Liwonde National Park in Machinga

Beautiful and exquisite with lots of game sightings

Loved the place

One of the best game parks. Lots of animals. Food here is awful so look somewhere else for food lol

Very good experience and were able to see plenty of animals. We saw: vultures, lions, elephants, different types of deer, different birds, warthogs, hippos, crocodileTook our own 4wd car and got a guide (Chisomo was a really good guideto come in our car. Was less than 50000mk for 1 international person and 3 Malawians including car and guide. Was advised that we could have done that for the whole day if we wanted as they are open from 06:00 to 18:00Suggestions for improvement:Provide clear information on the website to include the following:- Details of pricing and payment methods- details of timings and what is available if you want to bring your own car or need a car

Top class Natural Ambience!, Thats what this park has for you.

Going here is a bit of a gamble cause you wont see every animal that is stated is available. But thats just nature. The guides are really friendly people and they are so knowledgeable which is really impressive. Youre definitely guaranteed to see Elephants up close. So beautiful 😊😊

Kuthengo, Robin Pope SafariNothing can beat this!!! It was wonderful!!! Thank you Jen and Mike. You and your team are the best. I also recommend Stanford and Felix as guide and ranger. It is fun to be around them and they go out of their way to make everything perfect.

Wonderful experience!The guide knew the animals very well and we were able to spot cheetahs thanks to the call of a few monkeys.Next - we try the boat ride

Beautiful park with a great variety of wildlife, birds and vegetation. Lovely service and was accompanied with a very informative guide.

Malawis best national park.

Nice place. Could spot lots of water bucks,impalas, and few antelope,elephant and a jackel.Hope to spot a lion in near future. Guides are friendly,humble and very informative.

Stayed at Kutchire, where they include all your meals, and then went for a game drive! Really cheap when bundled with our stay in the tree house. Also, the pool was exceptional during the hot season. Woke up to a bunch of monkeys and hippo tracks going right through the lodge grounds! Saw lions, hippos, water bug, impala, elephants, kudu, fish eagle, and hornbills and storks! Absolutely gorgeous! At about twenty bucks a person, why would you pass this up?

This is the nice National Park to visit in Malawi, there is variety of birds 🐦, availability of very big animals such as elephants 🐘, rhino 🦏, big lion 🦁 and as well as monkey and giraffe.Nartural environment makes it beautiful, in the forest birds are chirping. Its real good to be here!Are you planning for Africa Safari? Here is your best choice.

Amazing wildlife experience.We went to Kutchile Lodge. They have game drive and boat ride, got to see most of the wild animals including Elephants and Hippos.

With good management from African Parks they park is really a becoming one of Malawis best parks. I have been so lucky to have some incredible animal reactions in this park. I recommend it highly

We had an incredible visit to Liwonde National Park during the green season (late January). It was sumptuously beautiful with stunning, bird filled woodlands. Our wonderfully knowledgeable guide from Bushmans Baobab knew about every species of flora and fauna we encountered from insects to trees, and we took our time learning about everything. We love what an intimate experience this park affords.In response to some of the reviews about the park which focus on elephants roaming in and out of the park at night and impacting the lives of adjacent villagers, as elephant populations grow -- which we need them to do -- it is to be expected that conflicts will increase between humans and people. Elephants need a lot of territory and fencing them in will harm them ultimately and not solve the problem of a viable ecosystem, for which elephants are needed. Instead, people advocating for villagers need to ask the government to create interventions around the park to assist villagers and compensate them -- but not reduce space for the elephants.

One would enjoy the Liwonde National Park if they stayed overnight. Do the morning watering hole safari, the day and evening land safari.

The park is a great place to relax while enjoying game viewing. The chances of viewing the Elephants and other animals in the park are very high. The improved road network in the park has made game rides more fulfilling. The boat rides on the shire river are so much fun. The food and accommodation is also a very good.

Best wildlife viewing in Malawi.

River safari along the Shire river in morning is excellent. You can see hundreds of Hipos and few elephants and crocodile. Very beautiful. In the park you can see lot of antipopes. Couldn’t see Lions.

