Kapamba Bushcamp

Highlights

• Just four open-fronted thatched chalets, so camp never holds more than eight guests
• Raised star beds on two chalets for a night slept out under the African sky
• Sundowners, lunches and dinners served at a table set in the shallow Kapamba River
• Walking safaris with superb guides in the valley where the walking safari was born
• Day and night game drives through the park's quiet, remote southern sector
• Guided inter-camp walks to sister camp Bilimungwe
• Plunge pool on the main deck, with sweeping 180-degree views of the river
• Solar-powered camp serving farm-to-table food

Information

• Lodge type: Safari bushcamp
• Location: Southern sector, South Luangwa National Park, Zambia
• Lodge size: 4 thatched chalets (maximum 8 guests)
• Recommended stay: 3–7 nights
• Malaria risk: Yes — South Luangwa is a malaria area; take prophylaxis
• Getting there: Fly Lusaka to Mfuwe (about 1 hour), then a 3.5-hour road transfer from Mfuwe Airport, driven as a game drive. The camp lies about 40 km as the crow flies south of the Mfuwe Bridge Gate

Experience The Untamed Beauty Of Kapamba Bushcamp In The South Luangwa National Park

Kapamba Bushcamp is a four-chalet riverside camp in the remote southern sector of Zambia's South Luangwa National Park, set on the banks of the shallow, spring-fed Kapamba River and run by The Bushcamp Company. Eight guests at most share this stretch of river, around 40 km as the crow flies from the busy Mfuwe gate. Out here you can have a sighting to yourselves even in peak season.

The river is the reason to come. It runs about 3 km upstream of its confluence with the Luangwa and usually holds surface water well into the dry season, drawing elephant, lion, wild dog and antelope to drink in full view of camp. It is shallow enough to keep crocodiles and hippos away, so sundowners, lunch and dinner are taken with your feet in cool, clear water. Very few camps in Africa can offer anything like it.

The camp is one of six bushcamps The Bushcamp Company operates in its exclusive 140,000-acre (about 570 km²) section of the park. This is the valley where the walking safari began, and the operator's guides carry that tradition with real pride. Your stay also supports the company's community work, including the Commit to Clean Water programme, which has drilled nearly 300 boreholes around Mfuwe. Kapamba slots beautifully into a longer Zambian safari alongside Mfuwe Lodge and the sister bushcamps.

Rooms And Suites

Each of the four chalets is an open-fronted stone-and-thatch room raised on a deck facing the Kapamba River, so the river is the first thing you see from your bed. At night, wrought-iron gates close across the open front. They keep the room secure, but the calls of hyena and lion still come straight in. Every chalet has a private veranda, a mosquito-netted bed and an en-suite bathroom with indoor and outdoor showers running on solar-heated water.

Two chalets add raised star beds. These are open-sided salas with mosquito nets, and a toilet and basin beneath, for a night under a sky without a trace of light pollution. Ask for one of these when you book; a sleep-out above a wild riverbed is the night you will talk about longest. There is no air-conditioning, and standing fans keep the rooms comfortable. That open-air design is exactly the point.

Cuisine And Wine

Meals at Kapamba are farm-to-table, drawing on produce from The Bushcamp Company's own farm. The setting is the real showstopper: tables are carried into the Kapamba River for lunch and dinner, and you eat by lantern light with your feet in the shallows and the bush all around. Breakfast is served before the morning activity, and walks pause for tea out in the field.

Bar drinks are included in the rate. Premium wines are charged separately, so tell us in advance if you would like something special waiting in camp.

Facilities

The main area sits under tall matumi and sausage trees on the riverbank. A thatched lounge, dining room and fully stocked bar open onto a wide, tiered deck with a plunge pool and 180-degree views of the river. It is the best seat in camp during the midday siesta, when you can watch whatever comes down to drink.

