Lake Kariba
Zambia · Southern Province · 490 m
Description
Lake Kariba is the largest artificial lake in the world by volume, created when the Zambezi was dammed in the late nineteen fifties and a valley the size of a small country filled with water. Whole herds of animals were lifted off the drowning islands in an operation that became famous. On the Zambian side Siavonga is the lakeside town, a place of steep shore, houseboats and fish eagles where people come from Lusaka for the weekend. Drowned mopane trees still stand as white skeletons out in the shallows. Siavonga is close enough to Lusaka for a weekend by road.
Length of stay
Recommended length of stay: 2 to 5 days (optimal 3 days)
Travel season
Best time to visit: May – September
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
Highlights
- Houseboat trips on the lake
- Drowned mopane forest in the shallows
- Tiger fishing and the kapenta rigs
- Kariba dam wall
- African fish eagles on the shoreline
- Siavonga lakeside lodges
- Chipepo and the Gwembe valley villages
- Sunsets over the water from the escarpment
- Crocodile farm and the lake reptiles
Getting there
- Seaport:
- Reachable by ship or ferry
- Border town:
- Zambia