8 Day Zambezi Elephant Safari

Arrival / Zimbabwe

Once you’ve arrived in Johannesburg and have cleared customs and immigration, you’ll find a representative from African Sky waiting for you as you enter the arrival's hall. First, we’ll take care of a few formalities. You’ll be handed a complete tour folder containing all necessary documentation for your upcoming holiday, including e-tickets, accommodation, and transfer vouchers, a detailed itinerary and our emergency contact details. Our representative, as an experienced guide, will also gladly answer any questions you may have. Once formalities have been completed, you’ll be escorted to the appropriate departure terminal where you’ll be assisted in boarding a regional flight to Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe. On arrival, you’ll be met and transferred to the Victoria Falls Safari Club. The accommodation is ideally located on elevated ground and faces westwards, overlooking the Zambezi National Park. From the lodge, both wildlife sightings, especially elephants, and magnificent sunsets, are almost a daily occurrence. The lodge grounds also boast the popular Boma and Makuwa-Kuwa restaurants, offering traditional Zimbabwean fare and dancing displays. After check-in and some time spent relaxing, you’ll enjoy a tour of the mighty Victoria Falls, locally known as ‘Mosi-oa-Tunya’ or the ‘the smoke that thunders’. The Falls span an impressive 1,704 meters in width and, at their highest, plunge 108 meters into the turbulent gorge below, creating an impressive display of mist and rain. The Falls are definitely a worthy member of the seven natural wonders of the world.

Hwange National Park

After breakfast (time to be announced), you’ll be transferred to the Victoria Falls Airport. There you’ll board a light aircraft flight south to Zimbabwe’s flagship Hwange National Park. On arrival, you’ll be met and transferred to the luxury Linkwasha Camp in a private concession of the enormously productive south-eastern corner of Hwange.

As Zimbabwe’s largest wildlife reserve, and the third largest in Africa, Hwange finds itself part of one of the world’s largest wildlife refuges, the Kavango–Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area, a cross-border conservation effort formally established in 2011 and incorporating an area of approximately 444 000 sq. kilometers (171 000 sq. miles) of African wilderness. The region spans five countries and sixteen national parks, including Hwange, and is without a doubt home to Africa’s largest elephant population - an estimated 207 000 animals. The initiative aims not only to protect the region’s wildlife, but also the livelihood of its rural communities, particularly folks who find themselves in daily conflict with animals such as lion and elephant which destroy livestock and crops and pose a threat to human lives.

Hwange was once the royal hunting grounds of the Ndebele warrior-king Mzilikazi and was set aside as a national park in 1929. The reserve boasts a tremendous selection of wildlife, with over 100 species of mammals and nearly 400 bird species recorded. Consisting of moist and dry woodland, as well as numerous waterholes, you’re all but guaranteed excellent sightings of African elephant - but elephants are not the only animals you’ll encounter. Large herds of Cape buffalo are often seen around waterholes. Zebra, wildebeest, and eland gather in great numbers on the Ngamo Plains, particularly in winter, when enormous numbers of elephant are also seen. The stately sable and roan antelope, uncommon in most parks in Africa, are also sighted regularly in Hwange. It wouldn’t be unreasonable to expect to see the more common species too - animals such as giraffe, kudu, impala, waterbuck, baboon, lion, spotted hyena, wild dog, and leopard – all of which are endemic to the region and sighted by most visitors to the park. Hwange’s conditions make for a very worthwhile African safari experience indeed.

Your activities take place during periods of peak wildlife activity - the early morning, late afternoon and evening. The remainder of your day may be spent enjoying the creature comforts of your luxurious accommodations.

Livingstone

Your morning is devoted to visiting the falls section of the ‘ Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park. The local name translates in English to ‘the smoke that thunders’ and has been commonly used in the area for many hundreds of years. The sanctuary affords incredible views in all directions. A walk across the knife-edge bridge with the Falls thundering into the chasm below is sure to be an exciting prospect. During peak flow, the mist rising above the Falls can be seen from as far as sixty kilometers away. At the Falls entrance, there is also an extensive African curio market, and guests may take some time to view the different arts and crafts on display before returning to their accommodation around lunchtime. Your last afternoon in Zambia may be spent at leisure enjoying the facilities at your luxury accommodations.