4x4 Road Trip in Zambia - May 2023 - Solo
FR

Translated into English.

Original post
BU
Hi there,

I spent 3 weeks there from May 7th to 28th, 2023.

I arrived and departed from the capital, Lusaka.

I rented a 4x4 equipped for camping/overlanding with the only serious option I found at the time from Fair Car Hires. This was to avoid the long approach times from South Africa or Botswana.

4x4: $3,402 for 18 days (😕), a Toyota Hilux Double-Cab Safari Camper—fully equipped, 3.0L diesel, manual transmission, air-con, Bluetooth radio, and 1 or 2 roof-top tents.

I’d already traveled through Namibia, South Africa, Botswana, and KTP, and Harry (the owner of Lukasa in Lusaka) told me Zambia was the "real Africa." I wasn’t disappointed on that front 😉.

I explored three parks: - Lower Zambezi NP (2 nights camping nearby at Mvuu Lodge) - South Luangwa NP (2 nights at Wildlife Camp + 3 nights at Croc Valley Lodge campsite) - Kafue NP (3 nights at Kasabushi Bush Camp + 3 nights at Mapunga Bush Camp) (Check out my route on a map on my personal site).

That’s a lot of kilometers in 3 weeks—just a few well-paved roads in good condition, but mostly rough roads or tracks, which really slows down your average speed 😕.

No supply issues for fuel or food, but watch out for stock in some grocery stores (one Friday afternoon in Chipata, the fruit and vegetable shelves were empty!).

May is still a bit early in the season, so the grass is still tall in the plains.

Lower Zambezi NP: A mother elephant and her "little one":

South Luangwa NP, near the Mushilashi Bridge:

Kafue NP, morning sunrise:

Kafue NP, spotting two lions on Spinal Road near the Shishemba Loop:

Northern Kafue NP:

Kafue NP, leopard during a morning game drive:

Northern Kafue NP, at my campsite in Mapunga Bush Camp—hippo on night watch (Where’s Charlie? 😉):

Kafue NP, tall grass—buffalo lurking!

In Lusaka, I highly recommend Harry and Geke’s welcoming green property, Lukasa, as a base camp (over Lusaka Pioneer Campsite, where I stayed my first night).

More photos on my personal site: wildescapesoverland.com

Happy to help, Pierre

PS: To the site admins, please consider allowing the .webp image format—it’ll significantly cut your storage costs while keeping great resolution.
Mes trekkings, mes roadtrips 4x4 : https://wildescapesoverland.com

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