Reviews of Nkwali
Wildlife sightings and reviews
254 independent comments and wildlife information from our travellers who have visited Nkwali and kindly agreed to share their thoughts. They do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa
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"Nkwali review"
The wild dog sightings were excellent, as ever. I had booked a private guide and vehicle for this trip, and really enjoyed my time with Perry, who is young and enthusiastic and has great potential. He got into the spirit of my "bird list", and we managed to spot 176 species, smashing my previous PB of 162, and with several new ones for me.
I had a few more lion sightings than on previous green season trips, including one male who came to drink from the lagoon by the dining area in camp, just as we were about to sit down for lunch! I am used to seeing elephants there, but a lion was a first for me.
I have always liked Nkwali as a camp, particularly the open fronted rooms, but it's the people that really make the place. The atmosphere is relaxed and you get a sense that everyone loves what they do. I look forward to my next visit." See all these reviews: 7n in Zambia
"First visit to South Luangwa"
The accommodation was good. I had been a little concerned that not being fully enclosed by canvas or a solid wall, might have resulted in too many unwanted creatures in the room, but this was not the case.
Perry was our guide. He read the bush well, was an excellent communicator, and drove safely and confidently. Access to some areas was limited because of the wet conditions, so some of the drives were a little repetitive. We were very fortunate however, to have some wonderful sightings. In our first three drives we saw lions, a leopard with a fresh kill and wild dogs. Later in our stay we had a very close encounter on the road, with a breeding herd of elephants. Perry’s handling of this situation inspired confidence.
During our stay there was a short burst of extremely windy and wet weather. The staff, all of whom were excellent, dealt with this admirably. During our stay, a slight delay to one game drive was the only disruption we experienced.
Monkeys and baboons visited the camp, particularly in the after lunch period when no staff were around. We were warned not to leave out anything they might consider food." See all these reviews: 5n in Zambia
"Nkwali review"
The wild mango trees were fruiting and it was a great opportunity to see the elephants, monkeys and baboons feeding on the fallen fruit.
Staying at Nkwali in the wet season was a bit of a challenge as we never knew what we might encounter in the room at night. The rain brought out a host of insects, arachnids and assorted creepy crawlies. If you don’t like close encounters with such creatures this might not be the best time of year to visit but if you don’t mind then you’re in for an interesting time!" See all these reviews: 13n in Zambia
"Nkwali review"
We appreciated the swimming pool for cooling off and the chance to watch wildlife come to the lagoon whilst you are on the loungers.
There was plenty of game to view and we saw everything we were hoping for.
The food was also excellent." See all these reviews: 7n in Zambia
"Nkwali review"
The camp and chalets are lovely, high quality, small pool welcome in the heat, staff all very good indeed. Guiding was excellent, lots of game of all sorts on drives, a morning walk very informative on ecology etc. Will happily return if we can.
We were taken aback at the number of vehicles homing in on animals in this southern end of the park (we have been to centre and north only in the past), and actually backed off at night on one occasion when several cars from other camps were pressing in on lions." See all these reviews: 12n in Zambia
"Lovely camp"
The staff were lovely and couldn't have been more helpful, special mention must be made of our expert guide Perry who went out of his way to make sure we saw so many wonderful things including our first sighting of wild dogs which have always eluded us in the past.
The accommodation was first class, waking up in the morning to the view of the river was very special especially on the morning when a leopard appeared on the opposite bank.
The food was excellent throughout, one lunch was made even more memorable when a family of elephant came down to the lagoon whilst we were eating.
Hopefully we'll make it back some day." See all these reviews: 11n in Zambia
"Nkwali review"
The service was good, food tasty and plentiful, and guiding and game viewing very satisfactory. I have no complaints whatsoever.
One of many highlights was watching a herd of elephants drink from a pool of water while we were having lunch." See all these reviews: 12n in Zambia
"Wonderful Nkwali review"
The new bar area and the camp fire area are splendid. I enjoy taking an aperitif in front of the fire, and had wide-ranging discussions with other guests with a digestif after dinner. Our lunches and dinners were taken mostly in the special covered dining area, but sometimes al fresco or in front of the bar. The food and wine was consistently excellent.
My guide was Perry, who was absolutely superb with an encyclopaedic knowledge of animals, birds and trees. On one occasion, he persevered in tracking down a big pack of wild dogs who had ventured a long distance from the camp.
Another highlight was the sighting of a female leopard who had just killed an impala, and taken it up a tree for one of her cubs to feed on. Almost immediately, she then killed a puku for herself and her second cub to feed on. Two kills a few minutes apart was astonishing to witness.
There were many other memorable wildlife experiences in may five days there. As well as the wildlife experiences, I will remember the splendid bush brunch on one morning, and sundowners on Chichele Hill on my penultimate evening." See all these reviews: 15n in Zambia
"Nkwali by the River"
Our Guide was excellent and thoughtful to my arthritic wife who had difficulty with steps." See all these reviews: 18n in Zambia
"Nkwali review"
Again we went walking, this time with kiki who made the walk fascinating
We also had Kiki as our guide for the rest of the time- which was really good" See all these reviews: 13n in Zambia
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