Chada Katavi
Chada Katavi is a small tented camp set in a peninsula of woodland on the edge of the vast Chada Plains in the heart of Katavi National Park.
Chada Katavi is a traditional tented camp offering a close to nature bush experience with a stunning location, beautiful views, immediate access to core game viewing areas and excellent birding in the trees around camp. With the potential for game to wander through camp at any stage there is a wild feeling to the place, which is great for nature lovers and experienced safari enthusiasts. The tents are spacious and very comfortable, but are not especially luxurious. The hosting team is small and friendly and the camp has a very communal feel with an old school safari atmosphere. This is definitely the most intimate and adventurous permanent camp in Katavi and will suit guests seeking an exclusive, high quality bush experience ahead of heavy build accommodation.
Rooms
Chada Katavi caters for just 12 guests in six spacious tents on the ground. Each tent is comfortably furnished with solar lighting and a private verandah with views through the trees to the plains beyond. Connected to the back corner of each tent is a separate bathroom tent, linked by a short covered passage, which consists of a chemical toilet, sink, dressing table with water provided in jugs and an outdoor bucket shower with hot water supplied on request. Solar power provides twenty four hour lighting in the tents, which also have international sockets for charging and a standing fan for the hotter months of the year.
Central Areas
The central areas consist of a comfortable lounge tent, separate dining tent and extensive decking with further comfortable seating. A short sandy path leads to the camp fire which offers a genuine bush experience.
Facilities
Wi-Fi – Yes
Power for Charging – Yes
Swimming Pool – No
Habitat & Wildlife
Katavi is a little known and remote park in south-west Tanzania. Limited access has always ensured an exclusive experience, though at the right time of year, game viewing can be spectacular. Miombo woodland covers much of the park, and is home to a variety of game, including Sable and Roan antelope, Lesser Kudu, Eland and Defasa waterbuck. However, game concentrations are highest along the beautiful Kapapa and Katuma rivers which transect the park, especially in the dry season when their waters attract large herds of buffalo, elephant, giraffe, zebra and impala. At various places along the river courses huge flood plains have developed (Katisunga, Chada and Paradise Plains) where game concentrates. Predators include lion, leopard, hyaena, wild dog and crocodile, the later of which have a rare characteristic of digging caves in the river banks in which to cool down when water is limited. Hippo are plentiful, and can be seen squashed together in huge numbers during the dry season. The woodland is superb for birding and the floodplains also attract vast numbers of migratory birds. There is a limited network of roads through the park and lots of tsetse fly. Katavi is best suited to the experienced safari traveller looking for somewhere new and/ or remote and exclusive to visit.
Activities
Activities include game drives by day (with a private guide and vehicle included for each set of guests); while night safaris, walking safaris and fly-camping are also possible at extra cost and should be pre-booked. We would highly recommend fly-camping in particular for anyone spending longer than three nights in Katavi.
Seasons
Chada Katavi is open from June through to mid-November with the best game viewing between August and October.
Katavi is not a destination for young children with the camp only accepting those above 12 years old and there being no family specific facilities. Though extra beds for children may be provided when needed, Katavi is simply not a sensible destination for young children. However, more adventurous families with older, active children (16+ for walking) who would take their own tent could enjoy an amazing and exclusive safari adventure in Katavi.
Nomad Tanzania, owners of Chada Katavi, have made it their mission to “harness the power of Nomad to create life-enhancing opportunities”. They do this by focussing on three core areas:
Lifelong learning & growth – through supporting local talent and providing funding for business support and apprenticeship, using their business to create career opportunities and supporting local schools and wildlife education, Nomad recognises the importance of education and opportunity. Their meal-a-day programme feeds over 700 children across seven schools, while their student safari programme runs across many of their camps, allowing the next generation to foster an appreciation wildlife and wilderness.
Health & well-being – Nomad opens their camps for periods for medical outreach to allow doctors, dentists and other professionals to have access to a base, cars and planes to treat communities in the remote areas they operate.
Conservation & environment – in addition to keeping their own footprint as light as possible, Nomad Tanzania supports local projects and environmental partners in the areas they operate. This includes donating to de-snaring efforts and supplying bednights, vehicles and logistics where possible.
Nomad Tanzania is a member of Pack For A Purpose and guests may use the space in their luggage to bring in donations of items in need relevant to the location they are visiting.
In Katavi, Nomad supports the Landscape and Conservation Methods Organisation (LCMO) which works to improve the relationship between humans and wildlife by creating village ambassadors and by organising environmental youth clubs to educate the children. They do this through various means including dance festivals, film nights, bird watching, lion defenders, tree planting and bee keeping. They also support schools and clinics in the local villages, providing basic supplies as well as outreach programmes. Guests at Chada are given the opportunity (donation fees apply) to visit the LCMO and local communities to see some of these projects and experience rural village life. Guests can also get more involved by donating a beehive, building an energy-efficient ‘rocket stove’ or experiencing the Sukuma tribe traditional dance ceremony.