Zambia Active Expedition

Arrival in Livingstone

Upon arriving at Livingstone Airport, you will be met by our representative, who will greet you and escort you to your hotel. Transferred to and stayed at Mosi-oa-Tunya Executive Lodge, located in a quiet and clean residential area of Livingstone. After check-in, you will have time to relax and acclimate. Dinner and accommodation will be at your hotel. All the total at the hotel is at your disposal. • Free long/short-term baggage storage • Internet/email facilities, WiFi available • Swimming pool and Restaurant • Bar with DSTV for sports games • Braai/Barbecue areas, 24-hour hot and cold running showers. There are no planned activities on the day of arrival. If you arrive early in the day, we offer a Livingstone guided tour if you would like to explore the city. Our overland tour and Safari activities will begin the next morning. So we must be fresh and rejuvenated to start your trip on the right foot.

Livingstone City Tour

Wake up early enough to be ready for a good breakfast and our tour debriefing with our tour manager, who will cover pertinent facts such as personal safety, required eco-tour practices, and important country information and social etiquette. This will take place between 7:30 am and 8:00 am. Immediately after, we will start our city tour with a visit to THE LIVINGSTONE MUSEUM. It features an extensive collection of examples of Zambia's exceptional ethnic craftsmanship and art, including traditional witchcraft objects. Permanent natural history is featured. You will also visit Historic Landmarks such as Victoria Falls Bridge, a major Historic Landmark in Zambia. We will take a lunch break. Travel to the mighty Victoria Falls, located within the Livingstone zonal area, 12 km from the Livingstone city center, as you travel southwards towards the Zimbabwe border. Start touring the mighty Victoria Falls, a UNESCO-listed waterfall—one of the seven natural wonders and the largest sheet of falling water in the world. Victoria Falls is situated on the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia. Our tour will continue to the Victoria Falls Museum. This specific museum was constructed to show Victoria Falls' history from several decades ago. It also features displays that demonstrate how the falls were formed. Our tour guide will take you to visit typical Zambian villages in the vicinity. Explore the traditional mock villages and appreciate the mimicked conventional African villages. Some female members may wish to have their hair plaited in the conventional African style at their own expense. We will return later to our Lodge for dinner and accommodation.

Travel from Livingstone to Kalomo

We will wake up today at the crack of Dawn to prepare for a great exploratory day. We will be traveling overland north on T-1, the scenic road of Zambia connecting Livingstone to Lusaka. The ride will be comfortable, covering approximately 90 miles of exploring roadside towns, such as Zimba, en route to Kalomo. Historically, Kalomo was the first colonial capital city of Northern Rhodesia, now known as Zambia. We will stop for a guided tour of this town, visit the Kalomo BOMA offices of the colonial administrator of Northern-Western Rhodesia, and explore the Kalundu Mound in the vicinity. This is an Iron Age landmark that witnesses an era of Iron mining, with the accumulation of debris over many centuries. We will take a break for lunch and explore Kalomo. Our expedition will proceed, traveling another 70 miles to reach Choma. This is the quintessential Zambian market town. Colorful, vibrant, and energetic with an aura of an active, happy life. The provincial headquarters of the Southern Province of Zambia is located on Zambia’s main T-1 tourist road and railway line, approximately 285 km from Lusaka and 188 km from Livingstone. It is home to the Choma Museum and Craft Center, which is exclusively dedicated to the cultural heritage of the Tonga people of the southern province of Zambia. We will reach our destination at Choma, where we will be accommodated for lodging and a good dinner.

Travel South from Kalomo to Choma

Enjoy your morning at ease, enjoying your breakfast. Before noon, we will embark on a guided tour of Choma's historical and cultural highlights. Our visit will cover the Choma Museum and art gallery. Furthermore, take an outdoor tour of the Harry Mwaanga Nkumbula statue, a political freedom fighter who played a pivotal role in Zambia's independence. Lunch will be served in the Museum Cafeteria, which offers a variety of dishes ranging from Western to Eastern staples, with a specialty in local Zambian cuisine that is worth trying to immerse yourself in the Zambian culture. Later, we will walk across to Choma town for an orientation tour. You will be offered free time to explore and discover coffeehouses, local pubs, and internet cafes, in case you wish to chat and communicate with your friends and family overseas. Visit a local internet café in Choma town and surf the internet to stay in touch with friends and relatives back home. This break will also allow you to purchase a traditional gift for His Royal Highness Chief Mukobela and Chief Muchiiya in rural Namwala and Itezhi Tezhi, respectively, for your next visit the following day. Later, we will gather to attend a presentation on Zambia's history and culture. The southern province's local arts and cultural officer will give the oral presentation to our group—a well-respected local academician from a local University in Choma. The question-and-answer session will close our Choma for the day, before we retreat to our lodge for a good dinner and a comfortable night.

