TRAVEL: AT HOME

DANA B

We select the best places to visit at home and abroad

For many of you dear readers, what I’m about to say borders on sacrilege, a violation of something close to your heart, an insult to a lifestyle choice that fills you with joy, has shaped you into the healthy, resilient human you are today and which you shall proudly pass on to the next generation of heroes.

This is it: I really don’t like camping. You might have grown up used to sleeping in sweaty tents and digging holes in which to toilet, but I find the concept of a night under canvas frankly untenable.

This may be because I’m a foreigner, and from England, where camping is usually a one-off experience, organised by over-enthusiastic parents eager to get their children off their screens and into the “great outdoors”. Three hours in, they realise that sitting in a muddy field just off a motorway is no way to spend a long weekend, and that toddlers have no concept of bedtime when they’re lying next to their parents and the door is a zip.

I am also a child of the traditional British boarding school system, so I was often sent on character-building exercises to England’s never-knowingly-sunny Lake District, armed with nothing but a couple of energy bars and a stiff upper lip. The drizzle. The cold. The misery. The thought of willingly going camping as an adult never crossed my mind.

Skip forward a few years and I find myself in Zimbabwe, surrounded by folk for whom camping is a way of life. They have all the kit: folding tables and chairs, rugs, rooftop tents, and trucks with carefully designed compartments for kitchen utensils. There are tablecloths, and useful gadgets, and no one ever forgets the matches. It’s all a bit much.

Praise be, then, for Tana Walsh and Olja Pantic, the dynamic duo behind Dana B Savanna Camp. These ingenious women were responsible for my gentle re-introduction to camping. If it wasn’t for them, I’d have never bought myself a skottle, or worked out what all the tools are for on my Swiss Army knife.

Just 40 minutes from Harare (which is convenient if you do actually forget the matches), Dana B is an oasis of outdoor heaven, perfectly suited to even the most reluctant camper. It’s the very epitome of glamping. There are secluded campsites on which to pitch your tent, close enough to the beautifully designed bathrooms, but far enough away from your neighbour to avoid hearing their arguments and/or heavy petting.

Set in acres of wilderness and just 40 minutes from Harare, Dana B Savanna Camp is the ideal place to leave city life behind

Reclining in your ergonomically designed camping chair, the view from your campsite is of stunning savannah. Occasionally some sort of antelope might stroll by, but there is no animal here for whom the passing tourist is considered lunch. Riffraff the giraffe is the biggest beast you’ll come across, and there is no better way to spend the afternoon than cruising around the game park with your children trying to spot his long neck poking out above the msasa trees. This place is calm, comfortable and completely kid-friendly.

For those of you who need more than flushing loos and hot running water to tempt you for a night under the stars (don’t look at me, I actually love a bucket shower), Dana B has just opened its first Tented Camp. No marital disputes over correct tent pitching here — the structures are already up. And there are beds! And duvets! And you don’t have to stress about forgetting something: the outside kitchen is fully equipped, and bathrooms stocked with soap and loo paper. All you need to bring is alcohol and a deep desire to unwind.

OCCASIONALLY SOME SORT OF ANTELOPE MIGHT STROLL BY, BUT THERE IS NO ANIMAL HERE FOR WHOM THE PASSING TOURIST IS CONSIDERED LUNCH

This is the perfect place to spend time with friends and watch your children go feral, but if you do grow restless there is plenty on this site to keep everyone entertained: Wild Day Spa (which you can read about in the Wellness section of this magazine) is a five-minute drive away, and the park is filled with sculptures from Zimbabwe’s renowned Chapungu Sculpture Park, dotted around the savannah like a treasure hunt.

“We wanted to challenge the concept of an African safari,” says Tana. “And make it a little bit avant garde,” adds Olja. Indeed, art, design and music are key concepts of the Dana B collective. The park often plays host to music festivals, outdoor dining experiences and kids’ camps. Dana B’s permanent geometric dome, complete with teak floor, allows for events all year round: yoga retreats and private parties are a frequent fixture.

As well as providing a haven away from Harare, Tana and Olja set up Dana B as a means to protect the animals and the wilderness, both from property development and poaching. “We use our profits to fund a fully trained anti-poaching squad, and it’s a constant battle to keep the animals safe,” Tana says. “Only 23% of the planet’s land surface is still wilderness,” she continues, “and we need invest in our wild spaces. Dana B is a perfect way to express our Zimbabwean heritage, through our music and Shona stone sculpture, and to conserve our beautiful country.”

Now that’s a version of outdoor sleeping even a traumatised camper like me can get excited about.

Words by Milly McPhie

Dana B Savanna Camp, Melfort.
Call: +263 779 878 773.
Email: info@savanna-camp.com
Visit: www.savanna-camp.com
Instagram: @danabsavannacamp