Day 1: The tour starts this morning at Lusaka International Airport (LUN). From there, we take a domestic flight to Kalumbila and drive the rest of the day to Nyachisala Bush Camp. It will be a long day but one initial stop should hopefully see us finding White-backed Duck, Lesser Jacana, and Rufous-bellied Heron. Keeping an eye out for any lingering Red-throated Cliff Swallow on the way, our first birding in the marshy dambo this afternoon will surely be exciting before eventually arriving for dinner at Nyachisala Bush Camp.

Days 2-3: Two full days birding in this truly wild area of the country (nestled between Angola and the Congo), in search of near-endemic Grimwood’s Longclaw, Spotted Thrush-Babbler, and Vermiculated Fishing Owl. All of these megas are effectively guaranteed here at this time of year! Other specialties of the area include Blue Quail, Black-rumped Buttonquail, Great Snipe, Swamp Nightjar, Sooty Chat, Shining-blue Kingfisher, Schalow’s Turaco, Pallid Honeyguide, Least Honeyguide, Green-backed Honeybird, Black-collared Bulbul, Grey-winged Robin-Chat, Laura’s Woodland Warbler, Bates’s Sunbird, Western Miombo Sunbird, Angolan Lark, Short-tailed Pipit, Rosy-throated Longclaw, Fülleborn’s Longclaw, Hartlaub’s Marsh Widowbird, and the attractive Locust Finch. The near-endemic Bannerman's Sunbird is present in the area but very scarce, so we will keep an eye out. Spot-breasted Ibis, White-bellied Kingfisher, and Souza's Shrike have also been recorded occasionally. Nights at Nyachisala Bush Camp.

Day 4: Today we return to Mwinilunga for a two-night stay. We'll try for Black-and-rufous Swallow and Dambo Cisticola this afternoon. Occasionally Bocage's Weaver is present in this area but it hasn't been seen for a couple of years. Night in Mwinilunga.

Day 5: Birding in the miombo and cryptosepalum forests south of town should produce Margaret's Batis, along with Black-fronted Bushshrike, Blue-mantled Crested Flycatcher, and a few other more widespread species. Our primary goal will be to find the near-endemic Bar-winged Weaver, but this tricky species can never be guaranteed. Night in Mwinilunga.

Day 6: After a few hours of final birding in the morning, the drive back east begins. We will make several attempts this afternoon for the rare near-endemic Bamboo Warbler at suitable riverine thickets. This is an intriguing species, the only resident Locustella in Sub-Saharan Africa! Night at Mutanda.

Day 7: Morning birding around the lodge again for Bamboo Warbler, but also Black-backed Barbet, Bocage’s Akalat, Grey-olive Greenbul, and Black-faced Canary. Once done, we'll drive eastwards to Chimfunshi for some afternoon birding in excellent miombo woodland. Our primary targets include African Spotted Creeper, Miombo Pied Barbet, Miombo Tit, Böhm's Flycatcher, Miombo Wren Warbler, Black-necked Eremomela, Southern Hyliota, Chestnut-backed Sparrow-Weaver, Black-eared Seedeater, and Wood Pipit. Night nearby at Chingola.

Day 8: Some more miombo birding this morning focuses on Böhm's Bee-eater and perhaps Pale-billed Hornbill or the very rare Bushveld Pipit at a couple of known localities. In the late afternoon we'll make one more stop aiming for Luapula Cisticola and perhaps Cuckoo-finch. Night at Fringilla Lodge. 

Day 9: We will be focused on finding our first true Zambian endemic this morning: the fig-loving Chaplin’s Barbet. Once done, we'll take another long drive to Choma. There is a lot of ground to cover in Zambia! Night at Nkanga Conservation Area.

Day 10: Following another attempt for Chaplin's Barbet this morning if needed, our day will be spent birding in more excellent miombo woodland which holds many of the previously mentioned species. New ones could include “Miombo” Blue-eared Starling, Stierling's Wren-Warbler, Red-capped Crombec, and Cabanis's Bunting. Some years it is possible to see the rare Shelley's Sunbird here, but that is far from guaranteed. More widespread species might include Bennett’s Woodpecker, White-breasted Cuckooshrike, Arnot's Chat, Burnt-necked Eremomela, Purple-banded Sunbird, and Red-throated Twinspot. Night at Nkanga Conservation Area.

Day 11: Today we will drive early to Livingstone for a short visit the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Victoria Falls. A magnificent and scenic location, despite reduced water at this time of year! We may see Brown Firefinch here before continuing west on a bumpy road for one night at our extremely nice lodge on the Zambezi River. An evening cruise could produce Southern Carmine Bee-eater, Coppery-tailed Coucal, Swamp Boubou, Southern Brown-throated Weaver, and Collared Palm Thrush.

Day 12: An early start will see us heading off on 4WD tracks in search of the Zambian endemic Black-cheeked Lovebird. We will spend most of the morning birding in this area, where we can find a nice range of open woodland species like Meyer’s Parrot, African Cuckoo, and the eastern form of Meves’s Starling. Afterwards, we'll head back towards Livingstone and search this afternoon for Racket-tailed Roller and Pennant-winged Nightar.

Day 13: One last long drive. Our destination is Gwabi River Lodge where we will spend the final nights of the tour. 

Day 14-15: Two full days targeting the stunning African Pitta in the Lower Zambezi Valley. It might take some effort, but we hope to see this exciting species in full display, performing little bounces off his chosen perch! Other birds here may include Purple-crested Turaco, African Broadbill, Livingstone’s Flycatcher, Red-capped Robin-Chat, Eastern Nicator, and more. If (and only if) we succeed with the pitta on our first day, we may opt to explore the nearby Lower Zambezi National Park where there is a small chance to luck across Lilian's Lovebird and perhaps even Dusky Lark. 

Day 16: We will have a final full morning of birding in the area before we transfer back to Lusaka International Airport, where the tour ends this evening.