• Solar power for lighting, battery charging and hot water
• Discreet Wi-Fi
• Limited laundry service, included in the rate
• Mosquito nets in every chalet
• No hairdryers; a power bank is useful for extra charging

Activities

Days follow a simple rhythm: a morning walking safari or game drive, a siesta by the river, then an afternoon game drive that rolls into a night drive after dark. Walking is the speciality. Guides lead small groups across floodplains, along the riverbed and through quiet tributaries, reading tracks and sharing the smaller details of the bush.

• Morning walking safaris with expert guides
• Day and night game drives in open vehicles
• Guided inter-camp walks to sister camp Bilimungwe
• Sundowners, lunches and dinners in the Kapamba River
• Private guide and vehicle, at additional cost

Kapamba Bushcamp FAQs

Where is Kapamba Bushcamp and how do you get there?

Kapamba is in the remote southern sector of South Luangwa National Park in eastern Zambia, on the banks of the Kapamba River. Guests fly from Lusaka to Mfuwe in about an hour, then take a 3.5-hour road transfer from Mfuwe Airport that doubles as a game drive. Because the transfer is long, many travellers overnight at Mfuwe Lodge first or break the journey at a nearer Bushcamp Company camp.

What is the accommodation like at Kapamba Bushcamp?

Kapamba has four open-fronted stone-and-thatch chalets facing the Kapamba River in South Luangwa, with room for a maximum of eight guests. Each chalet has a private veranda, wrought-iron gates that close at night, a mosquito-netted bed and an en-suite bathroom with indoor and outdoor showers. Two chalets also have raised star beds for sleeping out. Power is solar, and fans are used instead of air-conditioning.

What activities are offered at Kapamba Bushcamp?

Kapamba, in Zambia's South Luangwa National Park, offers morning walking safaris or game drives, plus an afternoon drive that continues into a night drive. Guided walks between Kapamba and its sister camp Bilimungwe can be arranged. Sundowners, lunches and dinners are served at tables set in the shallow Kapamba River. A private guide and vehicle are available at extra cost.

Is Kapamba Bushcamp in a malaria area?

Yes. Kapamba is in South Luangwa National Park, in Zambia's low-lying Luangwa Valley, which is a malaria area. Visitors should take antimalarial prophylaxis prescribed by a doctor or travel clinic, use insect repellent, and sleep under the mosquito nets provided in every chalet. Long sleeves and trousers after dark give extra protection on evening and night game drives.

Can children stay at Kapamba Bushcamp?

Children aged 12 and over are welcome at Kapamba in South Luangwa, and 12 is also the minimum age for walking safaris under national park rules. Families with younger children may be able to visit by booking a private vehicle and guide, or the whole camp for exclusive use. A Uyaphi consultant can confirm the current child policy and rates before you book.

When is the best time to visit Kapamba Bushcamp?

The Bushcamp Company currently lists Kapamba as open from 1 May to 1 November. The late dry season, roughly August to October, is prime time, because thinning bush and shrinking water draw game to the Kapamba River. Late October also overlaps with the elephants that walk through Mfuwe Lodge's reception to reach its wild mango tree, an easy add-on at the start or end of a trip.

In Conclusion

Kapamba Bushcamp is the camp to choose when you want South Luangwa at its quietest and most romantic. It has four chalets, a riverbed for a dining room, and some of the finest walking guides in Zambia. Dinner at a table set in the river, a night on a raised star bed, and a morning on foot with no other vehicle in sight together make one of the most memorable stays on any Zambian safari.

Getting the logistics right matters at a camp this remote. Fly Lusaka to Mfuwe, then either spend a night at Mfuwe Lodge or pair Kapamba with a closer sister camp so the long transfer becomes part of the adventure rather than a chore. Better still, link two or three Bushcamp Company camps and walk between them. Come between August and October for the best concentrations of game. Plan for late October if you want to add Mfuwe Lodge's elephants walking through reception.

Uyaphi.com has been arranging tailor-made African safaris since 1999. That's 27 years of matching travellers to the right camps, in the right order, at the right time of year. We charge no booking fees and no credit card surcharges, and you deal directly with the owner-run team in Cape Town. Tell us your dates and how you like to travel, and we'll build your South Luangwa circuit around Kapamba.