Southern Africa: Malawi – the Warm Heart of Africa

Beautiful Africa beats to a rhythm all its own. Home to lakes, landscapes, wildlife, and warm people, the lure of this great continent conjures up fanciful daydreams of travel adventures. From the upper tip of Tunisia to the very bottom of South Africa, this breathtaking land has long captured the hearts and minds of travelers, thrill seekers, photographers, movie makers, writers, artists, and those born with a wanderlust.

On this vast land, it would be impossible to cover the attributes of all its countries, so we will focus on Southern Africa. Here again, it will be hard pressed to cover just this popular travel region, so today we will focus our travel telescope on the country of Malawi, keeping in mind that once the decision has been made to visit, it would be wise to add in other nearby countries in the same journey, taking advantage of the making of a trip of a lifetime.

Malawi

Malawi is a landlocked country sharing borders with Tanzania to the north, Zambia to the west, and Mozambique to the southeast. Malawi, known as the Warm Heart of Africa, is beating faster now and a legendary welcome is there for all who wish to experience the unrivaled combination of water, land, and animals in one of Africa’s most beautiful countries.

A huge draw for travelers to Malawi is Lake Malawi National Park. Lake Malawi is an African Great Lake in the Great Rift Valley system, estimated to be between 40,000 and 2 million years old. The third largest lake in Africa, it occupies a fifth of Malawi and is the second deepest lake in Africa, with clear tropical waters teeming with more fish species than any other lake on Earth. Malawi National Park is the only national park in Malawi that was created to protect fish and aquatic habitats. Despite this, Lake Malawi National Park does include a fair amount of land, including several small islands in Lake Malawi, and is home to other animals such as baboons.

Lake Malawi National Park is the world’s first freshwater national park and a World Heritage Site. Countless freshwater fish, the mbuna, are more abundant and varied here than anywhere else in the world. Boats can be hired and the fish fed directly from one’s hand. Away from the lake, there are baboons, antelope, and hyrax, as well as spectacular birdlife. Also, the lake offers great opportunities for sporting activities like kayaking, snorkeling, and scuba-diving.

Although Lake Malawi is a major tourist attraction, the authorities have guarded against over-commercialization, so visitors can enjoy long stretches of uninhabited golden lakeshore. Even with settlements, hotels, campsites, and historical sites along the southern shore, the northern shore has remained largely untouched. The lake contains a number of small islands, all located in Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Although preserved in their natural state, some of them have been developed for eco-tourism. The best time to travel to Lake Malawi is in the dry season, from April to November, giving visitors an ample opportunity to visit this fascinating place.

A large baobab tree, purportedly over 800 years old, is said to have been a favorite of Dr. David Livingstone as a place where he could give sermons and speak with other missionaries. The graves of five early missionaries are also found in the park. The many endemic fish species make it a key example of specialized evolution. For this characteristic, it was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984.

Journeying from Lake Malawi, Malawi’s largest park – Nyika National Park – is one of the most outstanding destinations in Africa. Nyika is a wonderland of flowers, including ground orchids, proteas, irises, and many more. The park has a scale of its own and is home to vast herds of eland, the largest of the antelope. Uniquely, horseback safaris are offered here, and there is no thrill like that of riding through a herd of zebra or roan antelope. The eastern edge of the plateau forms the wall of the Great Rift Valley. You could hire a mountain bike, or hike all the way down to Livingstonia, which is the best way to appreciate Nyika’s scale without overlooking the exquisite detail.

Going into the central region of Malawi, situated within a cluster of forested hills, high up against the plateau of central Malawi, the 127 sites of the Chongoni Rock Art area features the richest concentration of rock art in Central Africa. These sites reflect the comparatively scarce tradition of farmer rock art, as well as paintings by BaTwa hunter-gatherers who inhabited the area from the late Stone Age. Chewa agriculturalists, whose ancestors lived here from the late Iron Age, practiced rock painting until well into the 20th century. The Chongoni Rock Art Area was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2006.

Lying east of Blantyre, is the easily accessible Mount Mulanje made of bare rock that flanks this mountain tower to almost 3,000 meters. You could drive around the entire foot of the mountain in a day, or you could experience it more intimately by climbing and camping on the slopes, taking comparatively gentle walks or attempting some more demanding climbs. Camping equipment and the services of a guide can be hired. There is plenty of wildlife, from the klipspringer a tiny antelope to various other small mammals and, of course, a large variety of birds.

