The safari has come a long way since the days of moustachioed men with big guns and pith helmets; today you're much more likely to see giant telephoto lenses sticking out of a 4WD. Zambia has many excellent safari opportunities, mainly in its great national parks, with endless opportunities for photos. Most popular are wildlife-viewing tours by open-top vehicle. Unusual in Africa, night drives are also permitted, and open up a whole new world. Zambia is also famous for walking safaris, where you leave behind all modern trappings and follow an experienced ranger. Nothing beats being on foot in the African bush for sharpening the senses and heightening the wilderness experience! But it's not all big mammals - bird-watching is also superb in Zambia. Standing at the crossroad between east, central and Southern Africa, the country boasts a wide and varied range of species - well over 700 at the last count. All the major national parks (South Luangwa, Lower Zambezi and Kafue) are excellent for bird-watching.

Zambia, in particular Livingstone, has a mind-boggling array of adventure activities to choose from. The Zambezi River offers outstanding canoeing and white-water rafting, while the bridge and gorge downstream of Victoria Falls offers bungee jumping, abseiling, rock climbing and hiking. For the rafters, the rapids below Victoria Falls are among the world's wildest - and safest - due to the deep water, steep canyon walls and lack of mid-stream rocks. Having said that, most rafters take a swim during their trip. Requiring no effort whatsoever, but still very popular, are rides on the river in larger boats with decks, rails, a bar and many other facilities; an evening boat tour with a few drinks is most popular - known locally as a booze cruise.

Zambia's most important public holidays are New Year's Day (1 January), Youth Day (second Monday in March), Workers Day (1 May), Heroes' Day, Unity Day (first Monday and Tuesday in July), Farmer's Day (first Monday in August) and Independence Day (24 October). Zambia also celebrates the anniversary of the founding of the Organization of African Unity on African Freedom Day (25 May).

The Zambian people celebrate many traditional festivals, although for tourists these are sometimes hard to pin down, and dates and even locations can vary from year to year. Perhaps Zambia's best-known festival is the Kuomboka, held near the town of Mongu in Western Zambia towards the end of the rainy season in late March or early April. The Lozi chief and his family are paddled in massive war-canoes across the Zambezi floodplains from their palace at Lealui to Limulunga, where the royal residence is high enough to evade the rising waters. In late February, the N'Cwala festival is held at Mutenguleni, 15km (10mi) southwest of Chipata, during which the chief of the Ngoni people samples the year's first fresh produce and commemorates the Ngoni's entrance into Zambia in 1835. The event is marked by feasts, music and some of the best dancing in the country.

In early March, anglers set their poles for the Zambia National Fishing Competition held on Lake Tanganyika.