What it is
The lake runs almost the whole length of the country, roughly 580 km by up to 75 km, and is over 700 m deep in places. Lake Malawi National Park at Cape Maclear, in the south, is a World Heritage site protecting the rocky shore and its fish. Likoma Island sits far out near the Mozambican shore. Nkhata Bay and Senga Bay are the other common bases.
Why go
It holds around a thousand species of cichlid, almost all of them found nowhere else, living in the shallows around rocks in colours that look aquarium-bright because most aquarium fish came from here. Snorkelling needs no boat and no skill, just a mask. Beyond that it is a beach week: kayaks, dhows, hammocks, and sunsets over water with no other shore in sight.
When to go
May to October for dry weather. Visibility is clearest once the rivers have stopped carrying silt in, so roughly August to November is the best underwater. The water is swimmable all year at 24 to 28C. December to March brings storms and murkier water. Read the note on bilharzia before you decide how you feel about swimming.
Most people stay 4-5 nights.