Secluded in the heart of the Luangwa valley halfway between South and North Luangwa National Parks, Luambe Camp is the only accommodation in Luambe National Park and offers an experience of the Luangwa that is remeniscent of a by-gone era. Our four en-suite luxury safari tents are riverfront, offering spectacular views of the Luangwa River and its abundant wildlife from private decks.
This is an unique and very special place, to experience African wilderness in the most intimate and authentic way. With beautiful location on the bank of Luangwa River, it is the only camp in Luambe NP, so you have the whole park for yourself - no hordes of other cars and people chasing the same animals. It takes more time and effort to find animals than say in South Luangwa, since animals are less habituated to human presence, but I actually had quite good sightings. Bird life is amazing. The camp itself is very comfortable, with friendly and welcoming staff, great food, and very professional guiding. Sleepout in the bush ( when you have a dinner and sleep under the stars) is an experience unlike anything else! A truly unforgettable visit with lifelong memories to treasure. I would like to commend especially very impressive scientific and conservation taking place there. This is a special place for those who love wilderness, care about its conservation and value authenticity.
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Date of stay: July 2022
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Luambe Camp is located in the Luambe NP directly on the Luangwa river bank. The camp is for experienced safari tourists who haven´t focus to see the big five. Here you can find the special feeling of being more or less alone in the bush among with wild animals which live their natural lives in balance with nature. The animal are more skittish than in South Luangwa due to the fact that they are not so used to tourists and cars. This camp was recommended by our travel agency and we didn't regret booked our stay for 4 nights.
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Date of stay: October 2019
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This somewhat remote camp is definitely worth the trip if you are looking for peace and quiet in the middle of nature and don't want to miss out on comfort. The Luampe Camp on the Luangwa offers everything your heart desires. The extremely friendly and almost familial team, from management to guides and staff, made our stay a very special experience. Our chalet was well equipped and we have never slept so well in such a wonderful bed with the sounds of hippos down by the river. Wonderful! At lunchtime between drives you could see a few of them again in large beanbags while you had time to read or doze. The central meeting point was the bar, which was also the dining room and campfire corner at times that we agreed on together. We often spent our evenings there with the people from the camp and listened to wild stories about Zambia's bush and the beautiful plains. The landscape is beautiful and unique. Such a diverse country, which can change its entire atmosphere every kilometer, was a miracle in itself that the camp was able to show us from there. And how it did it! Our guide explained everything we wanted to know with such great warmth. And as a thank you, he also told us one or two anecdotes that we will certainly never forget. :)
All in all, we can recommend the Luambe Camp to anyone who really wants to go to the bush of Zambia. You will be rewarded with an idyllic setting in which you are pampered in a great camp with all the trimmings and which allows you to discover nature and all its inhabitants. A great team that is so unique makes it a very special experience.
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Date of stay: August 2023
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A jewel in the middle of nature, far off the normal tourist tracks. In tastefully designed surroundings we were spoiled from the first to the last minute. Luambe is not about counting heads of animals, but about staying with them in their natural habitat. We learned so much from professional guides during a program tailored exactly to our needs.
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Date of stay: July 2023Trip type: Travelled with friends
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During our holiday in Zambia we’ve stayed for three nights in the camp. The location of the camp is around three hours drive from Mfuwe. The road to the camp is not very good and sometimes very bumpy. On your way you’ll drive through very traditional villages. Another opportunity to reach the camp is by plane. Around 30 minutes drive is an airstrip. The camp is the only one in the national park. This is great, because you’ll be the only safari car in the park. The camp is directly at the river. It’s quiet and safe. We’d a big safari tent. Everything was very clean. The food is delicious. All of the employees and guides were very nice. Even the lodge is expensive, it’s absolutely worth to stay there. The camp has just four safari tents. Staying in the camp is like staying with a family. Thanks a lot to the the staff, especially to Alec and Natasha for an unforgettable stay.
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Date of stay: August 2023Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
My Mother and I were fortunate enough to visit Luambe early in August. Thanks to our excellent photographic guide Edward Selfe and the Company in the UK we use for arrangements, Africa Exclusive, we were encouraged to give Luambe a try. The Camp has just been refurbished so the tents were brand new and really lovely. The park itself has distinct types of habitat from riverine, lagoons, and plains with tall elephant grass and wide expanses. And despite the fact we were told the game would not be as dense as South Luangwa, and would be less habituated to vehicles and people, we had great sightings which began on our first drive in to camp. The camp itself is located on the Luangwa River, actually directly on the bank of the river and as others have said on here, this stretch of river is home to a large number of hippos. The sound of which becomes the background music of your stay!! It's loud, and endlessly entertaining. (Well maybe a little less entertaining at 2:00am) The setting for the camp is lovely and the tents are also wonderful...very spacious and super comfortable. Wildlife is all around you even in camp. Sitting outside our tent on a sunny afternoon, we were entertained by a troop of vervet monkeys all around us in the trees. So cute!! And often walking to our tent we would see a couple of bush buck. It was a perfect "Bush Camp" experience. The staff were all wonderful and the food was excellent!! The Camp Director, Mario, found out I was Gluten Free, and even though it was the Chef's first attempt to bake gluten free, he did a wonderful job and I so appreciated the effort they went to, to accommodate my needs. Our game drives were all exciting. We had lion sightings, lot's of Elephants and Giraffes, Kudu, waterbuck, birds, bush babies, hippos, crocs, etc. It was great to have Mario in Camp with us, and to hear him talk about the conservation efforts going on as well as the outreach to the local villages. While we were in Camp, Mario was part of an effort to dig a proper bore hole for a local village so that they could have clean, and safe drinking water. Luambe Camp is a very special place, that is run very well, providing guests with every comfort and also providing them the opportunity to spend time in the real Africa. I would also like to thank Mario, Edward, and the staff for a very special sundowner on our last evening. My Mom and I were in Africa together celebrating a special year for both of us. I was turning 60 and my Mom was turning 80!!! We had told them about it, so on our last evening when they set up for sundowners on the plain, in the midst of the elephant grass, we noticed it was a bigger deal than normal with nice chairs and then we realized they had brought champagne for us as well!!! It was really touching and a very cool memory for Mom and I to take back home with us. So thanks to everyone for that!!! We loved our Safari and so enjoyed Luambe.
