Liwonde National Park
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What does a safari in Liwonde National Park involve?
For adventures on foot, armed scouts can take you through the bush on guided walks and traditional day and night drives in a 4WD are always on offer, with early morning yielding the best wildlife viewing results. To get to know some of the people who live in the villages surrounding the park, take a guide from your lodge and head over on foot or by bike.
You won’t have Liwonde National Park to yourself, but nor will you have to fight with other 4WDs for a view of that lion, as you might in Africa’s more famous reserves. And on our tours you’ll always be accompanied by Malawians, as Simon Mills, from our specialist operator Native Escapes explains. “Being guided by locals simply makes the tours better. Our ground team is all registered Malawian guides, who we use to transfer our guests between destinations and who will put the meat on the bones when going from A to B. While our guests are inside the park they’ll use the camp guides, all local guys who go through intensive training.”
Where will I sleep?
While your tour company will arrange transfers to the park, all activities and drives will be organised by one of the park’s camps. There’s a handful of places to stay in Liwonde, including a simple camp with chalets, self-catering options and a campsite, and a tiny but plush bush camp in the remote far north of the park. All overlook the river, so spotting wildlife from the comfort of your own accommodation is a breeze.All of the lodges employ staff from the surrounding local area, including their own wildlife guides. Guides are advocates for wildlife conservation, but they can also offer insight into the complexities of villagers’ relationship with the local wildlife, and the dilemmas faced when elephants or hippos trample crops, or injure or kill people.
Beyond the park
Most people combine a safari in Liwonde with some of Malawi’s other main highlights. Peppered with gorgeous wooden lodges tucked away along the tree line, Lake Malawi is where many people go post-safari to really relax, and the more energetic can get on with kayaking, scuba diving and snorkelling. Climbing the 3,000m mass of Mount Mulanje is also popular as is heading north to the rolling grasslands of Nyika National Park. Malawi is fairly compact, so you can pack in a Liwonde safari and take in some of the country’s other highlights in as little as 10 days. Another popular option is to combine a couple of days safari in Liwonde with Zambia’s South Luangwa National Park.Our top Malawi Holiday
Malawi self drive holiday
Discover Malawi at your own pace on this self-drive trip
This trip can be tailor made throughout the year to suit your requirements
Best time to go to Liwonde National Park
Conservation in Liwonde National Park
After improving park security, restoring a predator population was the next priority, not just to restore balance, but also to bring in tourists. Cheetahs were reintroduced in 2017 after a 100-year absence, and ten lions were brought in from South Africa and Malawi’s Majete Wildlife Reserve in 2018. The Park also received 17 black rhino from South Africa in November 2019.
“Poaching in the park has been dealt with quite well, though it hasn’t been fully eradicated as I suspect is the case everywhere across Africa,'' says Simon Mills. “You’ll always find someone looking for a quick buck. But I think the fact that African Parks has reintroduced creatures to the area is testimony to what they’re doing for it. When rhino were reintroduced, for example, they stepped up the rhino poaching controls just in case. So, they’ve put a lot of money into supporting the wildlife.”