Malawi might be landlocked, but with Lake Malawi stretching down the eastern side of the country, it feels like you are never far from the glittering, relaxing water. This laid-back vibe encompasses the ever smiling inhabitants who always appear delighted to be showing you what their country has to offer, whether you’re hiking in the highlands or diving in the freshwater.

This is not the country to focus on big game safaris, but the national parks still have a lot to offer intrepid visitors.

After four weeks of exploring, take the unique lake crossing to the Mozambican border and plunge into a country where a strong African cultural heritage is woven into a Portuguese colonial past. Spend your last week on a crystal-clear coastline lapped by the Indian Ocean for complete relaxation, then exit the country by canoe on the way to Dar es Salaam...

Week one

If the truth be told, Lilongwe is a little sleepy. The capital’s Old Town has a tranquil atmosphere, a good crafts market and the bus station; that’s where you’ll be heading fairly promptly.

But first, recover from the flight and get a feel for the country with a stay at the Mabuya Camp (www.mabuyacamp.com). The A-frame thatched chalets have just the right rustic feel to them. The Lilongwe Wildlife Centre provides sanctuary for injured and rescued wild animals and is a must-see. You can volunteer for a fee (www.lilongwewildlife.org).

Your next stop is Senga Bay, where you can camp or stay in a hut at the Wheelhouse Marina (+265 999 9633 45) and enjoy sunset over the clear waters of the lake from the bar, balanced on stilts in the water. Senga is all about watersports, so windsurf, snorkel and boat yourself into oblivion. Make time too for Lizard Island, home to the giant monitor lizards.

Pressing on, take the bus to Monkey Bay and then a matola (minibus) to Cape Maclear. The town is deep in the Lake Malawi National Park and it’s correspondingly lovely. You can island hop to Domwe and Thumbi Island, but the jewel in the crown is Mumbo Island (www.mumboisland.com).

This pristine and otherwise deserted island houses an incredible sustainable lodge; furnishings are locally sourced, lighting is by solar and the toilets are dry composters. It’s not cheap at €170 a night (all inclusive) but it is unique. If you’re going to splurge, this is the place. The reception is on the beach at Cape Maclear.

Week two

Liwonde National Park is the next stop. You’ll need the lodge of your choice to pick you up from Liwonde, so arrange with them in advance. Bushman’s Baobabs (www.bushmansbaobabs.com) can arrange night drives, walking and canoeing safaris from a very reasonable €15; expect to see hippos, crocodiles, elephants and bushbabies. A dorm room costs €12, and an A-frame chalet €25. At those prices, it’s well worth kicking back for a few days here. You can also volunteer for African Bat Conservation and stay at their research station in Mvuu Lodge. Visit www.africanbatconservation.org for details.

Mount Mulanje is your final destination in the south, its epic rock cliffs surging up to a kilometre into the clouds. You’ll probably have to go via Blantyre, so if you’re into cities, take a couple of days to explore the sights (principally the National Museum and the Carlsberg Brewery); you can also book a package tour of the mountain, known locally as the Island in the Sky, although it’s cheaper to make your own way to Chitikali and find a guide and porter if you need them.

Try the Likhubula Forest Lodge for accommodation and ensure you sign in with the Forestry Office before you start hiking. The scenery will have you gasping for breath even if the steep terrain and changeable weather doesn’t; a fellow traveller described it as “mental”.

Week three

You’ll probably feel like a rest after all that arduous hiking, but you’re not going to get one just yet. Instead, you’ll be cramming your battered limbs into a variety of modes of transport to get yourself to Nkhotakota.

An optimistic masochist might attempt this in one day by road. Make it a more laid-back trip with a stop en route or better still, time your departure to coincide with the Ilala ferry from Monkey Bay (it currently leaves on a Friday at 10am) and you’ll sail into Nkhotakota at midnight and could be soaking your aching muscles in the hot springs by lunchtime Saturday. There’s also pottery here and a guide can take you along the historic slave trade route.

You’ll paddle south for three days to Kande accompanied by friendly local guides, sleeping in tents on the sand and buying fish from dugout canoes to cook on wood fires under starry skies

The real draw here is the wildlife reserve. Safaris are well priced and there are lions and leopards present although they tend to be well hidden. Luckily, searching for them is likely to turn up plenty of other excitement in this wild and isolated park. Backpacker accommodation costs €12 at the Bua River Lodge (www.buariverlodge.com). The lodge can pick you up from Nkhotakota if you let them know your arrival time, or you can take a bicycle taxi from the Lozi Trading Centre 12 km further north of the town.

Week four

After your safari, ask to be dropped back at Nkhotakota and you’re just a torturous matatu ride from Nkhata Bay (minibus is a little too grandiose a term for the tin can on wheels whose seat you will be sinking into – literally).

The bay is nice enough, but it’s the kayak trip that will really blow you away here. With Monkey Business Kayaking (+265 999 4372 47), you’ll paddle south for three days to Kande accompanied by friendly local guides, sleeping in tents on the sand and buying fish from dugout canoes to cook on wood fires under starry skies (or catching them yourself). It’s likely to be the highlight of your trip. The company can arrange road transport back to Nkhata Bay.

