We flew with Nationwide Airlines to Livingstone from Johannesburg for the final leg of our holiday. We had booked into the Zambezi Sun for three nights. There are only a couple of Hotels at Victoria Falls on the Zambia side including the more luxurious Royal Livingstone. Victoria Falls is sandwiched between Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The Zambezi Sun is a lovely Hotel set in beautiful grounds with well placed Zebra roaming around and is only a 5 minute walk to the falls. We went in November and this is not the best time to visit as it is summer and the falls are not as spectacular as they would be in the wetter months of March to May. However they were still fantastic and you could actually hear them on the walk from the Hotel to the Falls.
There are lots of nature trails around the Falls and we would to see a family of baboon's (a troop?) every morning. A couple of mornings we would see some elephants across the falls where it was dry. Our guide had told us they would not be able to do this in the wet months. We booked a boat trip along the Zambezi River to Livingstone Island by the Falls and is this was said to be the closest you can get. The island is completely covered during the wet season. We were told that the best view of the Falls was from Zimbabwe, however with the Political Situation you are not advised to go and if you have a British Passport you are even more unwelcome as it is more expensive for a visa!!!! The Victoria Falls Bridge which connects Zambia and Zimbabwe has a checkpoint at half way which if the situation was different you could cross into Zimbabwe. You can also do Bungee Jumping from this bridge if you are brave/stupid enough!!!!
We had an hour in Livingstone (named after David Livingstone) on one day which is about twenty minutes away from Victoria Falls. It is a a small colonial town with only a few shops. It has the Livingstone Museum in it, but not much more. We booked a fishing trip on the Zambezi River as my husband is a fair-weather fisherman. The boat trip was amazing as long as you did not put your hand in the River as there are lots of crocodiles about. I had a go at fishing, but I kept getting my line caught in the trees and it had to be untangled a few times. My husband caught a Tiger fish which he was quite pleased about. He did put it back in the river though. When you are on the river you have Zambia on once side and Zimbabwe on the other.
We saw lots of vultures feeding off a dead elephant on the Zimbabwe side, it was horrible and our fishing guide told us this is because the Army are not being paid so are killing the wildlife to eat. It is so awful what is happening in Zimbabwe, we had an Englishman in our boat who had lived in Harare for years and was telling us what a beautiful country it was before the trouble began. It was beautiful and calm on the river and we really enjoyed it. There are lots of opportunities to see wildlife (and drnk beer)so go and take your camera even if you do not fish.
As I mentioned before, The Royal Livingstone was the more Luxurious Hotel at the Falls and was a 10-15 minute walk from our hotel. There was a shuttle that went between the Zambezi Sun and Royal Livingstone. The Royal Livingstone is on the edge of the falls and on a clear day you can see the whole falls. This Hotel is also set in beautiful grounds, and we would to see cheeky monkeys playing on the grass. There are bars, restaurants and shops in the Hotel. We enjoyed watching the sunset on the river as the Hotel is more open than the Zambezi.
The Hotel that we were staying in also had shops, bars and restaurants in the grounds as you are advised not to wander outside the complex (not that there is anywhere to go anyway!!!) We ate in the Hotel restaurant a few times, but we also tried some of the restaurants around the complex. Both Hotels had lovely pools which were great to cool down in after a long day at the falls or out sight seeing.
If you are adventurous, there are activities that you can do within the falls such as white water rafting, River Boarding, and Canoeing among others. You can also book a helicopter ride over the falls or a Micro Light Aircraft.
There are Game Reserves in the area such as Mosi O Tunya, Lower Zambezi, and Kafue among others. There are also walking safaris, and Elephant Safaris. The people that we met were all very friendly and wanted to tell you about Zambia and the history of it.
You do need a visa for Zambia for most passports, but you get it at the airport on arrival for a seemingly random amount of cash - no change! We were also advised that we had to have a yellow fever certificate, but nobody asked us for it when we were there so check before you tavel. The currency is Zambian Kwacha, but they prefer US Dollars or Pounds Sterling. I would definitely go back to Victoria Falls, but would like to travel in March or April and see them at their best.
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