| Visa Waiver Letters
Guests travelling by road from Malawi or by air to Lusaka airport (if you are connecting straight through to Mfuwe) might like us to arrange for visa waiver letters for the members of their party. These letters prove that you have a reservation with us here at Flatdogs and are therefore considered bona fide tourists to Zambia and so exempt from Entry Visa fees. We cannot guarantee that the officers at the border will accept all our letters and sometimes their file is mysteriously empty, but if you send us your full names, nationalities and passport numbers, we will do everything possible to ensure that your letter reaches the border and stays there. Unfortunately we are unable to provide waiver letters for entry through the Livingstone or Kazungula borders - please contact operators in Livingstone.
Flights from Lusaka/Livingstone to Mfuwe
Flight schedules change regularly, especially in this part of the world, so although this information is correct at time of posting on the net, please check with the airline or us for the most up-to-date information before planning your safari.
There are daily flights between Lusaka and Mfuwe and Livingstone and Mfuwe from 25th May until 31 October each year with Zambian Airways. Their website is www.zambianairways.com. During the "green season" (before May and after October) there are slightly fewer flights but these aim to connect with incoming BA and SAA flights from London and Jo'burg respectively.
At present (April '06) there are no scheduled flights between Lilongwe and Mfuwe, however there are several charter operators who fly this route ($720 for 4 passengers or $630 for 3 passengers). Please contact us for more details.
Airport Departure Taxes:
Not included in your ticket costs are domestic and international airport departure taxes. On domestic flights, tax is $5 per person payable in US dollars or Zambian kwacha. On international flights out of Lusaka, departure tax is $20 per person, payable in US dollars cash only. Out of Lilongwe on an international flight, departure tax is $30 per person, payable in US dollars cash only.
Travelling By Road
Detailed directions for driving to Flatdogs:
Flatdogs Camp is the closest camp to the Mfuwe Main Gate. Our access road starts just before the park gate and we are five minutes drive from there - please drive very slowly into and out of the camp - animals have the right of way!!!
From Lusaka, take the Great East Road to Chipata. You can get fuel in Petauke and Chipata on the way. Best to fill up before you head here, as fuel here in Mfuwe is much more expensive due to the monopoly BP has here.
The directions here are:
* Exit Chipata on the Great East Road heading West (back to Lusaka). Turn right 50m after Independence Arch (to Mfuwe).
* Continue on the tarmac for +/- 8kms until road turns to dirt.
* Follow the dirt for further +/- 60kms. There is one stretch of tar over the escarpment. Take the sharp left corner at signs for Mfuwe. There are a couple of blind sharp corners on this road, so take it easy where you can't see what's ahead of you as some of the NGO vehicles and cotton trucks take the road at about 100km/hr! (You'll see what we mean)
* Proceed through Jumbe, past Kamoto Hospital, over a small bridge and over a second stretch of tarmac at Mpata Hill.
* A further 15-20kms will bring you to a T-junction with a tarmac road with lots of signs and a Zesco sub-station. Turn right. (Not far now, only around 25 mins on a good road)
* Proceed on tarmac for +/- 25kms and you will pass a BP fuel station on the left. Continue straight on for +/- 2km, you will pass signs for Flatdogs and then our entrance ramp is SECOND on your LEFT. (First left is Jake's house….there be dragons!) Please engage a low gear and drive down the ramp very slowly, then follow the road for another +/- 750m and you will arrive at Reception.
Lusaka to Chipata will take around 7-8 hours depending on how fast you drive - there are a couple of bad patches after Petauke before you get to Chipata where they are working on the road but have not yet filled all the holes, some of which are enormous.
From Chipata to here will take you around 3 hours. You must take it very slowly or risk broken springs, broken radiator mountings and loose fillings!
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