The houses are settling into their first safari season and you can imagine the delight of the guests. Both the Luangwa Safari House and the Chongwe River House are totally unique and we can confidently say there is no other experience like it. At both houses we have found that guests often choose to spend the day at the house, both to relax and to game view. At the Luangwa Safari House the elephants and giraffe viewing is extraordinary. This is Kellie of the Wild Dog project – she has lived in Zambia for a number of years and said she had never been so close to breeding herds of elephants.
The new website is up and running – take a look.
Safari Houses of Zambia – www.safarihouses.com

Johannesburg/Lower Zambezi Special Fare!
To celebrate the best Fishing that Zambia has to offer, Zambian Airways will be running discounted fares from Jo'burg to Lower Zambezi for the remainder of Safari Season.

Jo'burg - Lower Zambezi = $232 ($190 plus $42 tax out of Jo’burg)   •  Lower Zambezi - Jo'burg = $190
Lower Zambezi is Royal (GMA) or Jeki (Natl Park) airstrips.
All fares are net and non-commissionable.
No children discounts, infants free.
All taxes included except airport departure tax out of Lusaka - $5 to Lower Zambezi and $20 to Jo'burg. Payable by passenger in USD cash to National Airport counter in Lusaka.
For more details contact Krista@airwaves.co.zm

Established in 1908, the Livingstone Club and course was then redesigned in 1936 and again completely restored in 2006.  Set in a botanical garden with over 118 tree species, the nine-hole golf course provides a unique African golfing experience. The second nine holes are being renovated and will be ready by the beginning of 2007.  The distinctive Edwardian Club House extends a warm welcome to all guests, offering a five star restaurant and club bar both overlooking the golf course. In the near future the club will also offer tennis, a heated swimming pool and gymnasium.
Please contact lrgccmarketing@microlink.zm  for more information and rates. Please send us your details if you would like to be on our monthly newsletter database.

For Tongabezi guests looking for a truly unique dining experience, enjoy a private candlelit dinner floating under the stars on the Mighty Zambezi River. Your valet will row each course out to you while you sit back and relax. We can even arrange for our choir to paddle out and serenade guests celebrating a special occasion.

The lunar rainbow is an amazing spectacle for guests staying during the full moon. We offer special visits to the Falls to see this unique event, which is visible the day before, the day of and the day after the full moon. The lunar rainbow is best seen at times of high water and dates can be found on the Tongabezi website - www.tongabezi.com

The Bushcamp Company is treating its guests to a night with the stars every month with the offering of full moon dinners in the bush.  Following an early evening walk and a night drive, guests are driven to a secluded spot in South Luangwa National Park where a surprise three-course feast awaits them under the stars. The powerful full-moon light provides a backdrop to the evening meal, which is accompanied by the many night sounds of the bush, not to mention the dazzling stars that make this area so unique.  For those who are a little apprehensive about dining in the bush, an armed scout will be on hand for that extra piece of mind.
Below are the dates of all forthcoming full moon dinners with the Bushcamp Company:  9 August / 8 September / 7 October.

Mchenja Bushcamp will be opening from 20th January till 1st April 2007 for the first time. No other bush camps are open in Zambia at that time of year so this is a very exciting project.

We will gain access to camp by boat and game viewing will be on foot, by vehicle and from the boat enabling guests to fully enjoy the wonders of the Luangwa Emerald Season.

We have prepared an introductory, 7 night package calling it “Rivers & Rainbows”. It will combine either Kapani Lodge or Nkwali Camp with Mchenja Bushcamp for the discounted rate of $2,340 sharing and $2,610 single, usual agent commissions apply. For more information on this exciting development contact us on Kapani@normancarrsafaris.com

The month of August sees the last of the cold nights and the Luangwa Valley starts to heat up. This is the peak of the walking safari season.  Robin Pope Safaris offers three styles of walking safaris.  You can walk from the camps on a daily basis and this is true at Nkwali all year round.  For those who are keen there is the five day mobile safari – in a very remote exclusive area, following the perennial Mupamadzi River.

You need to be fit, enthusiastic about the bush and happy to walk for up to 12 km a day.  But there is a middle ground option – the Fly Camping. A night or two camping out in the bush, walking between Nsefu and Tena Tena.  And those who have done this always say “the highlight of our safari”.
Walking Safaris Info

Another month of phenomenal game viewing has flown by – lions eating buffalo, leopards eating impalas – herds of elephant crossing the Zambezi … amazing. However Chiawa Camp is not only focused on the wildlife and to this end we actively support the communities that live outside the National Park by providing annually , with the help of Chiawa Camp guests, education materials and school uniforms for 230 AIDS orphans in two local schools. Last week Chiawa delivered these much needed materials as well as a 26kg bumper pack of assorted medical supplies to the local clinic.
Without the cooperation of the local communities, conservation of the wildlife and habitat would be impossible, as would be the amazing wildlife sightings we at Chiawa are privileged to see.

We kicked into gear after an incredible process.  It has been a very special effort to turn Neil Rocher’s termite dream into something one can sleep in. The first groups have been through Chongwe River House and have all expressed that there is nothing like it in the world!  As if that was not enough we then embarked on the Bushbuck project. This is a small tented ensuite bush camp on the red cliffs of the upper Chongwe, with a fantastic view over the treetops of the park.  All the guides are squabbling over who is going to get to guide as it will be the first real safari in the Lower Zambezi to explore the mountains and “back country“.
And of course back at the Chongwe Camp ranch – our guests are continuing to love the unique position of the camp – looking up the Chongwe River to the mountains.

Old Mondoro had unusual sightings of a magnificent but solitary young Eland bull in perfect condition sticking with an impala herd for safety, and did not look like he has ever seen a vehicle or human in his life!
We also had a lion and buffalo duel, with the resident coalition of three male lions trying their luck with two big buffalo bulls, harassing them for more than half an hour before giving up. Several have been seen at least once a week!

Rare bird sightings include Ethiopian & Painted snipe, Narina Trogon, African Skimmers, Lillian’s Lovebirds and Western Banded Snake Eagle. Old Mondoro also invested in a brand new Toyota Land Cruiser to tame the African dirt roads, what a pleasure…

Canoeing down the Chifungulu channel, arguably the best on the Zambezi, offers guests a magically surreal experience like no other. The 14km long channel winds its’ way through the reserve, birds and animals aplenty. July has been superb for canoeing: mating Leopards twice; lions with cubs feeding on a buffalo; plenty of Hippo, Elephant and all the various antelopes.  There was also a very unusual sighting where a large male Waterbuck charged two old Buffalo bulls. The Waterbuck actually broke a horn off, leaving it well lodged into the hindquarters of one of the surprised Buffalos!!
Sausage Tree Camp, an experience of a lifetime and a memory etched forever.

Image was digitally enhanced via Cowabunga Safaris.