Imire Rhino & Wildlife Conservation is a game farm and safari lodge that is situated just 90 minutes from Harare. You can take a day trip like we did which is such a fun activity for families, or stay for a few nights and enjoy the peace and quiet of being out of town.
Imire also offers a volunteer program where you can work with the animals and conservation experts – this is very popular for young tourists who want to learn more about Africa and get up close and personal with the animals.
Earlier this year, I spent a few weeks back home in Zimbabwe with my family…And Mike came to join me for the last weekend.
We couldn’t go too far out of Harare as he was only there for 4 nights, but we wanted to take a fun day trip with the whole family.
And so Imire Rhino & Wildlife Conservation seemed like the perfect solution!
Check out my posts on Spurwing Island Kariba from this trip to Zim. And my post on Wild Is Life from my previous trip at the end of last year.
The day trip is a full day experience and so you need to arrive around 9am, this makes for a bit of an early start if you’re leaving from Harare, but it’s worth it!
When you arrive at Imire Rhino & Wildlife Conservation
- You will be served tea, coffee and delicious homemade crunchies (I think we had an average of about 4 each, they are too good!)
- Then it’s time to jump on your safari vehicle. We were a big group of 7 adults and 5 children, so we took up most of the truck, if you’re a small group, expect to have quite a few other day-trippers on your vehicle with you
- Your guide will take you around the game farm, keeping in touch with handlers along the way so that you get to see all the animals, which is great for the kids!
- At 1pm you will stop at the dam for a drink and a full, hearty buffet lunch (read on for a full description), which will be laid out beautifully, awaiting your arrival
- After lunch it’s back onto the truck to go find the buffalo herd
- And then back to the lodge for a final cup of tea, ours was served with freshly baked scones with jam and cream
- Then it’s time to head home
To book your trip, take a look at the Imire Game Farm website.
We had beautiful warm weather the day we visited Imire.
Let’s get into the best part of any travel/adventure post – the photos!
Our Day Trip to Imire Rhino & Wildlife Conservation in Harare told through pics:
On Arrival
You will find yourself in the most beautiful lush green garden
Time for tea, crunchies, stretch legs, relaxation and chats (kids will most likely gravitate towards the playground)
All ABOARD the safari vehicle
Game Drive Commences
Frist Stop: Cheetahs – found chilling under a small bush
Then it’s time to meet the giraffe and witness one of the great feats of nature as he navigates his pyramid pose like a pro
You lookin at me? I’m lookin at you!
Impala with amazing balancing rocks in the background
Now was when we met their two beautiful elephants. They are quite tame which I always find a little bit sad, but at least they are safe from poachers at Imire Rhino & Wildlife Conservation.
You can read more about their conservation vision here.
The ellies were throwing sand/dust over themselves which is said to be for sun protection as well as serving as a bug repellant.
On our way to the rhinos we drove alongside a little family of warthogs – I just love them! They’re so darn cute.
And finally, the rhinos.
We witnessed a bit of a stand-off between a mother and her offspring and a lone male.
None of whom wanted to back down until the male became quite aggressive and then the mother and offspring backed off into the bush.
We stopped for a while under some trees to stretch our legs and watch a journey of giraffe make their way towards us from quite a distance.
Did you know that a group of giraffe that are moving are called a “journey of giraffe” and a group of giraffe that are standing still are called a “tower of giraffe”. Pretty cool.
They had several babies with them and I just loved watching them.
Two of the older giraffe were roughly intertwining their necks and knocking heads – making a loud cracking noise…Were they playing? I’m not sure, didn’t seem like it! I’ve never seen that before.
LUNCH TIME!
You can pretty much have any drink you might feel like as you arrive at the lunch spot by the dam. Alcoholic or non.
We were served a huge selection of food for lunch – I didn’t think I’d ever get through all the food that was served up to me…
Turns out I was hungrier than I thought! And it was all so delicious, and very Zimbabwean which I loved.
We had tasty beef stew with sadza (a Zimbabwean maize-meal dish, similar in texture to polenta), sautéed leafy greens that are traditionally served with sadza dishes, there was a chicken option as well, a lovely green salad, a potato salad, rice and a lentil salad with veggies.
It was very hearty and yum.
For dessert, we had carrot cake with cream cheese frosting and a dollop of creamy greek yoghurt…Very nice combo, and our tummies were truly full.
While we ate, the ellies made their way into the dam for a swim, and they played together in the water for the whole time we ate lunch.
I’ve never seen anything quite like it! They were throwing themselves around and just having FUN. I wish I had taken my zoom lens with me, but alas this was the best pic I got.
It was such a special day with family. It’s a pity we didn’t get all 5 kids in the pic too, but they were so happy running around, climbing rocks and playing together.
After lunch we went to see the big herd of buffalo before heading back to the lodge for a last cup of tea.
You won’t believe your eyes, but yet another treat awaits you at the afternoon tea table.
I was far too full to eat anything else, but there were freshly baked scones with jam and cream for anyone that wanted them, or just a cup of tea or coffee before we hit the road.
It’s an action packed day, and you will get home suitably tired, but happily so.
This was my second trip to Imire, the first was many years ago, and it was lovely to go back with my husband who had never been to Zim before.
Next time we’ll take Mike to the real wild and untamed parts of Zimbabwe like Kariba, Mana, or the Zambezi River. A little visit to Vic Falls goes down well too! One day.
You can check out my posts on Spurwing Island, Kariba here -> 4 Nights at Spurwing Island Kariba and 4 Nights at Spurwing Island Kariba II
Thanks for reading this post on our day trip to Imire Rhino & Wildlife Conservation, Harare, Zimbabwe.
Check back soon for more travel, healthy food, decor and lifestyle posts coming your way!
My mom arrives tomorrow to spend two weeks with us in our new apartment by the sea, and while she’s here I’m sure we’ll get up to a few adventures worth sharing here on the blog.
See you back here soon for those!
QUESTION FOR YOU:
I was thinking of putting a post together on the best coffee shops in Ballito (the beach town where we live)…would you be interested in that?
Let me know in the comments!