This depends on your particular interests... read more
The Carmines tend to arrive here from... read more
Please bear in mind that if you are taking... read more
The only accommodation here which has... read more
I'm afraid not unless you have a... read more
We are local agents for... read more
For internal flights within Zambia... read more
Yes, there are several bus... read more
This is a wildlife area and there... read more
Please contact your GP or Doctor... read more
Yes! We have 2 private boreholes... read more
Our official check in time is... read more
We have UK style plug sockets... read more
Yes, we have Starlink systems... read more
At time of writing most... read more
Yes, we accept Visa... read more
If you would like to leave a... read more
The local currency here in... read more
This depends on your particular interests and susceptibility to heat!
If you are totally flexible on timings, then I would recommend that you aim for any time from May until the end of September, unless you really don’t mind the heat, in which case you would enjoy October too. Here are the whys...
What we would call “the dry season” here in Zambia runs from around April to the beginning/middle of November, depending on the year. Rain has been recorded here in the Luangwa in every month of the year, but in general, the rains end in March/April and after 5 months of wet, the Park is very lush and green and there’s water found throughout the Park, so the animals are spread out through the Park as they have food and water everywhere. The bush is quite thick and the grass can be tall at the end of the rains, so it can be harder to see some of the smaller particularly nocturnal mammals as they disappear off into the tall grass quite rapidly. As the “dry season” progresses from April on, visibility gets better and better and because the lagoons further in land start to dry up over time, the animals start to congregate in large herds along the river so you can see very large numbers of elephant and buffalo grouping together by August/September/October as they come to the river to drink. From July to the end of August it’s winterthorn season here when these beautiful trees start fruiting and we get herds of elephant feeding peaceably right here in camp! That can be quite an incredible experience for people, to have elephant right outside your tent/room/dining room. It is also cooler in our winter months (June, July & August), when temperatures are more temperate – around 28 degrees during the day and cooling to around 12-14 degrees at night. From September, things start to warm up gradually until the start of the rains which is usually at the beginning or middle of November. By October and into November until the rains arrive, temperatures average 39-42 degrees during the heat of the day, falling to around 25-28 degrees at night. April is a particularly beautiful time here in the Park as there is so much green and the animals are all very healthy and fat after a season grazing, and the birding is outstanding, with several of our intra-African migrants still in breeding plumage, but you might not see the larger numbers of animals all together that you do from maybe July onwards. From mid November onwards, there can be a chance of rain during your stay, but the onset of the rains is a signal to many species to give birth in order to take advantage of the soon to arrive fresh grass. It is also the time that our migrant bird species start arriving in the Luangwa, so the birding season for enthusiasts really starts with the rains.
The Carmines tend to arrive here from late August/beginning of September and are residents here until late October, they aim to be ready to leave with their fledgelings just before the rains arrive in force.
Please bear in mind that if you are taking any smaller light aircraft flights during your safari, then there will be a luggage limit of between 10 and 15kgs per person on these flights. We offer a daily laundry service, so you really don’t need to bring too much with you.
We highly recommend the following to bring on your Zambian safari; a hat with good brim, 100% UV protection sunglasses, high SPF sun-cream, mosquito repellent, binoculars*, your camera plus lenses, camera battery charger, extra memory cards and batteries, just in case, any medicines you need including anti-malarial prophylaxis, your favourite face cream and toiletries as there’s not much available in shops here (we provide shower gel and shampoo in all our rooms and tents), comfortable walking shoes (trainers are fine, but you might prefer some ankle support if you are going on a walking safari as the ground can be uneven), swimming costume, shorts, T shirts (cotton if possible in non-bright colours – greens and browns are best (royal blues, black and white are the worst for attracting attention both from tsetse flies and from the wildlife!), long trousers/jeans for the evenings. If you are travelling in winter months (June-August), then you should bring a warm jumper (jersey or sweater) or fleece type jacket, socks, even gloves and a wool hat if you feel the cold, as it will feel pretty chilly in the evenings and early mornings on our open game-viewing vehicles. We provide blankets on the game viewing vehicles, but it’s a good idea to carry layers of clothes with you that you can add on or take off as the sun sets/rises! If you are also travelling to the Kafue National Park which is on the high plateau of Zambia, it’s even cooler there and for longer than here in the Valley.
