Zimbabwe & Botswana · Big Five safari · 9 days on the ground
Follow rhino tracks over the Matobo granite, feel the spray of Victoria Falls on your face, then sleep in a tent on the banks of the Chobe, where the hippos make themselves heard at night. Nine days, all-inclusive from Geneva.
days on the ground, 6 days of leave
per departure, reserved for Loutres
Thursday departures, April to June 2027
CHF per person, flights and full board included
In brief
Nine days across Zimbabwe and Botswana, in three national parks, among Loutres: each departure has four to eight travellers. Flights from Geneva, nights, meals, safaris and park fees are included. On the ground, a French-speaking Munga host accompanies you.
« Ce furent les plus belles vacances de ma vie. »
The route
Days 1–3 · Zimbabwe
A UNESCO-listed landscape of granite hills and balancing boulders unlike anywhere else. Spend three days at Munga Shaba between white rhinos approached on foot with the rangers, San rock paintings, walks among the rocks and the climb to World’s View at the end of the afternoon. In the evening the granite keeps the warmth of the day and the boma fire is lit in front of the lodge.
Days 4–5 · Zimbabwe
After a 55-minute flight you reach the Zambezi and sleep two nights in a four-star lodge, two kilometres from the falls. On a sunset cruise, hippos and elephants appear along the banks, drinks on board. Discover the falls at high water, the town by e-bike, and spend an evening in a local restaurant. On the path, the spray soaks the raincoats and the roar covers every voice. A free afternoon remains, for a helicopter flight or for nothing at all.
Days 6–8 · Botswana
Cross the border, then all aboard for a boat safari, private to the group: this is where the elephants cross the river, often by the dozen, a few metres from you. Spend three nights in a camp raised for your group alone, inside the park. Two safaris a day, at dawn and at sunset, to raise your chances of seeing the wildlife. In the morning, coffee is taken by the fire, in the cool air, before the first drive. The wildest part of the journey, and the one travellers remember most.
The wildlife
Matobo and Chobe national parks count among the wildest and most beautiful places in southern Africa to see animals up close. The Big Five are here, but they cannot be ordered. The experience teaches you patience.
Chobe river
Almost certain
The largest population in Africa lives here. The elephants cross the river, often by the dozen, a few metres from the boats.
Chobe river
Almost certain
The riverfront prides, active at dawn when the first drive goes out.
Chobe river
Almost certain
Whole herds along the river in the late afternoon.
Matobo Hills
Very likely
Approached on foot with the ZimParks rangers on a one- to three-hour walk. A majestic and threatened animal.
Matobo and Chobe
A matter of luck
Matobo has one of the highest densities in Africa. It shows itself when it wants to.
Not to forget all the other residents you can admire up close: giraffe, zebra, hippos, crocodiles, kudu, hyenas, sometimes cheetah, wild dogs and hundreds of bird species. The setting counts among the most beautiful on the continent. Without guaranteeing what you will see, we promise whole days a few metres from the animals in two of southern Africa’s great parks.
The programme
Up early, out in the morning, rest through the hot hours, a second outing in the late afternoon. The programme follows the light and the animals, not the clock.
Geneva → Addis Ababa
Ethiopian Airlines in the evening. The group meets at Geneva airport, arranged on WhatsApp beforehand. Connection in Addis Ababa without leaving the transit zone. Night on board.
Arrival in Bulawayo in the early afternoon, where you collect your visa. We welcome you at the airport, then it is an hour’s drive to Munga Shaba. In the late afternoon, take your first walk among the rocks in the evening light. Dinner is at the lodge, by the fire.
Night Munga ShabaMeals Lunch, dinner
In the morning, a guided visit of a San rock-painting site, among the richest in southern Africa. In the late afternoon, head out on a 4×4 safari in the hills and watch the sun set from a granite kopje.
Night Munga ShabaMeals Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Spend the day in the national park with the ZimParks rangers. You approach the white rhinos on foot on a one- to three-hour walk at the pace of the sighting, over uneven ground. The success rate is very high, but no sighting is guaranteed. In the afternoon, climb to World’s View (Malindidzimu), the most famous viewpoint in the hills.
Night Munga ShabaMeals Breakfast, lunch, dinner
After a short flight from Bulawayo airport, welcome to Victoria Falls! In the late afternoon, board a sunset cruise on the Zambezi with drinks on board, surrounded by hippos, birds and elephants on the banks.