We went there just for a day in order to have boat trip and game ride.Before visiting the park I was trying to find some information, tips and prices but it was not easy to find it, so now I want to write all my experiences about it.The entrance to the National Park is 25$ per person (international), when next year the price is going to be 30$.Boat trips are for the mornings and evenings, the best for the boat trip is the morning when the boat departing at 8 a.m. Duration is 2,5 hours and price is 25$ per person. During this trip we saw many species of animals, buffalo, hippos, elephants, crocodiles, antelopes, birds and it is highly recommended to visit during the dry season, when all animals are coming to drink some water to the river. (We even saw how elephants were crossing the river just in front of us!)About game ride, the price is the same, 25$ per person while duration is 3,5 hours. Its departure is at 6am and 2pm. My personal experience for this ride was not so good, we went afternoon and we haven’t seen animals, probably all of them were close by the river or it was just the thing of luck.

Great park, great Guides and lovely birds

We live right next to the park, doing projects for the very poor rural people. We created 70 jobs through farming, a primary school and a medical clinic. We live with the people permanently and experience life next to the park as they do. We have high hopes to expand the uplifting work to many more locals in the years to come.The park offers luxurious accommodation and holiday possibilities to many people from overseas and also try to keep a good name in doing various projects to the local people but all these good attempts are cancelled to zero because of a fence destroyed beyond repair at various places causing elephants to roam around freely. For this reason the the park has absolutely no control over their elephants which leads to the destruction of the crops of the local people without any compensation for them.This poses a threat not only to the local people but also to the elephants. People must eat and if elephants have destroyed your harvest which was your only food for the winter, you must make plans to find food. This encourages pouching and revenge in return.This situation is growing worse and worse year after year in spite of many empty promises from the park. The park wastes so much money in employing guards along the fence at night just to stand there as a show that something is done at least. These guards are absolutely ineffective.Although many people enjoy all the pleasures the park offer, few people know about the violation of human rights and the threat posed to innocent animals by the mismanagement of this park.People enjoying the luxury of the park are unaware of the devastating influence this park has on poor communities and their harsh response on pouching.When will the park put up a fence for elephants so that man and animal can live next to each other in harmony?

If you want a real Malawian safari camp experience this is the place! Quiet nights and beautiful place! Food and safari on boat were amazing also!

I stayed a few weeks next to the national park to teach the children of the villages there. Ive seen how the people live there and that the elephants from the national park are a big problem for them. Even through the day I could see a few elephants close to fence. When the elephants break through the fence at night they destroy the crops and the houses of the poor people living next to the park. The people there have so little and only one elephant destroys so much.

I went on a river safari but unfortunately I was there just after the rainy season so there werent too many animals. I saw a lot of hippos and birds. Even two crocodiles. Appearently it is better in the dry season because then the elephants come down to the river to drink. Its also cheaper to do the safari if you are a bigger group.

Friends of mine who live next to the parc have trouble because of elefants breaking through the fence and destroying crops etc. Locals along the fence suffer, something needs to be done! Elephants and locals should be equally protected!!

The park needs to install proper fencing to keep elephants entering private properties and destroying crops of poor and hard working people. Sure the elephants are an eye-candy but at what price?!!??!?!, I’ve seen the heartache it has brought to these folks! You need to care about your neighbors and be boycotted until the issue is resolved. People over money!!!!

Coming to Malawi with a heart to help people in rural areas, it’s very sad and disappointing to see the situation right next to the park. Constantly the elephants break the fence at many different places and come out to destroy people’s crops in the villages. People’s lives are in danger, one night, recently, we had to run away with children for their safety, because elephants were right at our premises. Night after night we hear how people scream because elephants are right by their houses. At times after our attempts to chase elephants away from the fields without any success, we had to stand there and see how they eat the poor people’s harvest. Many sleepless nights, just because the park management is not willing to do something about this problem. It’s really sad, the situation leaves people discouraged and without hope, after working so hard for months, elephants from the park coming and destroying everything and the park feeling nothing for the people, very sad! It’s the responsibility of a park to see that animals stay INSIDE the park.

I was involved in humanitarian work close to the park some time ago and witnessed the suffering of the local people due to the elephants roaming freely in spite of the fence. Lives are lost every year due to confrontation with elephants. Teachers and learners cannot get to the school on many days when elephants are in the area. Not to mention the loss of the crops of these poorest of the poor people. For how long must this still continue? Have the human beings no rights? Once you have seen the suffering caused by the insufficient fence you cannot understand how people can give the park 5 star ratings. But of course the tourists in their 5 star lodges see nothing of this...

