Chilo Gorge Safari Lodge
Full-service safari lodge with a seasonal tented camp · Clifftop above the Save River at the Runde Gorge, on the park boundary · Privately owned
High-end
Outside the gate
Owner-run
The full-service option: a thatched lodge high above the Save with the park on its doorstep, plus a small seasonal tented camp down on the Runde. Game drives, guided walking, fly-camping and genuine cultural visits to Mahenye village. Not the only accommodation serving the park, whatever older guides claim, but the only private lodge of its class on the boundary.
Pros and cons
Pros
- The only private upmarket lodge on the park boundary
- Two guided activities a day, including the Chivilila Falls walk
- Mahenye village visits and palm-wine tapping included
- A clifftop position above the Save at the Runde Gorge
- A seasonal tented camp option down on the Runde bank
Cons
- Open April to November only; closed in the wet season
- Published rates conflict online; the lodge's own site lists none
- Tented camp and fly-camping are seasonal add-ons, not year-round
- No published minimum stay, and no child policy found; ask when enquiring
What's here
- Campsite
- Self-catering
Read from Chilo Gorge Safari Lodge's own website in July 2026. Anything not listed we could not confirm, which is not the same as it being absent.
What the park charges on top
The rate above buys you a bed. Gonarezhou National Park charges its own entry fee for every day you are inside. Here is what that adds up to.
- Park entryThe rate if you drive in for the day or sleep outside the park.
- $25per person, per day
- VehicleRoughly $5 to $10 a day depending on the vehicle.
- $8per vehicle, per day
Three nights means three days inside, so two adults sharing one vehicle pay $174 in park fees before anyone pays for a bed.
The full fee schedule for Gonarezhou National ParkRates at Chilo Gorge Safari Lodge
From about $580 pppn all-inclusive. Published figures conflict: one aggregator quotes about $580 all-inclusive, and a $150 meals-only rate also circulates. Confirm directly with the lodge.
What the rate covers is not confirmed. We do not know yet whether meals, drinks and activities are included, so read this as the bed only.
Every figure on this page is in US dollars.
Rates are the Gonarezhou Conservation Trust's own published figures and operators' rate cards, gathered July 2026, quoted Local / SADC / International where the Trust publishes all three tiers. Accommodation rates generally exclude the daily conservation fee; confirm the total with the Trust when you book. Two names you may still find elsewhere, Mahenye Lodge and Senuko, could not be verified as currently operating: their websites no longer resolve and neither appears on any current operator list.
Questions about Chilo Gorge Safari Lodge
Is Chilo Gorge Safari Lodge good for families?
We found no published minimum age or child policy on the lodge's own pages, so ask when you enquire. It offers a self-catering villa, Nhambo, alongside the main chalets, which gives a family more flexibility over meal times than the full-board lodge rooms. Confirm ages for walks and the Chivilila Falls trek.
Is Chilo Gorge Safari Lodge good for a honeymoon?
It has the setting for it: chalets perched on a cliff above the Save River with views over the Runde Gorge, plus two guided activities a day and a cultural visit to Mahenye village. The lodge's own site does not advertise specific romance features such as a private plunge pool, so ask when booking.
How do you get to Chilo Gorge Safari Lodge?
By charter flight from Harare to Mahenye Airstrip, about 1 hour 55 minutes door to door, or via Johannesburg to Buffalo Range with a lodge transfer, about 3 hours 30 minutes in total. The lodge also provides downloadable driving directions from Harare and Bulawayo for self-drivers.
How much does it cost to stay at Chilo Gorge Safari Lodge?
Published figures disagree: one aggregator quotes around $580 a person a night all-inclusive, and a $150 meals-only rate also circulates online. The lodge's own rates page could not be reached at the time of writing, so confirm current pricing directly with reservations@chilogorge.com before booking.
When is Chilo Gorge Safari Lodge open?
April to November, according to the property record; outside those months the lodge is closed for the wet season. Its satellite tented camp on the Runde bank and fly-camping trips run on the same seasonal basis, so confirm exact dates when you enquire.