Night Lodge at Victoria FallsMeals Breakfast, lunch, dinner
In the morning, follow your guide into the rainforest around Victoria Falls, on the Zimbabwean side. From April to June the water is high and the falls are at full power. Then tour the town by e-bike (the Big Tree, the craft market, the historic bridge), or by car for those who prefer not to pedal. Lunch in town in a picturesque restaurant. The afternoon is free for an extra activity: a helicopter flight over the falls, or simply a rest by the pool. In the evening, dinner at Dusty Roads, a place our travellers do not forget.
Night Lodge at Victoria FallsMeals Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Back on the road, this time towards Botswana: about an hour and a half to the Kazungula border, then Kasane. Once through the gate of Chobe National Park, the boat safari on the river, private to the group, is a unique experience. This is where the elephants bathe, often by the dozen, a few metres from the boat. In the late afternoon, reach your camp, set up by our team on an exclusive site inside the park, and fall asleep to the sounds of the night animals.
Night Munga Safaris mobile campMeals Breakfast, lunch, dinner
After a dawn wake-up, off in the 4×4 for a few hours of safari, while the light is beautiful and the predators still active. Back at camp for brunch, enjoy free time to rest, read or watch the animals pass. In mid-afternoon, a second safari until sunset to try your luck and spot the leopards and cheetahs hiding in the trees or the tall grass. The evening is spent around the fire with a barbecue prepared by the camp chef.
Night Munga Safaris mobile campMeals Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Same rhythm as the day before: safari at dawn and at sunset, rest at camp in between. The guides share their knowledge and adapt the routes to what has been seen and to the animals’ movements. Last dinner in the bush.
Night Munga Safaris mobile campMeals Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Already time to say goodbye. Leave the park towards Victoria Falls airport: the Ethiopian Airlines flight to Geneva via Addis Ababa takes off at 13:05.
Night On boardMeals Breakfast
Arrival in Geneva
Arrive in Geneva around 06:30. Both weekends are inside the journey.
Where you sleep
Nights 1–3 · Zimbabwe
Perched on a rock, with the granite kopjes stretching to the horizon, our lodge, fully refurbished, opens in January 2027, about 35 km south of Bulawayo. It has eight units only: five rooms and three chalets. The standard rooms are included in the journey, while the view chalets are available with a supplement, on request. At the centre, a shared dining room and a boma fire in the evening.
To arrive gently. Only an hour’s drive from Bulawayo, the lodge is intimate and lets you walk short distances among the rocks. You can settle in, find the rhythm of the safari and approach your first rhinos on foot, before the open spaces of the Chobe.
Nights 4–5 · Zimbabwe
Two nights in a comfortable 4-star lodge, about two kilometres from the falls, on the quiet edge of town: pool, garden, restaurant and bar, rooms with private bathroom. Shongwe Lookout, Bonela Springs or Kabakwe Lodge, depending on availability at the time of booking.
Nights 6–8 · Botswana
The most immersive part of the journey. A simple, comfortable camp, raised for the group on an exclusive site inside the park, by the river. Each tent sleeps one or two, with a private toilet and shower and camp beds with mattresses and sheets. Our chef cooks on the fire and our Munga Safaris crew takes care of everything else. No electricity, no mobile signal: three days on the frontier of the animals’ world. At night you hear the hippos, the hyenas, sometimes the lions.
Yes, with rules. The Munga Safaris guides know the animals and the park; they give a briefing on arrival and the instructions to follow at camp, on foot and in the vehicle. The camp is staffed and lit at night, and a first-aid kit is on board. The camp has a satellite link, and each vehicle a satellite phone with an emergency mode. In an emergency, Kasane hospital is close by and an evacuation with Okavango Rescue can be arranged; those costs fall to each traveller’s own travel insurance.
The group
Every departure is reserved for Loutres: four to eight travellers, never more. Two vehicles at most, one table in the evening, and friendships that form by the second day.
The solo rate includes a private room and tent throughout the journey: the supplement is CHF 800.– and nothing else is added. In a small group, from the first dinner, nobody eats alone.
« Je suis partie en solo et je me suis sentie intégrée dès le début. »
A French-speaking Munga host is present in Zimbabwe and Botswana: welcoming the group, linking with the local crews, translating when needed. The guides and rangers work in English.