Elephants are in danger!!!!!This organization needs to be boycott!! The elephants are being poached, killed and their life is in danger because Liwonde National Park has not properly fenced the park. Elephants are roaming around the village and it is dangerous for the animals as well as the people!! Someone must figure out why the fencing wasn’t done properly and keep this park and its conservation organization accountable.

I was a visitor for a few month , living among the community next to the Liwonde National Park. I want to really stress my concern for the safety of the local community. The Elephants was a serious problem. Every night we had to patrol the nearby fences so that the Elephants cant come close to hurt us or to destroy the crop and only income of the local people. As a tourist it broke my heart to see that nothing is done to help the local community to keep the Elephants out of their areas and that life are lost because nobody wants to take responsibility for repairing and keeping the fences in a good condition.

I suppose this park would be a beautiful place if they would be able to control their dangerous animals.People suffer because of the elephants but still the park advertises with them.

Elephants of Liwonde National Park are continually destroying the much needed crops and dwellings of needy local Malawian people. A financially strong National Park like Liwonde should see to it that their animals are well fed and kept secure behind strong fences. Why should your elephants feed on poor, hungry and innocent peoples only income? Come on, show some integrity and take care of your good neighbours crops, houses and property, please, Liwonde!

I recently visited some friends that live along the border of the park and what I experienced is horrifying as well as sad.Night after night in the dark I heard many screams coming from the village and then my friends told me, "The elephants are out again tonight."I was shocked to hear that the elephants very often roam freely in and out of the park and simply trample on the fence to go out and feed on the maize and rice crops of the very poor local people. And sometimes they also roam into the villages and cause serious damage to the mud and thatch houses of the people. The people store their harvested crops inside their houses and then the elephants often come and break open the house and eat as much as they like.One night I witnessed how the elephants broke down the fence and entered into harvested cropland where maize were stacked in heaps to dry. I managed to take a few pictures and I will post them on this forum.It is really terrible and sad that the elephants can be allowed to roam freely and eat, trample and destroy the crops of poor local people. I understand from the local peoples testimonies that this causes terrible hunger in the area for long periods of time throughout the year. These people work very hard in their fields for weeks and then the elephants just come and eat it all and the poor people are completely defenseless against the elephants.I sincerely hope that the park management will do something proper very soon to keep their elephants inside the park for the sakes of the local people.

See my photos of the border fence of the Liwonde National Park. It is not capable of keeping elephants inside. The elephants trample the fences every night and meander through the villagers fields destroying their crops. The people in that area struggle terribly to grow enough food to last through the winter. A park with so many elephants should be able to build a proper fence. At other national parks it is unheard of for elephants to escape.

A beautiful park. Great variety of animals. Amazing wildlife. But unfortunately no heart for the people who live next to the park. It is obvious that this park offers everything you can imagine for rich tourists. One sees regularly small airplanes landing in the park, there are expensive safari camps etc.. But unfortunately no safe fence that prevents the elephants from destroying the fields of the incredibly poor people who live next to the park. Animal welfare is important, but here it seems to be just an opportunity to make money. And this at the expense of the black population around it.It is not understandable why no proper elephant proof fence surrounds the park. Such a thing would be easy to accomplish with reasonable effort. It is a pity. The park earns so much money and does so much good for the animals in the park. But for the people in the direct neighbourhood it would be better if this park did not exist.

The park is a beautiful place but as I toured on the boarder of the park, wanting to see lake Malombe, I saw the fence was completely down, as if Someone ran over it with a big vehicle. Further on I met with a group of people and with the little English they had, they said ELEPHANT. As our broken conversation went on I realized that these people live in fear because of the elephants escaping the park and destroying there crops and homes. I was also told of a man driving a bicycle and getting stomped to death by an elephant. Also now that the park has lions, a fence being down like is extremely dangerous for the local people and the aid organizations. It’s so sad that such a beautiful national park has no compassion on the local people. And the voice of the local people isnt even being considered.

