Big Cave Camp reposes atop an enormous granite whaleback commanding inspirational views across the famous Matobo National Park. Sophisticated African architecture incorporates colossal boulders into a luxuriously appointed thatch lodge positioned amidst ancient Khoisan rock art. Retire at day’s end to the natural rock-pool and sundeck, the Leopard’s Lair Lounge & Bar, a cave-style boma for pre-dinner drinks or the popular lodge library. Big Cave Camp resides on a 2000 acre private wilderness area that borders Matobo National Park and is included in a World Heritage Area. Accommodation: The seven thatched A-frame cottages, each with en-suite bathroom and private balcony, resonate African creative flair. Find solitude within an intimate retreat as secluded as the original Kalanga grain bins that nestle amongst the rocks. Included is a honeymoon suite as well as family rooms for those with small children. Activities: History, culture, flora and fauna abound in the Matobo Hills. Guests choose from a wide variety of activities, accompanied by a qualified guide. Game viewing: Game viewing is done both on the private property as well into the Whovi Game Park. Guests can choose to walk or view the game from open 4 wheeled drive vehicles to view, in particular, black and white rhino, amongst a wide variety of plains game. Night drives on the Big Cave wilderness area can be enjoyed (depending on the time of the year) to view the nocturnal creatures of the Matobo Hills. Bird watching: Matobo Hills boasts one of the highest concentrations of birds of prey anywhere in the world. Big Cave has several nesting sites on and adjacent to the property. The Black Eagle is one of the more majestic birds to grace the area, and other sort after species is the elusive Cape (Mackinder’s) Eagle owl. Big Cave offers excellent opportunities for the bird watcher. Cultural activities The Matobo Hills boasts one of the highest concentrations of rock art anywhere in the world. This ancient khoisan art can be viewed in the both the National Park and even within the immediate vicinity of Big Cave Camp. These famous rock art galleries can be visited on foot or by 4x4.One of the more famous sites is Nswatugi cave, which is normally combined with a trip to Rhodes Grave, World’s View, which is a beautiful drive through the Recreational Park. Tours to the nearby Ndebele village and Whitewaters Secondary school provides an insight into the lives of the local people. The school in particular has been supported by guests of Big Cave Camp for many years. To date a library has been constructed, and school fees, science equipment, desks, chairs, sporting goods and building materials have been donated. In times of real hardship a guaranteed meal has also been provided for all the school children. In addition a number of children have had their education sponsored by guests of Big Cave Camp.

Huge granite masses – seamed, split, shaped and sculptured by time and the elements - form an array of giant whalebacks and castellated kopjes that cover 3000 square kilometers of Matabeleland South Province. Much of the country's history has been written and played out within the confines of the Matobo Hills - from the time thousands of years ago when ancient bushmen used the granite faces as a canvas for their unique and extraordinary art, to more recent times, when black and white met in war and peace. These are the Matobo Hills, located south of Zimbabwe's second largest city, Bulawayo. Forty thousand years ago the caves and crevices carved out of these rocks became home to Zimbabwe’s earliest inhabitants, the "San". Twenty thousand years later "San" artists began painting on the walls of caves and rock shelters, using special pigments and natural minerals that have survived the onslaught of climate and time. Many caves contain superb galleries of Bushman paintings, one of which is Bambata, located no more than 10km from Big Cave Camp. Other Bushman paintings may be seen on the private wilderness in secluded caves and rock shelters. The Matobo Hills made a profound impression on two men of absolute power, whose destinies drew them into a final showdown in the last decade of the nineteenth century. One of them was Cecil John Rhodes who spearheaded the invasion of the colonising pioneers, the other, his adversary Lobengula, king of the Ndebele people and son of Mzilikasi (who named the hills Amatobo, the Sindebele word for "bald heads"). Cecil John Rhodes is buried in the Matobo Hills on the kopje Malindidsimu, the Ndebele’s "place of spirits". Rhodes named the hill "The View of the World" which today is commonly known as "Worlds’ View". Guests can visit the grave and walk the hundred odd metres up to the site, and reflect on the spectacular view and the hills that stand the test of time. The Matobo Hills became the stronghold of Lobengula's indunas and impis in the battle against Rhodes colonizing "pioneers", and "grain bins" still exist in hidden places where the Ndebele warriors used to store their grain, together with clay ovens, known locally as "iron smelters", which the warriors used to manufacture their infamous assegais in 1896. Good examples of grain bins can be seen on the private wilderness, together with pottery almost a century old. Today the Matobo Hills are a place of peace; however this area is still held in reverential awe by local communities, and ceremonies continue to be performed to assist in the making of rain.

For self-drive guests follow Robert Mugabe Street/Matobo Road out of Bulawayo (South West). After approx. 30km pass the turn-off to Rhodes Matobo National Park. Do not turn – continue straight along the Matobo Road until you reach the 46km mark. Turn left at the Big Cave Camp sign and proceed along the gravel road for approx. 2km until you reach the parking lot where you will be collected by a 4x4 vehicle and taken to the lodge.