Latest news with #HwangeNationalPark
Travel Weekly
31-05-2025
- General
- Travel Weekly
Three unforgettable stays in South Africa
Nadia "Sparkle" Henry At my agency, I specialize in crafting tailor-made itineraries that reflect each client's personality, lifestyle and vacation dreams. I don't just book trips, I create journeys that are immersive and memorable, often built around unique accommodations rich in culture and history. I always make it a point to travel to and immerse myself in these destinations and accommodations before recommending them; after all, nothing compares to firsthand experience. It enables me to share stories and insights directly with clients, enriching their journey before it even begins. In March, I traveled to South Africa to explore three accommodations that go far beyond just offering a place to sleep. My first stop was Rovos Rail, a family-owned luxury train company that is based in South Africa but operates routes through several countries, including Zimbabwe, Namibia, Zambia and Tanzania. I embarked on the three-night, four-day journey from Victoria Falls to Pretoria -- a trip that started at the iconic Victoria Falls Hotel right outside the train station. The author in front of a Rovos Rail Luxury Train car in Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe. Photo Credit: Nadia "Sparkle" Henry Onboard, the cabins are comfortable and well appointed, with your choice of a king or two twin beds, a work desk and a private bathroom with a shower. The fare included accommodations, all meals and drinks, room service, laundry, excursions with guides, entrance fees and taxes. Basically, it's an all-inclusive experience, minus entertainment. That's the one area I felt could be enhanced, perhaps with local performances at some of the stops. One highlight was an early morning game drive in Hwange National Park, where we spotted lions, giraffes, zebras, impalas, baboons and wildebeests. Day three was a more relaxed pace as we took in breathtaking scenery from small villages to majestic mountains and crossed the Tropic of Capricorn, a moment that felt straight out of a movie. If you're looking to check a luxury train off your bucket list, or a client's list, Rovos Rail is a must. Related story: A personal quest to rediscover South Africa Next was the Shalati Resort, familiarly known as the "Train on the Bridge," which is suspended over the Sabi River in South Africa's Kruger National Park. The author's accommodations at Kruger Shalati Resort on the Selati Bridge over the Sabi River in Kruger National Park. Photo Credit: Nadia "Sparkle" Henry I've experienced few properties like this one. The resort offers two types of accommodations: 24 Carriage Suites onboard the train and seven Bridge House Suites located nearby in a lush garden setting. I stayed in both to get the full experience. The Carriage Suite was the standout. With large windows overlooking the river, I could watch animals roam from the comfort of my bed or enjoy the view while soaking in a deep bathtub. The train also features a bar and a pool perched on the bridge. Sipping a drink while swimming above the Sabi River was truly magical. Staying at Shalati includes all meals, house drinks and two daily game drives, one in the early morning and the other in the evening. They offered a different lens on wildlife behavior and were equally memorable. My final stop was Sanctuary Mandela, a boutique hotel in Johannesburg's Houghton suburb. Formerly the residence of Nelson Mandela after he was released from Robben Island prison, this intimate hotel has only nine rooms, each designed to reflect a part of Mandela's life story. I stayed in Room 2, named Rolihlahla after his birth name. The energy and legacy of Mandela are felt in every corner of the hotel, which doubles as a living museum, with memorabilia and stories throughout. The on-site restaurant serves Mandela's favorite meals, prepared by his longtime personal chef, Xoliswa Ndoyiya, who still cooks at the hotel part-time. If you're seeking accommodations that leave a lasting impression, I highly recommend these three for their stories, authenticity and immersive experiences. You, and your clients, will not be disappointed.
