Hwange safari itineraries: 3 to 7 nights, with Victoria Falls and Chobe (2026)

How many days you need in Hwange

Three nights is the minimum that works, four is better, and five lets you see two different parts of the park. The reason is the approach. In 2026 the 195 km from Victoria Falls to the Main Camp gate takes 3 to 4 hours on a road under reconstruction, so on a self-drive trip your arrival and departure days are each half a day of driving. Two nights leaves you one full day in the park.

The park is also big: 14,650 km², and Main Camp to Robins through the park is 145 km of 4x4 track that takes half a day. One area for three nights, or two areas over five, is the sensible rhythm. If you fly in to a concession camp, the 30 to 45 minute light aircraft from Victoria Falls gives back most of those driving hours, and three nights becomes a genuine three days of game viewing.

Everything below assumes the dry season. August to October is when the pumped pans concentrate the game, and our best time to visit page covers the other months.

Rules that shape every Hwange day

• Gates open at 06:00 and close at 18:00, and you must be back in camp by 18:00. There is no driving after dark inside the park.
• Night drives happen only on the private concessions and forestry land bordering the park, never on the public roads.
• There is no fuel for sale in the park, including at Main Camp. Fill up in Victoria Falls, Hwange town or Dete.
• The internal roads need a high-clearance 4x4, and from December to March 4x4 is essential everywhere.
• Light aircraft limit you to 20 kg per person in soft bags, camera gear included.
• Sleeping inside the park halves your entry fee: $12 per international adult per day against $24 on a day visit (ZimParks tariff, February 2026).

Three nights, self-drive: Main Camp and the southern pans

The classic first Hwange trip, and one of the cheapest good safaris in Africa. You drive from Victoria Falls, sleep at Main Camp, and spend two full days on the loop of pumped pans south of the gate. It works in an ordinary high-clearance car to the gate; for the park loops take a 4x4. The line-by-line arithmetic is on our costs page.

1. Night beforeSleep in Victoria Falls, fill the tank and jerry cans, shop at the supermarket and carry US dollars in small notes.
2. Day 1Leave at 06:00, reach the Main Camp gate between 09:00 and 10:00, pay fees, set up. Afternoon at Nyamandhlovu Pan, ten kilometres from camp. Back by 18:00.
3. Day 2Early drive on the southern pan loop, a long midday sit at a hide, afternoon drive. For the second night, swap the tent for a Guvalala or Makwa sleep-out platform above a waterhole, $60 per person.
4. Day 3Full day on the pans, ending back at Main Camp.
5. Day 4Dawn drive, then out of the gate by late morning and 3 to 4 hours back to Victoria Falls.

Three nights, guided: Robins Camp or a fly-in concession

If you would rather be driven, two three-night plans cover most budgets. The first is Robins Camp in the far north-west, the closest part of the park to Victoria Falls by time. The second is a fly-in to a private concession in the south-east, where the camp meets you at its airstrip and runs every activity.

• Robins, day 1: Victoria Falls to Robins Camp by road, 45 km of tar to the Matetsi turn-off, then graded dirt, about two hours in all. Afternoon game drive.
• Robins, days 2 and 3: two guided game drives a day included, plus time at the Big Toms, Little Toms and Croc Pools hides.
• Robins, day 4: morning drive, then about two hours back to Victoria Falls.
• Fly-in, day 1: a 30 to 45 minute light aircraft from Victoria Falls to the camp's strip, met by the camp. Afternoon activity.
• Fly-in, days 2 and 3: morning and afternoon activities, a hide session at midday, and a night drive or walk where the concession allows it.
• Fly-in, day 4: morning activity, flight back to Victoria Falls in time for an onward connection.

Five nights, self-drive: Robins, Sinamatella and Main Camp

The best self-drive route in the park runs north-west to south-east, so you see the quiet Robins sector, the Sinamatella cliff and the busy southern pans in one trip, and only drive the A8 roadworks once. You need a high-clearance 4x4 and full self-sufficiency for this one; book the ZimParks nights with ZimParks and Robins with Robins.

1. Day 1Victoria Falls to Robins Camp via Matetsi, about two hours. Afternoon at the Robins hides. Night at the fenced Robins campsite, $40 per person.
2. Day 2Full day in the Robins sector, known for the park's biggest buffalo herds. Second night at Robins.
3. Day 3Drive east via Deteema to Sinamatella, with a stop at Mandavu Dam. Camp on the cliff above the Deka valley.
4. Day 4South past Masuma Dam and its hide, then on to Main Camp. Main Camp to Robins is 145 km and half a day end to end, so leave early and be in by 18:00.
5. Day 5Southern pan loop from Main Camp, or a night on the Guvalala platform.
6. Day 6Dawn drive, then 3 to 4 hours on the A8 back to Victoria Falls.

