Likoma Island Sunset – designed to whet your appetite for the photo gallery below. First, you must read!
Tucked away deep in the heart of southeast Africa on the cerulean Lake Malawi, exists a utopian island that few people have heard of, and even fewer visit.
Rugged, mountainous Likoma Island satisfies every tropical island fantasy. It is dotted with colossal Baobab trees, adorned with quaint villages and ringed by numerous sandy beaches that slip into Caribbean-clear water.
Despite the incredible beauty, the real star of the island is the people, who are no doubt among the nicest, most amiable in the world. On my numerous walks around the island locals would greet me by saying, “Where are you going?” This would almost always lead to a conversation. No one on Likoma is ever in a hurry.
When we’d encounter school children they’d want to hold our hands as we walked. A few times I drank a Sprite or Coke outside a general store and I’d always have a few curious, friendly locals stop by to talk a bit.
Like the rest of Malawi, the island is poor. Residents live in simple homes, with diesel-generated electricity running only a few hours per day. Most of the 8000 residents live off fishing and trade with nearby Mozambique. But, the people are rich in pride, smiles and family.
In spite of the poverty, there are no hassles and no crime on the island. In fact, our rooms at the guesthouse didn’t even have a lock on the door. No one is going to take anything.
The best way to get to Likoma Island is aboard the infamous Ilala Ferry – an antique cargo ferry that plies the waters of the lake delivering goods to distant villages and isolated islands. The Ilala is a truly unforgettable experience. You are packed on the boat with livestock, sacks of produce, crates of beer, and presumably too many people to fit in the lifeboats.
We took the Ilala from Nhkata Bay to Chizimulu Island, which is adjacent to Likoma, and from there we traveled to Likoma with a group of 40 locals on a boat that was designed to hold about 15. As we glided across the turquoise water – with the tawny cliffs of Likoma and the purple mountains of Mozambique looming in the background, the deep blue sky dotted with gleaming, bilious clouds – the brightly clad Malawians began singing.
It began with one woman belting out about 30 seconds of a song, then the entire boat repeated the verse in a booming reprise that sent chills down my spine. The locals continued the call-and-response singing for the entire hour of the journey, with different women taking turns with the lead.
It was so beautiful that my eyes grew watery and I started to cry a little. I am not an emotional person so this was a big deal. And I don’t feel pretentious by writing this, because Kristi too admitted to crying a bit. It was truly a spiritual experience.
At this time I am going to tell you a story about the little boy in the photo below.
I was walking by the elementary school in Chipyela town right as classes let out for the day. In a way it was bad timing; in a way it was great luck.
Twenty kids, all with huge, beaming smiles, suddenly surrounded me and escorted me down the road. I had three kids holding on to each hand/wrist as they vied to be the one touching me. I must have looked like a like a movie star as I walked through the village, which belies how I felt. Because I felt like a big, goofy mazungu.
My entourage began to dwindle as kids peeled off to join parents or head home. When I reached the edge of town, which was a 45-minute hike to the other side of the island to my guesthouse, I still had one kid – the kid in the photo above.
I unlocked my hand from his, and tried to explain to him that I was going somewhere else. He had no idea what I was saying. I didn’t want to lead the child out of town and him be lost. I tried to walk away but he ran up to me and held my hand again. I again pried his hand free and tried to explain, but to no avail.
I left the boy in the road and hurried back to a gaggle of women who were taking refuge from the tropical sun under a tree. I shyly explained my predicament. “It is no problem, he lives up the road,” said a local woman.
The boy was still in the road with a melancholic look on his face, shoulders slumped, protruding bottom lip. I hustled up to him, grabbed his hand in mine and we took off walking together. The enormous smile reemerged on his face.
We hiked for about 20 minutes and then he broke his hand free, pointed to his house and waved goodbye. I took his photo before he went away.
Likoma Island Photos
Travel Tip: There are only two places to stay on the island – the swanky and expensive Kaya Mawa and the backpacker friendly Mango Drift, which has everything from campsites to beach huts to very nice $70/nt en-suite chalets. Needless to say, we stayed at Mango Drift in the cheap huts, but we were there so long we eventually got an upgrade to the chalets. The food was excellent, the beer (when there wasn’t a shortage from the mainland) was cold and the staff was exceedingly friendly.
Travel Tip#2: If you don’t want to endure, risk, or “experience” the Ilala Ferry, there are a few small companies that offer flights from Lilongwe.
Planet Bell 
A few year ago, the backpackers in my safari truck told me that Malawi was their favorite place on their tour of Africa. It’s of the beaten track, but I’d like to go.
Can you swim in the lake? I heard on the Amateur Traveler Malawi podcast that you can’t swim in the lakes in Malawi.
You can absolutely swim in the lake. The locals drink the water right out of it. I do think in some areas there is potential of a bacteria, but it is not a strong chance. The people of Malawi are truly the nicest you’ll ever meet. They are poor, but so friendly and open.
So glad I stumbled upon your blog! You have truly captured the spirit of Malawi 🙂
What is the best way to travel there from India? I am guessing you went there after your time in India.
What a lovely story about the boy.
You have so many amazing pictures!
Hi Jeff!
I’ve nominated you for the Addictive Blog Award! Congrats!!
http://dishbydish.net/2013/02/06/addictive-blog-award-thank-you/
Cheers,
Felicia
http://dishbydish.net
Thank you very much.
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Really appreciated your post and your writing style! I am a northern Canadian living in Malawi and am heading there this weekend for Christmas. I’ve noticed the best way to get solid travel advice is to read blogs so thanks for sharing your photos and experience.
I hope you have a great time! I love Malawi and Likoma and I agree that in todays age blogs can be the best way. Let me know what you think of it.
I lived in Malawi in 2012, I was one of the pilots of the small companies which fly to Likoma, so Likoma was one of our main destination and I spent lot of time there.
Of all the diferent places I visited that year in Malawi and in the rest of Africa, Likoma was my favourite…
I´ve loved to remember my experiences there reading your post.
Cheers!!!
Sergio
Hi Sergio, We took the ferry to Likoma then flew out, which is a great way to do it in my opinion. That flight is incredible and was one of the unexpected highlights of our trip.
I am glad you liked Likoma also. I’ve never met nicer people and the pace of life and vibe there was so relaxing and infectious. Thank you for commenting.
I have heard people saying Malawians are the nicest people in the world in terms of warmth and hospitality. I am a Zimbabwean mining engineer of Malawian decent and my origins are the Likoma Island. I have seen how my folks were so nice. A lot of Zimbabweans of Malawian origin are famed to be nice too. They tracked from Malawi to Zimbabwe (then Rhodesia) to look for work. I have not got a chance to visit Likoma but I am definitely going there this year. Thank you for the pics and travel tips they are so useful.
Malawians are no doubt some of the nicest, friendliest people in the world, but the people of Zambia and Zimbabwe are not far behind. I really loved the people of that region and hope to go back someday. You should be very proud of your heritage.
Thank you for commenting!
Jeff, I unintentionally found this post when I was reading another post. Your words and photos truly describe how genuinely friendly Malawians are — this post successfully made my eyes wet a little bit!
Anyway, I’m curious about how to visit the island since it’s surrounded by Mozambican water. Did you need to get another visa for entering Mozambique? Was there any coast guard to check your passport?
Bama, We took the Ilala ferry and there was no formalities for crossing onto the Mozambican side of the lake. Malawians rival Indonesians for the nicest people I’ve met!