Written by Peregrine Travel Centre Team Member Louise.

Nestled between the borders of Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Malawi, Tanzania, Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola, Namibia and Botswana lays a wildlife lovers dream! This lesser visited region in South Africa is home to many parks and safari areas and an abundance of diverse wildlife.

I recently embarked on an 8 day walking safari through South Luangwa, Zambia. This tour was with Exodus Travels and included staying in some truly amazing bush camps and accommodation. The walking component was not excessive and added an extra dimension to this unbelievable experience and there were only 8 people on the tour all together, making it an intimate experience.

Here are a few highlights from my trip and my reasons why Zambia is a must visit destination!

Amazing Wildlife

Perhaps the biggest draw card for Africa is the opportunity to witness unique wildlife in their natural environment. Zambia is no exception. I found that compared to some other destinations in Africa, Zambia had a lot less tourists and vehicles around while we were on safari – which meant in most cases it was just our small group of 8 and the wildlife around.

We were fortunate enough to see Elephants, Lions, Leopards, Hippos, Wild Dogs, Warthogs and much more along the way, including young lion cubs and elephant calves with their mothers.

Incredible Accommodation

As this is a premium tour, we stayed at some absolutely breathtaking lodges and bush camps along the way. Our first stop was the stunning Mfuwe Lodge – famous for having elephants march through reception to get to the mango tree out the back of the lodge. We were lucky enough to catch a glimpse of the elephants coming through for a bite on our last day! We also stayed at Kapamba Bush Camp, which was a highlight of my Zambian experience The open fronted chalets meant that the sounds and sights of Africa came right through to your bedroom, and sometimes the lizards and bugs as well! However a mosquito net over your bed helped to keep us protected. There was a treehouse viewing platform and a plunge pool out on the deck of our chalet, so we could sit and admire the animals coming up to drink from the Kapamba River, flowing outside our rooms. We had elephants visiting day and night here – a truly magical experience.

Mfuwe lodge (top) and Kapamba Bush Camp (bottom)

Unique activities

Along the journey we were treated to some unique and beautiful experiences. We had a surprise bush camp lunch, making our own pizza in the bush in a pizza oven; enjoyed dinner under the stars in the middle of nowhere; and enjoyed sundowners (drinks at dusk) whilst sitting in the river and another time overlooking a pod of hippos as they woke up to begin grazing at night.  There’s nothing better than sitting in the river, watching the sun set in such a beautiful setting!

We were also taken on a night drive safari, where we were fortunate to see a pride of lioness with their cubs roaming through the bush. This video was taken on the night safari – watch until the end to see the playful cubs having some fun!

Easy paced tour and well organised

The walking aspect was not excessive or hard, we walked a couple of hours early morning and then again late afternoon. This meant we were able to avoid walking in the harsh afternoon African sun and were able to relax in the bush camps taking in the wildlife outside our rooms. Along the way we learned about animal tracks, droppings and bush food and saw many elephants and giraffe up close. As it was very dry in Zambia, the grass was quite low, which made it much easier to spot animals.

Zambia is a must see destination if you want a safari, minus hoards of tourists and vehicles. On most occasions we were the only vehicle viewing wildlife at any one time, a rarity in Africa. I felt very privileged to see and experience Africa in this way and I would definitely recommend the Exodus South Luangwa walking safari to those interested.

If you’d like to know more about travel through Zambia, please contact us on 08 8223 5905 and Louise would be happy to answer any questions you may have.

And just because one video isn’t enough – here’s some playful elephant calves and their families saying hello on safari!