Ila Safari Lodge

The luxury couples tents are a perfect mixture of luxury and safari. Canvas walls, polished wooden floors, wooden furniture and features feel authentic and traditional, while crisp white bed linens, soft hanging curtains and a feature headboard makes the space feel modern and luxury. From the comfort of your bed you will be surrounded on three sides by wide windows and a folding door which fill the room with bright light and affording views over the mesmerising river. Ensuite bathrooms include an outdoor shower where guests can shower surrounding by luscious green trees. A private decking with lanterns outside all tents offers the perfect romantic spot to relax and watch the sunset or sunrise and take in your stunning surroundings.

Each of the family tents at Its Safari Lodge can sleep four, with an extra bed which can be added if needed. An expansive decking along the front of the tent is lined with lanterns and lend a warm glow to the tents at night. Inside, the tents are open plan and spacious, with two bedrooms separated by a curtain. The beds are large and comfortable with crisp bed linens and soft pillows. Floor to ceiling windows line the walls, and flood the space with bright natural light. All family tents come with an ensuite bathroom which includes a deep freestanding bathtub where guests can enjoy a relaxing soak with an outstanding river view. The decking is the perfect place to spend time as a family and keep a look out for thirsty animals along the riverbank.

Dinner is served in a spacious boma, with open sides that afford views over the flowing river. With high thatched ceilings the space feels authentic and traditional and the meals served are deliciously prepared with fresh and local ingredients by local chefs who can make meals suitable for any dietary requirements.

Breakfast can be arranged to be eaten in the bush, in the very heart of the wilds of Kafue National Park. Watch the golden sunrise over the rolling plains and enjoy a delicious fresh breakfast made by the guides.

Enjoy a unique and relaxing cruise either at lunch or dinner. Whilst dining on delicious food, take in the beautiful riverbanks and keep an eye out for some lazy hippos. The cruise boats are solar powered allowing them to glide silently along the glistening waters of the river.

Spend an afternoon exploring the Kafue National Park in a comfortable 4×4 vehicle, custom made to explore hidden places. See a variety of animals up close and personal such as wild dog, lion, cheetah, elephant and more, all in their natural habitat. There are longer afternoon game drives which explore more untouched areas of the park or shorter drives in a custom made e-cruiser, which can explore shorter distances but does so in silence, really placing the guests in the heart of nature.

Explore the bush on foot with a friendly and knowledgeable guide who will impart their wisdom on the history of the flora and fauna of the area. There is no better way to adventure through the surroundings than on foot, looking out for the micro-ecosystems and smaller things, which you might miss on a game drive.

Located on the Kafue River, Ila Safari Lodge is ideally located for a spot of afternoon fishing. Follow the fishing guide to one of the best spots, and with equipment provided, see if you can catch pike, barbel or bream whilst surrounded by luscious trees, flowing waters and tunely birdsong.

With an extraordinary view of the Kafue River, take a cooling dip in the infinity swimming pool on a hot afternoon, or during the evening sunset. Grab a drink from the bar and de-stress on one of the comfortable sun-beds located around the pool.

Ila Safari Lodge is a Green Safaris property. Green Safaris operates with a focus on making a sustainable impact on the surrounding areas of their camps and lodges. An example of this is the Likoma Reforestation Project which works to replant and build up forests that have been cut down to support the growing island’s constant demand for firewood and materials. By repopulating the forests, the project is helping ‘to reduce the negative impacts of deforestation such as erosion and soil runoff, through community-managed tree nurseries.’

There are six established nurseries, each aiming to plant around 2,000 indigenous hardwood and fruit trees. This will transform the arid land, provide local villages with the firewood they need for cooking and heating, and provided fresh fruit which can be eaten and used to plant more trees.

Tongabezi Lodge has also established a reforestation project to educate and raise awareness about the importance of trees for a clean and healthy environment. The project has been introducing eco-friendly grass stoves to village homesteads in order to reduce the number of trees cut down for firewood.

Green Safaris helped launch the Ila Community Farm just outside the gate to Kafue National Park and the Mukuni Community Farm near Livingstone. These sustainable farms are run with people from the local areas, providing a self-sufficient source of fresh produce for nearby communities. Ila Community Farm uses a solar-powered irrigation system which was funded by Green Safaris as well as the seeds and farming tools.

10 women from the local community have been trained to run the farm which provides both a source of income and produce for the community. The locally grown food reduces the need to import produce, reducing the carbon emissions generated by transporting ingredients. Both farms also aim to create learning centres where local people can learn about organic agricultural practices, and have both recently expanded to include chickens and pigs, which will create yet more job opportunities.