A lightweight scarf is useful at any time of year, to help against dusty drives or to keep the sun off your neck.
There’s no need for dressing up out here, comfortable is the way to be!
Please also remember not to pack ANY valuables or medicines in your hold luggage, in case these do not make it all the way here through all your various connections. The long haul airlines do their best to get them onto each connection, but sometimes they do not make it and you may have a day or so without them while they catch up with you.
The only accommodation here which has an eco-friendly air-cooling system is the Crocodile Nest where we have “Evening Breeze” cooling systems over each of the beds. In all the other tents and rooms at camp, we have electric fans to help keep you cooler.
I'm afraid not unless you have a special drone operators licence from the Zambian Civil Aviation Authority which requires you to be a qualified light aircraft pilot.
We are local agents for Proflight Zambia and Royal Air Charters and have their booking systems here at camp so we can help with Proflight and Royal flight bookings. Proflight flies between Lusaka and the following destinations; Mfuwe, Livingstone, the Lower Zambezi (Royal and Jeki airstrips), Ndola, Solwezi, Mansa and Kasama and regionally to Johannesburg, Cape Town (via Livingstone), Maun (via Livingstone) and Windhoek (via Livingstone). Please contact Jess or Israel for more information on these.
For internal flights within Zambia on Proflight, the luggage limit is 23kgs per person in the hold plus 5kgs per person hand luggage. If you have large camera kit that you don’t want to put in the hold, you can weigh your hold and hand luggage together upto a limit of 28kgs. All the people in one booking can share their total luggage limit as well.
Regional flights have higher limits at 30kgs per person plus 5kgs hand luggage.
Yes, there are several bus companies which operate between Lusaka and Lilongwe to Mfuwe, usually via Chipata. The journey will take around 11 hours.
Jonda Bus Servies
Cell Mfuwe Office: 0977487849
Cell Chipata Office: 0777735818
Cell Lusaka Office: 0974333673
Mfuwe to Lusaka via Chipata - boarding time is at 0230, departing at 0300.
Lusaka to Mfuwe via Chipata - boarding time is at 0330, departing at 0400.
Tickets cost K525 per person
UBZ (United Bus Company)
Under Savenda Group of Companies
WhatsApp line: +260 767488605
Call Centre numbers: +260 763062680 or +260 771956057
Email: info@unibuszambia.com
Lusaka and Chipata Options:
Lusaka to Chipata - boarding time is 0300, departing at 0400.
Chipata to Lusaka - boarding time is 0300, departing at 0400.
Tickets cost K470 per person.
Lusaka - Chipata - Lilongwe Options ( available on Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday):
Lusaka to Lilongwe via Chipata - boarding time is 0300, departing at 0400.
Tickets cost K900 per person
Lilongwe to Lusaka via Chipata - boarding time is 0300, departing at 0400.
Tickets cost K900 per person
Chipata to Lilongwe - departs Chipata around 1100-1200 waiting for the bus from Lusaka.
Tickets cost K400 per person
There are also many saloon car Taxis available now, Mfuwe to Chipata and vice versa costs K150 per person (they will squeeze in about 6 people!) and they depart anytime. You can also pay more for a private taxi depending on the guy.
This is a wildlife area and there are no fences allowed in game areas here in Zambia, so there is nothing to stop the same animals you will see inside the National Park from visiting us here at camp! We will give you a comprehensive safely talk on arrival, explaining how to move safely between the main area and your accommodation after dark (with our watchmen!), as well as what to watch out for during the day. On our guest registration form we also have more information on what to do and not to do when in camp which we ask you to read fully before signing in. There's even more (!) information to be found in the room folders as well, just in case. We love having wildlife in and around and wandering through camp, but we do need you to know that these are not “pets” and are not therefore tame in anyway, so you really do need to keep a safe distance from them at all times.
