To Liuwa Plain with Norman Carr Safari Guides (2017)

Meet our representative in Lusaka Airport where you will be escorted to your connecting flight to Kalabo, our gateway to Liuwa Plain National Park. Enjoy spectacular views from the air as you fly over the Zambezi floodplains. This flight takes approx two hours.

On arrival at Kalabo Airstrip you will be transported to Matamanene Camp (approx transfer time of 2.5 hours which is a game drive through the Park). The 4 simple, yet comfortable tents are set in a small island of trees in the heart of the park. They are raised slightly off the ground, offer twin or double beds and have ensuite bathrooms with hot and cold running water. The chitenje – large central area – includes a small library and comfortable seating area, bar and dining area. The campfire is the perfect place to swap stories under the African night sky.

After you settle into camp, depending on your time of arrival, you will have lunch or afternoon tea and then set out on your first Liuwa Plain safari.

Leave camp early after a continental breakfast and in an open 4X4 head deep into the Park to get up close and personal with the game of the Plain; find blue wildebeest, zebra, red lechwe, eland and tsessebe. With your guide and scout, you have the opportunity to get out of the vehicle and explore the Plain on foot depending on what you find. On some days there will be the opportunity to have lunch in the “back country” overlooking one of the many waterspots then head back towards Matamanene in time for a sundowner by a pan and dinner in camp. The birdlife in Liuwa is extraordinary, at certain times of the year the pans will be occupied by hundreds of pelicans, wattled or crowned cranes, geese and smaller waterbirds, you could spend hours with a camera or your binoculars watching the multitude of species come to drink.

Leave camp early today with members of the Zambian Carnivore Program (ZCP), a non-profit research team dedicated to conserving large carnivore species and the eco-systems in which they reside www.zambiancarnivores.org . The team have a permanent base in Liuwa Plain and we have teamed up with them to offer guests the chance to track some of the large carnivore species which reside in Liuwa Plain; wild dog, lion, cheetah and hyena. Spend the morning with the team, learning about the behavior of individual animals within the prides and packs of the Plain.

Arrive back at camp in time for lunch. After lunch you have the opportunity to listen to a presentation by the ZCP team about the trends and patterns of behavior of many of the animal species within Liuwa Plain and understand more about the precious recovering eco-system of the Park. Afterwards rest and soak up the magical atmosphere of one of the most remarkable vistas in Zambia before afternoon tea and your evening game drive. Have sundowners by one of the many hyena dens in the Park and you will wonder who is watching who! The hyenas are incredibly inquisitive and interested in people; some leaving the safety of the pack and den to wander closer to humans to observe our mysterious behavior!

Depending on the length of your safari, today you will either be flying home (on a 4 night itinerary) or if you’re staying longer, you can have the chance to visit one of the local villages within the boundaries of the Park. Liuwa Plain offers is a fascinating mix of protected land occupied by wildlife and the homeland of thousands of humans. Speak to local village elders and learn about Liuwa’s incredible history and the traditions carried on today, such as the collection by chosen individuals of the long breeding tail feathers of a male long-tailed widowbird to be used in the Kuomboka ceremony, or how the trees and pans of the Plain are named after families and it’s their duty to protect the resources.

This morning you will enjoy one final hearty breakfast in Camp, and then make your way to Kalabo Airstrip for your domestic flight back to Lusaka. This will be a combination game drive/transfer taking around 2.5 hours depending on what you see along the way.