VRH7Lf: South Luangwa + Kafue Safari + Vic Falls

Day 1

You will be met at Lusaka Airport, Zambia and after customs formalities connect with your 2-hour flight to Mfuwe Airport or Luamfwa airstrip, where you will be met and transferred to your safari lodge in the famous South Luangwa National Park.

Check in to your luxury game lodge, situated in one of the world’s greatest wildlife conservation areas and in the late afternoon enjoy your first open top game viewing drive. Game drives are conducted twice a day (early morning and late afternoon) by experienced rangers in open-top safari vehicles.

Game is best sighted in the dry season from April to October, but the beauty of the park is at its best after the rains in the first half of the year. Many lodges close during the rainy season from late November to March, but a few remain open all year.

Please note that only soft sports bags are allowed on light aircraft flights with a strictly enforced luggage limit between 12kg-20kg, depending upon the size of the aircraft. Surplus luggage can be stored by prior arrangement.

Day 2

South Luangwa National Park is Zambia’s most famous wildlife park, covering an area in excess of 5,600 square miles (9,050 square kilometres).

Sustained by the great Luangwa River the park hosts a wide variety of wildlife, birds and vegetation. The now famous Walking Safari originated in this park and is still one of the finest ways to experience this pristine wilderness first hand. The changing seasons add to the park’s richness ranging from dry, bare bushveld in the winter to a lush green wonderland in the summer months.

Rise early each morning, when game viewing conditions are at their best, to view game in this great wildlife wilderness. With over 60 different animal species and over 400 bird species, the concentration of game around the Luangwa River and its ox bow lagoons is amongst the highest in Africa, including four of the Big 5 – lion, elephant, buffalo and leopard (sadly rhino has been poached to extinction). Also search for cheetah, zebra, giraffe, antelope and much more, with leopard sightings being particularly outstanding.

A wide range of Walking Safaris are also available, if requested at the time of booking.

Each evening relax by the campfire under clear African skies in this remote wilderness and hear the untamed sounds of wildlife all around!

Day 3

Return transfer to Mfuwe Airport for your flight to Lunga, Moshi, Ngoma, Puku Pan, Chunga or Hippo airstrip, where you will be met and transferred to your luxury safari lodge situated in the renowned Kafue National Park.

Check in to your game lodge situated in Zambia’s oldest game reserve and enjoy your first open top game viewing drive in this outstanding wilderness area. Game drives are conducted twice a day (early morning and late afternoon) by experienced rangers in open-top safari vehicles.

Game is best sighted in the dry season from April to October, but the beauty of the park is at its best after the rains in the first half of the year. Most lodges close during the rainy season from late November to March.

Day 4

Kafue National Park is the largest game reserve in Zambia, having been proclaimed in 1950 and at 14,000 square miles (22,400 square kilometres) is about the size of Wales.

From the vast wetlands of Busanga Plains in the northwest that flood from March to May, to the lush and tree-choked south, the park is a raw slice of African wilderness that sustains huge herds of diverse wildlife fed by the Lunga, Lufupa and Kafue Rivers.

Large prides of lion, solitary leopards and cheetah are the main predators, feeding on the thousands of red lechwe, waterbuck, tsessebe, hartebeest, zebra, puku, sable, roan and diminutive oribi and duiker that live on the plains and in the woodlands. Also buffalo and host of smaller carnivores such as the side-striped jackal, civet, genet & mongoose.

Rise early each morning, when game viewing conditions are at their best, to view the game of this great wildlife wilderness. With over 60 different animal species and over 400 bird species, including four of the Big 5 – lion, elephant, buffalo and leopard (sadly rhino has been poached to extinction), an unforgettable game viewing experience is guaranteed.

Superb fishing for bream, barbel and pike is also available on Lunga and Kafue Rivers, which are home to large numbers of hippopotamus, crocodiles and water monitors.

Each evening relax by the campfire under clear African skies in this remote wilderness and hear the untamed sounds of wildlife all around!

Day 5

Return transfer to your lodge airstrip for your light aircraft flight to Livingstone.

You will be met at Livingstone Airport and transferred to your hotel on the banks of the Zambezi River, near the mighty Victoria Falls. Check in, settle-in and relax whilst you catch your first glimpses of the magnificent Smoke That Thunders first discovered by Dr. David Livingstone and still one of the greatest natural wonders of the world.

The flow of water over the Victoria Falls is greatest during the wet months (February to June) but the falls are a magnificent sight at any time of year.

Days 6 and 7

Today explore on foot the mighty Victoria Falls, situated close to your hotel and offering magnificent views.

Later relax by the swimming pool and enjoy the many pleasures of your hotel, or participate in one of the many local activities, such as a helicopter flight over the falls or an elephant-back safari.

Adrenalin seekers can participate in many adventure holiday activities, such as canoeing in the gentler rapids above the falls; white water rafting in the turbulent gorge below the falls (grade 5); or watch bungi jumping from Victoria Falls Bridge. There is also an interesting local craft market.

On one afternoon enjoy a Sunset Cruise on the Zambesi River to see hippos, crocodiles and the abundant bird life.

Day 8

Return transfer to Livingstone Airport for your journey home.