ITINERARY
DAY 1
Met on arrival into Lilongwe and having cleared immigration and customs – you will need US$75 in cash for the Malawian visa fee (2017) with a short road transfer to Heuglins Lodge for an overnight stay. Heuglins is located in a leafy residential area on the outskirts of Lilongwe and is a privately owned boutique guest-house, offering flexible accommodation with attentive service. There is a lovely, but small, pool in the garden. Dinner by prior arrangement or transfers can be arranged to local hotels.
DAY 2
Collected from Heuglins for the 4 hour road transfer via Dedza and into the southern most Great Rift Valley to Liwonde National Park. Met on arrival with a short boat transfer over the River Shire (pronounced Sherri), to Mvuu Camp for a three night stay. Liwonde is one of Malawi’s oldest national parks and although quite small by African standards its location on the edge of the Shire and varied bush attracts a wide variety of wildlife including large amounts of elephant, hippo and crocodiles. Black rhino have been reintroduced into Liwonde and now with leopard and the occasional visiting lion, Liwonde now offers a safari experience to match its better known neighbours. Bird life is also prolific with Pel’s Fish Owl and Liliian Lovebirds, two of the specials of the park. Mvuu Camp consists of stone, canvas and thatched two bedroom and family safari accommodation with a lawn, on which hippo graze, leading down to the river.
DAY 3 & 4
Game viewing activities as arranged by Mvuu Camp, which offers a variety of game viewing activities from 4×4 vehicle safaris, to boat safari on the Shire and guided walks. The boat safari is particularly good as elephants when in water are incredibly relaxed. Just keep your hands out of the water – some of the crocodiles here are quite large!
DAY 5
Drive northwards along the Great Rift Valley past Lake Malombe to Lake Malawi National Park to Cape Maclear in Monkey Bay. Board your boat transfer to Mumbo Island for a four night stay passing an island where African Fish Eagles thrive. You can kayak to Mumbo if you want to but it’s a good two hours. Lake Malawi is the third largest fresh water lake in Africa and is often known as the ‘lake of stars’ as the sun glistens off its surface or the ‘calendar lake’ as it is 365 miles long and 52 miles wide. Mumbo Island is a small hilly forested island with a gorgeous coarse sandy beach, ideal for swimming, snorkelling and scuba diving. The camp is set on atop a rocky island reached by a small wooden causeway from the main island and has a very light environmental touch being solar powered. Each of the seven bamboo and thatched rooms have their own heated (by open fire) bucket shower and eco-loo, and have lovely views of the lake to catch the sunrise.
DAY 6, 7, & 8
Time to relax on the stunning Malawian beaches or take the opportunity to experience some of the water (including scuba diving) or land based activities on offer. Mumbo Island Camp is a place to really leave the world behind and rediscover what peace and quite really means.
DAY 9
Road transfer back to Lilongwe in time for your onward flight.
CAMPS INCLUDED
GET IN TOUCH
