Explore Africa with Stuart
ZAMBIA, BOTSWANA & ZIMBABWE
Follow me during my unforgettable journey in Africa, as I visit three amazing countries and experience been on safari, sleeping in luxury tents, taking in the great outdoors with the magnificent wildlife Africa has to offer. much of the country remains wild, underdeveloped and unspoilt, with a great percentage of land allocated by the government to conservation projects, national parks and game management areas. Many of these parks are home to incredible numbers of Africa’s most-feted wild mammals and extraordinary birdlife.
WILDLIFE
Lions and their cubs, Elephants, Hippo, Buffalo, Giraffe, Crocodiles, Cheetah, Leopard, Hyena, Zebra and Wildebeest. On very rare occasions Wild dog may be seen in the parks.
ACTIVITIES
Royal Livingstone Express train with dinner, Lunch in the river of the Lower Zambezi, Early Morning Safari, Sundowners Drinks, Canoeing with the wildlife, Sunset Cruise, Late Night Safari, Bushtracks Express luxury steam train journey over Victoria Falls bridge, Victoria Falls Tour.
ACCESS FROM THE UK
You can fly directly from London to Johannesburg to Victoria Falls with South African Airways. This is the route i took on my trip and their are many more routes all depending where your starting your Africa adventure.
CLIMATE & SEASONS
Dry Season: May to October
Wet Season: November to March
Winter can be very dry, and the mornings and nights can be very cold at around 7°C. Temperatures rise as October approaches, reaching highs of 37°C. The temperature remains relatively high during the wet season. It is usually wet, green and lush from January to March. Afternoon thunderstorms and showers are common
ROYAL LIVINGSTONE HOTEL
LIVINGSTONE, ZAMBIA
On 16 November 1855, David Livingstone first laid eyes upon the falls that would define him, and an entire country. He lay down on an island in the middle of the Zambezi River, and close to where its waters thunder down a 110-meter drop. The rising mist that he had seen almost 30 kilometers away drizzled on him like rain. The Kololo people with whom he had traveled down the Zambezi to this point called it Mosi-oa-Tunya – the smoke that thunders. As the first European to witness this magnificent site, he decided to name it Victoria Falls in honor of his Queen. Before leaving the island, he carved his initials into the bark of a tree. “The only time I have been guilty of this act of vandalism,” he said. DL. David Livingstone. And as he looked again at the magnificent site before him, he thought to himself, “This will tell our story”. At the Royal Livingstone Hotel, on the banks of a river that flows through the soul of Africa, your own story waits to be told.
SAUSAGE TREE CAMP
LOWER ZAMBEZI, ZAMBIA
Founded in 1996 as Zambia’s most luxurious bush camp, located within the exclusive Lower Zambezi National Park (LZNP), Zambia, Sausage Tree Camp, has redefined the safari experience and become the benchmark for Zambian bush chic. The camp, named after the sausage shaped fruit in the giant Sausage Trees, was awarded “Best Location in Africa” at the Good Safari Guide Awards and rated No. 1 by the BBC’s holiday program’s 10 best luxury resorts of the world. These accolades are a credit to the vision and reputation that owner operated Sausage Tree Camp (Chifungulu Ltd.) and director Jason Mott have established. The camp has a privileged location within the natural beauty of the protected Lower Zambezi National Park with it’s abundance of wildlife.
CHOBE WATER VILLAS
KAPRIVI STRIP, BOTSWANA
Chobe Water Villas in Namibia are luxury chalets are located directly on the river opposite Botswana Chobe National Park and Kasane.
Chobe Water Villas, Namibia, Sedudu Island is home to wildlife such Elephants, lions, buffaloes, hippos, crocodiles and many antelope species and birds are here in abundance.
The 15 villas are on stilts on the river’s bank offering stunning bushveld, river and island views of the wildlife. Each lodge has 85 square meters of private living space; these spacious suites offer an open plan lounge and bedroom.
THE HIDE
HWANGE NATIONAL PARK , ZIMBABWE
ndependent and owner run, The Hide sits in a 5km2 private concession within a north-eastern annexe of Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park. Expert Africa has been sending travellers here since the mid-1990s, and recent investments have ensured that this old favourite remains one of the top accommodation choices in Hwange – thanks also to its popular waterhole and high densities of wildlife.
Set in the shade of an acacia woodland, the mid-size camp overlooks a permanent (pumped) waterhole that supports a variety of animals such as elephant, buffalo and giraffe. An ancient vlei (dried-up riverbed) “flows” across the front of camp, creating a linear clearing where animals can be viewed from anywhere in the camp. Interestingly, the soft sands around The Hide make it very difficult for hyena to den here, and in their absence the lion density is slightly higher in this area than in some other parts of Hwange National Park.
THE VICTORIA FALLS HOTEL
VICTORIA FALLS, ZIMBABWE
With dramatic views of the gorges of Zimbabwe’s spectacular Victoria Falls, The Victoria Falls Hotel, built by the British in 1904, was originally conceived as accommodation for workers on the Cape-to-Cairo railway) and today it is a famous luxury brand . Now a member of The Leading Hotels of the World. Serene Lily ponds, arched loggias and broad verandas – offering magnificent vistas – seem custom-built for a spot of high tea or a relaxed gin and tonic. Some rooms offer stunning views of the gorges and bridge below.
The history of The Victoria Falls Hotel is incomplete without the reference to the development of the railway system in Zimbabwe. Cecil Rhodes had tasked his friend and colleague Sir Charles Metcalfe with overseeing the development of the railway system and Metcalfe took heed of Rhodes’ dreams of the railway line stretching “from Cape to Cairo,” hence he started plans for the first bridge across the mighty Zambezi. Rhodes was insistent that the bridge should be built in a place that the spray from the falls would fall on the passing trains, which is why the site was chosen just a little below the Boiling Pot, at almost right angles and in very close proximity to the falls.
“My faviourte part of this trip was experiencing Sausage Tree Camp! 5 stars to them for the truly amazing service and activities. One amazing expreience I will never forget is Canoeing down the Lower Zambize river with the Hippos either side of my canoe. I also loved the experience of the late night safiari”