The Zambian Carnivore Program works to protect large carnivores and their habitats through research, conservation, education and capacity building. The project invites researchers and experts to Ila Safari Lodge, and both Chisa Busanga Camp and Shawa Luangwa Camp where they host talks to educate guests about carnivore conservation within Kafue National Park and South Luangwa National Park.

The Green Safaris Foundation are working with Panthera Zambia to address factors that threaten big cat populations such as lions, leopards and cheetahs. The locally-based biologists and experts in law enforcement of Panthera work to develop strategies with government departments and local communities in order to protect big cats living in Kafue National Park.

Ila Safari Lodge and Chisa Busanga Camp both host Panthera’s conservation experts to give insightful talks to guests about the park’s conservation projects, and Green Safaris supports Panthera through the co-sponsorship of the development of a digital radio system and dedicated anti-poaching unit to help stamp out poachers on the remote Busanaga Plains.

The Litterbug Campaign is an initiative at Tongabezi, where a team clean up litter on the Kazangula Road, which receives heavy traffic as it connects national parks in Botswana and Zambia. Rubbish that is discarded on the roadside poses a threat to wildlife and taints the naturally beautiful landscape. However, each month the Tongabezi team works to remove this, restoring the pristine landscape.

Conservation South Luangwa works with community and conservation partners in order to help protect wildlife and their habitats in the South Luangwa ecosystem. This involves anti-poaching patrols where snares are dismantled and wildlife rescues, rehabilitation of injured wildlife, and human-wildlife conflict management to find peaceful solutions to the problems that can arise when living alongside African wildlife. Guest speakers also visit Green Safaris’ Shawa Luangwa Camp, talking about their experiences as researchers or veterinarians in the field.

Green Safaris’ Conservation Education Club helps children and youths living beside Kafue National Park by teaching them about the incredible wildlife of Zambia, as well as arranging trips into the park so they can see these amazing creatures for themselves. A lot of local children have never seen the majority of the park’s wildlife, and this exciting opportunity encourages young minds to learn about wildlife conservation and how these creatures can be protected. Children receive a full safari experience, with informative bush walks with knowledgeable guides and talks from researchers from Panthera and officers from the Department of National Parks and wildlife.

Hack the Poacher has developed smart technology in order to help combat poaching in Kafue and South Luangwa National Park. Green Safaris has co-sponsored a pilot project to help improve the monitoring of poaching, focusing on protecting populations of rhinos and elephants in the parks. The technology helps to deter poachers and is more effective in helping to apprehend them.

The Green Safaris Foundation was established to create community project funding and establish projects designed to support local community development, wildlife conservation and ecosystem in the areas in which Green Safaris operate.

The foundation supports children through its partnership with the Tongabezi Trust School, which supports 240 local children aged 3-17 with extra-curricular activities, life skills, values building, and academic studies. The foundation also supports Lukanga Secondary School by providing funding, school furnishings and resources, as well as the construction of 3 new classrooms. The Tongabezi Trust School Team also supports the Twaabane Community Creative Centre, where people from the local Simonga Village can learn and share creative and artistic skills, helping to offer community members a creative outlet and possible source of employment.

At Green Safaris they strive to make all they do eco-friendly. Especially being in Kafue National Park, they understand the importance of not leaving their mark on the land. One major step to becoming more eco-friendly is using biodegradable cleaning products instead of chemicals and also having biodegradable guest amenities. Water is provided in reusable bottles to help cut down on single-use plastics and cling-film and straws are no longer used. Solid waste is sorted and filtered before being transported, and it is kept out of the reach of any animals while it is awaiting disposal. All these proactive steps to becoming more eco-friendly is why in 2016 Ila Safari Lodge was awarded “Best Zambian Eco-Lodge.”

Ila Safari Lodge, and all Green Safari lodges, are “purpose-built green.” Ila is considered a “trailblazer” with its eco-friendliness and sustainability credentials and was built “in the most sustainable way, actively involving the local communities.” The lodge itself, specifically the Boma dining area was built using sustainably sourced local materials. Running independently from any form of electricity grid, solar panels and a solar bank provides the majority of power to Ila Safari Lodge. Harnessing the renewable energy of the sun means their carbon footprint and the impact they have on the environment is dramatically reduced.

Not just power is generated from the solar panels – all the hot water is also “generated by solar water heaters.” Wastewater is treated and disposed of without being soaked into the soil. Electric game drive vehicles were developed for and used first at Ila Safari Lodge, which has led to electric cruisers and electric boats also being used, with no reliance on fossil fuels, these vehicles don’t pollute the atmosphere. To help support and empower the local communities, Green Safaris shop for produce from the local markets and their own farm, reducing their food miles and supporting local farmers. Green Safaris aren’t just trying to have a minimal footprint, they are actively trying to make a positive impact – with a tree-planting program which has already been highly successful in planting “hundreds of trees.”