Maps and navigation
Hwange National Park map
An interactive map, the coordinates of the camps, gates and the waterholes worth planning your day around, plus how to navigate a park with no signal.
Download the official park map
ZimParks does not publish a downloadable Hwange map, which is a genuine gap. The most practical printed reference is the Tracks4Africa Hwange map, sold commercially, and the sketch maps handed out at Main Camp when you pay your fees.
Key coordinates
Save these before you go. Mobile coverage inside the park is patchy at best, and a set of waypoints in an offline app will get you out of trouble faster than anything else.
| Place | What it is | Coordinates |
|---|---|---|
| Main Camp | Main gate, ZimParks office, accommodation and airstrip | -18.6333, 26.9833 |
| Nyamandhlovu Pan | Elevated viewing platform, the best-known day hide | -18.6167, 26.9500 |
| Sinamatella | Northern camp on the escarpment above the Deka | -18.5833, 26.3833 |
| Robins Camp | North-western camp, highest lion density | -18.6292, 25.9861 |
| Masuma Dam | Exclusive picnic site and one of the park's best hides | -18.6000, 26.3000 |
| Ngweshla | Picnic site and prime dry-season game concentration | -19.0500, 27.0000 |
| Cross Mabale turn-off | Leave the A8 here for the 23 km tar road to Main Camp | -18.6167, 26.7000 |
Navigating Hwange
- Tracks4Africa covers Hwange properly, including the pans, picnic sites and which tracks are seasonal. Worth the money if you are self-driving.
- Download the Zimbabwe region in OsmAnd or Organic Maps as a free backup.
- Pick up the sketch map at Main Camp when you pay your fees, and ask which loops are open.
- Plan your day around pans rather than distance. In September a single good waterhole beats a hundred kilometres of driving.
The one rule that catches people out
You must be back in camp by 18:00, and gates open at 06:00. Hwange is big and the internal roads are slow, so work backwards from that curfew when you plan a route. Being late can bring a fine, and there is no driving after dark anywhere in the park.
Assume there is no fuel for sale inside Hwange. Fill up in Victoria Falls, Bulawayo, Hwange town or Dete and carry enough range for your whole circuit plus a reserve.