and they are completely different than daytime drives. One of the best things was that I couldn’t take photos, so I really got to enjoy the experience. Your guide shines a large flashlight around and you look for eyes off in the distance.

Looking for bright eyes is actually easier than you’d think (though I’m far from great). You can also enjoy the southern sky of stars. Then it’s back home and time for bed…

I could spend hours sitting in the A-frame main building, reading, looking through my binoculars, just trying to take it all in. Isn’t it just breathtaking?

THE FOOD on Safari

Since you know the accommodations are good, then next most important question is the food. Of course, it’s amazing! Breakfast, lunch, dinner, desserts, and snacks are all made by the culinary staff on site.

The dish above is the inspiration for my avocado chickpea salad!

We enjoyed everything from curry and fish to chicken kebabs and pasta. Each meal was perfectly delicious – not too heavy and chock full of vegetables.

The staff was also incredibly accommodating, making vegetarian and gluten-free options available at every meal if previously requested. They handle any allergy or sensitivity wonderfully.

We requested a few peanut butter sandwiches to take on our trip away (we had a long day of travel ahead). They not only made us quite a few sandwiches, they cut the crusts off. Then they wrapped each half individually, and gave us fruit, muffins, and chips.

Even in our send off, they continued to shower us with food and love!

This is the wonderful sundowners setup after our safari walk where we watched the sunset in chairs with a full spread available to munch on and drink!

Suffice it to say, we had an exceptional time at The Hide and can’t wait to return. If you’re wondering if 2 long haul plane rides to the opposite side of the world is worth it? The answer is absolutely, if only for our safari experience.

Thank you to The Hide for compensating most of our stay. All opinions are of course my own. Thank you for supporting collaborations that make Luci’s Morsels (especially the travel) possible!