As a teacher staying close to Liwonde National Park, Im deeply concerned about the effect the park has for the children in the surrounding communities.The new fence around the park is no obstacle for the hundreds of elephants living in the park. They come out almost every night, threatening the life and destroying the fields of the people. From our place we can hear the children screaming in terror, while they are running for their life. because of elephants Children also refused to attend school activities in the afternoon because they were afraid, that they would meet up with elephants, on the way back home. To be honest the fence surrounding the park is a joke. The elephants go in and out, daily threatening the life and the fields of the people . The fields are their only income. The management of the park forces people into pouching, because they allow their elephants to destroy the only income this people have. In spite of our complaints there is no improvement in the situation. Seemingly Elephants matter more than the lifes of (black?people.

We do farming, health and education projects for the very poor rural people on the border of Liwonde National Park. We offer many job opportunities to people desperately in need of it. Our efforts to make a difference are at risk because of roaming elephants breaking the fence at different places basicly every night. These elephants cause great damage to the poor rural people’s crops, causing a hopelessness amongst these people. The elephants also cause a risk to the lives of many people who try to chase them away from their fields seeing that it is their only income. There is also no compensation to losses caused by elephants to these rural people by the park management. Many of these people abandon their fields and lose all their input in preparing the fields and planting their crops. It seems that the park has no control over elephants and a once newly erected fence is damaged beyond repair at many places. This situation is getting worse in spite of many pleadings with the park management for help.

Been there quite a number of times with my family. Its always a fantastic experience of wildlife viewing and fresh air. Malawi is a beautiful Haven in Central Africa.

Stayed at Liwonde Safari Camp. Good accommodation, amenities and dining bar.

Liwonde national park is situated about 40 km north of zomba. This national park is a popular destination for tourists. There is a entry fee to the park which is about 14590 kwacha. They do accept us dollars as well as major credit cards. You must sign a waiver to gain entry to the park surrendering liability. Several safari companies operate through the liwonde national park but you can enter by yourself. If entering on your own accord a suv or all terrain vehicle is recommended. All of the roads through the national park at dirt roads. You will see plenty of wildlife including impalas, warthogs, many different birds, hippos, bucks, and water buffalo to name a few. Liwonde National Park does have cheetahs and I was fortunate to see one while I was there. Unfortunately, lions are much harder to spot and I didnt see any during my time. The national Park is beautiful and worth spending time there if youre visit Malawi.

So far one of the best place in Malawi to have a Boat Safari. It is not only lots of fun to ride on the boat but also there are much interesting wild animals to see and to have good pictures to take. In this place i saw for the first time the biggest tree with very wide trunk called the "Baobab". The Africans called it the "TREE of LIFE" ;- There was one with a small tree house built on top. I like the surrounding Nature and the Landscape in this place. Not yet so overpopulated with tourist!

Lovely place with really friendly staff. I loved the boat safari and safari drive. You can hire a guide for as little as ten dollars. And boat safaris for 35 buck a person. Beautiful.

Driving around on safari and viewing animals from far can be a bit boring.But not here.Fantastic boat safari, silent and calm, where you get very upclose to Majestic elephants, hippos, crocodiles etc. You get great photo shoots from the boat.And you of course need to save enough money to live in the beautiful lodges, rather than the camp

I really loved this place . My husband is Malawian and we visited there in our own car. My suggestions would be to hire a guide we saw so much wildlife. Elephants monkeys hippos crocks and many other animals. I found the ant hills amazing !!! Veey nice place to visit

Liwonde National park is an amazing place. wheres cheerful guides, alot of animals to see like lion, elephants, watchdog, antelope, nyala, different kinds of birds like Lilian bird which is very unique cant be found anywhere but only this park. T heres alot to see

I AM CHOCKED TO READ ABOUT THE AMOUNT OF SNARE TRAPS THAT ARE USED BY POACHERSTHE WELL KNOWN IFAW FUND FOR ANIMAL WELFARE ARE WORKING HARD ABOUT THIS CRUEL ANIMALS SUFFERINGALL OF US SHOULD WORK TOGETHER TO FIND URGENTLY THE BEST SOLUTIONA NAIROBI BORN NOW LIVING IN FLORIDA

The atmosphere of the Liwonde National Park is unique, and gives a taste of the Africa that people dream about; with a sluggish river running through the middle in which hippos snort and frogs sing, and some truly African bush, it is the perfect place to visit to fulfil a wish to experience raw Africa. This is the only place in Malawi that you will get this atmosphere.