Name: Nyala Lodge
Address: Lengwe National Park, Ntchisi, Chikwawa, Chikwawa, Chikwawa, Chikwawa, Malawi
Rating: 8

Location

Nyala Lodge

A truly unique place for a short weekend. Only a 3 hour drive. Beautiful rooms overlooking Lifupa Dam. Delicious Food. Friendly staff led by an amazing manager Yobe. Mostly elephants, pukus, hippos. Bird lovers should be there. A visit to black rock for sundowner & solonje mountains to see rock painting from the iron age
🙏🇱🇰🙏

We came as a family of four and had a great time! The lodge was uncrowded,it feels as if it is a bit off the beaten track. The chalets are basic but there was electricity throughout the day and night, hot water and 3 hours to charge your phone. The chalets are by the lake - it’s amazing to be so close to nature, to wake up to a spectacular sun rise next to a playful family of monkeys. The safari activities are fun and worthwhile - there are hippos in the lake and next to it antelopes and elephants. We also saw other small species. Well recommended!

We were pleasantly surprised upon arrival by the beauty of the dam at Lifupa Lodge. We didn't know what to expect but we got what we were looking for: a quiet weekend in the bush. We were the only guests there!

The lodge is currently only self catering where you bring all your own food but chef services is included in the price. So once we handed over our groceries, things were very simple and the food better than either of us could have made it ourselves! They do keep a stocked bar. We stayed in a small double rondavel with a tall thatch roof facing the dam. There's no electricity (so therefore no fridge- we brought a cooler box packed with ice) but a generator is used for a few hours of power every evening & you can charge your phone then. We had solar powered light bulbs in the room and hot showers in the evening so no any complaints there! We found the rooms very clean and rustically charming. We can't say they would be everyone's style but we enjoyed them and slept peacefully. Although take note there's no fans in the room so some months could feel hot. It was quite breezy with cool evenings and mornings while we were there in September.

Game drives are mostly self drive and the paths get bumpy and narrow (we put a few new scratches on our car that we had to buff out). From the dam we saw a lot of hippos, birds, vervet and small antelope. Driving around we saw elephants, warthogs and a bush buck. We did a sunset drive/hike to Black Rock and it was breathtaking!

While we enjoyed our visit we can see how those paying higher prices would find it overpriced. There are parts of the lodge that are quite dated and need refurbished and updated. We hope to see this happen one day. But until then we would definitely return and next time probably during the hot season to have a better chance to see the elephants swimming in the dam.

It is pretty dreadful that this lodge can be quite so empty, given its location - within easy weekend reach of Liliogwe and on a dam lake which forms the most reliable dry-season water attracting wildlife at the heart of Malawi's second largest National Park. But perhaps the emptiness contributed to its magic for me.

I think the other reviews have fully covered the drawbacks, which appear not to have changed (still no working fridge and an empty swimming pool), but, informed by them, I had a magical two night weekend stay.

I rented one of the "simple huts" in the campsite, about 2 minutes drive along the lake from the lodge and out of sight. I paid $25 per night, but the online price is only $20 if you book in advance. I was the only person there.

There are three huts set along the lake shore with linen, mosquito nets, simple furniture and small covered verandas. The cooking/dining and ablution blocks are nearby - cooking on a wood-fired range, a hotchpotch of pots and crockery provided, two sinks, fires lit 3 times a day, and hot water in the showers! It also looks like you could fire up one of the braai stands. If you don't want to be self-sufficient the lodge restaurant  and bar is very nearby. There is no electricity but signs that it is being installed.

I enjoyed sunrise at Black Rock, and a game walk around the lake, but avoided the game drive options as both the roads and the vehicle are shockingly bad, and the Miombwe woodland environment makes spotting hard.

A very quiet place to spend a night and watch a very beautiful sunrise. Enjoy the very best of wildlife experience. Lots of elephants and different kinds of birds. You will need a landrover like vehicle and make sure your powerbank is fully charged. Food menu limited chambo and beef. But i would recommend it as one of the best places you could spend a peaceful night.

