Family run in Malawi since 1987.

Before Malawi, Chris Badger had spent five years guiding in Botswana’s Okavango Delta, two years in the game parks of South Africa and a year driving the length and breadth of the African continent. What he found here still took him by surprise: the abundance and variety of wildlife, the beauty of the landscapes and, above all, the friendliness of the people.

Central African Wilderness Safaris began in 1987. For co-founders Chris and Pam Badger, the passion for Malawi became a lasting commitment to its wilderness and the communities around it. Nearly four decades later, that connection is still at the heart of this family-run business.

Our first mobile safaris, run between 1988 and 1992, gave us the chance to explore Malawi closely and develop a deep understanding of its potential as a safari destination. One epic birding trip recorded 425 species. Each journey revealed more of the country’s beauty, variety and welcome.

That time on the road laid the foundations for the way we work today: knowing the places, understanding the journey between them and sharing the details that make Malawi memorable.

In 1993, the Government of Malawi, through the Department of National Parks and Wildlife, put the tourist facilities at Mvuu Camp in Liwonde National Park out to tender. We submitted a bid with plenty of passion and enthusiasm, and very little financial backing. Being chosen brought surprise and delight in equal measure.

The first mopane post went into the ground that year. Mvuu became a place where our belief in Malawi could take root: a safari experience that would create employment and income while helping protect the wilderness that had drawn us here.

Our history lives across the team. Guides, camp and lodge teams, and reservations staff have spent years—and sometimes decades—learning these places and looking after the people who visit them. Their knowledge brings confidence to the small decisions that help a safari run well.

Today CAWS owns and operates Mvuu Camp, Mvuu Lodge, Chelinda Camp, Chelinda Lodge and Heuglin’s Lodge. Each has its own character, with the shared support of our reservations and operational teams in Malawi. In 2027, we will mark forty years since the business began.

From the beginning, we believed tourism could offer employment, income and a practical foundation for conservation in a country where many rural communities face economic uncertainty and unpredictable climatic conditions. Protecting the natural world alongside the people who live around it remains central to our work.

CAWS is a founding and long-standing partner of Children in the Wilderness Malawi and a founding partner of Root to Fruit. Our support includes facilities, transport, meals, funding, staff time and logistics. Our ambition is to offer an exceptional Malawi safari experience that benefits both wildlife and people, and helps preserve these places for the generations to come.