The South Luangwa National Park

The South Luangwa is well regarded as one of Africa’s finest wildlife sanctuaries with an abundance of game around the Luangwa River and its many lagoons. Located in the southern end of the Great Rift Valley in Zambia’s eastern province, it is one of Africa’s ecologically un-spoilt wilderness areas.

There are 60 different animal species including hippo, elephant, buffalo, zebra, lion, leopard, giraffe, hyenas, kudu to name just a few as well as over 400 different species of birds, including an impressive list of raptors and migrant populations of the brightly coloured carmine bee-eaters that nest in there thousands on the sandy river banks.  Large crocodiles laze about on the sandbanks and at dusk great numbers of hippos make their way up to the banks to graze. Lions are commonly seen and it is the only place in the world where they are known to kill hippos. The lion prides here include up to 20 animals. Indigenous species to the park include the Thornicroft‘s giraffe and the Cookson's wildebeest, while there are also impressive herds of mighty buffalo and over a dozen species of antelope. The abundance of game and spectacular beauty of this area is rarely seen anywhere else on the African continent.

Due to its inaccessible location the South Luangwa manages to combine a huge variety of wildlife with limited visitors. This is where the walking safari originated and is still one of the best ways to experience the areas wildlife and changing seasons. On a South Luangwa walking safari the bush comes alive in a way that you can’t fully appreciate from a vehicle. You will be accompanied by armed guides who are trained to deal with any eventuality.  

The South Luangwa has a number of world class safari camps. Our favourites are the small, intimate camps like Bilimungwe, Chendeni, Chamilandu and Kapamba where the quality of guiding is excellent and emphasis is firmly on the wildlife experience.

Seasons

Green season:

The green season runs from January through to May. It is a great time to visit the South Luangwa National Park as there is much less dust around and far fewer people. The bush is transformed with new foliage and the colours of these dramatic landscapes contrast beautifully perfectly with the piercing blue skies and fascinating cloud formations.  Many of the migrant birds are present and can be seen playing out their courtship routines - sporting their finest plumages. Some fine examples are the elusive and strange dodo like shoebill stork and black lechwe and sitatunge. This is also the best time of year to encounter nursery herds of young plains game and as this is a time of plenty for much of the wildlife many animals give birth during this period of the year.  During this early season period activities centre on exciting game drives in open topped 4x4 vehicles and this is one of the finest regions in the whole of Africa for a chance of seeing the elusive leopard. The rivers are high and dramatic in April and May and there are vast numbers of hippo to be seen – reputedly the highest concentration of these comical-looking creatures on the African continent.

Dry season:

The colder winter months are between May and August with warm days and cold nights. After that it gets much dryer and hot and by September the temperatures average 30C. The earth is dry and the vegetation has wilted. Large numbers of animals congregate at the remaining waterholes – the game viewing at this time of year is superb.