Hello 2023!

With the New Year, we welcomed the rains! It is unfortunate that our camps are not accessible during this time of year. The nourishing African rains turn the vast Zambezi plain into a metropolis of green and luscious vegetation. The Chewore River runs high from December through to March, making it extremely difficult and near impossible to get into our camps, alas, but it gives us a chance to analyse the year that has just been and focus on the year to come! So what’s new...??

Under New Management

Our director, Andrew Dawson, recently separated from his former Partners and Directors and now, proudly, has full autonomy of Tafika Zambezi and its two camps. This is a very exciting time in the company’s history and we look forward to sharing the journey with you. Here are a few changes we will be making this season..…

Renovations

Tafika Camp will be undergoing a ‘facelift’ this season, as we plan to firstly add decking and renovate the dining area. Dependent on the rains, we hope to start this in March ready for our first guests in early April. Each chalet will also get some much needed attention as we will be updating them one at a time throughout the season. With that in mind we have reduced the maximum guests in camp down to 12 from 16. This allows us to push through with the renovations with minimum disruption in camp.

Training

In February, all of our camp cooks will be attending a cooking and catering course with the highly celebrated Tess Arkwright. Tess has an astounding reputation and has trained cooks and chefs across the country including those at Mana camp etc. We look forwarded to welcoming our kitchen team back armed with an array of new and tasty meals in their recipe books.

Going Green

Although our camps are a green oasis in the vast Zambezi valley, this is not the type of green we are talking about. Our biggest project for 2023 is turning our camps into Eco camps with solar systems large enough to supply unlimited power 24/7. This will negate the need for our hefty generators, eliminating the dull drone in the early mornings and evenings and allowing our clients to use the room fans at their leisure during the hot days and nights.

Introducing Makombakomba

Previously known as Gombe, Makombakomba will also be undergoing a ‘facelift’ during the winter months so with that we saw it fitting to give it a new name.

The native meaning of Makombakomba is ‘where the water runs’. Situated down river from Tafika and a few metres from the mighty Zambezi water front, Makombakomba is a secluded camp which sleeps 8 guests in 3 thatched lodges and 1 room situated off the main lodge. Each spacious lodge has a lavish open plan bathroom complete with a bathtub and private decking/seating area, all of which overlook the Zambezi below.

New Boats

We are on a drive to improve all aspects of our camps this year, with that we have made the huge decision to upgrade the pontoons at Tafika camp to exceptionally well designed and bespoke built aluminium boats manufactured in Maun, Botswana by Ali Boats.

We have just purchased four Frontier 650 Aluminium Boats. This is the latest design of river fishing boats, designed to our specifications and layout. With years of experience fishing on the Zambezi River we have designed what we think is the perfect boat for the river. As these boats are brand new to the market and made to our specifications, unfortunately we do not have a photo.

The boats are flat bottomed with a very shallow draft, 6.5m long and a luxurious 2.35m wide. The installation includes new sponge under carpet technology which is extremely comfortable under foot, comfortable high back swivel seats, live wells and ample rod holders. Additionally we have installed a very useful 2.5 meter rod locker along the floor. A great improvement is the T-top shaded area over the console and live wells, this design does not interfere with your rod when fighting a fish which runs you around the boat, but provides relief from the October sun especially at mid-day. USB charging ports have also been added, as you do not want to miss that photo of the ‘big one’.

These boats are super light on fuel and are powered by a quiet Suzuki 90hp, 4 stroke engine. The downtime saved in these boats with travelling up or down the river to the fishing spots will be a great improvement to the chugging up stream in one of our old pontoons.

The first two boats will arrive in camp at the beginning of May and the next two at the beginning of June, ready for peak fishing season.

Meet Ash!

She is the friendly voice on the end of the phone, the one with the answers to all your questions. She juggles our booking sheets and makes sure we all know who’s who and when they are arriving. She is our resupply connoisseur, ensuring all our guests have everything they need in camp.

This is Ash, our Reservations and Procurement Manager. Give her a call now to book your stay at Tafika Zambezi this season.

Lastly, we would like to thank you for your continued support over the years, whether you are a die-hard or a new visitor to Tafika Zambezi. We very much look forward to welcoming you back to the oasis of luxury in the wilderness of the Lower Zambezi.

Wishing you a belated Happy New Year,

The Tafika Zambezi Team