Access to Sumbu National Park and Nkamba Lodge is either by road via Mansa or Kasama to Sumbu and the Park Gate (1363 Km and 1188 Km respectively from Lusaka), by air from Lusaka (or Ndola) to Kasaba Bay / Nkamba Bay Airports (810 Km direct), or by boat from Mpulungu (no regular service). There are gravel tracks from Sumbu to Nkamba Lodge and Kasaba Bay, to the various scouts’ camps, to the balancing rocks, and from Nkamba to the Lufubu River where a link with the Mbala road is planned but not yet completed . At present, most client transfers between the Lodges are carried out by boat.
Kasaba Bay Aerodrome is currently owned and operated by the Department of Civil Aviation. Other laterite airstrips are at Kasama and Mprokoso. There are currently no aviation refuelling facilities in the area, the nearest being at Ndola on the Copperbelt. Chartered flights are available to Kasaba and Nkamba Bay.
Whilst the National road network is gradually being improved, journeys can be long and arduous to this corner of Zambia, particularly on the unpaved portions. The most direct route from Lusaka is via Serenje, Mansa and Kawambwa on paved roads, then to Mporokoso on a good gravel road, and finally from Mporokoso to Sumbu on a poor gravel road.
A longer route, but with better gravel roads, is via Nchelenge from Mansa on a paved road, thence to Sumbu via Kaputa on a good gravel road which runs through Mweru Wantipa National Park. Finally, there is a route via Kasama to Mporokoso, but this is in poor condition. Access to the lake via Mbala and Mpulungu is by paved road all the way, but there is no link yet between Mbala and Sumbu.
There are no reliable, regular road or lake transport services to Sumbu or the Lodges in the National Park. However, the Lodges have their own boats and vehicles available for short-distance transfers, and there are companies which have vehicles for hire.
A ferry service between the major international ports on Lake Tanganyika is operated by Tanzania Railways, using the historical MV Liemba with a capacity for 500.
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Hotels & Lodges -Where to stay
There are three lodges in secluded bays along the Park’s shoreline, Nkamba Bay , Kasaba Bay and Ndole Bay. . Camping is possible at Ndole Bay.
