Leadership and Service Trip: Malawi

Camps International staff will be at Lilongwe Airport to greet us and assist with our transfer to Camp Kuti.

We will continue to Camp Kuti, which will be our base for the next two nights. We will be staying in tents with comfy mattresses and bedding. The campsite has good shower and toilet facilities as well as a thatched roof group dining area. Literally meaning 'Where?', Kuti is a small animal reserve off of the beaten track that is working closely with its surrounding villages to educate and find a balance between the local way of life and the protection of natural habitat. The tented camp is in the heart of the reserve allowing animal sighting from your tent! After a hard day's work, groups particularly enjoy a cool drink at the sun deck overlooking the watering hole. The reserve is a haven to a huge variety of free-roaming wildlife, with mammals such as giraffe, zebra, wildebeest, sable, kudu, and impala through to primates, reptiles, and hundreds of bird species. There are no large predators on the reserve, so you can explore and take in your surroundings at your own pace. Whilst at camp, three healthy, well balanced and tasty meals will be provided daily, and your group's personal chef will cater for you from the outdoor kitchen and open fire. For example, toast, sausage and omelette for breakfast; pasta, chicken stew/curry with chapatis and vegetables for lunch/dinner, and fruit.

During your stay, you will take part in the construction and maintenance projects at the Lilongwe Wildlife Centre's primary release site. The Lilongwe Wildlife Centre offers a lifeline to wild animals in distress, wherever possible releasing them back into the wild where they belong. Those that can't be released live out their days in large natural enclosures. Whilst most rescues come from within Malawi, a few animals have been rescued from abuse and captivity in other countries. Many were rescued as orphans and victims of the illegal pet and bush meat trades, whilst others have sustained injuries ranging from being caught in snares, hit by cars or stoned after wandering into local villages. Your evenings are usually spent relaxing in camp and the local kitchen crew will rustle up a delicious dinner for you and your team. After dinner there are plenty of opportunities for group discussion, reflections on project work, keeping travel diaries up to date, as well as various team led games and activities. Local staff are always in camp and are on hand to chat to and help you with anything else that you need.

Today we will travel from Camp Kuti to Cape Maclear on Lake Malawi. We will continue to Cape Maclear, which will be our base for the next four nights. We will be staying in tents with comfy mattresses and bedding. The campsite has good shower and toilet facilities and electrical outlets in public areas. The Camp at Eco Lodge is in the heart of the Cape Maclear community and is directly on the lakeside beach with amazing views. From here a short boat ride will allow you to feed the fish eagles and enjoy a cold drink whilst watching a real African sunset over lake Malawi. The community relies on fishing and tourism for its income and boats head out daily bringing back thousands of small fish which are sun dried on the beach before being sold. The village joins the National Park where otters and hundreds of varieties of fish can be found.

The Cape Maclear campsite are committed to promoting sustainable developments for the well-being of their community. All projects are designed to benefit both the environment and local community, and could include production of educational materials, organic gardening, orphan feeding and education programs. Whilst local primary schools are well funded, secondary education is not funded in the same way. Working with the local communities to refurbish existing facilities, specialist teaching spaces such as libraries and science laboratories are being built to further the subjects offered to students.

Today we will travel from Lake Malawi to Mvuu Camp. We will be staying in the National Park right on the bank of the river in tents with comfy mattresses and bedding. The camp has great toilet and shower facilities, and our chef will cater for you during your stay. Mvuu is a tented camp in the National Park right on the bank of the Shire River (pronounced Shiree). This amazing venue is right in the heart of a wildlife conservation area. From here amazing boat and land based safaris are possible taking you right to the wildlife action. A favorite with our groups, after a days sighting you will be able to enjoy a cold drink and watch the sun go down over the river. Set in 584 sq km of dry savanna and forest Liwonde National Park is one of Africa's best spots for river-based wildlife watching, with around 550 elephants, 2000 hippos and innumerable crocodiles. Animals including black rhino, buffalo and sable antelope are found on dry land, where the terrain rolls from palm-studded flood plains and riverine forests to mopane and acacia woodlands interspersed with candelabra succulents.