The Elephant Camp West

Each of the Luxury Tented Suites at The Elephant Camp West is able to cater for up to four guests, making them ideal for families staying together. All the tented suites face out towards the gorge, allowing guests constant enjoyment of the stunning views of the river below.

Guests can sit out on their private viewing deck and enjoy the panoramic views from the comfort of a sunbed or from the refreshing waters of your personal plunge pool. Each suite contains a king-size bed with two additional fold-out sleeper beds, all of which are protected by mosquito nets.

The bedrooms lead on to your en-suite bathroom with both indoor and outdoor showers, a bathtub, flush toilet and porcelain basin. The suites also include a private lounge area to give a homely space for spending time together.

To maintain a comfortable climate, you will be provided with both air-conditioning and overhead fans, and refreshments are readily available from both your complimentary minibar and tea and coffee station.

Guests staying at The Elephant Camp West can look forward to 3 delicious meals each day. Breakfast is served from 8 am, with earlier breakfast available on request, and consists of a continental buffet and cooked food.

Guests can then venture out on their first activity of the day before returning for lunch between 12.30 pm and 2.30 pm. This will be from a set menu with either meat or vegetarian options and finishes with a light dessert. Dinner is served in the evening and consists of a three-course meal, before a nightcap at the camp’s fully stocked bar.

Take a day trip to one of the seven natural wonders of the world and enjoy the breathtaking scenery that Victoria Falls has to offer. Guests can stand in the footsteps of David Livingstone, the first European explorer to discover the falls, and watch the cascading water as it gushes over basaltic rocks.

Visit the rainforest that lies beneath the largest waterfall in the world, and view the incredible species of mammals, reptiles, amphibians and insects that thrive in the humid conditions. Guests can also walk along the viewing bridge and enjoy incredible views of the face of the waterfall as froth and foam churn below and rainbow hues linger in the air.

Enjoy a delicious lunch and drinks against the backdrop of the world’s largest waterfall at the Lookout Cafe. This can be booked to coincide with a tour of the falls or enjoyed as an additional trip. Admire the cascading water without getting soaked and take in the peaceful atmosphere with the rushing sounds of water in the background.

Explore the bush on foot on a guided walk, and experience the smaller details that make safaris more immersive. Your experienced guide will be able to teach you how to recognise tracks, and follow clues left in the wilderness that will lead to incredible game viewing opportunities.

Get up close to zebra, impala, sable, wildebeest, kudu and warthogs and look out for dazzling, colourful insects that are often overlooked. The Wild Horizons Wildlife Sanctuary is also home to over 420 bird species.

Walking safaris allow you to explore at your own pace, without the noise of an engine to startle the wildlife, and take advantage of incredible photographic opportunities.

Gather at the rim of the Batoka Gorge and admire the raging rapids of the Zambezi River as they surge 120 metres below you. Guests can watch the sun sink beneath the horizon while enjoying refreshing cocktails and canapes in this hidden and idyllic spot.

Take a trip to a nearby rural village and meet local people as they teach you about their beliefs, lifestyles and customs. Learn the traditional values that the community embodies, and take a tour of the area to aid in your learning about a different way of life without many of the modern luxuries that often get in the way of connecting with others. Build relationships with the local people and broaden your understanding of others.

Take a tour of the Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust, adjacent to the lodge, and learn about the conservation initiatives and community empowerment programmes run by The Elephant Camp and Wild Horizons. Guests can visit the High-Care Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre and learn about the research projects that are contributing to the conservation of Zimbabwe’s wildlife from a team of passionate wildlife experts.

Guests can go and visit the elephants at the Wild Horizons Elephant Sanctuary and Orphanage and connect with the residents who are currently under rehabilitation. The herds are able to roam freely through the wilderness concession and are not confined in any way.

Guests can learn more about elephants and listen to a presentation in an open thatch boma that informs about Wild Horizons’ rescue-rehabilitate-release programme.

Take the canopy tour of Victoria Falls and enjoy an exciting exploration while overlooking the beautiful cascading water. Travel along the network of slides, trails and rope bridges over the Batoka Gorge and enjoy amazing views of the Zambezi rapids. Guests can enjoy a bird’s eye view of one of the world’s natural wonders on this family-friendly activity.

Drift along the waters of the Zambezi River with a beverage in your hand and watch the silhouettes of elephants wander across the horizon as the sun dips behind the rolling hills, casting a burnt orange glow across the floodplains and sky.

Enjoy watching the landscape transform before the glimmering stars begin to emerge, and Zimbabwe’s nocturnal creatures begin to stir. The cruise lasts for two hours, and guests will be served canapes and cocktails while enjoying a presentation on the river by the boat’s captain.

Venture out on an exciting game drive and explore the Wild Horizons Wildlife Sanctuary from the comfort of a specialised safari vehicle. The lodge’s knowledgeable guides will be able to teach you interesting facts about the incredible animals of Zimbabwe, as well as showing you the best spots for viewing game.

Look out for elephants, zebras, waterbuck, buffalo, lions, impala and hippos as you traverse the sweeping grassland and floodplains and roam the African wilderness. The freedom of a private concession means that guests can wander in any direction and search for the animals that interest them the most.

