When I found out I had an eight hour layover in Johannesburg before boarding my international flight to Europe I booked spa treatments at Octavia’s, which is located in a luxury hotel a stone’s throw away from the Johannesburg airport. That was a fabulous way to kill time before my long evening flight.
What could be better after 48-hours of travel than an afternoon of spa pampering? Massages, body wraps and scrubs, facials, manicures, and pedicures all sounded appealing. The Renaissance Spa in the Michelangelo Towers next to the famous Nelson Mandela Square shopping arcade was a short cab drive from my Melrose boutique hotel. It offered a myriad treatment options and spa packages, as well as tanning and hair removal so I was sure I would find something I liked.
Chamilandu was the most intimate of all the bush camps I visited inside the South Luangwa National Park. It consisted of three guest chalets perched on eight-foot high platforms. Built in the local style with a contemporary flair, each chalet was composed of three walls sheltered by a peaked thatch roof. The fourth side of each rectangular structure was fully opened to a private deck that offered a startling 180 degree view of the Luangwa River, against the distant backdrop of the Nchendeni Hills. The guest chalets were only a few steps away from the spacious dining and lounging hut that was a welcoming gathering spot for all common activities.
Tucked in the shade of ancient ebony trees at the apex of a permanent oxbow lagoon, Chindeni was a verdant oasis in the parched immensity of the South Luangwa National Park when I visited in the final weeks of the dry season. Everything about the camp exuded welcoming abundance, from the warm reception of the staff to the comfort of the tented accommodations and the profusion of game around the lagoon. Superb vistas of the Nchendeni Hills filled the horizon. The inviting common areas consisted of spacious, thatch-roofed platforms, raised high above the lagoon, and cleverly designed around the trunk of a giant ebony tree that contributed both a sculptural quality and cooling shade to the structure. It included a long viewing deck that was a perfect place to enjoy an early morning breakfast while contemplating the spectacular sunrise over the hills.
It was already well into the evening when I arrived at Kuyenda, a remote bush camp in the South Luangwa National Park. It was my first destination in the park, at the end of a lengthy journey from the United States, and the start of my maiden safari. I immediately felt transported to a timeless Africa I had expected to be long vanished, other than in my imagination! The camp was nestled in a grove of giant trees, facing a grassy meadow that gently sloped down about three hundred feet to the edge of the Manzi River. It consisted of four spacious guest rondavels, traditional South African circular huts built entirely of local wood, reed and thatch. They were clustered around a thatch-roofed, open-wall dining and lounge area. The entire camp was bathed in the soft glow of oil lanterns, as was the long dinner table invitingly set at the edge of the dry riverbed. The darkness echoed with a rich cacophony of sounds that hinted at abundant wildlife nearby.
Overlooking a tranquil oxbow lagoon, the luxurious Mfuwe Lodge was one of only two permanent, year-round lodges within the 3,500 square miles of pristine wilderness of the South Luangwa National Park. In addition to the large lobby and reception area, the striking open-plan main lodge housed a lounge, bar and dining room under a soaring thatched roof. The space was anchored at both ends by spectacular matching stone fireplaces. A wide boma (timber deck on stone pillars) overlooked the lagoon, as did the swimming pool. Both were ideal spots to enjoy the constant parade of game that visited the lagoon.