« Vous pouvez faire confiance à leurs équipes et y aller les yeux fermés. »
French-speaking, present at every stage on the ground; welcomes you, translates and keeps the link with the teams.
Rangers, guides, assistants, chef: they are the ones who know the animals, the tracks and the light.
Since 2025
More than a hundred Loutres have travelled with Munga between Victoria Falls and the Chobe. Safari Munga 2027 grew out of those journeys. Their words say it better than we can.
QoQa offers since 2025
Swiss travellers already hosted
travellers set off solo
« L’arrivée en chanson à Munga Plains, la croisière sur le fleuve Zambèze, le safari dans la réserve de Chobe… chaque instant fut une découverte. Une organisation parfaite, sans aucune fausse note. Ce furent les plus belles vacances de ma vie. »
Previous journeys, photographed by our travellers and shared with their permission.
2027 calendar
Leave Geneva Thursday evening, back Sunday morning ten days later. Choose your date on QoQa when you buy.
High water, end of the rains
Dry tracks, cool nights at camp
Dry season, wildlife gathers at the river
For two, sharing
CHF 9 998.–
instead of CHF 12 840.–
So CHF 4 999.– per person: flights, full board, activities and transfers included.
Solo, private room and tent
CHF 5 799.–
instead of CHF 7 850.–
The solo rate includes a private room and tent throughout: a CHF 800.– supplement, 16 % of the price, where tour operators usually ask 30 to 50 %.
Upgrade: view chalet at Munga Shaba, CHF 300.– per person for the three nights.
All payments go to QoQa. The deposit is deducted from the price. The balance is CHF 8 999.– for two and CHF 4 800.– solo.
Departure guaranteed from 4 participants; otherwise a free date change or a full refund. Once bought, the journey is not refundable. This is why cancellation insurance is strongly recommended.
The only compulsory cost on top of the price is the visa. The rest is optional or recommended.
With insurance and tips, allow about CHF 300 to 500 more per person, before drinks and options. For two: about CHF 10 600 to 11 000.
The flights
International flights are operated by Ethiopian Airlines, from Geneva via Addis Ababa: Geneva → Bulawayo outbound, Victoria Falls → Geneva return. Leave Geneva Thursday around 21:00 and land in Bulawayo Friday early afternoon; fly back Saturday at 13:05 and land in Geneva Sunday around 06:30. The Addis Ababa connection stays inside the transit zone; no visa is required. Two 23 kg bags allowed.
Domestic flight. Fastjet, Bulawayo → Victoria Falls, Monday, 55 minutes. One 23 kg checked bag.
Bags: one simple piece of advice. A single 23 kg bag is enough for the whole journey. The domestic flight allows only one; a second can be added for a fee, but one soft bag is more practical on safari.
Thursday around 21:00, Ethiopian Airlines, night on board via Addis Ababa.
Monday, Fastjet, 55 minutes. One 23 kg bag.
Saturday 13:05, Ethiopian Airlines via Addis Ababa, night on board. Sunday around 06:30 in Geneva.
In the price
Why this journey
Questions
About a third of our travellers set off alone, and it is one of the most consistent pieces of feedback: the group is small, the days are shared, and nobody is left on the edge. You have your own room and tent; in the evening, the table is common.
Yes, from four participants. If your date does not reach that number, we offer another date; otherwise QoQa refunds you in full.
You choose your date on QoQa when you buy, among the twelve 2027 departures. If the chosen date does not run, we offer another date; otherwise QoQa refunds you in full.
The group meets at Geneva airport on Thursday evening, arranged on WhatsApp before departure. On arrival in Bulawayo, the Munga host welcomes the group and stays with it in Zimbabwe and Botswana.
The guides and rangers work in English. The French-speaking Munga host is present in Zimbabwe and Botswana and makes the link.
One to three hours in Matobo, on foot, at observation pace, on rocks and uneven paths. At Victoria Falls the visit is on maintained paths and the town by e-bike, with a vehicle for those who prefer. In Chobe National Park everything is by 4×4 and boat: no walking, no night drive, as park rules require.
Camp beds with mattress and sheets, a private toilet and shower for each tent, meals cooked by a chef. No electricity, no mobile signal; phones and batteries charge in the 4×4s during the drives. The camp is inside the park: at night you hear the animals.
The journey is for adults and for young people from 12, at the adult rate. There are no family-only weeks in 2027.
