Malawi
The return of the Big Five to a reserve reborn from the ashes, then the island in the sky above the tea estates
Malawi
A journey between Majete Wildlife Reserve, where the African Parks programme successfully reintroduced the entire Big Five after decades of intensive poaching, and Mount Mulanje, an isolated granite massif rising from the tea plains, nicknamed "the island in the sky" for its peaks often shrouded in cloud.
When
May to Oct
Price
From 3 700€ excl. flights
(based on 2 people sharing)
How long
6 nights
Ideal length
Days 1-2
The first chapter unfolds in Majete Wildlife Reserve, a spectacular example of ecological restoration: entirely emptied of its large mammals by poaching in the 1990s, the reserve has seen elephants, lions, leopards, black rhinos, and buffalo reintroduced since 2003, becoming the first reserve in Malawi to reunite the Big Five.
Day 1
Big Five safari
A 4x4 safari from the moment of arrival, seeking out the Big Five, with particular attention to the black rhinos, fiercely protected by a dedicated anti-poaching unit.
Day 2
Shire River cruise and Kapichira Falls
A morning cruise on the Shire River looking for hippos, then a visit to Kapichira Falls, Malawi's second-largest waterfall, on the reserve's edge.
Days 1-2
On to Mount Mulanje, an isolated granite massif over three thousand metres tall that towers over the tea plantations of the Southern Region, nicknamed "the island in the sky." Trekking trails cross forests of endemic cedar before reaching high-altitude plateaus dotted with waterfalls and natural pools, with views extending as far as neighbouring Mozambique on a clear day.
Day 1
Climb through the cedar forests
A morning departure to climb Mount Mulanje through forests of endemic cedar, an overnight stay in a mountain hut run by local porters, a tradition on the massif for generations.
Day 2
High-altitude plateaus and waterfalls
A hike across the massif's high-altitude plateaus, dotted with waterfalls and natural pools, with views on a clear day reaching as far as neighbouring Mozambique, before the descent to the tea plantations.
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