Our group had just one night to spend here, but jumped at the opportunity. Lovely location - though would like to stay longer with more opportunity to see wildlife. Many of our group did the sunrise black rock hike. Once at the site, only about a 5 minute hike - then a beautiful sunrise over the park. I chose to stay behind and had the lodge to myself. Parked myself on a bench and listened to hippos grunting while watching the mist off the river and sunrise. Plenty of birds to watch, and the monkeys put on a show by scampering across the area between lodge and lake. No elephants for us to see, but as mentioned we were there a short time.
I like supporting the effort of the lodge, and the staff was accommodating. We had the park to ourselves which was quite nice. Food was average, with breakfast a typical English. A bit cool in the morning, and not many mosquitoes. Lights in the cabins, but no power in the outlets. Mosquito nets to cover the entire bed.

We loved staying at the double chalets at the lodge (we never saw the tents by the dam). Great view of the lake with hippos, elephants and antelope. The show the elephants put on in the morning was worth the trip alone ... swimming and playing and splashing.
I took off a star because the two game drives we made were useless. I know nobody can guarantee to see wildlife but at least it could be set up for the most success. We went at night and for sunrise. During the night, we spent 3 uncomfortable hours in a SUV, shining lights into the bush (I thought they had to be UV lights so they don't disturb the animals?). Besides a few antelope eyes in the bush, we saw nothing. The SUV was very uncomfortable, and my friend was even squeezed in the very back on the spare seat, getting nauseous from fumes. There was no break or stopping until I insisted on a minute to stretch my legs as they were hurting ... The windshield was broken and dirty, and even one of the floodlights stopped working. The sunrise was nice but also not really a game drive.
So if I'd go back, I'd save the money for the game drives, stay in camp and watch the elephants. I didn't have any food at the restaurant besides some toast in the morning so cannot comment on that. The coffee was lukewarm - room for improvement.
Overall worth the drive though. We got to watch the elephants for a long time!

Lifupa is managed by a man who loves wildlife and keeps his lodge and campsite clean and well maintained. There are options from camping and bush huts at the edge of the dam to water front chalets - all in a range of prices. I would recommend a trip to Kasungu for a quiet afternoon at the dam, listening to the bellows of resident hippos. It is definitely not the park to visit if you are keen on multiple animal sightings...it seems poaching might be one of Kasungu NP's biggest challenges...

Chikwawa

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Spectacular Hideaway 🥂🥂🥂

Great views, nice hospitality 

Low-Key, Quiet Weekend 

Magical!

One-time Adventure

Hippos, Monkeys, Quiet Park

Great lodge, skip the drives ...

Well maintained lodge in the heart of Kasungu NP

Remember the old BBC show Fawlty Towers? Where Basil and his wife ran a hotel with the best of intentions but things just didn't seem to go right? Well, here is Fawlty Towers of the Southern Hemisphere. First a bit of background: I have been 'doing' the National Park thing in Africa since the mid-1980s. I have seen it all and have a high tolerance level when things do not go as planned. The main problem with Lifupa is what you get relative to what is shown on the website. Let's summarize:
THE DOWNSIDE:
Empty pool
No electricity save for a faulty generator that ran intermittently early a.m. and for an hour or two after 18h00
Warm beer
Warm wine
Warm soft drinks
No hot water in the room
No fans anywhere
No vehicle for a game drive (though advertised)
No tuck shop

THE UPSIDE:
The staff are lovely
The food is tasty
The prices are fair (though what they charge for a rondavel relative to what you get is, in my view, about USD 40 too high)
No television
No internet
Bush walk around the dam was very enjoyable and informative
Nature nature nature

ON BALANCE: 
If you can handle a loose, Fawlty towers sort of enterprise, and are, like me, an ‘old Africa hand’, then this place is excellent. If, on the other hand, you believe the website then you are in for a very big surprise!

Basil Fawlty Would be Proud

The location is incredible. Serene, a private lake full of hippos making hippo sounds, and fairly regular elephant sightings. Rustic beyond rustic, so if that's what you're into, great.
The beer is warm, the toast took (no kidding) 3 hours after ordering (though, to be fair, was delicious 4 hours later) and there is pretty much no eletricity. Various wild creatures to be found in the bathrooms and huts. If you're into camping, this might do it for you. The cold shower was especially lovely after a dusty day in the park!

This lodge could be amazing. It could attract people from all over for a one of a kind experience. Unfortunately, it kind of fails on every count. Too bad for the park and all the people and nature that could benefit from a little more tourism.

Nyala Lodge

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