Is a walking safari at Mana Pools safe for beginners?

Yes. Walks are led by professional guides trained over years, who brief every group before setting out, keep a safe distance from large animals and pace the walk to the group. No bush experience is needed.

When is the best time to visit Mana Pools?

Late in the dry season, from about August to October, when the animals gather on the floodplain and along the river. The park is visited from about April to November, and most camps close in the rains.

Travel deep dive

Mana Pools, on Foot and by Canoe Along the Zambezi

Q: How do I get to Mana Pools?

By small aircraft from Harare, Kariba or Victoria Falls to the airstrips of the park, or by a long drive from Harare down the Zambezi escarpment, with the last stretch on dirt roads.

Mana Pools National Park lies in the north of Zimbabwe on the floodplain of the lower Zambezi, facing the escarpment and Zambia's Lower Zambezi park across the river. Its name, “four” in Shona, comes from the pools of old river channels on the floodplain, and its open woodland of winterthorn and mahogany draws elephant, buffalo and antelope down to the river in the dry season. Walking with a guide and canoeing on the river are the heart of a visit, and the park is a World Heritage site together with the Sapi and Chewore areas around it.

Updated 2026-10-08

The floodplain and its animals

The floodplain is open and park-like, with tall winterthorn trees, whose pods ripen in the dry season, and shady mahogany and fig. Elephants come to feed on the pods, and some bulls stand on their hind legs to reach the branches, a sight Mana is known for. Buffalo, waterbuck, eland, zebra and impala graze the plain, and lion, leopard, hyena and painted dogs hunt among them.

Walking with a guide

Mana Pools is one of the parks where walking is the main way to see the animals: professional guides, trained over years, lead small groups on foot across the open floodplain, reading tracks and wind and keeping a safe distance from elephant and buffalo. No experience is needed, and every walk begins with a briefing on the rules of the bush, on how to move and what to do around large animals.

Canoeing on the Zambezi

On the river, guided canoe trips glide past hippo pods, crocodiles on the sandbanks and elephants drinking at the bank, from an afternoon's paddle to journeys of several days between camps on the islands and shores. The guides keep the canoes in the shallows and away from the deep channels where the hippos rest.

Getting there and the season

Mana Pools is reached by small aircraft to the airstrips of the park, or by a long drive from Harare down the escarpment, the last stretch on dirt roads. The season runs from about April to November; the dry months, from about August to October, bring the animals to the river and the open floodplain, and in the rains most camps close and the roads become impassable.

This overview comes from Visaja's worldwide missions database (visaja.com), checked against official government sources; for binding answers, the mission itself always has the final word.