Overland from Choma to Namwala

A sumptuous breakfast will be served at our Lodge before our travel day toward Namwala. We will be traveling West of Zambia today to this remote rural area, exploring some of Zambia's breathtaking landscapes. Upon our arrival in Namwala, we will check into our suitable Lodge, where a delicious lunch will be served for our small group. After lunch, we will prepare for our visit to Baangwe Palace, located approximately 3 miles outside Namwala, to meet His Royal Highness Chief Mukobela. You will be escorted by the local Chiefs and Traditional Affairs government officials if His Royal Highness Chief Mukobela is available. If not, his Prime Minister or any of his senior representatives will take care of the job. The protocol will be as follows.

a. You will be welcomed at His Royal Highness Chief Mukobela's Palace in a traditional African style, featuring drum beating and mock war warrior dances by Chief Mukobela's Impis (traditional soldiers).

b. You will carry your gifts as you are led into the Palace yard by local Chiefs and government officials from the Traditional Affairs department. Get your Cameras ready so you can take as many photos as possible during the entire procession.

c. Upon being allowed into the Palace and settling down. You will immediately present your gifts to the Chief through his Prime Minister, as traditional protocol dictates.

d. This will open the floor for the Chief to offer words of welcome to you. He will give you a history of his people and possibly invite you on a conducted tour around his Palace and the surrounding villages nearby.

e. A Group public photo session will be done within the Palace yard for you, the Chief, and his Indunas (traditional officials).

f. You will dine at the Palace with His Royal Highness Chief Mukobela, where you will be served traditional cuisine.

g. After dinner, one of our group members will volunteer to thank His Highness for his hospitality on behalf of our group, closing the ceremony. We will all retreat to our Lodge in Namwala for a comfortable overnight.

Travel to Itezhi Tezhi, central province

After breakfast, we will ride our overland truck across the flat savanna from Namwala to Baanga village in the Kafue Plains, which will take approximately 20 minutes. Once we reach the Kafue River, we will take a pontoon ferry to Baanga village in the Itezhi Tezhi district. We will report our arrival to Chief Muchiiya, presenting our ritualistic gift. We will be transferred to your respective home villages as directed by the Chief. You will spend the whole day with your host family in the town. You will participate in a hands-on village tour that covers various aspects of village chores and activities. In the afternoon, you can choose to stay overnight at your host's dwelling. For those in our traveling group who have decided not to, we will ride our truck to the nearby Itezhi Tezhi village for an overnight stay at our lodge in Itezhi Tezhi town. Notes: You will enjoy an affordable stay in clean and comfortable lodging at CMS Lodge in Itezhi Tezhi, a suburb located uphill from Kafue National Park. It has all the modern amenities, including hot water and a swimming pool. Dinner and accommodation will be in our lodge.

Kafue National Park

Enjoy two days exploring Kafue National Park and experiencing the Safari at its best. This vast Park is considered one of Africa's best and most well-maintained national parks. No Zambia wildlife safari would be complete without a visit to Kafue National Park. The Park is suitable for spotting various wild animals, especially Lions. Today, after breakfast, we will depart to explore wildlife viewing in the Ngoma area, south of the park. Start your Safari by driving to the Elephant Orphanage (wildlife conservation Project) within the KNP southern area. You will see the marvelous work being done by volunteers in looking after vulnerable elephants. Any donation from you, whether in-kind or cash, is welcome to support the extraordinary work being done in elephant protection and the subsequent release of these animals into their natural habitat in the wilderness. Please note that any donation is optional and not compulsory. We will be at the cafeteria of the Elephant Center, then drive to the Ngoma Game Management area for an afternoon of wildlife viewing, featuring a variety of land beasts and flying birds. We will end our day Safari with a visit to Iyanda Hot Springs and Iyanda village. Dinner and accommodation will be provided at your lodge in Itezhi Tezhi, an uphill suburb located outside Kafue National Park.

Travel to Lusaka After breakfast, we will hit the road to Lusaka, the capital of Zambia, a cosmopolitan city in every aspect. Lusaka is one of Africa’s most delightful cities. Named after the village chief Lusaka, the city is the cultural and traditional heartbeat of Zambia. Lusaka today is a metropolitan area that offers visitors a traditional and hearty Zambian welcome. The area was then expanded to provide a settlement for workers working on the railway during British colonial times. Today, Lusaka is a bustling city that attracts many tourists, expatriates, students, and ambitious Zambians, offering attractive opportunities and prosperity. We will arrive in the town at lunchtime, check into our hotel, and then spend the whole afternoon on a Lusaka city tour. Visit one or two of the prominent shopping malls in Lusaka. Dinner and accommodation will be at the hotel.

Lusaka city guided tour We will visit most of the historic attractions and notable landmarks Lusaka has to offer today. On an area of 140 miles, Lusaka is the largest city in Zambia, hosting almost half of the Zambian population. Our tour will feature the following places: The National Museum of Lusaka will be the highlight of your tour, where you will see exhibits like sculptures, paintings from all ages, cultural highlights, and archaeological displays. This cultural heritage museum tells the background of Zambia using four main divisions: ethnography, witchcraft, history, and contemporary art. We will also visit Chilenje House, 394, Lusaka, which was occupied by Dr. K. D. Kaunda from 1960 to 1962. Former House of Rt Hon Prime Minister Robert Gabriel Mugabe of Zimbabwe at Chalimbana Teacher Training College, Lusaka. (2) Other Historic monuments • Football Heroes Burial Site, Independence Stadium, Lusaka, where 30 victims of the 1993 Gabon Air Disaster are buried, including the 18 members of the Zambia national football team. Take a break for lunch, then continue our quest to explore other city highlights. You will have free time in the afternoon to explore the city of Lusaka at your own pace and do some last-minute shopping. Dinner and accommodation will be in the hotel.

Lusaka - Home

After breakfast, we will take you to Lusaka International Airport (Kenneth Kaunda) to board your return flight home or to your next destination—Endo of our services. We hope you had a wonderful Safari and tour exploring the best of Zamia with Sarah Discoveries.