Newsletter Articles

Giant Prawns and ultimte luxury in southern Mozambique
Author: Alice Gully

One of the real pleasures of this job is the opportunity to travel to incredible places all over Africa.  On a working trip we usually move at breakneck speed whizzing from one property to another, arriving home with a bundle of notes and brim full of new ideas.  Last October however I persuaded some Edinburgh friends to join me on a trip to southern Mozambique – the perfect excuse to slow things down a bit.

I hadn’t visited this area for ten years and was the first Aardvark staff member to return after the devastating storms of almost exactly a year ago.   Two of our old favourite lodges, Marlin and Benguerra, have been completely rebuilt, and they are joined now by Azura which is a new luxury lodge.  I was very impressed by all three – all the changes that have been made are for the better.

We were lucky enough to stay in Pambele House which is a private villa that had just opened.  It is the sort of place you read about in glossy magazines, but never think you will be lucky enough to actually visit.  Not only is the house completely private but the beach is as well – we could walk for miles and not see another person.   On first approach Pambele looks much like other thatched beach front properties, but when we got closer it became apparent how beautifully the buildings have been constructed - a team of hardworking people has managed to build a masterpiece on a small peninsular.

During our action packed four days we spent time exploring small islands with picnic lunches (think gastronomic delights full of prawn dips, chicken salads, quiches, white wine, calamari and roasted vegetables).  We snorkelled, went diving and managed to fit in a bit of whale watching.  We fly-fished from the beach in front of the lodge and took the deep sea fishing boat to look for barracuda, sail fish and ‘GTs’ (giant trevally not gin and tonics).   Despite the almost constant activity we did all manage a morning or afternoon, enjoying the lodge.  The pool area is unbelievable, the amount of space for six of us was the biggest luxury and even ten wouldn’t feel crowded. 

The food was to die for.  The kitchen at Pambele has all the mod cons of a smart western restaurant and the staff are all trained to an incredibly high standard.  Menus included fresh lobster, ostrich carpaccio, shrimps the size of battleships and fillet steak.  At the end of our stay none of us could agree on a favourite meal, they were all so different.  The last thing a group of Scots with farming backgrounds wanted was nouvelle cuisine so for us the range of delicious sea food dishes with local ingredients was just perfect. 

The four huge bedrooms were superb.  Private plunge pools, hammocks, indoor and outdoor showers, baths with a view of the Indian Ocean, and huge double beds that could easily trap you for a full nine hours’ sleep. 

I’d heard good things about Pambele before we arrived but it’s lovely to be able to report that my expectations were easily surpassed.  It’s a stunning place with lovely staff, there’s plenty to do if you want activity, but gorgeous surroundings if you want to relax.  For a group of friends or a family travelling together it’s just about perfect.

Getting there:

Daily scheduled flights between Johannesburg and Vilanculos.
Flights three times a week between Dar es Salaam and Vilanculos.
From Vilanculos guests take a 45 minute boat transfer.

Combines well with:

Any safari in Zambia, South Africa, Namibia and Botswana.
Safaris in East Africa, although the less frequent flight schedule can make this a little more complicated than combining with Southern Africa.

Good for:

Minimum six adults, no more than 10 adults
Ultimate private beach
Wide selection of activities
Excellent food.