Travel Guidance

For entry into African countries: Please ensure your passports are valid for at least 6 months from the date of return home.

For entry into South Africa: Please ensure you have at least 2 blank pages in your passports.

For entry into South Africa, Botswana and Namibia: If travelling with children 17years or younger please bring the children's original full birth certificates showing both parents names who are travelling with them.

For entry into East Africa: Please bring your yellow fever inoculation certificate.

If you intend to stay a long period (ie more than 30 days) in any particular country,please ensure that you have checked the regulations on long stays. 

Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe, a landlocked country in south-central Africa that is slightly smaller than California. It is bordered by Botswana on the west, Zambia on the north; Mozambique on the east, and South Africa on the south.

 

Zimbabwe now provides excellent value and has acquired relatively increased stability, due to the dollarization of the economy. The geographical nature of Zimbabwe allows one to visit many different areas without long travelling times. 

The country offers some of Africa’s finest walking and canoeing safaris alongside the Zambezi River in the Mana Pools National Park; cruise on a house boat on Lake Kariba, enjoy magnificent big 5 viewing in Hwange National Park; the World Heritage Site of Victoria Falls where some of the best white water rafting experiences can be enjoyed whilst on the Eastern side some fantastic golf and trout fishing opportunities are on offer in the mountains.

 

Harare in the capital city whilst Victoria Falls in the west of the country is one of the main tourist hubs.

 

The remains of early humans, dating back 500,000 years, have been discovered in present-day Zimbabwe. The land's earliest settlers, the Khoisan, date back to 200 B.C. After a period of Bantu domination, the Shona people ruled, followed by the Nguni and Zulu peoples. By the mid-19th century the descendants of the Nguni and Zulu, the Ndebele, had established a powerful warrior kingdom. The first British explorers, colonists, and missionaries arrived in the 1850s, and the massive influx of foreigners led to the establishment of the territory Rhodesia, named after Cecil Rhodes of the British South Africa Company. In 1923, European settlers voted to become the self-governing British colony of Southern Rhodesia. After a brief federation with Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia) and Nyasaland (now Malawi) in the post–World War II period, Southern Rhodesia (also known as Rhodesia) chose to remain a colony when its two partners voted for independence in 1963.  The white minority finally consented to hold multiracial elections in 1980, and Robert Mugabe won a landslide victory. The country achieved independence on April 17, 1980, under the name Zimbabwe. Mugabe eventually established a one-party socialist state, but by 1990 he had instituted multiparty elections and in 1991 deleted all references to Marxism-Leninism and scientific socialism from the constitution. Once heralded as a champion of the anticolonial movement, Mugabe is now viewed by much of the international community as an authoritarian ruler responsible for egregious human rights abuses and for ruining the economy of his country.

 


Banking and Currency

The country accepts payments in US Dollars (mostly accepted) but at certain camps and hotels they will also accept Pounds Sterling, Euros and South African Rand.  Please bring cash in small denominations (eg: USD 1, 2, 5, 10 and 20’s) as change if very limited. Visa and MasterCard credit cards are accepted in most hotels and camps.  ATM’s are found at most banks in Zimbabwe, but they do not always work.

Note: There is an extreme shortage of cash in Zimbabwe so we suggest that you do not rely on drawing cash from the ATM’s. Please bring sufficient cash to cover your visa entry fees, any park fees which are not included in your prepaid trip, for shopping in the markets and for any tips.  Please also note that Zimbabwe has the Zimbabwe Bond notes which appear to be denominated in USD but have no value outside of Zimbabwe. We suggest you try to pay for things in exact cash to avoid change in Zimbabwe Bond notes.


Travel, Transport and Getting Around

Access:

Most camps are accessed by light aircraft flights.  There is a luggage restriction of 20kgs (44lbs) per person in soft-sided bags (no hard framed suitcases) on these flights.  If

For all light aircraft flights luggage is restricted to a total of 15kgs to 20kgs(44lbs) per person in soft-sided bags (no hard framed suitcases, wheels or frames). If you have to bring more luggage we may be able to store it for you (additional charge) or charge you for an additional seat (depending on availability of seats). The maximum dimensions of the soft bags are as follows: 25 cm (10 inches) wide x 30 cm (12 inches) high and 62 cm (24 inches) long. Please keep in mind that the baggage compartments on the light aircraft are only 25 cm high (10 inches), so the pilots must have the ability to manipulate the bag into the Passengers travelling on light aircraft:

Due to Aviation regulations and aircraft safety we need to be advised if any passengers are over 100kg (220lb).  We may ask for all passengers’ weights in order that charter companies can plan in advance prior to your arrival.


