At Bushlife Safaris we aim to deliver an exceptional experience to all our guests, and this safari more than delivered! Please take a read of a special moment that a recent guest had with Tusker, one of the wild bull elephants in Mana Pools.

“My mom and I (58 and 30 years old respectively) just returned from a trip to Mana Pools, and stayed at Vundu, and had the best time there!

We had Simeon as our private guide, who was so knowledgeable about all the animals, their behaviours, as well as the tree/plant life in the area. He did a great job at listening to what we wanted to get out of our vacation to Mana Pools – for us it wasn’t about seeing a particular animal and “checking it off the list”…we were more interested in seeing an animal and watching its behavior and how it interacts with other animals/its environment. We tracked a young bull elephant for a few hours one morning while it was feeding, another morning we came across 2 female lions — we were only a few feet away when one of them started to roar right in front of us! It was nice to be able to do some walking tours, rather than sitting in a vehicle all day. At night, we did a few night drives, and at times we would turn off the vehicle and all lights, to just enjoy the African night.

Sundowners each night was one of our favorite parts of the day. Spending a few hours just relaxing with a drink of choice, watching the sun go down over the mountains and Zambezi River was so peaceful.

On our last morning, along with Nick (owner), we were able to track down Tusker, one of their famed elephants. Tusker was resting/sleeping near a bushed area, and we watched as Nick approached Tusker and sat with him while he slept. To our surprise, Nick motioned for us to come and sit with him and Tusker! I had the opportunity to sit within 2-3 feet of the bull elephant, which will forever be imprinted in our memories. It was incredible to be so close to such a magestic animal, and to simply sit and watch him, & take in his beauty.

I would also recommend doing one of the afternoon canoe trips, which gave us an entirely different perspective of the river and the wildlife within it. We got lucky, and Tusker (elephant that we saw that morning), ended up crossing the river right in front of our canoe’s that afternoon!

Overall, it was an amazing stay, and would recommend Vundu to anyone considering a trip to Zim. We are actually already planning a trip to return to Vundu to show our husbands what an magical place Mana Pools can be!”