The country lies within the Great African Rift Valley system. Lake Malawi, a body of water some 360 miles long and about 1,500 ft above sea level, is its most prominent physical feature. Much of the land surface is plateau between 900 to 1,220 m (3,000 to 4,000 ft) above sea level. Elevations rise of over 2,440 m (8,000 ft) in the Nyika Plateau in the north and in the regions of Mt. Mulanje 3,050 m (10,000 ft) and Mt. Zomba 2,135 m (7,000 ft). The Shire highlands in the south are lower with elevations from 610 m (2,000 ft) to 900 m (3,000 ft).

To the north there are rugged highlands with rolling hills in the Nyika and Vwanza plateaux, whilst in the South, traversing the escarpment that forms part of the Great African Rift Valley, lie the lowlands of the Shire Valley.

Lake Malawi is the county's centerpiece. Like an inland sea it has endless palm fringed beaches, enclosed by sheer mountains, making it undeniably the focal point for Malawi's tourists. Malawi is a landlocked country located in southeastern Africa. It is bordered in the North and East by Tanzania, on the east, south and southwest by Mozambique and to the west by Zambia.