Health and Medical Information

Health Precautions:

There are a few basic health matters that require care and attention. We are not medical practitioners so please consult with your doctor on what the latest requirements are for travel to Africa.

Malaria:

Many places in Southern Africa are classified as having a malaria risk.  Malaria is transmitted by a very small percentage of female Anopheles mosquitoes. They are only active in the early evening and throughout the night. If you come down with flu-like symptoms either during, or within four to six weeks after, your visit to a malaria area, seek a doctor's advice immediately. The best insurance against contracting malaria is to try to prevent one from being bitten:

  • Use mosquito repellents liberally.
  • Wear long-sleeved shirts and trousers/slacks in the evenings.
  • You should spray your room prior going to dinner with an insecticide (many camps do provide this service).
  • Mosquito coils are also effective.
  • Take the malaria tablets recommended for the region you're travelling to, and keep taking them until the course is complete.

Yellow Fever:

Yellow Fever is a viral illness for which there is no cure, however, there is an effective vaccine that will prevent it. It is transmitted by a daytime biting mosquito. The Yellow Fever virus is found in certain areas of Africa, Central and South America. The illness develops within six days of being bitten by an infected mosquito, and the onset is usually sudden: fever develops, with headache, body pains, and most often nausea. Jaundice develops with a bleeding tendency, coma and death. Please check with us if you require a Yellow Fever inoculation certificate prior to travel.

  • Inoculations must be taken at least 10 days before travel and the vaccine provides immunity against the disease for 10 years.
  • You will receive a Yellow Card, which you have to carry with you when you travel. Failure to produce the card during travel could result in penalties by immigration or refusal to enter the country.  
  • Pregnant women, very young babies, HIV-positive, anyone undergoing chemotherapy or with a suppressed immune system may be exempt with a letter provided by a certificate medical practitioner.

Tick Bite Fever:

Ticks are found throughout Southern Africa and tick bite fever is an infection caused by bacteria from the Rickettsia family, transmitted by infected ticks to humans in their saliva when they bite.  Tick bites most often occur when hiking, walking or camping in wilderness areas, particularly where there is long grass. The incubation period is 5-11 days. Symptoms vary but typical features include the presence of a black mark at the site of the bite, a fever, severe headache, swollen lymph nodes near the bite site and sometimes a rash. Treatment is with the antibiotic doxycycline. Try to avoid tick bites by wearing long sleeved shirts, long pants and shoes when you walk in the bush; apply insect repellent to exposed skin and always check yourself after you have walked in the bush.

Tsetse Flies:

Tsetse flies do occur in some parts of northern Botswana, Zambia and Mana Pools in Zimbabwe. Some of them are the carriers of trypanosomiases, causing sleeping sickness in humans that can be fatal, however, is easily treated and cured. In many areas great strides have been made in their eradication. They are regarded more as an irritation (the bites are sharp) than as a serious threat. Symptoms can present a few weeks to months after a visit and begin with fever, headaches and pains in the joints followed by dramatic swelling of the lymph nodes. Dark coloured clothing is generally more attractive to tsetse flies since the majority of their host species are dark coloured large mammals such as buffalo. Wearing long-sleeved neutral coloured clothing is probably the best approach.

  • AIDS:

The HIV virus and AIDS are serious health issues in many African countries. Use the same precautions while in Africa as in your home country to protect against contracting this virus.

Sun:

Always take precautions against the persistent overhead sun. Proximity to the equator makes the African sun particularly strong so ensure you use a high level of protection.

Water:

It is very important that you drink plenty of water especially during the warmer months. Dehydration is possibly the single biggest cause of ill health on safari.  It is generally recommended that guests drink at least 2 to 3 litres of water per day to limit the effects of dehydration. This excludes tea, coffee and alcoholic beverages, which act as diuretics and can, actually contribute to dehydration.

 
 


Safety Notices

Security:
Safety and security is a matter of common sense. It's sensible to take the same precautions in major cities as you would in any of the world's metropolitan areas.

  • Never leave luggage unattended in public areas or entrances to hotels.
  • Deposit your valuables in the safety deposit box.
  • Do not walk around the city looking like a tourist and keep your camera concealed.
  • Be aware of who is around you, even in busy areas and when drawing cash at ATM’s. 

