Dave Boertje and his wife, Megan, from Newcastle, travelled to Zambia and Egypt with Encompass Africa in September 2023. Here, Dave tells us about their time in Zambia…

Timing was key on this trip. When we visited Africa 30 years ago we’d missed out on rafting at Victoria Falls because the conditions weren’t right. This time, we aimed for a shoulder season that would balance Egypt’s cooler season with the ideal conditions for rafting on the Zambezi.

September turned out to be the perfect time. We got there just four days after they opened the Falls up (for rafting). The rafting was amazing, we absolutely loved it. We got to go from rapid one, which is pretty much underneath the bridge between Zambia and Zimbabwe, all the way down to rapid 19. We also got to swim in Devil’s Pool, right on the edge of the Falls, which was pretty freaky. Victoria Falls are just unreal.

Then we headed to Flatdogs Camp. Here, we stayed in the Jackalberry Treehouse, which is just unreal. The only roof in the treehouse is over the bed; everything else is like a big open-plan room. It’s incredible.

There’s a waterhole right in front, so you can do a game drive in the morning and then come back and have a coffee in the treehouse while looking out at the waterhole. Elephants come through and roll around in the mud. It’s as good as going on a game drive! Another time we saw a brown snake eagle swoop down, catch a snake and then eat it, right in front of us. There’s also a photographic hide underneath the treehouse, so you can get even closer to the animals in the waterhole.

We did a walking safari at Flat Dogs, which was a great, unique experience. We didn’t come across any big animals, but we saw plenty of them, including leopards and lions, when we headed out in vehicles on morning and afternoon game drives.

At our next camp, Royal Zambezi Lodge, we not only saw wild dog – which was really good as we hadn’t seen them before – but also the aftermath of a leopard killing an impala. We were coming back from a game drive, went through a dry riverbed and there it was. I reckon we got there about 30 seconds after the kill happened.

It was an amazing experience, but when we went tried to get closer we got bogged! Another vehicle turned up and tried to tow us out, but there was dust and dirt going everywhere, and we were making such a racket that the leopard left.

The other vehicles in the area left shortly after, but when our guy asked us what we wanted to do, I said, ‘Let’s wait – it might come back this way.’ By this time the sun had set so we sat there for about 10 minutes in the dark, just waiting… and then it not only came back, but it brought another leopard with it! So we got to watch two leopards feeding before we had to leave.

We also did a canoe safari at Royal Zambezi Lodge, which was really cool. At one point we had elephants on one side, and crocodiles just 30 feet away on the other side!

 Another day when we went down for lunch they told us they had a surprise for us, and took us out for a cruise. They set a table on the boat and we enjoyed lunch while cruising down the river, just the two of us. And on another boat trip we saw southern carmine bee-eaters nesting on the riverbank. They’re so colourful and beautiful, and we were able to get really close to them and watched them from the boat as the sun set.

 We loved both of these properties in Zambia. The difference between them is probably worth noting. Flat Dogs is more personalised and has a real family atmosphere: when we left in the morning to go on a game drive, Adrian and his wife, Jess were there to greet us when we got back, and have breakfast with us. There are even pets.

Royal Zambezi Lodge, on the other hand, felt more like a resort. The service was amazing, you get waited on hand and foot, and they’ve got their own tarred runway for all the guests arriving by plane. It was awesome, but definitely a bigger, more corporate-y property. So it just depends what sort of experience you’re after. Or, like us, you can stay at both which was a treat!