Which ones are your favourite?
5. Nehimba, Zimbabwe
In the dry season from May to October, when water is scarce across the bush, elephants gather at Nehimba’s pool in great numbers. They arrive in steady groups throughout the day, drinking, splashing, and cooling off in the afternoon heat. The waterhole becomes a stage for constant movement and interaction, with herds coming and going as the day unfolds.
Guests can watch the scene from the deck, drink in hand, as the setting sun turns the water gold and the air fills with the quiet sounds of the wild. It is a peaceful and mesmerising experience that captures the heart of Hwange.
4. Ol Donyo, Kenya
Ol Donyo Lodge in Kenya offers one of the most striking safari settings in East Africa. Resting on the slopes of the Chyulu Hills between Amboseli and Tsavo National Parks, it overlooks open plains framed by the distant peak of Mount Kilimanjaro. During the dry season from June to October, the lodge’s waterholes become a gathering place for wildlife, especially elephants that wander in daily to drink, play, and socialise in the dust and sunlight.
Guests can enjoy front row views of these gentle giants from their suites, the main lounge, or the lodge’s famous hide, all designed to bring you close to the animals without disturbing them.
For those who cannot be there in person, the live camera feed offers a real time glimpse into this world, capturing elephants cooling off, zebras crossing the plains, and other special visitors arriving from the wild lands of Amboseli.
3. The Hide Camp, Zimbabwe
The Hide Safari Camp in Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park offers one of the most intimate wildlife experiences in Southern Africa. The camp sits beside a long-established waterhole that draws an endless procession of animals through the day and night. Elephants are the stars here, arriving in huge family groups to drink, bathe, and socialise, sometimes forming “super herds” that fill the open plain in front of camp.
What makes The Hide special is the chance to watch it all from different perspectives. You can settle into a shady spot on your private veranda, join a guide in the underground hide where you are eye level with the elephants, or enjoy sundowners as the light fades.
2. Satao Camp, Kenya
Satao Camp in Tsavo East National Park, Kenya, is one of the most remarkable places to watch elephants in the wild. The camp overlooks a wide waterhole that draws hundreds of elephants each day during the dry season from June to October. In these tough months, where the next source of water would be hundreds of miles away, the team ensures the waterhole remains full, providing a vital lifeline for wildlife when natural sources dry up. It’s a quiet commitment that speaks to deep respect for the land and its animals.
The elephants here are famous for their deep red colour, created when they dust themselves with Tsavo’s iron-rich volcanic soil. The high iron content gives the land its striking hue, and it coats the elephants in a warm glow as they move across the plains. Guests can now enjoy a new elevated lookout tower with comfortable day beds and Wi-Fi, a perfect place to relax and watch the steady movement of wildlife at the waterhole below. With only 20 tents arranged in a gentle semi circle, Satao Camp blends comfort, care, and connection to the wild in a relaxed and memorable setting.
1. Mfuwe Camp, Zambia
Mfuwe Camp in Zambia’s South Luangwa National Park is one of the most memorable places in Africa to watch elephants up close. Each year between October and December, when the wild mango trees are heavy with fruit, a local elephant family makes its way through the lodge grounds to reach a favourite tree that grows beside the open-air reception.
They often come right up to reception, wandering calmly past guests on their way to the mangoes, completely at ease in their surroundings. It’s a moment that always brings smiles, as the wild and the human world meet in the most natural way. The same families return year after year, making this gentle encounter part of the camp’s story and one of South Luangwa’s most loved traditions.