 


Food, Drink and Cuisine Advice

Food:
Please do inform us if you have any special dietary requirements. Use common sense when it comes to food and beverages. If you're unsure of their origin, don't touch them.

Drinks policy:

Many Southern African camps include all local drinks in the fully inclusive rate, while premium imported brands are excluded, in which case you are required to settle your drinks bill prior to departure. Drinks policies do differ from camp to camp so please check with us if you are unsure of what is included.

 


Climate and Weather

Climate:

You can do a safari all year round in most parts of Zimbabwe but the Mana Pools area on the Lower Zambezi is closed from November to April due to the rains.

The summer is from October to March.  This is the hottest time of year with the most rain falling in February and March. This period is a haven for all types of migrant birds and wonderful butterflies and flowers. 

The winter is from May to September. This is the dry cooler season. Temperatures in winter can drop quite dramatically at night and in the early morning, particularly when on safari in the open vehicle, so we suggest that you pack accordingly with very warm clothing including a warm winter jacket, a beanie, scarf and gloves. However, daytime temperatures are pleasantly warm.  This period tends to see the higher concentration of game at the waterholes and larger herds of animals.  The bush is dry and thin and very dusty towards the end of the dry season!

 The in-between periods – April/early May and mid September, still tend to be dry, however, the days are cooler than in summer and the nights are warmer than in winter.

  


Clothing and Dress Recommendations

Casual, comfortable clothing is generally suitable throughout the year. Apart from light cotton tops and trousers, the following items of clothing are recommended for various reasons. Shirts with long sleeves are useful in summer as protection from mosquitos and the sun. T-shirts, shorts or a short skirt provide heat relief in summer, while sweaters, jeans or safari trousers may be necessary for those cooler evenings and days. A heavy jacket is useful for game drives, and essential in winter. A hat, comfortable walking shoes or boots, sun block, sunglasses and insect repellent are essential to enjoy the many activities. A swimsuit is recommended, as is a light raincoat during the rainy months. Layers are recommended for the fluctuating day and night temperatures. Hardy, durable clothing in neutral colors is recommended, rather than unpractical white items.


Internet Availability

Internet availability is very limited especially outside of the major cities. 

Most holiday accommodation venues offer internet and/or WiFi (free or paid) to their guests but there are often disruptions in service.


Electricity and Plug Standards

Power:

Electricity is supplied at 220/240v. Square and wall plugs are used. Most camps run on generators and supply international adapters.  Expect to experience power cuts in the cities due to extreme power shortages in the country. Most city hotels do have back up generators.


Zambia

This unique, peanut-shaped country, once known as Northern Rhodesia, offers visitors an authentic African experience complete with adrenalin pumping adventure sports, a variety of fascinating cultural activities, and an abundance of indigenous wildlife, which finds refuge in Zambia’s vast national parks. Spend your evenings enjoying the spectacular site of the world’s largest waterfall, the Victoria Falls, while sipping on sundowners after an exhilarating day of whitewater rafting down the rapids of the mighty Zambezi River. If that sounds a little too adventurous for your taste, take a houseboat cruise along the exquisite Lake Kariba while watching wild elephants drink at the riverbank as you try your hand at catching the elusive tiger fish. However you choose to spend your time in this unique country, you are bound to leave with a heavy heart and a desire to return again soon to this exceptionally beautiful Southern African country.


Banking and Currency

Currency

Zambia's unit of currency is the Kwacha (ZMW), formally ZMK which was rebased in 2013. The denominations are K100, K50, K20, K10, K5 and K2.  It is subdivided into 100 ngwee. Coins available are K1, and 50 ngwee.

However, most prices are quoted in US$. It is therefore possible to use dollars.

Banking

Larger bank branches have ATMs that accept Visa and Mastercard. Foreign exchange offices are easy to find in cities and larger towns. 

Banks are generally open on weekdays from 08h15 to 14h30, and 08h15 to 11h00 on the first and last Saturdays of each month. Banks are closed on Sundays and public holidays. 


Travel, Transport and Getting Around

Proflight flies from Lusaka to Mfuwe (South Luangwa), to Livingstone and the Copperbelt and also does charters.Various air charter companies will fly to any of the many airstrips around the country and most of the areas worth visiting are accessible by air. 

Public Transport

There are many taxis available. Prices are negotiable. There is a good bus service to Chipata, Livingstone, the Copperbelt and Harare, but they don’t always follow strict schedules. The main bus terminus is in Dedan Kimathi Road in Lusaka where one can inquire about timetables. Other private bus companies offer more reliable services to Livingstone, Harare and Johannesburg.