Now that you are down at the southern end of Malawi, it is simple to expand your travel adventure and cross the border into…

Mozambique

Mozambique offers natural beauty, pristine beaches, abundant wildlife, and historic heritage, truly making it worthy of a visit. Here there are close to 3,000 kilometers of coastline along the warm Indian Ocean, teeming with fish living in spectacular coral reefs, providing snorkeling and diving adventures not to be missed.

The Island of Mozambique off the northern end of Mozambique is a UNESCO World Heritage site with sandy and historic beaches, known as the capital of colonial Portuguese East Africa prior to 1898 and was a major base for Arab traders long before the arrival of the Portuguese. It is a fascinating place to visit with a magical mix of old Portuguese and ancient Muslim architecture.

The island is served by nearby Lumbo Airport on the Nampula mainland. From Mozambique, one can then cross into the land of…

Zambia

Zambia, where the magnificent Victoria Falls is happily shared as a famous tourist attraction with neighbor TZimbabwe. This famous waterfall, known as “Mosi-oa-Tunya – the Smoke that Thunders,” is one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the world and a World Heritage site. Thrilling activities await at Victoria Falls, and include a swim in a natural rock pool on the edge of the Falls Devil’s Pool, scenic flights above the falls, white-water rafting, river boarding, kayaking, jet boating, abseiling, high-wire, river cruises, canoeing, and elephant-back rides, walking with lions, horse riding and game drives in the Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park.

Other parks to be enjoyed and experienced include South Luangwa National Park, one of the greatest wildlife sanctuaries in the world, famous for walking safaris, and the beautiful wilderness of the Lower Zambezi National Park. The entire area of this park is a massive wildlife sanctuary located across from the Mana Pools Reserve in Zimbabwe.

Keeping with the theme of water, one could easily be sidetracked with a houseboat holiday on Lake Kariba. Here visitors can witness Africa’s largest man-made dam at 226 km long and in places 40 km wide. Equipped with marinas, an airport, and a harbor, the lake is fast becoming an extremely popular resort destination.

But let’s not stop here. Let’s cross one more border on our journey into the country of…

Tanzania

Home to Africa’s tallest mountain – Mount Kilimanjaro – Tanzania gets a big share of travelers to its “Mountain of Greatness” that pierces through the clouds at 4,600 meters in height. At this great mountain created from three extinct volcanoes, exists five major eco-zones: rainforest, heath, moorland, alpine desert, and glaciers. Here, around 25 000 people attempt to reach the summit of Africa every year.

While in Tanzania, visitors cannot miss other famous attractions, such as the Serengeti National Park, famous for its annual animal migration, when some 6 million hooves pound the Earth, or one of the world’s greatest natural spectacles, the Ngorongoro Crater. The Ngorongoro Conservation Area is called the eighth wonder of the world where lush highlands that surround the crater fall away to the plains and lakes of the Great Rift Valley.

Getting to Malawi

For intercontinental flights from Europe, Kenya Airways (also with KLM), South African Airways, and Ethiopian Airlines offer good options to Malawi, with routes involving an aircraft change at their respective national hubs (Nairobi, Johannesburg, and Addis Ababa). All international flights have the option to land in either the capital Lilongwe (5-7 times per week) or Blantyre (2-3 days per week). Regional links between Malawi and Kenya, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe are provided by Malawian Airlines and the various national airlines of those countries. Such connections can sometimes be used in conjunction with a European airline flying from Europe to these countries. Malawi-based air charter companies, such as Ulendo Airlink, also link Malawi to its neighbors. Most tour operators who organize tours to southern Africa will offer Malawi itineraries, or provide a tailor-made service.

There are also road routes into Malawi from Tanzania, Zambia, and Mozambique. Assume that border posts will be closed from about 1800 hours and reopen at 0700 hours. Visitors requiring a visa may find this difficult to obtain at border posts and are advised to obtain the documentation in advance. Requirements for vehicle documentation should be checked before traveling.

A full valid passport is required for entry into Malawi. For tourist visits, visas are not required by citizens of most Commonwealth countries, the USA, Japan, most European Union countries, and certain other countries. For those nationalities that do require visas, these cannot be obtained on arrival but must be obtained in advance from any Malawi diplomatic mission around the world.

About RETOSA

The Regional Tourism Organization of Southern Africa (RETOSA) is a Southern African Development Community (SADC) institution responsible for tourism growth and development. In part, the aims of RETOSA are to increase tourist arrivals to the region through sustainable development initiatives, improved regional competitiveness, and effective destination marketing. The organization works together with Member States’ tourism ministries, tourism boards, and private sector partners. For more information about RETOSA, go to www.retosa.co.za