Please contact your GP or Doctor to check what may be suitable for you, but in general, travellers should be up to date with routine vaccination courses and boosters as recommended in their country of Residence. These vaccinations include for example Polio, tetanus and diphtheria.
Also recommended are Hepatitis A and Typhoid.
Should you be volunteering or planning to stay in a village at any stage of your time in Zambia, we would also recommend the rabies vaccine as not all village dogs have been vaccinated against rabies, especially in very remote areas.
Yes! We have 2 private boreholes on site which provide us with the most delicious fresh water you can imagine. We test our water every six months or so to double check the purity and it passes with flying colours. Our aim to remove as much plastic as possible from site and because our water is so good, we feel that we no longer need to stock plastic bottled water. We provide international guests booked on a safari package with a free thermal water bottle to re-fill during their stay from our plentifully available bore-hole water.
Our official check in time is 2pm, however if we have had guests leave early from your accommodation, we might be able to get this ready beforehand, so that we can show you in as soon as the housekeeping ladies have worked their magic and got everything spic and span for you. Similarly, check out is officially at 11am, but if our new guests are not arriving until later in the afternoon, we can usually let you keep the room/tent until around 1pm. If we do have guests arriving into your accommodation and you're not leaving until the evening flight out of Mfuwe, then there are showers and changing rooms at the main swimming pool area you are welcome to use. Please keep the swimming pool towels from your room to use during the day.
We have UK style plug sockets here in Zambia, but our rooms and tents also have Universal sockets, some of which have USB ports as well.
Yes, we have Starlink systems in the main part of camp and a mini system at the Croc's nest. The Jackalberry Treehouse has an Airtel/MTN router system for Wifi there.
At time of writing most international visitors (UK, USA, Australia, NZ, EU countries and Canada to name a few) do not need to pay for a tourist visa and can be given a 90 day visa for free on arrival. There are some exceptions though, so please check on the Zambian Immigration site for uptodate information if you are not sure - https://www.zambiaimmigration.gov.zm/nationals-who-dont-require-visa/ Or https://www.zambiaimmigration.gov.zm/nationals-who-require-visa/ Or https://www.zambiaimmigration.gov.zm/nationals-requiring-visa-prior-to-travel/
Yes, we accept Visa, Mastercard and American Express here at camp. There is no charge for this service.
If you would like to leave a tip for our excellent team, it would be very much appreciated but entirely at your discretion and we think tips should reward excellent service and/or skills. Your safari guide and spotter (on the night drives) and your DNPW escort scout if you try a walking safari, are usually tipped separately to the rest of the staff. If you would like some ball-park amounts, then we would say that a tip for your safari guide could be anything from $0 up to around $10 per person per day. For your night drive spotter maybe around $30 per couple for your whole stay and for the DNPW scout around $10 for a walk per couple.
There is a tip box at reception (or at the bar) for the rest of the general staff if you would like to leave them something as well since we would rather you don't tip individuals during your stay - all the waiters, barmen, chefs, housekeepers, watchmen etc are all tipped from the tip box as otherwise it's not fair on the people working behind the scenes but no less importantly like the mechanics, electricians and staff cooks!
Unfortunately tips cannot be added to credit card payments.
The local currency here in Zambia is the Zambian kwacha (ZMW). There is no particular need for you to have Kwacha in hand unless you would like to shop in any local markets as most shops and supermarkets now will take credit or debit cards (VISA in particular). You cannot purchase Zambian kwacha before you arrive in the country and you will not be able to exchange it for foreign currency once home, so if you do have any left over, please try to change it back at a bank before you leave (or donate it to a deserving charity! 😊)