Travel by Bus

Long range buses frequently leave from Lusaka to all the main towns. The intercity bus terminal can be found one road up from Cairo Road at the station.

Minibuses and taxis, local transport – all painted blue – can be jumped on at pretty much any juncture. They’re not expensive and you can always find a minibus that won’t cost too much to buy all the seats in it to get your own private minibus to wherever you want to go but you’ll have to negotiate.

Travel by Road

Zambia has 38,763 kilometres of roads, about 10,000 kms of which are tarred and another 8000 kms are gravel road. The rest range from reasonable to bad dirt roads.

If you’re doing a vehicle trip through Zambia it is a good idea to carry a range of tools and essential spares with you. 

Be really careful, especially if travelling at night for road markings are usually non existent. Do watch out for animals in the road, vehicles without lights, pedestrians, unannounced roadworks, bad drivers and broken down trucks with no warning triangles. If you see a tree branch in the road, slow down immediately – these are improvised warning triangles and there’s bound to be a truck or car in the middle of the road up ahead. 

Be sure to have all your vehicle papers on hand as you’re bound to encounter a few roadblocks.


Food, Drink and Cuisine Advice

Zambia's native cuisine is based on nshima, a cooked porridge made from ground maize normally accompanied by some tasty relish, perhaps made of meat and tomatoes, or dried fish. Safari camps will often prepare nshima if requested, and it is almost always available in small, local restaurants.

Camps, hotels and lodges that cater to overseas visitors tend to serve  a range of international fare, and the quality of food prepared in the most remote bush camps is typically excellent.

Water in the main towns is usually purified, provided there are no shortages of chlorine, breakdowns, or other mishaps. The locals drink it, and are used to the relatively innocuous bugs that it may harbour. If you are in the country for a long time, then it may be worth acclimatising yourself to it. However, if you are in Zambia for just a few weeks, then try to drink only bottled, boiled, or treated water in town.

Out in the bush, most of the camps and lodges use water from bore-holes. These underground sources vary in quality, but are normally perfectly safe to drink.


Climate and Weather

The rains in Zambia come mostly in December, January, February and March though the further north you are, the earlier the rains arrive and the later they leave. Eastern areas and higher areas generally receive more rain than western and lowland areas.

By April and May most of the rain has faded away, leaving a landscape that's still green, but starting to dry out. Nighttime temperatures start to drop, especially in higher and more southerly locations.

In June, July and August the nights become much cooler, but the days are clear and warm. Make sure you bring warm clothes to wrap up if you're out at night, as some nights get very cold! Most of Zambia's small 'walking bush camps' open at the start of June, when the roads have dried out sufficiently to allow access. This is the start of the 'peak season' for these countries – with often cloudless days and continually increasing game sightings.

Into September and October the temperatures climb: the lower-lying rift valleys – Lower Zambezi, Mana Pools and Luangwa Valley – can get very hot in October. However, you'll see some superb game as the animals concentrate around the limited water sources.

November is variable; it can be hot and dry like October, or it can see the season's first downpours. Often it's a very interesting month as you can see both patterns on successive days.


Clothing and Dress Recommendations

Zambia has mild winters and the summer days can be scorching hot. Lightweight casual clothes can be worn all year round, with a jacket or jersey for early winter mornings and evenings. 

On safari, keep clothes to neutral colours - khakis, browns and greens. A sunhat, sunscreen, sunglasses and insect repellent are a must. 


Internet Availability

Most hotels offer internet and/or Wi-Fi (free or paid) to their guests. Internet cafes are springing up in Zambia, but connections can be erratic and slow. 


Electricity and Plug Standards

Electrical sockets in the Republic of Zambia are predominantly the Type G (BS-1363) square pin plug, but the round pin plugs Type C (CEE 7/16 Europlug) and Type D (BS-546) are also in use. If your appliance's plug doesn't match the shape of these sockets, you will need a travel plug adapter in order to plug in. Travel plug adapters simply change the shape of your appliance's plug to match whatever type of socket you need to plug into. If it's crucial to be able to plug in no matter what, bring an adapter for all types.

Electrical sockets in the Republic of Zambia supply electricity at 230 volts AC / 50 Hz frequency.  If you're plugging in an appliance that was built for 230 volt electrical input, or an appliance that is compatible with multiple voltages, then an adapter is all you need. If your appliance isn’t compatible with 230 volts, a voltage converter will be necessary.


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