Mhara River Bush Camp is a truly natural and pristine private camp – tucked away and untouched for centuries.

Where to find us

Mhara River Bush Camp is situated under shady rain trees (Philenoptera Violacae) on high ground with stunning views of the Chitake River 50 meters below. The backdrop is the wild and untouched Zambezi escarpment.

The camp

Your room

With just six tented en suite rooms, your stay at Mhara River Bush Camp promises to be a secluded, luxury experience. Accommodation is provided in spacious tents, each with large gauze windows, crafted wooden doors to ensure security, and carefully sited to ensure stunning views and privacy.

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The lounge & dining area

With breathtaking views over the Chitake riverbed, our spacious lounge & dining area is the ideal spot to read your book, get your binoculars out to scan the horizon and enjoy your breakfast, afternoon tea, drinks and dinners at Mhara. Lifted up over the riverbed, this area benefits from a gentle breeze even in the warmer months.

Activities during your stay

Expect to be woken by the glorious morning chorus of birdsong, perhaps with a view of an elephant or baboon walking through the riverbed in the distance, ready for a new day of adventure through the African bush. We tend to begin our mornings at Mhara with a warm cup of tea or coffee before setting off on a game drive with your professional guide, eyes peeled for leopard, lion, or maybe even the ever evasive African Pitta.

Some mornings, this drive may lead to a tranquil teatime or a full breakfast in the bush, with condensed milk coffee, homemade biscuits, mealie meal porridge (a local favourite!) and even stretching to a full english in the cooling shade of a sausage tree.

For those looking for a more active adventure, we offer guided walks through the bush, enabling you to explore our concession on foot.

Your evening game drives end with sundowners. We find that gin and tonics are best served cold and with a view of an inimitable African sunset, so get ready to toast the end to every day of your trip. Finally, as we operate a private concession, you have the opportunity to go on night drives, getting to discover the mysterious nightlife of Mhara. From catching glimpses of serval and genet to watching owls and nightjars take flight, our night drives are a highlight of any trip to Mhara.

Frequently Asked Questions

By air: it’s easy to fly into Mana Pools National Park from Harare International Airport. A charter flight to Rukomechi Airstrip will be an hour and twenty minutes. Your flight will be met by our guide on arrival, where you will begin your safari experience with a game drive to Mhara River, with a drink of your choice in hand.

We’d recommend booking your charter flight through Grand Air Charters, who provide a highly personal, attentive service.
By road: The drive from Zimbabwe’s capital Harare to Mhara River Bush Camp is approximately 6 hours. The journey will take you through some of Zimbabwe’s main cities.
We do have free wifi available at Mhara River Bush Camp, which is great for keeping in touch with friends and family while you travel – although we’d always recommed you use your stay as a much needed chance to disconnect from devices and reconnect with nature!
Yes, Mana Pools is situated within a malaria area. In our area malaria tends to be seasonal but we recommend that all guests obtain professional medical advice regarding malarial prophylaxis before travelling. We also advise using insect repellant in the evenings while on safari. Wearing long sleeves also reduces the chances of being bitten by mosquitos.
We regularly spray our tents against mosquitos and other insects, and all of our rooms are fitted with mosquito nets.
We take a maximum of 7 guests per vehicle (unless requested to take more) thereby guaranteeing that each of our guests enjoys an outside seat.
Every tent is supplied with solar powered electricity, with multiple plugs for charging any devices.

We have type G plug points, which is the plug that three rectangular pins in a triangular pattern (the same as UK plugs).