Beautiful, wild and remote, Mana Pools National Park is a UNESCO Natural World Heritage Site with pristine wilderness and abundant wildlife. Located on the floodplains of Africa’s Great Rift Valley, Mana Pools National Park lies in the heart of the Zambezi Valley, where the Zambezi River meanders to the Mozambican border. Much of the park is inaccessible except on foot and as a result is unspoilt and makes it one of the best locations in Africa for the walking safari.

The name ‘Mana” means ‘four’ in the local Shona language and refers to four large pools formed by the river as it changed course thousands of years ago. These pools hold water all year round thus acting as magnet to all manner of wildlife and waterfowl during the dry season months of May to October when other areas of the park are sparse of vegetation and water. Mana has a large population of hippo, elephants and massive crocodiles. Predators such as lion, wild dog and leopard are often sighted as kudu, zebra, eland, impala and waterbuck graze upon the open plains. Unfortunately there are no rhino is this area, however, Mana is famous for its population of elephant that have adapted to standing on their hind legs with their trunks at full stretch in order to feed off the rich nutritious pods from the top of the Ana trees.

Access is limited during the wet season months of December through to March as areas flood and the roads and tracks become too difficult to traverse. The best time to visit is during the dry season months of late April through to mid-November.