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Date of stay: August 2017
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Trip type: Travelled with family
Room Tip:It's a small camp and I think all the tents appear to have a great view.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Luambe Camp in Luambe National Park, South Luangwa, Zambia, has opened recently. My wife and I were among the first public guests in the beginning of July, 2017. We enjoyed our 3-nights stay very much. The management has created a small pearl in the very remote and till now rather unknown Luambe National Park. The Park is situated between South Luangwa and North Luangwa National Parks. The location of the camp - right on the riverbank of the Luangwa River - is perfect: Under shady trees and in direct contact with the numerous hippoes in the river. The camp is tented with luxury tents – with direct view to the ever ongoing hippo-business. We never get tired of watching and listening to these incredible river-animals with their ever lasting quarrels, fights and love-affairs in the river. After three nights in this camp we find it hard to fall asleep without the snoring calls of these fascinating giants. The management team with Ernest and Peter make an excellent team. Highly qualified guiding – and perfect service in the camp. Food is absolutely satisfactory – with good flexibility according to your own wishes. General atmosphere in the camp is intimate (max. 8 guests) – and with wide respect to each client’s wishes and needs. The camp is German owned – as well as the director is a German himself. Both seem devoted to the enormous challenge of slowly building up a global and local respect for this piece of wild African bush. There is a major respect to general conservation of the Park – the wish to protect this wild part of Zambia – and the wish to do this in deep respect and in cooperation with surrounding Zambian villagers. Game viewing is special: Not for beginners with focus on the big five. The camp is for experienced safari-travellers who have seen the big five – and who appreciate the very special feeling of being more or less alone in the bush – among really wild animals which live their natural lives in balance with nature. You are really in the wild Africa. And the behaviour of the game is natural - skittish and not humanized. The wildlife along the river is great with birding and hippo-life. If the dedicated director. Mario Voss, is present he will give you an introduction to conservation in this exciting part of African bush. Centrally in the camp is a waterhole which attracts antilopes and cats – especially at night. But one leopard seems to have become to some degree habituated to humans. During our 3-nights stay this leopard visited the camp 3 times: Two times seen on auto-activated cameras. And on one occasion we observed the leopard in daylight – in the middle of all the human activity of the camp. Amazing sighting. The drive from Mfuwe is rather long: 4-5 hours. This gives you an excellent chance to observe normal Zambian life in remote villages. The cultural distance from cities we left behind – to these villages gives any intelligent human being reason for reflexion. Rates are absolutely reasonable – and very good value for the money. A one-way charter flight for the return trip is – as far as the director informed us - obtainable. We recommend all experienced lovers of wild African bush to visit this beautiful camp.
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Date of stay: July 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Excellent location, extremely nice people, competent guides, this is the right choice for visitors who seek an experiece in an old Africa-like environment, far from the crowds and where game animals are to be sought and tracked, adding to the excitement when finally spotted. We were at Luambe four nights and were able to see all the main animals, including some ( elands, for example) which were not to be found elsewhere..
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Date of stay: June 2017
Location
Service
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Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
This is a newer operations and only been open since the spring of 2015. The roads There are a few chalets and camping sites available. The lodge itself was still under construction in July 2015.
The facilities are very rustic but the operation is great if you keep that in mind. Due to difficult road conditions it is only open during the dry season. The managers are extremely accommodation with whatever they have. Wifi is available around their chalet but only during daylight hours because the router is solar powered. Hot water in the shower is plentiful but water from the cleaning stations should not be consumed without decontamination.
The Lodge site overlooks the largest hippo pods on the Luangwa River, and over 200 can be seen at a time.
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Date of stay: July 2015
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Sleep Quality
Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We visited Luambe after the advice of our TA. No regrets and even better. While game can be a bit shy due to park history, the great asset is the exclusive immersion you will benefit. Only 4 tents and 2 vehicles for the whole area! The river view is second to none with hundreds of hippos just below the small cliff where tents are perched. A small ponton has been set on the river allowing eye level photo of the hippos yawning and fighting. Luambe also has 2 superbe carmine bee eater colonies. One can be accessed from the top of the river bank, the other is accessed by its base providing many different angles for nesting and flying birds pictures. The night life is amazing: we saw incredible amounts of bushbabies! Finally tents are in perfect conditions, staff is of great care, cuisine is top notch. Guiding was also great with plenty of respect for animals. Best example is when we found 3 1 month old lion cubs and our guide Ernest stayed far enough to make lioness relax. I know other places in Luangwa where driving would have been closer. Overall congratulations and all the best. the camp has been restarted only 2 years ago and its very nice owner is totally committed to get Luambe reborn.
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Date of stay: October 2018Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
There are more places to choose from in the Luambe National Park area.
LOCATION
ZambiaEastern ProvinceLuambe National Park
NUMBER OF ROOMS
4
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