Not to miss

Lilongwe

Lilongwe become the country's new capital in 1975 and is a sprawling place, but of limited interest for travellers. The awfully modern New City or City Centre has the ministries, embassies, airline offices, travel agents and a collection of office buildings and mini-malls.

Far more inspiring is Old Town, where you'll find the market, several restaurants and cafes, the bus station and a good range of accommodation. The market is jammed with pots and pans, car and bike parts, vegetables, live chickens and dried fish. Worth poking around even if you don't buy anything.

Between Old Town and New City is the Nature Sanctuary, covering 150ha (370ac) of indigenous woodland that escaped development. There's a wildlife information centre and several walking trails through the woods. The Lingadzi River flows through the reserve bearing crocodiles. Plenty of bird species can be found, as can several mammals, a few hyenas, leopards and tigers in cages.

The tobacco auction floors at the vast Auction Holdings warehouse is well worth a look. About 15,000 bales are sold per day, making for an exhilarating scene. A sign on the wall reads, 'Thank you for smoking'. The auction floors are 7km (4mi) north of New Town.

Vwaza Marsh Wildlife Reserve

For one reason or another this reserve seems to be one of Malawi's best-kept secrets, but it's possibly your best chance to get up close and personal with elephants and well worth a visit. Vwaza is an ideal destination for any budget; it's compact and accessible, the accommodation is close to the main gate, and public transport here is straightforward.

The main camp is conveniently located a safe but rewarding distance from the hippo-heavy Lake Kazuni, which also lures impalas, buffaloes (rumoured to be particularly aggressive here), waterbucks, elands, roans, sables, zebras, hartebeests and pukus. The big attraction however, is the 160-plus elephants within the park. There are regular parades in front of the camps and between July and September, diners at Kazuni Safari Camp often have to share their personal space with bulls munching on nuts around the restaurant. Vwaza's birdwatching is also excellent - this is one of the best places in Malawi to see waders. The best time of year to visit is in the dry season; just after the rainy season, the grass is high and you might go away without seeing anything.

All tourist activities, places to stay and charter flights are operated by the Nyika Safari Company.

Mt Mulanje

Mt Mulanje (also called the Mulanje Plateau) rises steeply from the undulating plain of the highlands, surrounded by near-vertical cliffs of bare rock, many over 1000m (3280ft) high. The cliffs are dissected by vegetated valleys, where rivers drop in spectacular waterfalls.

It is often misty here and Mulanje's high peaks sometimes jut above the cloud, giving rise to the local name 'Island in the Sky'.

This is one of the finest areas for hiking in this part of Africa. There are clear paths up the mountain, several huts and stunning scenery. Up on the plateaus there are clear mountain streams (safe for drinking) and swimming holes where you can cool off in the icy water. You need to register at Likhubula Forest Station, 15km (9.3mi) from Mulanje town.

Liwonde National Park

Liwonde National Park is the closest thing Malawi has to a traditional game park. Dominating the west, the Shire River overflows with hippos and crocodiles and is a favourite stomping ground for the abundant elephants. Waterbucks are also common near the water, while beautiful sable and roan antelopes, zebras and elands populate the flood plains in the east.

Night drives can reveal spotted genets, bushbabies, scrub hares, side-striped jackals and even spotted hyenas. Several black rhinos are protected within a separate enclosure as part of a rhino breeding program, and there's a rich and colourful array of birdlife. October to January is particularly good for birdwatching, as migratory birds, including Bohm's bee-eaters, set up summer camp.

One of the real pleasures of a trip to Liwonde is boating along the river, the water dotted with purple lilies and statuesque palms framing the hills behind. Morning or evening, you're virtually guaranteed to see hippos and likely to see crocodiles, fish eagles, and a whole host of other water birds.