BOTSWANA
VUMBURA PLAINS A WILDERNESS SAFARIS LODGE
Vumbura Plains is one of Wilderness
Safaris’ Premier Camps, and the level of luxury is breathtaking. The look is modern, all sleek, architectural lines, and the rooms incredibly spacious. Fourteen rooms are split across two satellite camps, each with its own lounge, dining and bar area, including a firepit surrounded by cosy cushions. All areas, including rooms, are on raised decking, and the latter are spread out so you’re not aware of your neighbours. The rooms are huge, with glazing on three sides, so you have views over the floodplain from your bed, the sunken seating area, and the open-plan indoor shower, as well as from your outdoor shower, sun deck and your own private plunge pool. (We
awoke one night to snorkelling sounds and, taking the torch outside, found an elephant unapologetically drinking our pool water.) As a Premier Camp, Vumbura is sleeker in looks than its Classic cousins, and dining is presented slightly differently. There’s a larger choice of wines on offer, and lunch, as well as dinner, is à la carte. At dinner, tables are split so that couples can sit alone if they wish, rather than at communal tables – reflecting a preponderance of honeymooners and super-rich clients.
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which borders the Chobe National Park in Botswana’s north, brought us some truly rare creatures, from the elusive honey badger to wild dogs, which are on every repeat safari-goer’s list. We saw the resident Zip pack three times – feasting on an impala they’d killed, making their trademark ‘giggling’ noises to one another in affection, and even jogging past two metres away from us as we stood, sundowner gins in hand, barely able to believe their proximity. Located in the heart of the delta, our third camp, Vumbura Plains, was baby central during our visit.
We saw a family of elephants playing in the water, splashing, trumpeting, and spraying water at mum. Lion cubs tumbled over one another and butted at their mothers’ heads, the latter swiping them away with a lazy paw as they snoozed, bellies distended from a large meal of sable antelope, the carcass nearby. A family of hyenas rested in the shade, the littlest cub determined to gnaw the wheel of our jeep despite our guide’s efforts to shoo him away – hyena’s jaws are so strong there was a danger he might do real damage to the rubber. And as we were escorted by torchlight back to our room after
LEFT AND OPPOSITE: DumaTau Camp
BELOW: Tubu Tree Camp
52 — aspire september 2015
PICTURES: WILDERNESS SAFARIS/OLWEN EVANS, DANA ALLEN, MIKE MYERS, CAROLINE CULBERT, DAVID KNEALE, RUSSEL FRIEDMAN
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