Chichele Presidential Lodge

Overview

Location: Zambia
Accommodation Type: Lodge
Comfort Level: Luxury

Good For: Solo, Couple/Romantic, Family |

Zambia’s South Luangwa National Park, the home of the walking safari, exhibits diverse ecosystems with a corresponding diversity in plant, bird, and animal life. Chichele Presidential Lodge, the personal retreat of Zambian President Kenneth Kaunda in the 1970s, is a superlative historic game lodge set on a hilltop in Luangwa. Chichele was recently restored, preserving its colonial elegance and creating a magnificent new stone and thatch central lodge that blends seamlessly into the surrounding landscape.

The lodge is set in primeval forest with expansive views across the game-rich valleys of South Luangwa. Chichele Presidential Lodge offers sumptuous luxury and discreet personalised service, assuring the discerning traveller of all the comforts necessary for a splendid African safari.

Accommodation

Sited on a hilltop, Chichele Presidential Lodge’s ten elegant Victorian style suites have private patios offering panoramic views over the vast South Luangwa valley. Luxuriously furnished, the spacious suites have large French windows, which create a light airy feel. Four-poster beds with crisp linens and needlepoint cushions are lavishly draped in mosquito netting, and the en-suite bathrooms offer twin basins and charming ball-and-claw bathtubs. There is also an inter-connecting room, ideal for families.

Chichele Presidential Lodge is approached through a majestic arched entrance leading to a vast colonial style lounge. A grand dining room extends onto a long verandah with panoramic views stretching down to the Luangwa River.

Wildlife

Game viewing in the South Luangwa is considered to be some of the best in the world. There are 60 different animal species and over 400 different bird species in South Luangwa National Park. The only notable exception to the Big Five is the rhino, sadly poached to extinction. The park is renowned for its large elephant herds and huge pods of hippo. Guests at Chichele Presidential Lodge frequently spot lion, buffalo and the endangered wild dog. On night drives, guests may spot nocturnal creatures such night apes, leopard, hyena and bush babies. Endemic species such as the Thornicroft’s giraffe and Cookson’s wildebeest are frequently sighted.

The region is a bird watcher’s paradise, with about 400 of Zambia’s 732 species of birds, including 39 birds of prey and 47 migrant species. Of special note for birders are the plains and marshes of the northern Nsefu Sector, with its huge breeding colony of yellow-billed storks. Another birding highlight is migrant carmine bee-eater, which nest in holes in the side of sandy riverbanks.

More Info

Visas

• Please check the visa requirements before your visit.

• Visas are required for most nationalities.

• Southern African passport holders are exempt.

• Visas can be obtained upon entry or can be arranged prior to travel.

Children

• Children aged 9 and over are welcome.

• Children aged 9 to 11 pay 50% of the adult rate and are required to share with a full-paying adult.

• Children aged 12 and over pay the full rate, and if under the age of 16 must share with their parents.

Directions

GPS: -13.000640 (latitude) 31.562487 (longitude)