Camelthorn Lodge

Camelthorn Lodge is built around and named for an ancient camelthorn tree, on community land inside the Imvelo Ngamo Rhino Sanctuary on Hwange National Park's south-eastern edge. Eight forest villas flow out from the tree, built for and by the local Ngamo community who partner in running the lodge; a sunken hide disguised as a termite mound sits a few hundred metres away, giving eye-level views of a waterhole without disturbing the animals that gather there. The lodge is set back from any water source, protecting the surrounding woodland from elephant damage while keeping birdlife unusually dense.

Hwange has no major rivers, so Camelthorn's parent company, Imvelo, has taken over roughly a quarter of the waterholes that sustain the park's wildlife, spending over $150,000 a year on the programme and installing 25 village wells, with 27 more under maintenance, to bring clean water to the Tsholotsho community. Guests can join a pump run, helping maintain a waterhole, or visit the Ngamo Rhino Sanctuary itself. Days mix game drives, walking safaris and community visits, with dinner often served beneath the namesake tree, lit by hanging lanterns.