Once you’re this far north, you can’t miss Nyika National Park. Head to Rhumpi by bus, then take a matola to Chelinda Camp. The camp itself costs about €90 for a four-bed cottage, but there’s a campsite nearby for €4 a night. You can then discover Nyika’s extraordinary landscape of rolling hills and rocky outcrops by bike or on horseback with the local safari company www.nyika.com.

Week five

And now for Mozambique and one of the most fun border crossings in the world on board the WW2 Ilala ferry from Ruarwe (it currently leaves on a Monday morning). Watch the sun rise and set over the waters from your sleeping spot on the deck.

It’s well worth exploring Likoma and nearby Chizumulu before taking a boat three kilometres to Cobue in Mozambique, but if you don’t have time, stay on the ferry and it will take you straight to Cobue, then Metangula.

Say the word Mozambique and a dim warning bell goes off about guerrilla war. That’s all in the country’s dark past now but the tourist infrastructure, especially in the north, is still recovering. That means travelling here is a fabulous blend of touristy sites and hard-to-get-to treasures.

The Niassa Reserve is the latter. It calls itself one of the world’s last genuine wildernesses and is the largest conservation area in Africa, covering an area the size of Denmark. Lion, leopard, the Niassa wildebeest, Boehms zebra and packs of wild dog roam this untamed, woodland landscape. The park is little changed from when Livingstone explored it 150 years ago. One glance at the granite ‘mountain islands’ rising out of the savannah will convince you; it’s unmissable.

That said, getting here remains a major challenge. The most expedient way would be to hire a 4x4 or arrange for transport from Metangula with the main lodge in the park itself (www.lugenda.com), but it has alarmingly high prices. If you risk a minibus/hitching session to the park gates (which is not impossible), ensure you call the reserve HQ (+258 2132 9807) in advance to see if you could pay a scout for a walking safari from the basic camping facilities near the entrance gate at Kiboko on the Lugenda River.

Half the fun of backpacking here is that people simply don’t do it, so push the boundaries and see how far you can go with charm and a shoestring budget; just make sure you have the basic essentials (a tent, food and water purifying tablets) in case you get stuck.

Week six

After a few nights roughing it, head to civilisation in Nampula to restock before you go on to the Ilha de Moçambique. It used to be the capital, which accounts for the crumbling pink colonial mansions, but they are interspersed with grass huts and palm trees. A 3.5-kilometre causeway takes you to this paradise, where you can stroll between museums and chapels down streets that will make your shutter finger itch.

Half the fun of backpacking here is that people simply don’t do it, so push the boundaries and see how far you can go with charm and a shoestring budget

The B&B Patio dos Quintalinhos is right on the beach, the perfect place to string up a hammock (Rua do Celeiro 17). Two nights here should do it because you need to leave time for the Quirimbas Archipelago and National Park. It takes ‘off the beaten track’ to a new level (although if you managed to get to Niassa Reserve, you’ve already passed that particular test).

Here, the fishermen are still sailing ancient dhows and the beaches of the multiple islands are often deserted and entirely unspoiled. Pemba is the gateway, a cheery town with a good beach and excellent diving on the coral reef.

It’s accessible by bus from Nampula. From Pemba, take a minibus to Tandanhangue village and then to Ibo.

This might sound like a bit of a hassle but picture this: 32 coral islands lie laden with mangrove and garlanded with reefs in a long chain, punctuated by islets peeking above the waves and baixos, wannabe islands which are just below sea level.

The archipelago is lavishly littered with sandy beaches and there’s barely another pasty pale tourist in sight (unless they’ve had their faces chalked with the powdered bark of the inciro tree). It’s a perfect finale, especially for divers and snorkellers.

All the islands are different but the hotels are working hard to snag a better class of tourist than the likes of you.

Local villagers will put you up (ask at the very fancy Ibo Island Lodge for assistance in English if you can’t make yourself understood) or you can camp. From there, you’re just a very long bargaining session with a dhow owner away from the rest of the spectacular island chain.

Week six and a bit

From Pemba, it’s probably quicker to head into Tanzania (and sneak in a trip to Zanzibar) than to try to reach the Mozambican capital, Maputo. The road is a little sketchy (by that I mean untarred and virtually non-existent in places) and the border crossing involves a canoe across the Rovuma River at the Quionga border, but that surely has to beat sitting on a bus for hours.

If canoes over swollen rivers aren’t your thing, there’s the more traditional Unity Bridge crossing near Negomane; it’s complete with faux elephant tusks halfway across and there’s usually enough traffic to hitch.

Alternatively, if you’ve got the cash, Pemba has an airport. Call me a diehard backpacker, but that just sounds like cheating. Viagem segura!

How to budget

Malawi is the darling of the rock-bottom budget traveller. It’s perfectly possible to travel on €15 a day if you are prepared to rough it a little and traditionally expensive activities such as safaris and kayak trips are really phenomenal value here. Bear in mind that all national parks will have fees but they are usually low (around €6 a day).

For Mozambique, you’ll need to double your daily budget to at least €25 and if you intend to stay in any remotely upmarket lodges in Niassa or island hop a lot in the Quirimbas archipelago, you’ll need much more.

It will be easier to get around the north on a larger budget.