Chiawa Camp, Zambia

Elephants are the big draw at Chiawa Camp – and hippos, crocodiles, Cape buffalo, baboons, even the occasional lion. Chiawa nails the African, luxury-in-the-bush, “glamping” experience to the letter. Hugging the banks of the mighty Zambezi River, Chiawa was the first safari camp to open in the Lower Zambezi National Park back in 1989. It’s still owned and operated by the conservation minded Cumings family. And it’s the premier place in the Zambian park to get your game viewing fix of river-based wildlife.

Getting there is an adventure. We flew into the park in a Cessna four seater, and then bounced along in a Land Rover to the Zambezi River dock. There we climbed aboard an aluminum boat for the 20-minute high-speed ride to the camp. Once at Chiawa, we felt like we’d stepped into a scene from “Out of Africa.”

Chiawa’s nine permanent deluxe “tents” are made of timber, reeds, and canvas set on timber plank floors on raised stilts. Climbing up the steps, we noticed a wooden box carved with an elephant. “For your early morning tea or coffee, when we come by with a wake-up knock,” the camp manager told us. He also showed us a radio for calling an escort for the walk to dinner in the evening – necessary, as large animals roam freely throughout the unfenced camp.

Inside, a huge king-sized bed under veils of mosquito netting awaited. At night in the African winter (the best season for game viewing) one of the staff slips a hot water bottle into it, as it can get chilly after sunset. A Victorian claw-foot tub in the bath had views through screen doors to the Zambezi outside while plush burgundy velvet drapery created a partition for a copper rainshower. Towels hung insouciantly on wrought iron rings shaped like elephants. Cushy cream colored easy chairs at the foot of the bed cozied up to a coffee table. Chiawa’s fabulous safari tents err on the side of natural as the camp is miles from “civilization” so no a.c., however, a generator provides power so they are lit and equipped with working fans. Good news for those who must stay connected – there is Wi-Fi, if only for a few hours a day (to ensure you get a break from those work emails).

And what about the elephants? About 2,000 of them inhabit the Lower Zambezi National Park – we saw hundreds during our three-night stay. Some of the best sightings were from the small private boat cruises the camp offers.

Following afternoon tea on our first day, we set off with our guide in a flat-bottom aluminum skiff, outfitted with two camp chairs. We passed several healthy looking herds of pachyderms digging up mud along the riverbank with their long tusks, flinging it over their backs or under their bellies. When we drifted too close to one with her baby, she flapped her ears, trumpeted loudly, then sucked up some water and sprayed us with a huge plume, as if to shout “Go away!”

Retreat we did. As it was close to sunset, our guide turned off the engine and made sundowners for us right on the skiff. We sipped gin and tonics by the light of a candle in a glass holder (set on a white tablecloth, no less) watching the sky turn blood orange. Hippos snorted nearby, and when they ducked under the water, we could see their little red rimmed eyes and swiveling ears sticking up. Magical! Chiawa, in fact, offers sundowners many atmospheric ways – on a sandy island in the middle of the river or on a knoll in the bush when out on a game drive. You name it.

Chiawa is equally inventive when it comes to cuisine. The “normal” four-course dinners are served alfresco on a veranda. But one night, after following a large male lion on a game drive, we returned to find lanterns lighting a path to dinner tables set up in a dry riverbed under the stars. We feasted on barbecued pork chops and chicken, cheese-stuffed squash, fresh salads, pap (an African cornmeal staple), and fine South African wines. There was even a charming candle-lit tent set up to the side as a primitive water closet, complete with a porcelain bowl and pitcher for washing hands.

All safari activities are guided and included in Chiawa’s rates – game drives on land, bush walks accompanied by an armed park ranger, and wildlife viewing cruises by small boat to explore the myriad river channels. There’s also fly-fishing and canoeing (famous on the Zambezi).

And at night, after a day’s adventures, we’d fall asleep listening to grunting hippos waddling past our tent to feed in the bush, then dream of Africa.