Best Hotels & Lodges

Located in the heart of the Zambezi River area, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, you will find Mana River Camp – one of the most friendly and comfortable safari camps in the country. Notorious too for its delicious cuisine! Providing a warm family atmosphere of a home-away-from-home, the camps are owned and managed by Machaba Safaris - and their dedicated team. The camps offer a comfortable, homely and authentic safari experience where guests are welcomed with warmth and pleasure. Wildlife highlights include herds of buffalo and elephant, leopards, lions and packs of African wild dogs.

Ingwe Pan is situated at a secluded pan in the wilderness area of Mana Pools National Park, just a few kilometres inland of the Zambezi River and within walking distance of the Chiruwe river bed. The pan is one of the biggest in the park and is surrounded by a grove of large ebony trees. A magnificent fig and ancient ebony form the canopy of the main lounge and dining area of the camp. An ancient baobab is a few minutes walk from the camp and the perfect spot for picnics and sundowners in the evening. The camp comprises eight spacious and elegantly furnished tents tucked in amongst the trees on the edge of the pan, all with an uninterrupted view of the water.

This Peruvian-owned boutique sits right alongside the rushing Vilcanota River, a two-minute stroll from the train station. With only 28 rooms dressed in polished wood, Andean textiles and slate-stone bathrooms, it's reassuringly intimate. The fern-filled Manka restaurant does a surprisingly accomplished multi-course dinner using local ingredients, breakfast is a generous spread served from the crack of dawn (essential for early citadel starts), and the K'intu Spa (river-view jacuzzi, anyone?) is exactly what tired legs need. The warm staff and that constant soundtrack of rushing water make it one of the most comfortable bases in town.