Liuwa Plain National Park
A remote and untouched national park in Western Zambia
Located in the very west of Zambia is the most remote and secluded national park in the country - Liuwa Plains. Meaning ‘plains’ in the local Lozi language, the vast grassland is home to the second largest wildebeest migration on earth (after East Africa). An impressive 47,000 or so wildebeest migrate from the Greater Liuwa Ecosystem into the park, their movement dependent on water, grazing, fire and human establishment.
The best time to visit the Liuwa Plains is between June and November when the park is dry, and the grasses retain the moisture from the rains. The southern side of the plains become flooded between December and April, and this is what drives the wildebeest migration, as the herds move out of the woodlands to the north, on to the moist, open plains for grazing.
Getting into the park is quite tricky, with scheduled flights departing from Lusaka to Liuwa Plains (approx. 2 and a half hours) only operating on certain days of the week. There are only a couple of campsites in the park to stay in, and Norman Carr’s King Lewanika Lodge is the only, and most exclusive property in the national park.