Mana Pools National Park
Mana Pools National Park offers a beautiful landscape, is Zimbabwe’s first UNESCO Natural World Heritage Site, and sits directly across the river from Lower Zambezi National Park in Zambia. The river is the park’s focal point and there are stunning views over the Zambezi Escarpment. The name “Mana” means “four” in the local Shona language, which refers to the four large pools inland from the Zambezi River that are home to hippos, crocodiles, elephants and a huge variety of aquatic birds. One of the iconic images of Southern Africa of mature elephants stretching up to feed on the fruits of the Ana Trees is in this park.
Mana Pools has seen several new high profile camps added in recent years and offers an excellent safari and birding experience. The wildlife is particularly good during the dry season (April to October) when animals are concentrated around the river in search of water.
Properties in Mana Pools offer plenty of water-based activities such as river cruises, canoeing, and catch and release fishing, as well as game drives, and bush walks. Like the properties in Zambia’s Lower Zambezi, many camps in Mana Pools are closed between January and March. Mana Pools can be easily combined with other parks in Zimbabwe or across Southern Africa.
