Victoria Falls

Overview Tours & Safaris Camps & Lodges Travel Tips

Victoria Falls

Tips & Planning

Split between two countries and usually combined with a safari in a third, Victoria Falls may seem a daunting destination to visit but it couldn’t be easier. Our Victoria Falls tips and planning feature explains the difference between Zimbabwe and Zambia and how to fit Victoria Falls into a Botswana safari. For help in choosing accommodation, click through to our Victoria Falls hotels, camps and lodges page; if you want to see what pre-package tours we have available, go to our Victoria Falls tours and safaris feature.

Zimbabwe - Victoria Falls

Victoria Falls is shared between these two countries but by staying in one doesn’t mean you can’t visit the other. The border is on the bridge that spans the Zambezi River below the falls and is easy to cross.

Zimbabwe has the lion’s share of the falls and in the late dry season the only water going over. The town of Victoria Falls lies next to the river and several of its hotels are within walking distance of the falls. Visitors can stroll around markets and shops, arrange activities and sit down at restaurants and cafés. Safari lodges, a golf course and Victoria Falls Airport lie just out of town and there are easy overland transfers to and from the Chobe River in Botswana.

Zambia - Victoria Falls

The Zambian side of Victoria Falls is served by Livingstone Airport or overland road transfers from Botswana. There is no riverside town equivalent to the one in Zimbabwe and accommodation is ranged along the river upstream from the falls or in a secluded bush setting. The experience in Zambia is more focused on the accommodation and activities enjoyed from it. Standards of accommodation range from family friendly to super-luxury; several hotels are within walking distance of the falls while others are a 20 minute transfer away. The Zambian side of Victoria Falls generally dries up in the late dry season.

 

Combining Victoria Falls with a Botswana safari

It’s only 70 kilometres from the Chobe River to Victoria Falls via a short flight or overland transfer, making a Botswana and Victoria Falls combination safari not only easy to arrange but hugely rewarding too. After all, although visitors to Victoria Falls can enjoy game drives in local reserves, nothing at Victoria Falls compares to a Botswana safari. World-famous wildlife destinations like the Chobe National Park, Moremi Game Reserve and the Okavango Delta are simple to craft into an itinerary that can begin or end at Victoria Falls. Have a look at our Victoria Falls tours and safaris page for ideas and inspiration.

When to Go?

FEB/ MAR/ APR/ MAY
Late rainy season: Victoria Falls is at its fullest & most impressive
JUN/ JUL/ AUG/ SEP/ OCT
Dry season: best time for rafting & safaris; low malaria risk; low water Sep & Oct
NOV/ DEC/ JAN
Early rainy season: hot with regular heavy rain; low to very low water over falls
READY TO START PLANNING YOUR ADVENTURE? Enquire Now

TOP EXPERIENCES

THINGS TO LOOK FORWARD TO AT THE FALLS

1. Go to Livingstone Island

Only available during low water season, a boat ride to Livingstone Island at the edge of the falls puts you within metres of the thundering chasm; a trip to Devil’s Pool takes you to within inches.

2. Take A Heli-Ride

Whether you take in the bird’s eye view of Victoria Falls from a fixed-wing or helicopter, David Livingstone’s famous quote will ring true: “Scenes so lovely must have been gazed upon by Angels in their flight.”

3. Ride With Elephants

Watching animals from the gently swaying back of an elephant not only gets you closer to wildlife but you will also marvel at the way these gentle giants move silently through the bush.

4. Walk with lions

Habituated lion cubs with a taste for mischief – that’s who you’ll be walking with on this activity! Accompanying guides keep you informed while trainers keep the boisterous youngsters in check.

5. – 1 … 2 … 3 … BUNGEE!

You can bungee jump all over the world but this 100 metre drop is one of the biggest & has nothing less than Victoria Falls as its backdrop.

6. Go White-Water Rafting

Between July and mid-February the Zambezi River is at its lower levels and this is the most exciting time to go rafting. Day trips offer visitors some of the best one-day rafting in the world.

7. Go Game viewing

There are conservation areas on both sides of the river and visitors can explore them on morning or afternoon game drives with private operators. Zambia’s Mosi-oa-Tunya NP is good for general game as well as white rhino.

8. See “Smoke That Thunders”

Whether you go on foot or take to the air in a plane or micro light, make sure you see Victoria Falls close up. Ask us about getting the best views for the time of year.

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Reviews

Professional, patient, efficient and responsive. Met all our travel needs and requirements spot on

Communication was excellent – I asked A LOT of questions and did a ton of research myself and Walter was extremely patient with me and very responsive. he was straight forward and extremely professional.  Tour itself was excellent – an incredible experience and one never to be forgotten. Everything was spot on.

Neena
Karina was absolutely instrumental to our safari success.

Our experience with Safari Online was excellent. After becoming very frustrated trying to search for a safari destination on our own, we turned to Karina for help and she was a lifesaver. She responded to our requests promptly and gave us several options with links to each option; we ultimately chose Lukimbi. She then coordinated our flights to and from the property, arranged the drivers necessary to get us from the airport to the lodge and back again, and sent the appropriate paperwork to each of us to verify each step of the process. We had an amazing safari adventure at the lodge–the experience of a lifetime–and are so grateful for her help. We literally couldn’t have done it without her!

Chris
Above expectations

Excellent communications and service. We dealt with Sabrina and she is awesome. The safari tour was amazing, i can highly recommend going to Elephant Plains. Its a very special place run by awesome people.

Werner
A great tour operator that was a pleasure to deal with.

We used Safari Online to put together a mid-range Botswana trip for a group of four going to three different camps and then onto Vic Falls. We asked several operators to provide options (through this great safari bookings website) and Walter Kohrs from Safari Online was easily the most responsive and quickest to provide different but realistic options and at good prices. In the end it was a no brainer to go with Safari Online. Walter always responded to my queries quickly, with honest and valuable responses that were clear and made sense. From our perspective he tailored a good mix of places for both our budget and standard of facilities that suited us perfectly, with enough information and links to help us make our decisions. In the end each camp was different and had different aspects and strengths that made each unique. We loved it.

Shane
Excellent service and support for our Africa vacation

Working with Walter was a great experience. He listened to us and helped us build a vacation that exceeded all of our expectations. We really appreciated his professionalism and attention to detail.

Dan
They kept us fully informed and updated throughout planning, travel, etc.

It was excellent all around. Everything worked out well. An experience of a lifetime! The game viewing rides were fun and very informative.

Karen
Perfect

We are six older but experienced travellers who usually do our own planning. Luck led us to Safari Online and Walter. His ideas proved spot on. Throughout our planning Safari Online have been helpful, always answering emailed questions, no matter how basic, straightaway. We’ve had probably our best ever holiday in years of travel, everything went smoothly. Pickups and transfers were on time. Staff in all the places we stayed were friendly and helpful. I can’t think of one adverse remark except maybe seeing a lion that wasn’t asleep, though I think if it could have been arranged Walter would have done so.

Jennifer