Reviews of Kanga Bush Camp

"All was fantastic from the accommodations, to the service we received, and the overall experience.

There was one night I was not feeling well and the host was wonderful to check in regularly, making sure I was okay." See all these reviews: 7n in Zimbabwe

"Kanga is a good choice if you prefer a “armchair” Safari. Plentiful elephants daily, largely from the main camp.

The accommodation was to a high standard and the staff were very friendly.

Unfortunately, our guide was a very poor communicator and lacked lustre. The surrounding bush is very dense and if you are fortunate enough to spot wildlife on a game drive it is only for a few fleeting seconds." See all these reviews: 13n in Zimbabwe; 1n in South Africa

"Starting from welcome dance, we enjoyed our 3nights stay at this beautiful camp. Room was spacious, food was amazing.

Only one thing that I regret is we couldn't see painted dogs .....Animals were a bit quiet during our stay. But elephants sometimes visited the plunge pool to drink water. We were excited to watch them walking around the guest rooms.

Our guide Reggie and all of the staff were very friendly and helpful. I appreciate their great hospitality." See all these reviews: 7n in Zimbabwe

"From the hustle and bustle of the main part of the park, it was nice to end the trip in a concession to avoid all of the other traffic.

Game viewing is entirely depend upon the time of year and for us the game drives were quiet, but plenty of game came to drink at the pan, including a leopard every night. Lots of birds in and around the area.

A relaxing end to the trip, made extra special by being given the honeymoon tent, which was fabulous, including an outdoor bath!" See all these reviews: 14n in Zimbabwe

"Our favourite lodge of this trip with very comfortable accommodation with a view across the camp's pan. The camp is a long way from the river and a long day's adventure away, if you are staying on the river later on in your trip then we recommend not to leave Kanaga, simply sit in one of their comfortable chairs, enjoy the warm hospitality and wonder at the array of wildlife that comes to the waterhole. Perfect. We had a really excellent guide, Reggie.

We were very disappointed in not seeing any painted dogs, the Kanga pack were suspected to be denning in the neighbouring hunting zone and had not been seen for weeks. We did however have the privilege of meeting Greg Rasmusenn, the painted dog research man himself. Actually we bumped into him no less than five times during our stay in Mana Pools!" See all these reviews: 12n in Zimbabwe

"There is nothing wrong with the camp, the staff were all good and welcoming. What we felt while we were there was that we were pushed to do sofa safaris and not leave the camp. Morning activities did not start until 7am, as photographers this meant we missed the best light of the morning. The activity was short and we got back into the camp earlier than our other camps, this was both true of walking and driving.

The main activity happened around the pan in the afternoon when there were no staff or guides around to identify birds etc. We must admit the camp was empty when we arrived and our first evening game drive we saw a leopard, and a small pride of lions with 3 young cubs, never to be seen again.

The camp is based on the pan, it is more for the first time traveller rather than an experienced traveller. We feel that 2 nights would be enough time there not the 3 that we did." See all these reviews: 10n in Zimbabwe; 2n in Zambia

"This was the most luxurious camp of my trip. I loved the spacious, very comfortable tents and the common areas. Food was fabulous.

I also loved that the vast majority of the camp staff, management very much included, were black Zimbabweans. Their welcome was fantastic. The guides were excellent.
The camp faces a large waterhole, which provides an opportunity for what the staff calls "an armchair safari," ie, just sit and let the game come to you. They did, in reasonable numbers, if not great variety.

Game in game drives, though, was very scarce.

My problem with this camp is that I think it's sited far too close to a hunting concession, which probably makes game viewing more difficult as animals are skittish. One morning we heard three rifle shots - not such a pleasant experience if, like me, you're not a fan of hunting." See all these reviews: 9n in Zimbabwe

"At first sight I felt that this lodge looked a little scruffy, but that soon changed as we went into the lounge area and deck above the pan, and also when we were shown our tent. It was very roomy, even having a dressing room area in addition to an enormous open air bathroom and toilet. Washing looking out over the pan was amazing and although there was no electricity apart from solar powered lights in the tent, a lot of thought had gone into making sure that there were other alternatives. We did find having our own torch useful for toilet visits in the night though rather than using the large lantern.

The food was excellent and we ate as a group with the staff who often had to interrupt the meal to spotlight the game appearing at the water hole, and we certainly saw a lot of game there. In fact the amount of game visiting the pan throughout the day almost made it unnecessary to go on a game drive! Also the game, particularly the elephants came within feet of the decking with apparently no awareness of our presence. This was an excellent experience.

The game drives and guides here were excellent and had a high level of knowledge of both animals and birds.

The only thing to be aware of here is that this camp is in thorn scrub area in the main, but it makes an excellent combination with a waterfront camp by the river.

One other thing to be aware of is that they allow young children here. On our visit there was an 8 year old and 3 year old. The former being no problem, but the 3 year old disrupted the night game viewing and we were glad we had had our first night in peace to see the leopards etc as the constant use of the spotlight by the 3 year old, plus his enthusiastic voice were not conducive to peaceful game watching in the evening. I have taken young children on safari myself and agree it is a very valuable experience for them but when it affects other guests, as it did here, I feel clients should be made aware that this could happen. Most other places I have been have a lowest age limit of 8 years." See all these reviews: 7n in Zimbabwe

"A beautiful camp, and always many animals at the waterhole during the dinner: leopard, lions, porcupine, civette... The drive at Kanga was quite quiet, but it is a lovely camp to stay and to rest for a few day.
It will be good to know that if you want to have some walk (you first drive and then have some short walks) you must book them before coming at the camp. We haven't do walks in Mana Pools when we were at Kanga, I regret, but the guide was with other guests and it seems wonderful." See all these reviews: 12n in Zimbabwe

"We really enjoyed our four nights at Kanga - and could easily have spent the whole time just sitting on the deck watching the constant stream of mammals and birds coming to what has to be one of the best waterholes for game-viewing in the region. However, we did get out and about, walking under the expert guidance of Rob Shattock who is a brilliant guide with a wonderful portfolio of anecdotes reaching right back into the early days of Mana Pools. It was also a real pleasure to do a couple of outings with Reggie whom we knew already from Somalisa: his undoubted enthusiasm and expertise has only burgeoned since we first met him.

The camp itself is very comfortable and we were very impressed with the lengths which Lizzie, temporarily managing on a day-to-day basis, went to to make us feel welcome and to provide any assistance we required.

As for the wildlife - leopards, painted dogs, lions, hyaena, buffalo and (of course) elephants all graced the waterhole during our stay, among many others; and we identified over 70 species of birds without even leaving the concession." See all these reviews: 8n in Zimbabwe; 3n in Zambia