COSTS
on request
Departure Dates
This trip can depart on any day of the week, subject to
availability.
Other Information
Accommodation is in fully equipped walk in ‘safari tents’, all these
tents have come with all bedding provided and are within walking
distance of a dedicated shower and toilet block.
Included are
All park fees, food and camping equipment. We will supply mineral water,
filtered drinking water and limited house wine with dinner
Not included
Soft drinks and beers, items of a personal nature, like towels and
toiletries. Transfers to and from the point of departure for the trip,
unless pre arranged by your agent
We can arrange flights
from you to and from Lusaka these are currently priced at $440 per
person Return. We can also provide information on alternative methods of
getting to Mfuwe.
Minimum number required to
confirm this trip is 3 clients.
This trip starts and finishes in MFUWE
Day 1
Your South Luangwa Safari starts mid-morning, as you are collected from
Mfuwe by your tour leader and transported to our beautiful campsite,
located within the surrounds of Wildlife Camp. Game viewing begins
immediately as we drive through the heart of Lupande Game Management
Area, so eyes peeled! After settling into the campsite, you’ll have a
lazy lunch before heading off on the first game drive. You leave camp as
soon as everybody is ready, allowing for both an afternoon and night
drive rolled into one. The early departure gives a head start on all the
other lodges and means you can enjoy sundowners at one of the beautiful
oxbow lagoons in an area where very few other vehicles reach on their
drives. Driving through the Park after dark gives an excellent chance of
seeing leopard, lion, honey badgers and all the other nocturnal
surprises this amazing Park is waiting to reveal. You’ll arrive back
at our campsite between 20:00 and 20:30 for a delicious home cooked
dinner.
Day 2
It is an early wake up call in preparation for the morning drive. Enjoy
a hearty breakfast of porridge and cereal, served with coffee or tea
before setting off for the second foray into the National Park. During
the drive there are excellent chances of sighting elephant, buffalo,
giraffe, hippo and Zebra. You return to camp at around 11:00, shortly
before an early lunch. The early afternoon is yours to enjoy at your
leisure; perhaps you fancy a snooze, a swim in the Wildlife Camp pool,
or just swapping stories and photographs at the bar. Once it starts to
cool down, it is time to leave camp on foot with an experienced walking
guide and armed escort scout, heading for the beautiful bush camp set on
the edge of the Luangwa River. On the way the guide will explain the art
of tracking and all about the varied fauna and flora of the Valley, all
the while keeping eyes and ears open for the big game that frequent the
area. You arrive at the bush camp in time for sundowners followed by a
delicious dinner cooked over an open fire. The evening is spent around
the campfire, telling stories and stargazing, before being lulled to
sleep by the sounds of the African bush.
Day 3
After breakfast at the bush camp, the second walking safari begins, this
time back to the camp. En route you will learn more about the local
significance of the unique Luangwa flora, including the many spiritual
and medicinal uses for the plants and trees found in the valley.
Following lunch you visit the Chipembele Education Centre (Chipembele
means ‘rhino’ in the local Nyanja language). The centre is situated
45 minutes drive from campsite in the Lupande Game Management Area and
is run by Steve and Anna Tolan, a British couple dedicated to the
education of local communities about the importance of Wildlife
Conservation. The Tolans have received international acclaim for their
work, and you will spend a fascinating couple of hours touring the
centre – possibly even getting to know one or more of the endless
stream of orphan animals they always take in and raise to be returned to
the wild. Sundowners are enjoyed in a beautiful spot overlooking the
Luangwa River, before another night drive back to the camp and a tasty
dinner at 20:00.
Day 4
The fourth day is really the highlight of the safari, as the drive heads
deep into the Park, venturing further than most visitors ever get. After
an early start and breakfast at the campsite, you set off on the all-day
adventure, heading for the Northern Sector of the park, interrupted by a
welcome tea break in the vicinity of the Tena Crossing. Eventually after
crossing the evocatively named Lion Plain, lunch time finds you at Big
Lagoon, home to several pods of (very vocal) hippo. The heat of midday
is spent relaxing in the shade of a grove of Sausage trees, perhaps
catching 40 winks in the process. In the afternoon the journey continues
through the ebony groves and lagoons of the Kaingo (leopard) and Kakuli
(lone buffalo) regions. This is wild area and always carries the
anticipation of sighting rare game such as wild dog or eland, en route
to the sundowner spot. After the sunset the night drive begins with
excellent opportunities to spot shy nocturnal animals such as genets,
civets, bush-babies and maybe even the diminutive Sharpe’s Grysbok,
ending back at our camp in time for a welcome BBQ dinner, drinks and a
warming campfire. This is a long but hugely rewarding day, and you might
fancy an early night on your return!
Day 5
The final breakfast is a scrumptious affair, with a big fry up at the
Kakumbi Salt Pan. Keep a sharp lookout for all the usual game, but this
is a special day for the birders. The route passes through the
hauntingly beautiful Cathedral Mopani Forests, so besides the elephant
and giraffe, eyes will be on full alert for the specialized woodland
birds, such as racket-tailed rollers and white-helmet shrikes. The salt
pan itself attracts a host of water birds, and large flocks of the
majestic crowned cranes are a virtual certainty. Finally it is back to
camp to get ready for the trip back to Chipata, but there will be some
time to catch up on your safari journal or simply relax by the pool.
