Reviews of Mana Pools (From 12 Acclaimed Safari Experts)

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Philip Briggs –

ZA

Visited: Dry season

Philip is an acclaimed travel writer and author of many guidebooks, including the Bradt guides to Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya and South Africa.

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Walking with Elephants

Overall rating

4/5

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Bush Vibe:

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It seems sacrilegious to say so, but after having heard so much about Mana Pools over the years, when I did finally get to visit this legendary park in 2023, the reality was slightly disappointing. To be fair, this is largely because my expectations had been raised sky high. One of my favorite parks anywhere in Africa is Lower Zambezi National Park, which stands on the Zambian bank of the Zambezi facing Mana Pools, and I’d been led to expect that its Zimbabwean counterpart was even better – which, ultimately, I don’t think it is.

Mana Pools’ main claim to fame is that it is probably the only park of comparable stature where tourists are permitted to walk unguided among the Big Five (actually, Big Four, as rhino are absent). In practice, however, it would be extremely risky for an ordinary tourist to walk here without an experienced guide, and although all camps in Mana Pools do offer guided walks, the same is true for most other parks in Zimbabwe. Mana Pools’ other big selling point is the possibility of canoeing safaris on the Zambezi, but unlike in Zambia, many camps don’t actually offer river trips, which I found slightly disappointing.

Having said that, had I visited Mana Pools cold, without having heard all the hype, I would have found it to be hugely impressive. The Zambezi floodplain is absolutely teeming with wildlife in the dry season, and guided walks here are absolutely fantastic, offering an opportunity to get close to large herds of elephant and buffalo, as well as zebra, eland, impala, waterbuck and warthog. We also had great sightings of lions, and were told that African wild dogs are regularly seen in midwinter, when they tend to stick close to their dens to protect their pups. Leopard sightings are uncommon by comparison to Lower Zambezi, in large part because night drives are forbidden. I was also impressed by the birdlife, particularly the high concentrations of large raptors – we regularly saw five different species of eagle on a single game drive.

I’m conscious that this review might come across as more negative than intended. If that’s the case, look at my ratings, or a few other reviews, and you’ll see that these are uniformly high. Let me be clear: Mana Pools is undoubtedly worth including on any safari itinerary. But it should be approached with realistic expectations, and in my opinion, among Zimbabwe’s major parks, it ranks significantly below Hwange when it comes to general game viewing, and feels less wild and remote than Matusadona or Gonarezhou.

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Ariadne van Zandbergen –

ZA

Visited: May

Ariadne is a renowned African wildlife photographer whose work is featured in many well-known guidebooks and magazines.

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Walking with Elephants

Overall rating

4/5

Wildlife:

Bush Vibe:

Scenery:

Birding:

mighty Zambezi River. This wilderness extends across the river into Lower Zambezi National Park in Zambia, with the backdrop of the Zambezi escarpment in the distance.

The park is very seasonal. While animals disperse and lodges close in the wet season, the riverfront area teems with wildlife in the dry season. We arrived the first week of May, just days after the park reopened and we almost had the place to ourselves. We know the floodplains can get quite congested at times, so being so early in the season worked in our favour on that front. The payoff was that animals were still spread out so soon after the rains, so wildlife viewing wasn’t as good as I’d hoped for.

The open floodplains offer great opportunities for foot safaris and many days we opted for a mix of walking and driving. While Mana Pools is known as the only park in Africa where unguided walking is permitted, I hope nobody would be crazy enough to head out into the bush alone unless they have a lot of experience in that kind of thing. All camps in Mana Pools have at least one excellent, highly qualified guide on site for walking safaris. Not only will they keep you safe, but their extensive knowledge also adds a lot to the experience.

Clichéd as it may be, my highlight was getting close on foot to one of the big tuskers. As he was snacking on winterthorn pods, I was secretly hoping he would do what the local bulls are known for. And he did. He stretched and reached…couldn’t quite make it and eventually balanced his massive body while standing on his two hind feet, reaching high with his trunk to grab what must be the tastiest of all pods. Success all around. He got the pod, and I got the photo.

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Lizzie Williams –

ZA

Visited: Dry season

Lizzie is a reputed guidebook writer and author of the Footprint guides to South Africa, Namibia, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

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A Beautiful Riverside Environment in the Tranquil Zambezi Valley

Overall rating

4/5

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Although Mana Pools is not as popular as Hwange due to its greater distance from Victoria Falls, I think it definitely has the edge on jaw-dropping scenery. The lazy meanderings of the Zambezi provide a lovely river frontage flanked by forests of wild fig and ebony trees, and the mountainous Zambian escarpment is a beautiful backdrop. On our visit, the river couldn’t have been a better environment for game viewing. We saw large groups of herbivores congregating on the floodplains, while the only sounds that disturbed the peaceful setting were the splashing of a lone bull elephant in the shallows and the thud of a crocodile as it slithered into the water. The park is also home to a number of predators including lion, African wild dog and spotted hyena, and despite them being difficult to see, it’s not often that a visitor leaves Mana Pools without seeing at least one of the carnivores.

