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Zambia 2007

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Route

  • Days: 18
  • Period: October 2007
  • Weather: It was the end of the dry is season and therefore very warm, dry and dusty. In some place, like South Luanga NP is was very hot, even during the night. In Lusaka it was also warm, but the nights were nice and cool.

General information:

  • Currency:  Zambia Kwacha (ZMK)

  • Internet: Widely available throughout the country. Some lodges also have internet.

  • ATM's: Most places have an ATM for Visa.

  • Creditcards: Creditcards are accepted especially in most lodges especially in the major touristic places like South Luanga and Victoria Falls. Commission however is  high.

  • Safety: In general Zambia is safe however in Lusaka you have to be careful. Here it was that criminals broke into our car. In Lusaka car breakings are a real problem at the moment. This crime mainly concentrates around Cairo Street, Freedom Road and Chachacha Street. Avoid parking your car here and when you do need to park your vehicle here make sure it is on a spot where there is security. Parking at the big malls is no problem.

Prices (per October 2007)

  • Value Money: €1 = around 5611 ZMK

  • Fuel:  In Zambia fuel is very expensive. In Chipata diesel was 6880 ZMK per liter. Around Lusaka we found the cheapest diesel 5888 ZMK per liter. 

  • Camping: Between 20.000 and 40.000 ZMK per person per night.

  • Ferry across the Zambezi to Botswana (at Kazungula): If you have a foreign registered car you must pay in USD. The price for a car including 2 person was 20 USD.

Visa

  • Visa can be obtained on the border. When you are Dutch the visa costs 25 USD per person. This is a single entry visa for one month.

  • Tourists can also get a visa waiver. This is a letter with your name and details that will be sent to the border where you will enter the country. Most lodges or campings provide this letter for free when you book one or two nights with them. With a visa waiver a visa can be obtained free of charge. A free visa however is only valid for two weeks. When you want to arrange a visa waiver you must contact one of the lodges or camping and make a booking with them, give them your details (name and passport numbers) and the date and name of the border post where you will enter the country. The lodge or camping will make sure your visa waiver will be sent to this border post. When you want to arrange a visa waiver do this about one week in advance. We did it only two days in advance and this was too short. Our waiver was not there when we entered.  Some of the places where you can arrange a visa waiver are: Mamarulas in Chipata (mamarula@iwayafrica.com ,   ) Flatdogs in South Luanga NP, Jollyboys Backpackers or Waterfront CS in Livingstone.

Border crossing

  • ENTRY: We've entered from Malawi at Minchji. Formalities where done quick and easy. 

  • Costs: When entering with your own car we heard that you also must pay Carbon tax. We did not pay this. Nobody asked us. Our Comesa was still valid so we also did not buy an insurance. 

  • EXIT: We left Zambia at Kazungula (border with Botswana). Formalities quick and easy and without costs. Also here nobody checked if we had paid Carbon tax.

 

Highlights or not

  • South Luanga NP: Entry was 30 USD per person per day and 15 USD per car per day. South Luanga is a nice game reserve along the Luanga river. The park seems to have many leapards. Unfortunately we did not say any predators here. Most of the park is not accessible during rainy season. We visited it at the end of the dry season and it was extremely dry and dusty then. It was also very hot. Only around the river we saw some animals, but the amount of wildlife was far less then we expected.  In the park where a lot of tseetsee flies.

  • Victoria Falls:  Entry was 40.000 ZMK per person and for parking we paid 3 USD. We visited the falls from the Zambia side. However during dry season this is not the best side to visit. On the Zimbabwe sides seems to be more water in this period.

  • Helicopter flight over the Falls: 95 USD per person for 15 minutes. Although short we did like this experience very much. We had a great view over the falls and even saw herds of elephant in the nearby reserve.

Tips

  • Just across the border in Zambabwe there are some nice activities. Just south of Lusaka you can go to Mana Pools that seems to be very nice and across the border in Livingstone you can do a lion walk. We did not do any of these activities but we heard they were great. If you want to go here is might be wise to get a double entry visa, this is a bit more expensive but you do not have to pay twice. With a visa waiver a double entry visa is not granted.

  • If you want to view the falls from the Zimbabwe side, but you do not want to take your car in, as you have to pay many duties, you can just leave you car in Zambia and walk across the bridge. Entering Zimbabwe even for one hour, means that you have to pay for a visa. For the Dutch this costs 30 USD per person. Crossing the bridge is for free but for visiting the falls you must pay an entrance fee of 20 USD per person.

  • If you only have a single entry visa and you want to make one short visit to Zimbabwe to see the falls or do the lion walk you can also get a re-entry stamp at the immigration office in Livingstone. The price is only 5000 ZMK and allows you to re-enter Zambia within 7 days.

  • Fuel is very expensive in Zambia. The highest price of whole Africa. You can economise buy filling up in Malawi or Botswana.

