Kafue National Park

At 8687 mi², Kafue is by far Zambia’s, and one of Africa’s, largest national parks. It is also arguably Zambia’s best, for two reasons. First, it offers the greatest wildlife diversity. In particular, it is home to 19 species of antelope, the largest number of different antelope species of any park in Africa. These antelope also include types rarely seen in other places, such as Oribi, Liechtenstein’s hartebeest and sitatunga. It is also said that they are substantially larger than species elsewhere within Zambia. Other animal sightings include red lechwe, elephant, puku, wildebeest, lion, cheetah (one of the best places to see them in Africa), leopard, sable and roan antelopes, and buffalo. Second, it is off the beaten track, meaning it is undoubtedly less crowded than South Luangwa and offers a pristine wilderness with a unique game-viewing experience.

Whereas most of the Kafue contains dense woodland savannah, the far-north contains the Busanga Plains and numerous marshes. The Busanga Plains also happens to be Kafue’s best area for game-viewing. When the floodwaters recede at the beginning of the dry season, wildlife is drawn to the lush vegetation and numerous channels. The abundance of wildlife and the open, expansive landscape ensures excellent game-viewing, whether it’s walking, day or night game drives, or ballooning!