Six Beautiful Places to Visit in Zambia

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With fewer than a million tourists each year, Zambia doesn’t have a reputation for being a popular travel destination. While the tourism infrastructure isn’t as much of a well-oiled machine in Zambia as it is in more popular travel destinations like South Africa, hospitality is fantastic – and for now, there aren’t huge crowds at any of the most beautiful places in Zambia.

If you are an animal lover, appreciate beautiful landscape views, enjoy outdoor activities, or just want to get the most out of traveling on a budget – plan a trip to Zambia. There are certainly luxury travel options in Zambia in places like South Luangwa National Park, but Zambia is really a gem for people who want a rich travel experience on a budget.

Here are some of the places I think should make your list of travel destinations.

South Luangwa National Park

I think South Luangwa National Park warrants a trip to itself, so I wrote a whole separate post about it, here. It’s a beautiful, uncrowded park that is home to a variety of trees, birds, and game animals (except rhinoceros, sadly). Some of the animals in South Luangwa cannot be found anywhere else in the world.

The most popular time to go is near the hottest month of the year. In October, dry season is coming to an end, but the hot dry weather means that it is easier to spot animals in the bush and they are more likely to be concentrated around watering holes. During rainy season (Nov – Mar), it may be a bit more difficult to spot animals, but it is a great time to go for bird-watching.

Victoria Falls (Mosi oa Tunya)

Mosi oa Tunya translates to “the smoke that thunders” and is a beautifully descriptive name for Victoria Falls. The falls form part of the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe and spans about 1,700 meters in length, or close to 4000 feet. It is often considered the largest waterfall in the world, though at 108 meters tall, it is neither the tallest (Angel Falls in Venezuela holds that title), nor the longest in width (Khone Falls in Laos is over 10,000 meters wide).

Victoria Falls can be visited from either Zambia or Zimbabwe and day tripper visas (valid for 24 hours) are available at the border crossing if you just want to pop across to see the other side and then pop back.

On the Zambia side, there is an option to go to Devil’s Pool. This involves a precarious walk in the water across the top of the falls to a small pool right on the edge of the falls. At the beginning of rainy season, usually sometime in December, they close down this option for obvious safety reasons (i.e. lots of extra water flowing increases the chances of people getting swept over the edge). I went in December and have to admit, it was nerve-wracking to be looking so far down into the river below and feeling the moderate push of the current rushing towards the edge of the falls.

Sunken Lake (Lake Kashiba)

Sunken Lake is a bit difficult to navigate to, there’s nothing nearby, and the roads are prohibitively flooded during rainy season – but if you time it right this is one of the most beautiful places in Zambia. The best way to get there is to navigate to the nearby mission, St. Anthony’s, and then just start asking people which way to the lake.

The lake itself is formed from collapsed underground caves and shrouded in mystery and folklore. We were cautioned by locals that boats making their way across the center of the lake have disappeared with no trace… but I didn’t learn that until after I had already swam all the way across.

There is about a 30-foot drop from the edge of the rocky bank to the water’s surface in some places, which makes it perfect for cliff jumping. No need to worry about hitting the bottom because the lake is so deep that there aren’t any reliable measurements of the exact depths. As we were climbing out of the lake from our last jumps, we noticed what seem to be large scratch marks in the rocks on the embankment – suspiciously consistent with folklore about a lake monster.

Lilayi Elephant Orphanage

Imagine that you are out for a nice early morning run/walk and you all of a sudden are stopped in your tracks by 4 giraffes slowly ambling across the dirt trail ahead. That has happened to me more than once at Lilayi.

Lilayi was my favorite escape from Lusaka and became almost like a weekend ritual while I lived there. The property is a massive farm, surrounding a lodge and wildlife conservation with prey animals like kudu, giraffes, warthogs, hartebeest, zebras, wildebeest, etc.

My routine was to make a breakfast reservation at the lodge, go for a run around the reservation and then return to the lodge for breakfast. The baby elephants are fed late morning so it’s easy to stop there to support the orphanage and see the babies before heading back to town.

The wildlife conservation surrounds the lodge and has multiple walking and running trails. I have never run this trail and been disappointed by the amount of wildlife I saw. Once, my friend and I ended up waiting 10 – 15 minutes because we had no clue how to navigate through or around a herd of wildebeest that were camped out on the trail. That’s not something either of us had any clue about. We were also already quite far from the lodge and being a bit stubborn about turning around and ending our run, so we waited for them and sheepishly skirted around the edge of the herd.

Monkey Pools

A short drive from Lusaka, hidden behind an estate, there is a fairyland with bright opaque blue water and a series of pools in the woods. The beauty of this place lies in its tranquility, despite its proximity to the city.

The pools are on the property of an estate, but for an entrance fee visitors are welcomed to spend the day with access to the pools, picnic area and facilities.

Kafue National Park

Kafue is one of Africa’s top 5 largest national parks, at 22,400 km sq. Its popularity is on the rise, but for now, the park is sparsely populated by tourists.

The park’s terrain includes swamps, woodlands, plains and forest and is home to nearly 500 species of birds. Leopards, hippos, zebras and a variety of other game animals roam various areas of the park. If you camp at one of the sites along the river, you can expect to hear hippos grunting throughout the evening, and you may even find one wandering through your campsite.

Other travel destinations in Zambia

Lake Kariba

Lake Kariba sits on the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe and is the largest man made lake in the world. The dam at Kariba was filled between 1958 and 1963. With over 2000 square miles (over 5,500 square kilometers) of water, the lake is home to many species of fish in addition to crocodiles and hippos. Along the shores elephants, cheetahs, leopards, lions, buffalo and a host of other wildlife can be found.

Zambezi River

The large appeal of the Zambezi is the preservation of nature along the river. The lack of settlement and industry in the area makes it a haven for elephants and other wildlife. Popular activities along the Zambezi River include canoe and boat tours. The Zambezi is the world fourth largest river system, feeding the famous Victoria Falls and flowing through six different countries.