Destination Zambia

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At 2.25 million hectares (5.5 million acres), Kafue National Park is one of the largest in Africa and Zambia’s oldest protected area. The million- hectare northern sector is the perfect location for our camps: remote, wild and diverse with vast tracts of pristine wilderness. The north-west is dominated by the Busanga Swamps, a papyrus-dominated wetland that gives way to the vast floodplain of the Busanga Plains, seasonally- inundated grassland dotted with isolated tree-islands. The Lunga, Lufupa and Kafue rivers – major water courses that feed and drain the Park – are lined with riverine forest and the landscape is further patterned with broad-leaved miombo woodland, open plains, floodplains and island thickets. Lake Itezhi-Tezhi in the south is another major feature of the Kafue.

Kafue is home to fantastic concentrations of common antelope species such as puku, lechwe and wildebeest, but also comparative rarities not easily seen in most other places in Africa: the stately roan, nimble oribi, secretive sitatunga and unusual Lichtenstein’s hartebeest. 

The lion is the dominant carnivore of the Busanga Plains. In these flat and open surroundings, the lions have taken to using raised points for the cooling breeze more than other populations, climbing both fig trees and the raised decks of the camps. This unusual behaviour occurs only in the hotter months of September and October. 

The open terrain also means that hunts – unusually – can often be watched from start to finish as the pride chases and brings down red lechwe or puku (their two most common prey species here). They are also known for their impressively stocky physiques, as well as for their ability to survive the inundated summer months on this floodplain.  

This Park is still relatively undeveloped, it’s beauty lying in it’s wilderness state. The diversity of animals is not as wide as the other big parks, but 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 winterthorn 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 square kilometers, 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. ‘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.

Liuwa Plain National Park in Zambia has one of the oldest conservation histories in Africa, dating back to the 19th century where the King of Barotseland, Lubosi Lewanika, appointed his people to be the custodians of the park and its wildlife, where they maintain that sentiment today. With over 10,000 people living within the park, Liuwa is a living example of how people and wildlife can co-exist and benefit in a shared landscape.

Each year, Liuwa hosts the second largest wildebeest migration on the continent – without fanfare, this is one of the most glorious spectacles on the planet. But this was not always the case. Before African Parks assumed management of Liuwa in 2003, wildebeest and zebra were in steep decline, rice fields threatened grasslands, and all but one lonely lioness “Lady Liuwa” roamed the plains.

In 2008, African Parks began a series of lion reintroductions to reunite this last lioness with her own kind, and thus new life began as she slowly joined a pride that grew to 10 lions. Over the same period, eland and buffalo were also reintroduced to the park and the plains game began to increase, providing a healthy prey base for the lions, as well as for the cheetahs and hyaenas. As a result of effective law enforcement, poaching levels subsided and community land-use plans were implemented along with sustainable fish harvesting and other community projects, providing alternative livelihoods for local people.