Experiencing the Amazing Chitake Springs in Mana Pools National Park in Zimbabwe
We were lucky to briefly visit Chitake Springs in the prime time of mid-October, when the dry season reached its peak and game viewing was at its highest in the Park.
First, as it’s already 2024 when you will be reading this: Happy New Year! We wish you all the best for this fresh year! May it be full of great surprises and a wonderful time! 🎉
So, here is (finally) the post about the awesome Chitake Springs.
It was a great experience overall, even though we were there very briefly, only for one night. But one night was all that was available to book as a walk-in guest. So we grabbed the chance.
The Drive to Chitake Springs
Driving to Chitake Springs in Mana Pool's National Park is pretty straightforward. From the 2nd gate, you turn right onto the transfer road, which is in the opposite direction if you were going to the Main Camp (Nyamepi).
Note that you’re not allowed to go to Chitake Springs for a day visit without paying the $35 day visit fee at the Main Camp! So if you don’t have a booking or a day visit fee paid, you cannot go there.
Which we do understand, as the place is so small, that having a lot of day visitors around would ruin the atmosphere.
You only need to drive on the transfer road for about 8 kilometers. Then you turn off from that main road to a small dirt track straight into the bush.
At first, it’s slow but easy going for a few kilometers, but after that, it’s better to engage your low gear and controllably maneuver yourself down the relatively steep sand slopes to where the actual campsites are located.
Then, if you want to go to the other side of the river, where the Springs itself is located, you need to cross the riverbed, which has some sand (but not deep), and go up to the other side.
The Chitake Springs
The Chitake Springs itself is gorgeous, and you can go and drive to the famous Fig Tree, from where you’ll have the best views and positions to watch the opposite slopes and the Spring at the bottom.
You can just set up your chairs for a picnic and sit out your day, watching which animals come down to drink. And if you are fortunate, you may even see the herd of buffaloes coming down for a drink amongst those famous dust clouds.
But – having a large herd of buffaloes is quite rare.
While we were there, we also met a film group. They had been there at the Fig Tree for three weeks(!) already, and only on one day had they had the chance to film a big group of 400 buffaloes coming down the opposite hill.
They had camera traps set all over the place to watch out for them and to send an alert to avoid missing anything special if they were elsewhere at that time.
We spent only one night at Chitake Springs at campsite 1, which is one of the best just at the river shore, but on the other side of the river than the Springs itself.
The Best Campsites in Chitake Springs
The best campsites at Chitake Springs are the numbers 1 and 3B. And many people also prefer the Baobab campsite on the same side of the river as the Springs.
If you go to Chitake Springs, try booking either of these campsites. Campsite #2 is on the other side of the river, too. It's closer to the Springs itself but it's very bushy with no views to anywhere, and you still have to drive to the Fig Tree to see the Springs. This is why we don’t recommend that campsite.
It's also not allowed to camp at the Fig Tree (for obvious reasons), but you can spend the whole day there, make your lunch, and just sit and wait. And it will be a day well spent.
We observed many animals come to drink during the day: impalas, kudus, a lot of baboons, vervet monkeys, etc. And four buffaloes. ;)
The Price of Chitake Springs
Let’s face it, it's expensive to camp in Chitake Springs. It is one of the most expensive campsites we’ve ever been to in Southern and Eastern Africa.
It costs US$300 per campsite per night if you book it in advance.
But if you go as a walk-in customer to the main office in the Nyamepi camp, you may be able to book it for US$70 per person per night (as a walk-in price).
However, US$70 per person is still expensive, so you have to consider it: is it worth it for you?
We wanted to see and experience this place, as we had heard so much praise. That’s why we took that one night, which happened to be free on campsite 1 when visiting Mana Pools.
Chitake Springs is usually fully booked in advance, so we were pretty lucky to find a spot even for that one night.
Was going to Chitake Springs worth it?
So, in the famous hindsight, was it worth it? Well, yes, it was for us.
However, to get the most out of that place, you would ideally need to spend at least three nights over there and preferably have a guide who could take you to bushwalks into the surrounding areas.
Without having the possibility to go on a walk in the bush, you don’t get so much out of your visit. There are only a few tracks on which you can drive around, and the area is pretty small.
There is also one big lion pride (33 members, we heard!) living in the Chitake Springs area, but there's just no going into the bush alone without an armed guide.
It could potentially be hazardous for you. So, you would need a Game Ranger to take you on the walks to get around.
But then again, if you stay at the Baobab campsite, it has absolutely fabulous 360-degree views all over the area of the Chitake Springs, and you may see more animals from there, too.
