Malawi: What to Expect / Highlights

Liwonde National Park

Located along the Shire River (a tributary of the Zambezi River) and as a result is rather long and thin. Here one finds plenty of hippos and crocodiles, elephant, impala, waterbuck, and baboons. Less common are sable, kudu and bushbuck and the bird life, being on a river, is plentiful. Leopards can be spotted at dusk and on night drives.

Lake Malawi

Lake Malawi is the ninth largest lake in the world. This fresh-water lake also contains a greater variety of indigenous species of fish than any other lake in the world--over 500 species have been identified to date that are not found anywhere else in the world--most of which are in the cichlid family and are brightly colored and patterned. The lake serves as an important source of food to bordering Malawian villages.

TIME TO GO:

The best time to visit Malawi overall is in the dry season, which lasts from late April to October or November. If you're coming to see game, the best time is late in the dry season when animals congregate at water holes. The landscape is much more attractive and conditions less oppressive from May to July, but there are fewer animals about. The early dry (March/April) season is the best time for bird watching but it's also exceedingly hot, exceptionally wet or both.