Shawa Luangwa Camp
CEDARBERG RATING
Luxury
Overview
Shawa Luangwa Camp is a small, eco-friendly bush camp overlooking the Luangwa River in the Nsefu Sector of the reknowned South Luangwa National park. This is one of the park’s most untouched areas where excellent year-round game viewing and astonishing habitat diversity make it ideal for safaris by foot and vehicle.
The camp is situated on the eastern bank of the Luangwa River on a site hand-picked by Jacob Shawa. Jacob is one of Zambia’s top professional guides and an expert on this area. From this stunning location, you can explore the prime game-viewing areas of the South Luangwa National Park by crossing the river on a pontoon or boat.
Jacob’s experience of the bush, combined with his knowledge and contagious enthusiasm, led to him being shortlisted as one of the best eight guides in the World Guides Award by Wanderlust. The Luangwa area was incredibly proud of Jacob for representing them. To congratulate him, Honourable Senior Chief Nsefu of the Luangwa Valley asked Jacob to choose a site from the beautiful land on the Luangwa River as his very own. He is now joined by a great team of guides and friendly camp staff.
The luxury safari tents are individually styled to offer a modern under-canvas experience. They combine elegance and comfort with the quiet intimacy of a classic African bush camp. The tents have been raised above the ground on wooden stilts to lessen their impact on the environment and open entirely on three sides to provide an unobstructed 270-degree view over the river and across the park.
At A Glance
Off the beaten track
Birding hotspot
Swimming pool
Romantic
Beautiful Landscapes
Star gazing
Walking Safari
Wildlife
In Pictures
Shawa Luangwa Camp on the map
Rooms
Luxury Tents
The Shawa Luxury Tents each melt away into the stillness and greenery of the surrounding trees, creating natural privacy and peace – it is your own spot in the South Luangwa wilderness. You are never far away from the sights and sounds of the African bush. Between morning and evening safari activities, pass the time on your river-front deck watching everything change colours as the sun moves towards the horizon. After the final outing of the day, soak in the sunken bath and enjoy the silence that is broken only by the breeze in the trees, chirping of insects and birds, and an impala’s bark. Bed configuration in the tents are flexible, allowing for either double or twin, which makes them ideal for a group of friends travelling together
Luxury Family Tent
A home-away-from-home with extra touches of indulgence and comfort, the Shawa Luxury Family Tent welcomes you for a magical safari experience in the South Luangwa. The Luxury Family Tent is made up of two tents separated by a five metre elevated wooden, with one tent having a king bed and the other twin beds. Each tent has its own en-suite bathroom with modern fittings and a wooden deck that looks over the Luangwa River to the horizon beyond. Two couples travelling together will appreciate the comfortable balance that this setup offers. You can spend quality time together as a group, while also having the privacy needed for a dreamy getaway with your loved one.
Shawa Luangwa Camp – Kate’s review
I loved this lodge! The staff were some of the warmest and well-trained staff I have ever encountered. Great team ambience where they made you feel like family. Their location was excellent as can explore to the north of the Park, but even after the start of the summer rains (as when we visited in November), we could traverse the central area to the south.
Even though it was mid-November (and after the rains), we had pretty good game-viewing with lion, elephant, sable. It was joyful to see so many young wildlife at the start of the summer rains (birthing season) including a hours-old elephant and a minutes-old baby puku.
We also enjoyed a stunning bush brunch at a pretty ox-bow lagoon, and of course the majestic Ebony trees of the South Luangwa.
Accommodation
I really liked the treetop ambience of the tented suites, with enough luxury that you can team it with the likes of Sausage Tree. The front and sides of the tent can be completely opened up, so it feels very much like a luxurious treehouse. There’s eco-friendly ‘’Air-breeze’’ for cooling (very effective), separate toilet, bathroom, and dressing area behind the bed. Plus a sunken bath in the suite and an outdoor shower off the main deck.
We all want to do our bit for both the environment and for ensuring that local communities are benefitting from our tourism dollar. BUT… we also want to have a great safari!
Green Safaris is completely orientated around the powerful idea that these are NOT mutually exclusive. And that in fact your enjoyment of a safari can be enhanced by enjoying it in an ecologically sustainable/’’green’’ way. So they operate electric land-cruisers which make for an amazing quiet game drive where you can listen to the sounds of the bush more easily. Loved the Electric land-cruisers!
Shawa Lodge is approx. 1 hour from Mfuwe via the villages direct to the lodge. But this route is not possible after rains. So we did the 1.5+ hour route into the main park gates and up through the park.
It’s named after one of Zambia’s finest guides, Jacob Shawa, who guided us when we were there. What an amazing guy with a great knowledge and a quiet way of imparting it, with his deep sonorous voice. (If he ever wanted a side hustle, he could easily do voice-overs for commercials.) However please note he is not always there as he sometimes does private safaris throughout Zambia.
Practical Comments
•4 tented rooms on platforms in amongst the treetops
•One comprises two linked platforms to make a family unit for 4 people
•Great main areas with beautiful views over the Luangwa floodplains
•Large swimming pool
• Wifi in main areas and rooms
• Only operator in South Luangwa to have Electric land-cruisers so your game drive is almost silent. (Cannot always be guaranteed)
• Game drives, bush walks, plus they often combine bush walks and game drives
Exclusive Offers
Free Flights
Stay 4+ nights at any combo of Green Safaris camps and connecting flights or road transfers directly to/from the camps are free
Stay 4+ nights at any combo of Green Safaris camps and connecting flights or road transfers directly to/from the camps are free. Green Safaris lodges include Tongabezi Lodge, Sindabezi Island Lodge, Ila Safari Lodge, Chisa Busanga Camp, Shawa Luangwa Camp, Sausage Tree Camp, Potato Bush Camp in Zambia AND Kaya Mawa camp in Malawi on Likoma Island.
Terms & Conditions: Note: many camps are only open from April or May to mid-Nov
