Chichele Presidential

a interesting base from which to explore central areas

Chichele Presidential Lodge is located in the South Luangwa Central area of eastern Zambia.

The lodge is in an impressive hilltop position far above the Luangwa River in the reasonably quiet southern edge of the Central Sector, some 10 km as the crow flies south of the main Mfuwe Bridge Gate.

It is an historic lodge, having originally been built as a private home for Kenneth Kaunda, the first president of Zambia following independence and very much considered to be the father of the new nation.

We are not quite sure when it was first opened to the public, but when we first stayed here back in 1987 it was a rather run-down and barely functioning place, whose main positive feature was a table tennis table in the middle of the main entrance hall.

The lodge was completely refurbished in 2011 and re-opened in its current form shortly afterwards. Now it is a rather elegant colonial style lodge which offers an unusually high level of conventional comforts in an area where lodges are renowned for being much more outdoorsy.

It is centred on an impressive main building, with a cavernous entrance hallway, very well-appointed public areas including stylish lounge and dining rooms, wrapped around by a broad verandah with views out across lawns to the enormous views out over the park. There is a modest swimming pool to the rear and a nice outside campfire and dining area to one side.

Animals in camp

The view out across the floodplain is perhaps the camp’s biggest single asset. The area has particularly rich soil, so tends to attract a good number of grazers such as pukus, zebras and impalas, with buffaloes, baboons and elephants often also coming into view.

There are also two waterholes close by which occasionally also tempt predators to visit and which are floodlit at night.

We particularly appreciated the picture ‘windows’ in the rooms, which made it possible to watch the sunrise and watch the wildlife without having to even get out of bed.

Rooms

Guest accommodation at Chichele Presidential Lodge is in ten substantial guest suites which are ranged around the central building, all with stunning views from their picture windows. The rooms feature large beds fitted with mosquito nets and the private bathrooms are indoors and conventional in style, featuring a large Victorian style bathtub. Two of the suites are interconnecting, whilst others can be turned into triples.

Notably the rooms are fitted with aircon, which is very unusual in the valley and is highly appreciated during the Oct-Nov ‘suicide season’.

Activities

Chichele Presidential Lodge provides the following guided activities …

• vehicle safari
• walking safari
• night vehicle safari

South Luangwa is a very high quality safari area that often serves as the primary location in a trip.

The stay duration tends to be 5-8 nights split between two camps, or more occasionally 3-5 nights at one camp. Three camp combinations are also possible.

Seasonality

The best time to visit South Luangwa is during the May-Oct dry season, when the wildlife is focused on the riverine areas and easy to find.

Within that period, May-Jul is pleasantly cool at night, but the animals may not yet be fully migrated back into the river.

Towards the end of that period, Oct-Nov the wildlife should be at its strongest, but the weather is likely to be uncomfortably hot, especially at night. Bear in mind that most camps do not have air-conditioning.

Getting around

South Luangwa lies to the east of the country and is usually accessed by light aircraft services from Lusaka or Livingstone.

From Mfuwe Airport it is 60 minutes by road into camp.

usually combined with Livingstone and other safari areas