The Independent
16-05-2025
- The Independent
Zimbabwe is full of elephants and conflict with villagers is growing. A new approach hopes to help
When GPS-triggered alerts show an elephant herd heading toward villages near Zimbabwe's Hwange National Park, Capon Sibanda springs into action. He posts warnings in WhatsApp groups before speeding off on his bicycle to inform nearby residents without phones or network access. The new system of tracking elephants wearing GPS collars was launched last year by the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority and the International Fund for Animal Welfare. It aims to prevent dangerous encounters between people and elephants, which are more frequent as climate change worsens competition for food and water. 'When we started it was more of a challenge, but it's becoming phenomenal,' said Sibanda, 29, one of the local volunteers trained to be community guardians. For generations, villagers banged pots, shouted or burned dung to drive away elephants. But worsening droughts and shrinking resources have pushed the animals to raid villages more often, destroying crops and infrastructure and sometimes injuring or killing people. Zimbabwe's elephant population is estimated at around 100,000, nearly double the land's capacity. The country hasn't culled elephants in close to four decades. That's because of pressure from wildlife conservation activists, and because the process is expensive, according to parks spokesman Tinashe Farawo. Conflicts between humans and wildlife such as elephants, lions and hyenas killed 18 people across the southern African country between January and April this year, forcing park authorities to kill 158 'trouble' animals during that period. 'Droughts are getting worse. The elephants devour the little that we harvest,' said Senzeni Sibanda, a local councilor and farmer, tending her tomato crop with cow dung manure in a community garden that also supports a school feeding program. Technology now supports the traditional tactics. Through the EarthRanger platform introduced by IFAW, authorities track collared elephants in real time. Maps show their proximity to the buffer zone — delineated on digital maps, not by fences — that separate the park and hunting concessions from community land. At a park restaurant one morning IFAW field operations manager Arnold Tshipa monitored moving icons on his laptop as he waited for breakfast. When an icon crossed a red line, signaling a breach, an alert pinged. 'We're going to be able to see the interactions between wildlife and people,' Tshipa said. 'This allows us to give more resources to particular areas." The system also logs incidents like crop damage or attacks on people and livestock by predators such as lions or hyenas and retaliatory attacks on wildlife by humans. It also tracks the location of community guardians like Capon Sibanda. 'Every time I wake up, I take my bike, I take my gadget and hit the road,' Sibanda said. He collects and stores data on his phone, usually with photos. 'Within a blink,' alerts go to rangers and villagers, he said. His commitment has earned admiration from locals, who sometimes gift him crops or meat. He also receives a monthly food allotment worth about $80 along with internet data. Parks agency director Edson Gandiwa said the platform ensures that 'conservation decisions are informed by robust scientific data.' Villagers like Senzeni Sibanda say the system is making a difference: 'We still bang pans, but now we get warnings in time and rangers react more quickly.' Still, frustration lingers. Sibanda has lost crops and water infrastructure to elephant raids and wants stronger action. 'Why aren't you culling them so that we benefit?' she asked. 'We have too many elephants anyway.' Her community, home to several hundred people, receives only a small share of annual trophy hunting revenues, roughly the value of one elephant or between $10,000 and $80,000, which goes toward water repairs or fencing. She wants a rise in Zimbabwe's hunting quota, which stands at 500 elephants per year, and her community's share increased. The elephant debate has made headlines. In September last year, activists protested after Zimbabwe and Namibia proposed slaughtering elephants to feed drought-stricken communities. Botswana's then-president offered to gift 20,000 elephants to Germany, and the country's wildlife minister mock-suggested sending 10,000 to Hyde Park in the heart of London so Britons could 'have a taste of living alongside elephants.' Zimbabwe's collaring project may offer a way forward. Sixteen elephants, mostly matriarchs, have been fitted with GPS collars, allowing rangers to track entire herds by following their leaders. But Hwange holds about 45,000 elephants, and parks officials say it has capacity for 15,000. Project officials acknowledge a huge gap remains. In a recent collaring mission, a team of ecologists, vets, trackers and rangers identified a herd. A marksman darted the matriarch from a distance. After some tracking using a drone and a truck, team members fitted the collar, whose battery lasts between two and four years. Some collected blood samples. Rangers with rifles kept watch. Once the collar was secured, an antidote was administered, and the matriarch staggered off into the wild, flapping its ears. 'Every second counts,' said Kudzai Mapurisa, a parks agency veterinarian. ___ The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