Yes, on request: extra nights at Victoria Falls, a mobile-safari extension in northern Botswana, or further afield. These are organised and invoiced directly by Munga.
The programme adapts: that is the rule on safari. An activity may be shifted or replaced by an equivalent. Previous travellers often name that as the best memory.
Unfortunately not. The journey is not suited to wheelchair users or to travellers who depend on a medical device.
The Zimbabwe visa (c. USD 45) is the only compulsory cost on top of the price. Then, depending on each traveller: travel insurance, strongly recommended, tips, drinks other than water/tea/coffee/juice, and optional activities on the free afternoon. Everything else, flights, transfers, nights, meals, activities and guides, is included.
The walk follows the group’s pace and stops whenever it needs to: the rangers adapt the distance, and the vehicle stays close by. The ground is uneven, without much climbing. Anyone who prefers to sit it out waits with the driver and rejoins the group for the picnic.
The camp tents are closed with mosquito mesh and the lodge rooms have nets; repellent and long sleeves in the evening are usually enough. Victoria Falls and Chobe are in a malaria zone: prophylaxis is recommended for the journey and is decided with your doctor. No vaccine is compulsory when travelling from Switzerland; the advised vaccines and the yellow-fever certificate, required only when arriving from a risk country, are set out in the official Swiss recommendations.
Matobo, Victoria Falls and Chobe are calm tourist regions. The group travels in private vehicles, and the Munga host is present at every stage with the local crews. The FDFA travel advice for both countries is available online before departure.
Your choice, at the lodge and at the hotel. In the tent, two separate camp beds.
Yes. The 4×4s are private, and so is the day-6 boat safari. Two vehicles at most, never more than eight travellers.
Our groups mix couples, friends and solo travellers, from twelve to over eighty. What counts is good physical fitness.
The US dollar is the everyday currency in Zimbabwe; cards work at the lodge, the hotel and in Victoria Falls. In Botswana, everything is included at camp. Bring US dollars in small notes for the visa, tips and purchases.
Before you go
Passport valid six months after the return date, with three blank pages. Zimbabwe double-entry visa (arrive Bulawayo, return via Victoria Falls), about USD 45, issued on arrival; Munga sends the steps before departure. No visa for Botswana for Swiss citizens. Other nationalities: check your entry conditions.
Antimalarial precautions recommended throughout; speak to your doctor. Yellow-fever certificate only if arriving from a risk country. Official recommendations: safetravel.ch.
Vegetarian, gluten-free, allergies: tell us at booking. The lodges and the camp chef adapt the meals, including on the fire.
Travel insurance covering cancellation, medical costs and repatriation is strongly recommended. Munga can recommend a partner.
Walks of one to three hours in Matobo on uneven ground; e-bike at Victoria Falls with a vehicle alternative; 4×4 and boat for the rest. No special training, but ordinary mobility.
One 23 kg checked bag for the whole journey, preferably a soft bag, plus cabin. Neutral colours, a warm jacket for dawn drives, a rain jacket for the falls, good shoes for Matobo.
End of the rains in March, dry weather and cool nights from May, especially at camp.
WiFi at the lodge and the hotel. No signal at the mobile camp: three days offline, which travellers often name as what they remember most.
Optional, but recommended when the service deserves it. Per-stage guidance is given before departure. At the end of the journey, a payment link lets you thank the crews simply.
A few hundred US dollars in cash for the visa, tips and drinks.
The programme may change with weather, water levels, track conditions or wildlife movement. Equivalent activities are then offered.
12, at the adult rate.
Go further
On request, organised and invoiced directly by Munga. Prices and availability on request.
The organiser
Munga Expeditions AG, Pfäffikon SZ, organises and sells this journey. It is a Swiss house of camps and journeys in Botswana and Zimbabwe, with its own camps, vehicles and crews, founded by Thierry Nyfeler.
Since 2025, more than a hundred Swiss travellers have travelled with Munga on three QoQa offers, between Victoria Falls and the Chobe.
info@mungaplains.com · WhatsApp +41 76 464 40 83
Departure guaranteed from 4 participants, otherwise a free date change or a full refund. Munga Expeditions AG is affiliated to the Swiss travel industry Guarantee Fund.
2027 price, all-inclusive from Geneva, reserved for the QoQa community.
A message is enough. It is also possible to talk to a traveller from a previous journey.
