All Comments for Machampane Wilderness Camp

My husband and I were doing a combination trip of Bush and Beach..... spending time in Kruger and travelling down to the Moz coast via Giriyondo border and the Transfrontier park. A friend suggested we overnight at Machampane rather than going to the camp at Massingir. Great choice as it turned out! The road from the border , and indeed all the way through the park ( especially the second half) is pretty dire.... but once at Machampane you forget all the dust , bumps and rattles! Peaceful, beautiful and set on the banks of a small river...it is great for bird watching and generally just unwinding. The small band of staff was welcoming and friendly...and the young "Relief" Manager and Guide, Nathan, was excellent... very knowledgeable and went out of his way to accommodate us. Too hot to walk on our first afternoon, but went early the following morning before leaving. Few animals around... but still most interesting..looking at various spoor, plants and trees. Being regular bush people ourselves, we found Nathan very natural, interactive & a mine of information.
Enjoyed the tented camp very much...nice ambience. Just felt it lacked a bit of TLC and some small touches.. like a mirror in the bathroom....and more importantly, some ICE on those hot, hot Dec days. We were also slightly taken aback by being offered a "Welcome" drink and then being expected to pay for it..on top of the normal honesty bar. Just a glass of fruit juice on arrival would have been great!!!
Other than that... a lovely stop over. Would plan to spend at least 2 nights there next time to fully appreciate what this little gem has to offer.

Expected an upmarket camp because of description and rate. Really nice located tents directly on the river side. But poor maintained! Lights in tent not working because battery for keeping electricity produced by a generator broken. Thousands of ants as we arrived inside the tent, millions after first night.

Machampane was the best camp/lodge on our three-week trip through northern RSA/Botswana/Mosambique. Small and really remote camp in idyllic location (you get what you read in the info), private atmosphere in well-equipped safari tents, peronal and very friendly service, excellent food and wine and interesting stories by the ranger around fireplace. We came with a 4 x 4 without using low gear, 2 x 4 with higher clearance should be possible also. If the last meters through the "river" cause a problem, use the pick-up service by hooting. Do not expect the Big 5 in one row - enjoy the atmosphere!

Myself and some friends recently stayed overnight at Machampane on our way from Johannesburg to Inhambane. Wow, what a lovely spot! The camp is well appointed with friendly helpful staff, the food was superb and the walk was fascinating with lots to learn about birds, insects, animal spoor and the like. Denice and Kieran (hope I got the spelling correct) looked after us very well and their passion for the bush is infectious. The camp is comfortable and luxurious without sacrificing that "in the bush" feeling. I would have loved to stay for 2 or 3 nights to give myself more time to do more walks and time to relax on the deck alongside the river.

It was a bit cumbersome to get there but well worth it - leaving Kruger National Park SAF for two stays for our little trip to Machampane/Mozambique. Machampane is a place full of adventures. We enjoyed the thrilling bush walks but also encountered great hospitality. Find out for yourselves.

Definitely recommended. A splendid setting, out-of-Africa atmosphere, comfortable tents overlooking the waterhole. Walking safaris with a very knowledgeable guide were thrilling and we learned a lot about wildlife. We saw lots of small animals at the waterhole but not many large animals, except a pair of elephants who visited us in the tent.