The town of Victoria Falls,
affectionately abbreviated to Vic Falls by anyone who’s
ever been there, lies within the Victoria Falls National Park,
just a kilometre or so from the great falls themselves.
Still essentially a village carved out of the African bush,
Vic Falls is home to a seemingly endless variety of adventure
sports. Bungi jumping off the Railway Bridge and white water
rafting through the Batoka Gorge downstream of the falls (said
to be the world’s most exciting stretch of rafting)
are just two of the most obvious attractions.
For surfers, a new addition to the attractions is a chance
to go riverboarding and tackle the river on your own. For those who are not afraid of heights there’s abseiling
into the gorge or riding a flying fox from one side to the
other. Floating above the falls in a tandem microlight is
perhaps the ultimate way to see what Livingstone’s angels
saw, but for the less adventurous, there are regular scenic
flights by helicopter or small plane for a similar perspective.
A sundowner cruise on the broad sweep of the Zambezi River upstream
of the falls while sipping a Zambezi lager, is an exquisite
way to experience an African sunset.
Canoeing on the upper Zambezi River is a magical experience
that brings one much closer to nature. Here you’ll have
the time to enjoy the bird life and varied vegetation and
to sit silently watching the animals come down to drink and
play in shallow waters.
Horse riding alongside the game is a great way to interact
with the animals. You could even amble through the bush on an elephant
for an elephant’s view of the landscape.
But perhaps
best of all is the constant lure of the falls. A network of
trails leads through the rainforest surrounding the smoke that
thunders from the Victoria Falls National Park entrance, located
just before the Railway Bridge bordering with Zambia.
Famous viewing points include the Devil's Cataract, at the
western end of the chasm, where a statue honours David Livingstone,
and the heart-stopping steep view from Danger Point.
The town of Victoria Falls grew from the demands
of tourists, providing hotels and restaurants to visitors
heading to the falls and the nearby national parks.
David Livingstone’s fantastic stories about the falls
attracted many European adventurers and travellers to this
once remote place. It resembled an American frontier town
in the late 19th century, with bars, stores and gambling dens.
Despite an outbreak of malaria and blackwater fever that briefly
turned Victoria Falls into a ghost town, the town continued
to grow through the 20th century.
The bridge across the gorge was built as part of Cecil John
Rhodes's ambitious, but never realised, Cape to Cairo railway
in 1902. Though its name is Victorian, the town boasts some
fine examples of Edwardian architecture, including the elegant
Victoria Falls Hotel, built in 1905, with its decidedly colonial
air, and the Victoria Falls Station, where the Bulawayo-Victoria
Falls train arrives.
Today there are campsites and backpackers' to accommodate budget
travellers and a variety of hotels and safari lodges. The
town has a village atmosphere centred around the commercial
district, which is dotted with souvenir shops, tour operators, restaurants
and an African-style curio market.
Away from the politics of Harare, Victoria Falls appears isolated
from the rest of Zimbabwe. As it’s not close to
any farmland, it has witnessed less trouble than other parts of
the country in recent years. The town’s people are desperate
for the tourism industry to be kick-started again.
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| Winters in Victoria Falls -
May to September - are milder than in other parts of Zimbabwe
with warm, sunny days and cool, clear nights. September and
October are when the Falls are at their lowest – great
for rafting but not good for views. This is also when the
region gets excessively hot and humid, before the rainy season
from November to March, when most of the rain falls in brief
afternoon deluges during electrical storms that bring little
relief to the humidity. The weather is at its best between
April and May but the Victoria Falls are obscured by heavy
spray. |
| There are connections by air
from Harare, Kariba, and Bulawayo, and international flights
from Johannesburg and London. Every morning the train arrives
from Bulawayo after an overnight ride. The train has sleeping
compartments and a restaurant car and is often delayed because
of elephants on the line. This used to be a romantic way of
arriving at Victoria Falls but the service has been disrupted
because of lack of Diesel petrol in recent years. There are
a number of mainline coach services to other cities in the
country and a weekly coach to Cape Town that gets you there
three days later. Unfortunately, South African car hire companies
no longer permit you to drive a car to Zimbabwe. If you are
travelling overland you will undoubtedly pass over Victoria
Falls Bridge where the border with Zambia is open from 06:00-20:00.