Five nights, fly-in: north-west and south-east

Two camps in two very different parts of the park: the Robins sector for permanent water and lions, then a south-eastern concession for the big pumped pans of the Kennedy Vlei line.

1. Day 1Light aircraft from Victoria Falls to Robins airstrip, 15 to 20 minutes, then a 30-minute game drive transfer to Nantwich Lodge. Afternoon drive.
2. Day 2Drives and a night drive on Nantwich's concession; afternoon by the infinity pool over the dam.
3. Day 3Transfer to the south-east. Your camps arrange it, by light aircraft or by road through the park; neither operator publishes the time or price, so ask for both when you book.
4. Days 3 to 5Somalisa Expeditions on the Kennedy Vlei concession: walking, the elephant pool and a treehouse sleep-out for couples.
5. Day 6Morning activity and flight back to Victoria Falls.

Combination route: Victoria Falls and Hwange

Almost every Hwange trip starts and ends at Victoria Falls International (VFA), so the simplest combination is to give the Falls two nights at the start. You land, see the Falls in spray, provision, and leave for the park rested on the third morning.

1. Day 1Fly into Victoria Falls. Afternoon at the Falls rainforest path.
2. Day 2A free day in Victoria Falls; supermarket and fuel in the afternoon if you drive yourself.
3. Day 3Leave at 06:00 for Ivory Lodge, in the Sikumi Forest fifteen minutes from the Main Camp gate, on tar the whole way. Allow 3 to 4 hours in 2026. Afternoon at the floodlit waterhole.
4. Days 4 and 5Guided drives into the park, a night drive on the concession and time in the ground-level hide.
5. Day 6Morning drive, then back to Victoria Falls for an afternoon flight.

Combination route: Chobe and Hwange

Chobe in Botswana adds what Hwange lacks: a river, boat cruises and hippo in numbers. Kasane, Chobe's town, is about 95 km of tar from Victoria Falls through the Kazungula Road border, which the Botswana side keeps open from 06:00 to 20:00. For self-drivers with a 4x4 there is a back door: the Pandamatenga border, about 110 km south of Kasane and open 08:00 to 17:00, is about 57 km and 1.5 hours of rough 4x4 track from Robins.

1. Day 1Land at Victoria Falls, road transfer or drive to Kasane, about 1.5 hours plus the border.
2. Days 1 to 3Two nights at a Kasane riverfront lodge: boat cruises and game drives on the Chobe riverfront.
3. Day 3Kasane to Pandamatenga and across to Robins Camp (4x4), or back via Victoria Falls and the Matetsi road.
4. Days 3 to 6Three nights at Robins Camp with two game drives a day.
5. Day 6About two hours to Victoria Falls for the flight home.

Which kind of camp fits each leg

On a self-drive trip, mix ZimParks nights with one serviced stay. Main Camp and Sinamatella keep the cost down, a Guvalala platform night gives you the story, and two nights at Robins Camp let someone else drive and cook. Kapula Private Camp near Masuma Dam is the step between, serviced but self-catering.

On a fly-in trip, pick camps on different concessions rather than two on the same one, and include at least one with night drives: Wilderness Linkwasha, Verney's Camp, Nantwich Lodge or Khulu Bush Camp. If walking matters, put Camp Hwange or Hwange Bush Camp in the plan; Hwange Bush Camp opens only from April to November.

With children, base yourself at Ivory Lodge (from age two, fenced) or Somalisa Acacia. Many concession camps set minimum ages of 6 to 12, so check each leg. Our where to stay page has the full list with prices.

Booking an itinerary

ZimParks camps, platforms and picnic sites are booked only with ZimParks, by email to info@zimparks.org.zw or by phone, with no online system. Robins Camp books through its own site or by email. The concession camps book with the operator or through a safari specialist, and flights between strips are nearly always arranged by the lodge or the specialist who books it.

For August to October, book concession camps six to twelve months ahead and the ZimParks platforms as soon as your dates are firm. We do not take bookings ourselves; a booking request sent through this site goes to a safari specialist we work with, who may pay us a commission. Routes and roads are covered on our getting there page.