18 Lions in One Extraordinary Day, Why Zambia Changed My Idea of Safari

There is a wildness here that is difficult to describe until you experience it. The landscape can feel almost desert-like — vast, dry and dramatic — and while the sheer quantity of game may sometimes be less than in some of Africa’s better-known safari destinations, the quality of the sightings was extraordinary.

One day in South Luangwa brought us 18 lions. We saw all three prides in the area, watched lions drinking at the water’s edge and came across tiny cubs, some barely two months old, feeding from their mother.

And then there were the leopards — three in one day.

But safari isn’t simply about counting sightings. What stayed with me was how much time we were able to spend observing the animals and their behaviour without feeling that we had simply arrived, taken a photograph and moved on.

That is the difference.

Zambia is not necessarily the destination I would choose for someone wanting to tick off every animal on a checklist. There are no rhinos in South Luangwa and we saw surprisingly few giraffes.

I would choose it for someone who wants safari to feel wild.

For the landscapes, the intimacy of the camps, the exceptional guiding and those long, unhurried encounters when you stop thinking about the next sighting and become completely absorbed by the one in front of you.

Sometimes less really is more.