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| Despite being a hub of tourism,
the town is not very big and everything in Vic Falls is within
walking distance. Even the falls themselves are literally
at the end of the main street. You’ll find your way
around very quickly. If you don’t want to walk the kilometre
or so to the falls, there are a few battered old taxis around
but don’t rely on them having fuel. To get from the
airport 22km away you’ll have to take a taxi, as the
airport shuttle bus was stopped long ago. Expect to pay around
US$20. Most taxi drivers only accept US$ cash. For activities
all the tour operators provide transfers except for the bungi
– for this you simply take your passport and walk onto the bridge that is the no-man’s land between Zimbabwe
and Zambia. |
| Generally Zimbabweans are peaceful
people and previously crime hasn’t been a problem in
Victoria Falls. However, as the people increasingly struggle
to earn a living they become more desperate, and tourists
are obvious targets for theft. Exercise caution when walking
around town and stick to groups especially at night. If your
hotel is away from the centre, catch a taxi at night. Make
sure your passport is safe at all times; replacing an international
passport in Zimbabwe is a nightmare. Despite Zimbabwe’s
political problems there have been few incidents of unrest
in Victoria Falls and this is not a region affected by the
farm issue. However, in the event of political unrest, don’t
get involved, return to your hotel and listen to the advice
of the staff, who know much more than you do about what’s
going on locally. Get used to being badgered on the streets
by money changers, curio sellers and the odd person who will
offer you drugs – the answer is to politely ignore them. |
| Because of the Zimbabwe dollar’s
wildly fluctuating exchange rates there is a huge black market
in the country but remember, this is illegal and you could
be prosecuted if caught changing money on the street. Be warned, because
you will be stalked constantly by money changers at Victoria
Falls. The official bank rate is pegged at a fraction of what
it is on the black market so do not change money in the banks
or withdraw cash from the ATMs. In fact, do not use a credit
card at all anywhere in Zimbabwe or you will be paying 20-30
times more than you should be! The bureaux de change that
are scattered throughout town offer the best rate. It's known
as the ‘parallel rate’ and is much higher than
the bank rate. It’s best to ask your tour leader or
hotel manager on arrival where the best place to change money
is. |
One of the must-do Vic Falls
experiences is taking high tea at the original Victoria Falls
Hotel, with its colonial features and lovely terrace, where
you can see the bridge and bungee jumpers in the distance.
Due to the economic problems in Zimbabwe, paying the bill
can be rather amusing. Expect to pay around US$12 per head
for a range of teas and a platter of sandwiches, cakes and
scones. At the time of writing that was Z$21 000 in Zimbabwe
dollars. The largest note available is Z$500, so you’ll
need a wad of cash.
Throughout town are a number of good eating
spots, and if you’ve arrived here from the north where
there are few restaurants you’re in for a gut-busting
time. Many of the big hotels have good value buffets. In
the Kingdom Hotel and Casino there is a food court with a
variety of restaurants, from Italian to burger joints. The
Cattleman’s Steakhouse serves up great Zimbabwean steaks,
or you can grab an English breakfast at the Pink Baobab Café.
The Ilala Lodge has a poolside cocktail bar and a nice terrace
restaurant from where you can see the spray of the falls.
By far the best eating experience is at the Boma at the Victoria
Falls Safari Lodge. This is an all-you-can-eat African feast
in a huge and sumptuous boma, beginning with sorghum beer
served in a traditional tin cup, followed by starters such
as crocodile tail or ostrich pate. Then it’s a huge
buffet of every kind of game meat imaginable - and some you
can’t. Mopani worms are eaten all over Zimbabwe;
if you dare to try one you get a certificate. You can also
help yourself to the spit and finish off with plenty of gooey
desserts. Throughout there is a show of traditional dancing
and you can visit the witch doctor to throw the bones.
For
late night drinking the Explorer’s Bar is a Vic Falls
institution. It's frequented by rafters, or River Gods, as they prefer
to think of themselves. |
| There are phone boxes all over
town where you can make an international call, as well
as a number of internet joints. The internet is erratic and
slow and Vic Falls suffers from the odd electricity cut. Despite
this, this is a good place to check your mail if you are travelling
onward through Africa, as opportunities are limited further
north. Post is reasonably reliable and it’s also a good
place to send souvenirs, though costs fluctuate because
of the erratic exchange rate. |
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