Anantara Opens Its First African Safari Lodge on the Kafue River in Zambia

At a Glance

• Anantara Tented Camp Kafue River is Anantara's first safari property in Africa, opening in the year the brand marks its 25th anniversary.
• The 13-key camp stands on the Kafue River in Kafue National Park, Zambia's largest national park, raised 3.5 meters on rosewood platforms.
• Rooms include three Horizon Terrace Suites, nine Pool and Bush Villas and a 400-square-meter Presidential Villa.
• Meals are included; the opening offer starts from USD 6,289 per room per night for two on full board.

Anantara has opened Anantara Tented Camp Kafue River, its first safari property in Africa, on the banks of the Kafue River in Zambia's largest national park. Three years in the making, the 13-key camp opens in the same year the brand celebrates its 25th anniversary.

It is the only lodge in Zambia raised 3.5 meters above the ground. The camp stands on rosewood platforms to protect wildlife corridors, with private river frontage looking out over hippos, elephants, large predators, antelope and more than 500 bird species.

Kafue National Park covers 22,480 square kilometers and is entering a new phase through African Parks' partnership with the Government of Zambia. Since 2022, security, infrastructure and fire management have been rebuilt, Kafue lechwe antelope were reintroduced in 2024, and Zambia's largest wildlife translocation brought wildebeest and zebra back to the grasslands in 2025.

Zambian guides lead twice-daily game drives into the park. River safaris, bush picnics and catch-and-release fishing round out the days.

Meg Ralph Spaces designed the camp, which runs on solar power with on-site water purification. Charcoal and canvas exteriors echo the bush, and structures are built around large riverine trees such as marulas and jackalberries.

The three 110-square-meter Horizon Terrace Suites are suspended 14.3 meters above the ground and reached by a glass elevator, the highest guest rooms in Zambia. The upper deck holds a star bed for sleeping out, and the terrace below has a Green Egg barbecue. Nine 115-square-meter Pool and Bush Villas have heated plunge pools over the river, and the 400-square-meter Presidential Villa comes with exclusive boat access.

Meals are included, and guests dine wherever suits them. A wooden pontoon anchored in the river seats up to four guests, who arrive by boat for breakfast, afternoon tea or sunset wine tasting while crocodiles and hippos bask on the banks. Luzuba Harvestry serves modern Zambian classics beneath the trees, and Twalumba Bar & Lounge pours cocktails around the fire after game drives.

A floating Technogym fitness platform is anchored on the river, with sliding doors to the water, a yoga deck and a wooden swing. Anantara Spa treatments take place in the massage room of each suite or villa, followed by an in-room steam shower, which makes Anantara Kafue the only property in Zambia to offer the experience.

The opening offer starts from USD 6,289 per room per night for two sharing a suite on full board, with premium beverages, twice-daily game drives, butler service and one 90-minute spa treatment per person. Charter flights reach Chunga airstrip from Livingstone or Lusaka.