Mchenja
Grass-walled rooms · Ebony grove on the Luangwa · Time + Tide
High-end
Inside the park
Safari company
Mchenja means ebony, and the camp sits inside a grove of them on the riverbank. Five open rooms, a pool above the water, and the kind of shade that makes the middle of an October day survivable.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Family room with two bedrooms and two bathrooms
- Shaded ebony grove keeps camp cool
- Riverside pool above the water
- Children of all ages explicitly welcome
- All-inclusive rate with two daily activities
Cons
- Longest transfer of the group, two and a half hours
- Wifi in rooms only, not the main area
- Only open 20 May to 15 November
What's here
- Swimming pool
Arranged from the lodge:
- Game drives
- Boat trips
- Guided walks
- Fishing
Read from Mchenja'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. South Luangwa National Park charges its own entry fee for every day you are inside. Here is what that adds up to.
- Park entry$25 if you are in an operator vehicle instead of self-driving.
- $30per person, per day
- VehicleUnder 3 tonnes, foreign registered.
- $15per vehicle, per day
Three nights means three days inside, so two adults sharing one vehicle pay $225 in park fees before anyone pays for a bed.
There is no single park fee here. On top of the gate fee, camps pass on vehicle fees, guide fees and bed levies, and what applies depends on whether the camp sits inside the national park or in the Game Management Area alongside it. Kafunta Safaris, who charge one combined figure covering the government levies, told us it comes to $60 per person per night at their two GMA camps and $90 at their camp inside the park. Treat that as the shape of it rather than a universal rate: the amounts move with each operator's lease.
The full fee schedule for South Luangwa National ParkRates at Mchenja
From $880 pppn. All inclusive; park fees extra.
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.
Indicative 2026 rates from operators' own rate cards, gathered July 2026. Rates change by season and year, so always confirm with the lodge. Park fees are extra almost everywhere: budget about $30 per person per day, plus vehicle fees.
Questions about Mchenja
Is Mchenja good for families?
Yes. Time + Tide says children of all ages are welcome, and Mchenja has a two-bedroom, two-bathroom family room next to four standard rooms. The riverside pool and shaded ebony grove also make the heat of the day easier with children.
Can you self-drive to Mchenja?
No self-drive route is published. The camp's own site gives a two-and-a-half-hour game drive transfer from Mfuwe Airport, the longest of the Time + Tide bush camps, pointing to fly-in access rather than a guest driving in.
What does the rate at Mchenja include?
The all-inclusive rate covers accommodation, all meals, standard drinks, local airport transfers except from Jeki, laundry and two daily activities, mainly game drives and walking safaris. Premium spirits, wine and champagne, spa treatments, visas, flights and gratuities are charged separately.
When is Mchenja open?
Mchenja runs from 20 May to 15 November each year, matching its Time + Tide sister camps on the Luangwa. Outside that window the camp is closed, so a visit has to fall inside those dates.