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Dale R Morris –

ZA

Visited: Multiple times

Dale is a multi-award-winning writer and photographer with more than 500 published magazine articles featured in magazines such as National Geographic, BBC Wildlife, Travel Africa, and CNN Travel.

Chilled-Out Tuskers

Overall rating

4/5

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I have stayed in both luxury accommodations and basic tented camps alongside the great Zambezi River in the Unesco World Heritage Mana Pools National Park, and have come to the conclusion that both have their merits.

Of course, if staying in an upmarket lodge, one can expect scrumptious food, fantastic guided game drives and hikes. The rooms/glamping tents are beautiful, and wildlife often saunters past your mosquito-screened windows.

If camping, expect to be thrilled, especially at night when the big game can and typically does hang around your fragile domicile.

I recall one evening not sleeping a wink because I had been stupid enough to erect my tent beneath the shade of a tree, the fruits of which, I discovered, much to my chagrin, were the favored food of elephants and hippos. They munched, belched and farted, and broke branches throughout the night, and just when I thought I might be able to sleep through some of it, a huge tusker started headbutting the tree in order to knock more fruit to the ground. It was like trying to doze through a giant hailstorm. I had bags under my eyes in the morning. But to be honest, it was so exhilarating, I’ll never ever forget it.

Mana Pools is a beautiful park. There are riverside forests and open plains too, as well as the river and a series of small lakes (after which the park is named).

You’ll likely see lions and hyenas (sometimes right next to your accommodation) as well as the usual safari staples. Wild dogs are commonly seen. But for me, the stars of the Mana Pools show are the big bull elephants that are super chilled and unconcerned with humans (even if you are on foot).

Some of them have picked up the habit of rising up on their back legs (like a circus performing elephant) to reach leaf-laden branches, the spoils from which they will often share with their ladies.

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Brian Jackman –

UK

Visited: Multiple times

Brian is an award winning travel writer, author of safari books and regular contributor to magazines such as BBC Wildlife and Travel Africa.

Wild Adventures in a Land of Giants

Overall rating

4/5

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Mana Pools, a pristine wilderness larger than Surrey, became a Unesco World Heritage Site in 1988. The mile-wide Zambezi runs along its northern border, forming a natural barrier between Zimbabwe and Zambia. Back in camp at the end of the day you can sit with a sundowner and watch the sky change color from apple green to burning orange behind the 4000ft contours of the escarpment on the Zambian side of the river. No wonder many visitors consider this park to be the most beautiful in Africa.

Mana means ‘four’ in the local Shona language and refers to a quartet of oxbow lagoons created by the river’s former meanderings, but the park’s greatest glories are the open woodlands that grow at the edge of the floodplains. Here, all around, giant trees reach for the light: sausage trees, massive strangler figs and groves of evergreen Natal mahoganies. But most impressive of all are the majestic glades of winter thorns.

Arching overhead like the tracery of a medieval cathedral, their interlocking branches create endless aisles of dappled shade beneath which, in the company of legendary walking guides such as Stretch Ferreira, you can go looking for lions and wild dogs or close encounters with the park’s big tuskers.

The elephants like to hang out in the jesse – the dense scrub that blankets the park’s hinterland. But during the day as the heat builds up there is a general movement toward the woodlands. First come the breeding herds and then the solitary bulls, lured by the opportunity to feast on the winter thorns’ nutritious seedpods. Then, with luck, you might meet some of the best-known individuals, such as Boswell, who has learned to stand on his hind legs to pluck the choicest pods with his trunk.

Although the Zambezi Valley has lost all its black rhinos and large numbers of elephants to the poachers, it is still in good shape, with a choice of genuine bush camps such as Ruckomechi (ideal for canoe trips on the Zambezi) and Vundu Camp.

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Harriet Nimmo –

ZA

Visited: Multiple times

Harriet is a zoologist with more than 20 years’ experience. She has the privilege of working with the world’s top wildlife photographers and photo-guides.

Mana From Heaven

Overall rating

4/5

Wildlife:

Bush Vibe:

Scenery:

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Mana Pools is about as wild as it gets – particularly as you are allowed to walk here. It never feels very busy, as long as you avoid southern African school holidays. Mana Pools is one of the most beautiful reserves in all of Africa, with its mighty Zambezi River frontage, the eponymous pools and the hauntingly photogenic glades of large riverine trees. Add to this beautiful scene groups of elephant moving through the sunlit forest. If you’re really lucky, you might also see one of the old bulls standing on his hind legs to reach the branches of the trees to eat. It is thought there are just a handful of bulls who have learnt this trick. I have also always been lucky with wild dogs here – though somewhat frustratingly, each time they have materialised on the last hour of the very last game drive.

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