  • Just outside Livingstone, on the way to Botswana, we were asked to pay some kind of tax (10.000 ZMK). We said we had no money and in the end we did not had to pay.

  • In Zambia the police seems to be very keen on safety rules as far as your car is concerned. In you car you must have 2 hazard triangles, 2 fire extinguishers, reflecting tape all around your car (red at the back, white at the front, and yellow on the side). We had all of this, but nobody ever checked. What they did check many times was our insurance and there were many speed controls.

  • In the Arcadis Mall in Lusaka and opposite Fawlty Towers in Livingstone you can find Ocean Basket. A chain of fish restaurants where they sell delicious Fish and Chips. 

Roads (October 2007)

  • Minchji -Chitimba: half an hour, good tarmac.

  • Chitimba - South Luanga NP: about 3 hours. Piste with bad corrugation. Only the last 18 km was tarmac.

  • Chitimba - Luanga Bridge (halfway Lusaka): 350 km / about 4 hours, tarmac with in some places many potholes.

  • Luanga Bridge - Lusaka: 220 km good tarmac. 

  • Lusaka - Livingstone: in the beginning good tarmac. The last 80 km was old repaired tarmac and was very bumpy.

  • Livingstone - Kazungula (ferry to Botswana): 60 km good tarmac.

Important addresses

 

Nederlandse ambassade in Zambia
United Nations Avenue, Plot 5208
Lusaka
 
Postadres:
P.O. Box 31905
10101 Lusaka
 
Tel.00-260-1-254813/3590/3994/3819
Fax. 00-260-1-253733
E-mail: lus@minbuza.ml
www.netherlandsembassy.org.zm

 

GPS-waypoints

 

Grid: Lat/Lon hddd°mm.mmm"

 

Chipata S13.34.944 E032.36.593 Camping Mamarulas Big campsite run by South African. They can organise your visa waiver just send them an email.
Chipata S13.38.396 E032.38.822 Internet Sunday  
Chipata S13.38.844 E032.38.862 Shops Shoprite  supermarket
Halfway Lusaka-Chipata S15.00.361 E030.12.898 Camping Luanga Bridge camp Expensive place, but the view over the river is very nice. The campsite is very smal, so when there is an overland truck it will be very crowded. The place has hot water, restaurant and swimming pool.
Kazungula S17.47.163 E025.16.157 Transport    Ferry over Zambezi to Botswana
Livingstone S17.53.205 E025.50.660 Camping Waterfront Campsite Big campsite. Start/Finish for many overland trips therefore very crowded with trucks. At it is close to the river there are many musquitos. Also lot of noice from the nearby airport. Expensive place but it has many facilities. Restaurant, shop, booking office, internet and swimming pool.
Livingstone S17.50.873 E025.51.239 Camping Jollyboys backpacker Nice cosy place. Not ideal for camping as you have to camp on the parking. It is close to the city center and has a lot of facilities. There is hot water, swimming pool, bar and restaurant and a booking office.
Livingstone S17.50.709 E025.51.519 Officials Immigration When you only have a single entry visum and you want to visit the Vic. Falls on the Zimbabwe side, you can get an re-entry stamp here 
Livingstone S17.51.960 E025.51.248 Shops Spar supermarket
Lusaka S15.23.728 E028.27.073 Camping Pioneer Camp Nice clean place. About 25 km out of Lusaka, which may not be convenient. They have a good restaurant and nice swimming pool.
Lusaka S15.30.207 E28.15.901 Camping Eureka Camp Big campsite on a private farm where there is also some game. A lot of overland trucks use this place.There is power, a bar and a swimming pool.
Lusaka S15.24.596 E028.17.786 Restaurant Chit Chat cafe Upmarket restaurant with nice food. Not cheap
Lusaka S15.24.653 E028.16.350 Medical Corpmed Good private clinic. Appointed by the Austalian Government to do medical tests for visa applications
Lusaka S15.24.837 E028.16.866 Internet    
Lusaka S15.23.522 E028.18.997 Shops Arcades Mall Good internet cafe, cinema and a special big Spar Supermarket with a wide range of western and luxury products. There is also an ATM and a very good fish restaurant (Ocean Basket)
Lusaka S15.23.873 E028.18.445 Shops Manda Hill ATM, internet, restaurants, good bakery, Shoprite supermarket and Game (also a kind of Supermarket, but they also sell camera's, machines, tools, hardware, camping gear etc).
Lusaka S15.24.923 E028.17.216 Officials Central Police  
Lusaka S15.24.966 E028.19.144 Embassy Zimbabwe  
South Luanga NP S13.05.977 E031.47.166 Place of interest Mfuwe Bridge Gate Main Entrance South Luanga NP
South Luange NP S13.06.298 E031.46.546 Camping Flatdogs Nice place on the banks of the Luanga river. Many wild animals visit the campsite
Victoria Falls S17.55.632 E025.51.869 Place of interest Parking Vic. Falls