Route
We spent 34 days in Malawi, a lot even if you are a beach lover. Primarily we visited Malawi to meet a friend on holiday from the UK and attend the Lake of Stars music festival at Chintheche beach. The festival was not until 6th of October, so we had to hang around. Not that hard to do.

We came over the border from Tanzania and stayed around the Mzuzu area in the north before driving down to Lilongwe. After meeting our friend and visiting South Luangwa Park in Zambia, we went down to Blantyre and Mount Mulanje then shot back up to the Nyika plateau before arriving finally at Chintheche Beach for the festival.

Border formalities
Very quiet border crossing at Kyela with smart new offices on the Tanzanian side. On the Malawian side you’ll find immigration and customs in the same building.

Visas (UK citizens) - free for 90 days, obtained on the border. We re-entered Malawi two weeks later (we visited South Luangwa Park in Zambia) and they gave us a second visa without any problems.

Third-party insurance is compulsory. We paid 2,600MK (about £10) for two months. We failed to buy ours at the border (the lack of touts around the car surprised us) and ended up in court paying a 6,500MK fine after being stopped at a police roadblock.

Impressions
Malawians are a little more laid-back than their Tanzanian neighbours but the main towns bustle with amenities and shops. The three main cities of Mzuzu, Lilongwe and Blantyre have large, colourful markets, a few good supermarkets, restaurants, garages, tyre shops and gas suppliers.

Although it looks small and narrow and consumed by the lake, there is a lot more to see in Malawi. If our friend hadn't been coming we only planned to spend a week in Malawi but we're very glad we spent more time there. Mulanje and Nyika are very different to other places we have visited in Africa and the northern part of the country is great for exploring.

General driving conditions
Speed limits are 60 and 120 km/hr (with other signs). There are no police cars but along the main roads there are more police roadblocks than in any other country we have visited. This is also the first country in Africa that we have encountered bribery from officials.

There are very few vehicles in the north of the country and so the roads are less well maintained with a few potholes, elsewhere the tar roads are generally good with a variety of surfaces on minor roads. The coast road north of Salima is nearly as good as the M1, although we heard the southern bit to Monkey Bay was terrible. The tracks in the national parks are generally of a poorer quality.

Gentle traffic and a spread out road plan give the Lilongwe a relaxed pace and make even the centre areas easy to navigate.

Specific driving conditions
Out of the 34 days we had 12 main driving days:

Accommodation
It is possible to camp everywhere in Malawi, from the beach to the cities to the top of mountains. The hotels are not bad value either. We camped for 29 of our 34 days in the country. Here are some particularly good places:

Mechanics and other practicalities
Mzuzu is a practical little city and it is possible to get many chores done. There is a Land Rover garage (I cannot remember their name – ask a local) as well as other mechanics. There are a few good supermarkets, a great market, tyre shops and a Cadec gas supplier (Mzuzu Panel-beaters).

Lilongwe has a BOC Gases depot (on the right hand side of the airport road, north of the city) who will refill both Butane and LPG. We had a great welding job done at Petroleum welders out on the Chilambula road and help from Jeremy at Kwik Fit behind Shoprite.

Blantyre and Lilongwe both have numerous mechanics/garages who will mend your car and sell both Jap and Brit parts.

Food and water
It’s easy to buy fruit and veg on the roadside outside of the cities and there are very large, fresh produce selling markets in the towns. Blantyre and Lilongwe have the usual South African supermarkets and Blantyre has a Game.

In Lilongwe we eat at Don Brioni's Bistro, which is good for meat (a lot of it on one plate) but the best restaurant is Mama Mia’s, especially for pizza. There are plenty of South Africa fast-food places, including Nandos, and Ali Baba’s in the centre of town is good value and tasty.

Otherwise, the food at the Mushroom Farm was vegetarian and excellent. Victors’ breakfasts at the Butterfly Lodge in Nkhata Bay didn’t let you down and the food is great at Mabuya camp in Lilongwe.

Water - Lilongwe municipal water is chlorinated and we drank it but elsewhere purify it.

Costs
We spent around £40 a day (two people). This included some diving and a lot of racing around when our friend was out on holiday. You could easily spend less by lazing around a bit more.

Diesel prices were generally 178MK (£0.60).