The Elephant Camp West is a Wild Horizons safari lodge. Wild Horizons works with the local community around Victoria Falls in order to collaborate on projects that empower local people and raise awareness for conserving the environment.

Wild Horizons has a community outreach program that works to reduce conflict between wildlife and humans, educate local people about conservation and provides machinery for cutting and transporting thatching which is then used in constructing homes.

Wild Horizons also aim to employ local people, with 80% of their team from the immediate vicinity, and they ‘strive to ensure that they feel fulfilled, rewarded and valued as ambassadors of Wild Horizons.’

Wild Horizons gives support to the Katombora scouts and sponsors three officers employed by the Victoria Falls Anti-Poaching Unit to help protect the local wildlife.

‘We believe that sustainability relies on the combined effort of our Victoria Falls community. The National Parks Game Scouts are invaluable in protecting our wilderness and wildlife. We provide support to the Katombora scouts in the form of food and fuel to assist in the National Parks anti-poaching efforts in Kazungula and the Matetsti areas of Zimbabwe.’

Wild Horizons source and distribute raincoats to ‘an association of vendors who hire them out to guests visiting the Victoria Falls rainforest.’ This project allows the vendors to gain an income and provide for their families. So far over 30 vendors are receiving the benefits of this initiative.

Wild Horizons supports future generations by paying the school fees for 67 children at eight rural schools within the region. This allows children to receive a crucial education and improves their employability prospects, helping to end the cycle of poverty.

Wild Horizons also contributes to the salaries of employees at the local old age home. Once every year, Wild Horizons donates gas for their stove and host a meal for the home’s residents.

Wild Horizons established the Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust, which is a non-profit initiative that focuses on promoting awareness for conservation and the environment through the sustainable use of endemic resources. The trust works alongside authorities, local communities and other stakeholders in order to protect animals, wildlife and plants within the Wild Horizons Wildlife Sanctuary.

Wild Horizons also offer experiences for local children, transporting them to the trust where they can learn about the work that is done there and be inspired to join the next generation of conservationists.

‘Annually, over a thousand school children are transported to the Trust, where they have the opportunity to interact with the wildlife ambassadors and learn from a team of passionate conservationists, who become their role models and mentors. By addressing the next generation of decision-makers, we hope to inspire them to care for their natural heritage and to become the guardians of these areas in the future.’

The Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust has a veterinary laboratory and clinic which researchers, vets and graduates can study zoonotic diseases which are transmitted across species. This allows them to collect data to help stop the spread of diseases which can cause ‘epidemic crashes of keystone wildlife species’ and prevent public health issues.

The trust also runs a Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre which provides veterinary care to injured, orphaned and abandoned wildlife. Wildlife can be harmed when animals cross paths with humans. Snares, conflict and vehicles all pose hazards to wildlife and the trust works to help animals recover from these terrible events.

Additionally, the trust runs research projects into the factors that help or hinder wildlife populations to find ways of better protecting them.

A qualified environmental officer visits the camp twice each year in order to monitor the biology of the Wild Horizons Wildlife Sanctuary. Biological surveys are conducted to monitor the orphaned elephant herd and naturally occurring wildlife that has made its home on the property to track the effects that they have on the environment. Invasive vegetation within the reserve is also removed and soil erosion is managed.

Wild Horizons work to make sure that their lodges are built in a way that minimises the impact on the environment. Their Elephant Camp was built out of eco-friendly materials, using ‘60% bamboo and 40% recycled plastic’. Bamboo is a sustainable material as it grows very quickly, and recycling plastic means that it avoids going to the landfill.

In the construction of The Elephant Camp West, minimal bush clearing was carried out in order to protect the natural surroundings and wildlife. Wild Horizons have also banned single-use plastics at their lodges and provide guests with reusable water bottles to prevent plastic waste.

Wild Horizons use sewage systems in their camps in order to treat wastewater and produce greywater which is then used for irrigation on their indigenous tree nursery. Organic waste from the kitchen is recycled by their worm farm and becomes a chemical-free compost which also helps the trees in the nursery as well as the vegetable garden.

All of the geysers at Wild Horizons’ Elephant Camp West are powered by solar, and the geysers at the main Elephant Camp are currently being converted to solar-powered ones. All 24 geysers at Old Drift Lodge are solar-powered and the suites are fitted with low power, inverter type air-conditioners that are designed to limit any negative impacts on the environment.

The Elephant Camp is driven to help protect elephants. The Wild Horizons Elephant Sanctuary and Orphanage focuses on rescuing injured and orphaned elephants from the wild where they may struggle to survive, providing a safe space for their rehabilitation where they will be cared for and given all the attention they need, and then releasing them when and if it is safe to do so.

‘We strongly believe that ultimately the best environment for all elephants is in the wild and we strive to ensure that as many animals as possible return to a wild environment. Rescue – rehabilitate – release.’

The Elephant Sanctuary and Orphanage was set up in 1992, when four orphaned elephants rescued from a culling operation in Hwange National Park were given a desperately needed home by Wild Horizons. Since then, they have continued to take in other elephants who have needed care and work in collaboration with the Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust to ensure that these gentle giants needs are being met.