Beaches in Malawi

A landlocked country with a beach coast, which is the point: Lake Malawi is five hundred and sixty kilometres long, up to seven hundred metres deep, and has sand shores, clear water and waves. It holds more fish species than any other lake on earth — around a thousand cichlids, almost all found nowhere else — and its southern end is a UNESCO World Heritage site inscribed for that. The water is bilharzia-endemic and the risk is real and treatable; visitors should read current advice rather than the reassurance of a lodge. Practically: the lake is the country's coast and its beaches are used as beaches — swimming, kayaking, snorkelling and diving all happen here, and there are dive schools. The lake level rises and falls by more than a metre between seasons, which changes how much sand there is. Bilharzia is endemic and the sensible approach is to swim and then take praziquantel some weeks later, which is what residents do.