Lake Malawi's tropical waters have more fish species than any other lake on Earth. The water temperature is between 24 and 29 degrees as well, so snorkelling and scuba diving have got to be two of the amazing things to do in Malawi.

• Go wildlife and game viewing in the national parks, without the tarred roads filled with convoys of 4-wheel drive vehicles. Top parks and reserves include Nyika, Vwasa Marsh, Liwonde and Lengwe.

• Look for elephants during the early mornings and evenings in Kasungu National Park, where they appear to drink from dambos (river channels). The grasslands support large herds of buffalo and some varieties of antelope, such as kudu and reedbuck.

• Visit the world's first freshwater national park and its renowned settings and attractions. Lake Malawi National Park, close to Monkey Bay, lies towards the southern extremity of the lake. Snorkelling or scuba-diving reveals tropical fish and further inland klipspringer, bushbuck and vervet monkeys can be seen.

• Try out the range of watersports available along the length of Lake Malawi. Snorkelling and scuba-diving are increasingly popular here because of the attraction of seeing the brilliantly coloured fish, the mbuna. Swimming, waterskiing, sailing and kayaking are all available along the lakeshore.