Magical wildlife and bushcraft style luxury make Zambia a must-visit safari destination
Words: Will Moffitt
Recalling his first encounter with Zambia’s magnificent Mosi-o-Tunya David Livingstone described the waterfall and its columns of iridescent vapour as scenes “so lovely they must have been gazed upon by angels in their flight”. In fact, the 354 ft high curtain of falling water made such an impression on Livingstone that he named it after Queen Victoria — its local name translates as “The Smoke That Thunders”.
Livingstone’s expedition across Africa fired the Victorian imagination and his findings shaped the western understanding of a previously unmapped continent. Luckily you don’t have to be a pious 19th-century missionary to appreciate the beauty of this central-southern African nation. It is a place of verdant hills, wild bush and vast lakes, with its winding Zambezi river dividing it from neighbouring Zimbabwe.
Formerly governed by the British as Northern Rhodesia, Zambia became independent in 1964. It has since earned a standing as a safari hotspot, with its sprawling national parks and untamed wildlands accessible via a short flight or drive from its capital city Lusaka.
Before immersing yourself in the bush, Ciêla Resort & Spa is the perfect place to acclimatise to the rolling Zambian countryside. Set in a scenic estate a short drive from Lusaka, the hotel boasts an 18-hole golf course, a luxury spa and gym, and one of Zambia’s most innovative gastronomic experiences. At Botanica, Ciêla’s fine dining restaurant, chef Ray T. Juru – formerly trained under Michelin star chef Conrad Gallagher – has been given full creative licence to deliver palette-pleasing dishes of Afro-French food with quintessential Zambian warmth and flair.
For those in search of something a little more Out of Africa, Lilayi Lodge dials up the rusticity. Built on an old game farm in 650 hectares of grassland repurposed by the cattle farming Miller family – the original farmhouse was built here in 1924 – Lilayi eases guests into safari mode. The deluxe chalets are open plan and khaki-shaded, baths are crafted from volcanic limestone and verandas look out towards gardens roamed by guinea fowl.
Below: Lilayi Lodge
Beside a central swimming pool Lilayi’s restaurant serves staples and local delicacies under thatched roofs and canopies. The Zambian crayfish and garlicky chisamba snails are particularly delicious – crocodile in creamy thermidor sauce is also an option – and the inhouse cellar stocks over 120 wines.
Once home to an elephant orphanage Lilayi's location evokes the feeling of being sheltered and protected from bushlands crawling with wildlife. As sunset beckons we rumble off into the neighbouring game reserve in 4X4s in search of the resident giraffes. The herd, a family of Zimbabwean giraffes – darker than their Zambian counterparts – are a majestic sight: three graze under Acacia trees, while others roam lankily across the grassland bathed in a caramel glow.
We stop for sundowners – an everyday ritual in Zambia – with tablecloths and ice buckets summoned in the open savannah as the sun fizzles and curls to a dot of crimson. In the dying light a wash of pink and amber strips cut across the sky like a Rothko painting.
Above: wild elephants roaming the Zambian bush and the Baines River Camp glowing at sunset on the Zambezi
The spectacle is particularly vivid on a bank of the Zambezi where tangerine rays glint across the water. Situated on the river’s northern bank, Baines River Camp is the place to catch those indelible sunsets. Named after the English artist and explorer Thomas Baines, a member of Livingstone’s intrepid 1858 expedition, the camp – which features 12 suites – neighbours Lower Zambezi National Park. Centred around open plan lounge areas, there’s a pool overlooking the river and a roaring fire pit with a bar strewn with antlers. By day baboons play near the lodges and at night elephants rustle in the undergrowth. Guests are advised to contact staff to escort them to breakfast and dinner, or to call if animals become a little too familiar.
Zambia pioneered the walking safari – as camp guide Leonard Kalio proudly informs us as we tour Lower Zambezi Park. Rising early to avoid the heat, Leonard and wildlife police officer Leveniah Banda escort us across scorched plains littered with swollen termite mounds and mushroom cloud-shaped nyala trees. The dry earth turns to mottled grassland near a bending river fringed by golden “scrambled egg” bushes. A warthog trots on a raised bank. Back on the plain Leonard pauses to show us wild basil, commonly used by leopards as a scented camouflage. Sometime later we hear the unmistakable roar of a lion thunder in the distance.
Below: a guide from Baines cruising through Lower Zambezi Park in search of wildlife
Created by Natalie Black and her husband Ewan – both born and raised in Africa – Royal Zambezi Lodge combines a deep passion for Zambian wildlife with bushcraft luxury. A complex of high thatched buildings arched towards the Zambezi the lodge is as royal as it is rugged – with open plan living and dining areas, a copper-roofed veranda and 15 river view suites.
My deluxe chalet has a private veranda with a plunge pool and a copper tub bath. Royal also offers a private air charter service, catering up to 50 people, and guests have been known to land helicopters on the escarpment, sipping tea overlooking the rolling plains.
While it’s chic and sociable – there’s a homey sausage tree bar to congregate at before dinner – Royal is a place for safari enthusiasts. The first thing I notice on arrival is the ‘sightings board’ in the reception: a pair of leopards have been spotted mating under mahogany trees and a male leopard on a baboon kill. This ethos extends beyond the bush: guests are encouraged to explore the river in search of spiky toothed tiger fish with master fisherman Shadrack Butau.
Below: the deluxe suite at Royal Zambezi, complete with a private veranda and plunge pool, and dusk on the lodge veranda. At the bottom: the majestic sight of a lion up close in the wild.
Casting into Zambezi, cold beer in hand, with restless hippos for company, is an epic experience, but it's on game drives that this part of Africa comes into its own. Early one morning we hit the trails with veteran guide Victor Kanzala. We drive through roads flanked by bush trees stained rusty and green, dew and dust fresh in the air.
Soon enough an elephant stumbles across our path. It flails its head and trunk magnificently, one leg hovering above the floor. It stares us down for what feels like an eternity before careering off in a dusty bolt.
Minutes later we meet another guide who has spotted a pride of lions. We find them in a stony, unspectacular stretch not far from the dust road. Three females lie in a row, occasionally yawning and stretching. Then, just as the sun breaks through the bush in golden shards, the nearest walks towards us; paws moving slowly and deliberately, eyes fixed straight at us. It’s a sight that very few people get to see up close: a queen of the savanna in all her beautiful, brutal glory.
To find out more about Zambia please head to: zambia.travel. For information about private air charters to and from Royal Zambezi Lodge (royalzambezilodge.com), visit: royalaircharters.com or email: reservations@royalaircharters.com. For information on Baines River Camp head to: bainesrivercamp.com. And Ciela can be found at: cielaresort.com.