The Baobab campsite is a very windy place, being on top of a high hill, but you’ll be in total solitude amidst the hundreds of years old baobabs standing all around you.
It is highly recommended. Even if you don’t stay overnight, go and have a look at the place. Stop, make some coffee, sit around, and admire the views!
Here is an almost 360-degree view from Chitake Springs. Beautiful, isn’t it?! It was sunrise at 6.33 am while taking this short video.
Our Experiences at Campsite 1
During the night, we heard a lot of lions roaring around very nearby. We also saw some tracks in the morning, but when we looked for them later during the day, we couldn't find them.
The lions were somewhere in the bushes, which you couldn’t see from the driving tracks. As said, we would have needed a guide to go into the bush on foot to find them, and we didn’t have one, so we couldn’t go.
It frustrated us quite a bit, but don’t ever be that stupid that you would wander into a thick bush where you know that lions are around without a professional, armed guide! That could cost you your life in the worst-case scenario.
There is also a saying: “It’s not the lion you see that gets you.” – Always remember that!
So, if you'd like to experience Chitake Springs at its best, go with a guide or hire a Ranger with you so he can take you on bush walks. And spend at least three nights over there to experience the place fully.
And, if you are lucky, you may even witness the spectacle of a large herd of buffaloes coming down to the Springs to have a drink.
But be aware that that occasion rarely happens! You may have to wait for weeks, or if you are lucky, you may only have to wait for a day or mere hours. It’s down to luck, really.
Download the Original Info Booklet of Mana Pools National Park
Would We Go Back to Chitake Springs Someday?
Well, I don't know. Maybe we would have the chance to go there for three days with a guide. But otherwise, we don’t think so.
Generally, it's better “bang for your buck” to stay in the main camp of Nyamepi (or in the surrounding areas) and drive around the Mana Pools National Park itself in its primary area and along the Zambezi River and experience all the animals over there.
In the Chitake Springs, there were not as many animals to be seen compared to the area of Nyamepi and its surroundings. Besides the lions, which we only heard and didn’t see, there were the traditional impalas, kudus, warthogs, etc.
The Chitake Springs was beautiful, and you could get some of that isolated feeling of being in the bush in the middle of nowhere.
But – all the campsites are also pretty close to each other, and you can even hear other people talking if the other campsites are occupied.
It’s also a very popular campsite, so be prepared that it's almost always fully booked. But if you are lucky like us, you may have a chance to book it as a walk-in customer for the US$70 per person per night price. It is worth it to experience this place once.
But is US$300 for a campsite per night too much? Yes, it is. Even though Chitake Springs was a unique place with fantastic scenery, we think it's still a bit too steep.
Especially when considering that it's basically wild camping without any amenities besides a long-drop toilet, you pay for the experience.
And as it is camping in the middle of the wild, always keep your eyes open to your surroundings!
Wild animals roam freely, especially after dark, so please have a good flashlight with you! But you don’t need to be scared; it’s just part of the fun to be in the middle of the truly wild country.
This time, we didn’t get any of those iconic photos from Chitake Springs, but even that did not diminish all our positive experiences at this place.
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Some Key Take-Aways
Visiting Chitake Springs was an exciting and fun experience, but in general, you may be better off staying in the main area of the park along the Zambezi River, around the Nyamepi camp and doing Game drives there, especially if you want to see a lot of animals.
Mana Pools is a magnificent National Park and a fantastic place! We spent about a week there and fell in love with it. We are already looking forward to visiting again someday.
In conclusion, we’d say that Chitake Springs is a great place to visit at least once in your lifetime. And if you want to stay longer than one night, it'd be better to have a bigger party of people and book it in advance.
Then the US$300 per night for the campsite will not be so expensive per person when you divide it with i.e., 4-6 people. At least two cars could fit nicely at the campsites, so space wouldn’t be a problem.
Maybe next time we’ll have some friends with us? ;)
Meanwhile, Stay Wild & Go on cool 4x4 Adventures,
The Recommendations Corner
Here, we recommend overlanding and photography gear and other helpful stuff that we either use ourselves and have tested to be great or have some other, personal experience with. 1
We also have this camera harness. It’s smaller and lighter build than the full harness we introduced earlier, but it’s the same reliable made from Cotton Carrier: Skout G2 Sling Style Harness.
Niina has used this harness a lot while we’ve been in the bush, and it’s been great, too. So, if you’re looking for a smaller, but still a sturdy harness to carry your camera more practically – look no further!
This is one of the best.