Internet cafés

While Lusaka doesn't seem to have quite the same proliferation of internet cafés as other African capitals, there are certainly several around. Of these, the cheapest is in Farmers House on Cairo Road (Bwanji.com), while the most frequented is in Manda Hill. Charges are generally about US$2/Kw10,000 for 15 minutes. The large hotels also have business centres with internet facilities, as does the Chrismar, and there's an internet café at the new Arcades complex.

Bwanji.com
Farmers House, Central Park, Cairo Rd. Lusaka's most popular internet café lies just behind Barclays Bank in Cairo Rd, and charges Kw120 per minute, or Kw3,900 for half an hour. Sunday surfers get unlimited time for Kw3,500. Open 08.00–21.00 daily.

Postnet
Manda Hill; tel: 01 255547. Next door to Fra Gigi café. Charges Kw8,000 for 15 minutes, 12,000 for half an hour. There's a small extra charge to use their email address. Open Mon–Fri 08.30–18.30, Sat 08.30–17.30, Sun 09.00–13.30.

Postnet
Kabulonga. Details as Manda Hill Postnet, above.

X-Space
Kabulonga; tel: 01 212212. Internet, photocopying, greetings cards etc. Open Mon–Fri 08.30–18.30, Sat 08.30–12.30.

Lusaka City Library Internet café
situated in the front of the City Library, in Katondo Street, opposite the Development Bank; this was set up in 1999.

Longacres
The business centre next to Longacres Lodge on Haile Selassie Av has internet facilities at LA Ranch. Open Mon–Sat 08.00–22.00; Sun 09.00–21.00.

Businet Internet Café
Kabelenga Rd; tel: 01 229261; fax 229262; email: admin@businet.co.zm. Here you can pick up your mail, browse the web or use the more standard fax and secretarial services. They serve fresh coffee too.

Cyberweb
Los Angeles Bd, next to Lusaka Club, near Marlin's.

Post and telephone

Lusaka's busy main post office is in the centre of Cairo Road, on the corner with Church Road. The main hall on the ground floor has a row of assistants in cubicles – above which the occupant's responsibilities are detailed. There is a bureau de change where rates are on a par with those of the banks.

Upstairs on the first floor you will find the telegraph office (open Mon–Fri 08.30–16.30, Sat 08.00–12.00). Here you can send a telex or a fax, or even make an international phone call. It is often crowded and conversations are anything but private, but they can be accomplished surprisingly fast. Time is metered in three-minute units, and a call will be cut off automatically unless you instruct the operators otherwise. Both the main post office and the one at Ridgeway have a philatelic counter for purchasing Zambia's colourful stamps, including first-day issues and blocks.

If you're just looking for stamps, it's probably easier to go to Postnet at Manda Hill, or to the post office in the Castle Shopping complex on the Kafue Road.

Couriers

If you need to send something valuable then do not trust the postal service. A courier is by far the best way. Alternatively, if you just need something sending rapidly then look towards Mercury's excellent 'Mercury Mail' service. Three of the main couriers in Lusaka are:

DHL (Zambia) Tel: 229768
Mercury Couriers Tel: 239872/231137
Skynet Couriers Tel: 227125

To make sure that your post and packages arrive within Zambia, Mercury Mail or one of the above is the best way.