Zambia is an amazing country which I recommend everyone to visit at least once in their lifetime to experience the real Africa as it is also known. I wish to provide you with the best Zambia travel advice from someone that has travelled extensively, seen and experienced this amazing country.
If you want to visit an African country, whether for holiday or to host an event, Zambia is Africa's friendliest country by reputation. Zambia is a hidden gem in the heart of Africa ready for you to discover and experience it's immense beauty, unforgettable African sunset and the warm welcome of its friendly people. Travel to Zambia for a great time in a great place.
To travel to Zambia, you have direct flights from Europe to Zambia's capital Lusaka which are available from London, UK, with British Airways and priced around £750 for a return ticket. A Zambia travel visa can be obtained on entry at Lusaka's International Airport at a higher fee than if you obtain it at your nearest Zambia embassy. Make sure you have some US Dollars at hand as it's the only foreign currency accepted alongside the local Zambian Kwacha.
Zambia's rich culture will positively mark your holiday and while you travel in Zambia you will realise how friendly and special the country really is. Not only is it the fastest growing prime destination of choice, but it's now acclaimed, and rightly so, Africa's Best Kept Secret.
Begin your Zambia travel or Zambia holiday by exploring Lusaka the capital city just 20 minutes from the airport by taxi. Allow 2/3 days to fully experience the busy city with its many markets.
Lusaka being the capital of Zambia, and as one would expect, it's the place where you will find everyone and everything. One thing that Lusaka is not short of is entertainment. All forms of entertainment; be it shops, cinemas, night clubs or family venues. There are lots of places within the city that offer quiet and tranquil and private moments. One place I would recommend for 24 hr entertainment is Arcades off Great East road towards the International Airport opposite Mulugushi Conference Centre. Arcades as the name suggest is a shopping precinct now complete with a cinema and a night club (Club 101). It now boasts the wonderful Protea hotel, which is a three star hotel.
At Arcades, you will find a super market, butcher, pharmacy, banks, photo studio, books and music shop, times- more of an elite drinking venue than night club, Pep –Children's cloth store, Internet café, a number of restaurants and eating places and the famous Rhapsody's restaurant where people go to “see and be seen” while eating and enjoying a nice cold glass of Mosi. This brings me to the wide variety of alcoholic drinks available in Lusaka. Mosi is one of Zambia's leading beers alongside Castle- which in Zambia, depending on the beer you drink, you will be judged! Mosi, as someone once said, is only drunk by Men Of Serious Intensions while Castle is more for the “wanna be” type of person. Other beers you will find are Amstel, Windhoek, Henneken to mention a few and ciders such as Spin, Savanna, Redds and Hunters Gold.
The other great place to do your shopping as well as chill out is Lusaka's Manda Hill shopping complex also off Great East Road towards Lusaka town centre, it pretty much has the same variety of shops as Arcades just without a cinema and a nightclub though O' Hagans (Irish Pub) is normally fully packed most hours of the day. Eating places include Steers, Debonnairs pizza, Sub-way and plenty more. One little gem I discovered at Manda Hill was café Kalahari (I hope that's what it's called ;-).
For the more relaxation seeking tourist, there are a number of lodges dotted around the city of Lusaka and from my ventures around Lusaka, Chita Lodge in Olympia has got to be one of Lusaka's best. It has a wonderful intimate setting complete with swimming pool. The food is fresh and scrumptious. It is just plain wonderful.
For the night owls and depending on how adventures you are, a number of hotels and lodges offer open bars and restaurants even if you are not a resident. Other places such as Pologrill, also offer good night out.
Then head down south-west to Livingstone, a town near the majestic seventh wonder of the world, awe-inspiring Victoria Falls, where you can choose a variety of adventures, including: micro-light and helicopter flights over the Victoria Falls, white water river-rafting, fishing, bungee-jumping, 4x4 off road driving, day and night safari or the very exciting walking safari and plenty more. There are about twenty other waterfalls in the country, but none with the same magnitude and sheer size of Zambia's mighty Victoria Falls.
The Victoria Falls is one of the world's most spectacular waterfalls and is considered to be the largest curtain of falling water in the world. The massive torrent of water plunging over a steep cliff creates a deafening roar and sends up spray that is visible 30km away. Local people call it “Mosi-oa-Tunya”, which means “the smoke that thunders” – very appropriate.
Book a cruise on the Zambezi River and slowly take in its magnificent beauty. You can see a vast array of wildlife including hippos, crocodiles, elephants, monkeys and a wide range of herbivores that descent to the banks to drink and graze.
Another worthy activity is to visit a tribal village such as Chief Mukuni's village in Livingstone. You can choose a variety of accommodation from the many theme-designed hotels and lodges right on the banks of the Zambezi River.
The wild and untamed Zambezi River is a wonderful experience in it-self. From its source at Kalene Hills to its mouth in the Indian Ocean, the mighty Zambezi stretches an incredible 3.540km of which 2.572km are in Zambia.
Zambia is a country incredibly blessed with natural resources, a rich culture and a true natural safari pedigree. You can visit any of the other 19 national parks and 34 game management areas in the country. All these constitute around 1/3 of the 752,614 sq km of Zambia's total land mass.
The parks are strategically located throughout the country with an unbelievable, yet, fascinating wildlife in pristine wilderness. Zambia national parks are considered to have the largest concentration of game in the world with a wide variety of animal species and over 200 mammals that include the big five: lion, elephant, rhino, buffalo and leopard.
The weather is mild and pleasant with three predominant seasons: cool and dry in the winter from May to September, hot and dry from October to November and the rainy season from December till April.
Visit Zambia and experience tranquillity and beauty in the real Africa where you'll discover why Zambia is the award winning country in African safaris, and named as No 1 emerging tourism destination in Africa by the World Tourism Organisation.
Your holiday in Zambia is guaranteed to be a wonderful experience. It's a visit you will treasure and remember forever.
Visit the Zambia Tourism Board for more Zambia travel advice and information.
Related photography
