Zambia as your holiday destination

WHAT TO VISIT IN ZAMBIA

From the majestic Victoria Falls to the untamed wilderness of national parks, Zambia promises an immersive travel experience.

Lets explore the best places to visit in Zambia

Are you thinking about visiting Zambia? Explore the enchanting beauty of Zambia, where nature’s wonders reveal themselves across a rich mosaic of diverse landscapes. From the awe-inspiring Victoria Falls to the untamed wilderness of national parks, Zambia offers a captivating journey for every adventurer. Zambia is one of the best safari places in Africa. Discover the rich culture, the thriving wildlife, and the vibrant cities that make Zambia a must-visit destination. Join us on a private guided safari where we unveil the treasures that await you in this African gem. Discover your options and explore some of the most beautiful places to visit in Zambia.

Lusaka has become something of a boom town of late. New buildings are going up everywhere and many chain stores and shopping malls are springing up all over the sprawling suburbs.

The road development isn’t quite keeping up so peak hour traffic is finally becoming like other cities, but it has an optimistic air of a town on the rise. For many, this is the perfect example of what economic liberalization has done for the country. And viewed from the villages, Lusaka is the glittering capital which still persuades rural Zambians to migrate to the city in search of jobs and dreams. Well over 60% of its 2 million inhabitants are unemployed, but there are surprisingly few beggars. Although petty theft occurs, most people try to make an honest living selling their wares or services, always with a friendly smile.

The markets are a hive of activity as the thousands of stalls are set up, upgraded and cleared away every day. A myriad of motor spares dealers, restaurants, hairdressers, fishmongers, fruit sellers and rows and rows of “salaula” – stalls of discarded clothing from the West sold to Africa by the bale. The capital covers an area of over 70km2 and is one of the fastest-growing cities in central Africa. It’s population almost trebled in the immediate post-independence era and continues to grow daily. There has been no influx control and the city is bursting at the seams. Grossly inadequate municipal facilities are hard-pressed to cope with the ever-increasing demand. It is a sprawling, metropolis with many multi-story buildings, high-walled suburbs and busy shanty towns. Development has brought together people of many nationalities, making it a bustling center for economic, political and cultural activities. The city lies at the junction of the main highways to the north, east, south and west, and at an altitude of 1300 meters above sea level.

Very few places in Africa can offer the unique combination of open, grassy plains and mature, mesmerizing woodlands, crowned with the pristine, impressive Luangwa River. This area’s reputation for abundant wildlife and unspoiled vegetation is well earned, so whether driving around or walking through, the intense beauty calls to you from every corner.

South Luangwa National Park is the highlight of eastern Zambia. Known to locals as simply ‘the South Park,’ it was initially founded as the Luangwa Game Park in 1904, and converted to one of three game reserves in 1938. The impressive park covers an area of about 9050 km2 of the Luangwa Valley, and lies from 500 meter to 800 meter above sea level. With its western and northwestern edge bounded by the Muchinga Escarpment, and the southern border lined with the meandering Luangwa River, there’s no shortage of dramatic and fascinating topography in this stunning game-rich park. It’s known for its abundant wildlife. Inside the Mfuwe Gate entrance, the river is often crowded with hippos. The woodland savannah is home to hundreds of bird species. Trails from the park’s lodges wander past baobab trees, herds of elephants and rare Thornicroft’s giraffes. Spotlights are used to locate the leopard population after dark.

Kafue is an icon amongst Zambia’s National Parks. It was established as a national park during the 1950’s and covers an incredible 22.400 km2. The park is easily accessed from both Lusaka and Livingstone with a 2-3 hour drive although many prefer to fly in with charter flights. Large areas of the park remain unexplored and hold a rich diversity of wildlife thanks to its size and variety of habitat. Its attraction is its exclusivity and excellent game viewing with barely other visitors.

Kafue National Park lodges vary from remote tented camps to luxurious safari lodges. There are accommodation types to suit all budgets and tastes. These safari lodges or tented camps will provide the base for an incredible Kafue safari where the huge variety of birdlife (490 recorded) and large herds of red lechwe, puku antelope, wildebeest and antelope are constantly watched by big cats, spotted hyena and wild dogs.

Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park lies bordered between Livingstone town and the Zambezi River and is Zambia’s smallest National Park. This reserve was established in 1972 with the idea of having representative wildlife species from Zambia. The park extends from the Batoka Gorge and continues for about 12km along the Zambezi River, above Victoria Falls. Livingstone itself borders on several ancient wildlife migration routes and river crossing points, some of which are still frequented by elephants. A few of these falls within the Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park, where wildlife can be found throughout the year, but elephants especially, during the drier months.

What makes this park unique in Zambia is that it’s the only wildlife area with white rhinos. These are closely protected from poachers by the scouts from DNPW (Department of National Parks and Wildlife). This little sanctuary is free from large predators. This, in combination with it being an area with manmade boundaries, guarantees an abundance of wildlife throughout the year.

In addition to the migratory elephants, wildlife including white rhinos, giraffe, buffalo, waterbuck, impala, wildebeest, zebra, bushbuck, warthogs, monkeys, baboons, hippos and crocodiles are residents in the park year-round. They inhabit a mix of riverine forest, mopane woodland as well as grassland, which also provides a variety of habitats for numerous bird species.

Within this park is the Old Drift Crossing Point as well as Cemetery, where the first European settlers were buried. Historically, the Old Drift was where ox-wagons were floated across the Zambezi, before there was a bridge. This park is easily accessible from Livingstone town. You can explore parts of the park by vehicle (self-drive or on a game-viewing safari), by foot on a guided walking safari, and also by boat on a Zambezi river cruise.

This Park is still relatively undeveloped and it’s beauty is lying in its wilderness state. The opportunities to get close to game wandering in and out of the Zambezi channels are spectacular. The Park lies opposite the famous Mana Pools Reserve in Zimbabwe, so the whole area on both sides of the Zambezi River is a massive wildlife sanctuary.

The River’s edge is overhung with a thick riverine fringe, including ebony and fig trees. Further inland is a floodplain fringed with mopane forest and interspersed with winter thorn trees and huge acacias. The hills which form the backdrop to the Park are covered in broadleaf woodland.

Even though the Lower Zambezi National Park covers an area of 4092 km2, most of the game is concentrated along the valley floor. There is an escarpment along the northern end which acts as a physical barrier to most of the Park’s animal species. Enormous herds of elephant, some up to 100 strong, are often seen at the river’s edge. Also ‘Island hopping’ buffalo and waterbuck are common. The Park also hosts good populations of lion and leopard, and listen too for the ubiquitous cry of the fish eagle.

Lake Kariba is Zambia’s undiscovered Riviera. It offers spectacular views, stunning sunsets, great fishing, boating opportunities, water sports or wonderful relaxing holidays or weekends just soaking up the sunshine. The weather here is mostly sunny and fine. It can get quite hot in mid-summer, but even mid-winter days are warm and the nights are balmy.

It is Africa’s largest man-made dam, 226km long and in places up to 40km wide. It provides considerable electric power to both Zambia and Zimbabwe and supports a thriving commercial fishing industry. The sheer size of it makes one forget it’s a dam and in certain places it almost feels like an ocean.