Don't be a tourist, be a traveler, world in motion
EnglishUSDNewsletterWimup Videos ↗
Plan a trip
Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, top 10 things to do (Wimup travel guide)
Top 10AfricaZimbabwe

Top 10 Things To Do in Victoria Falls

Country
Zimbabwe
Best months
Mar–May for peak water
Population
35,199
Language
English
Budget / day
$130–280
Quick answer

The best things to do are the rainforest path through the national park, the historic tour under the 1905 bridge, a sunset cruise on the upper Zambezi, a day rafting the Batoka Gorge and a game drive in Zambezi National Park. Three to four days is right. The month decides what is possible: the Zambezi peaks in April and bottoms out in November.

David Livingstone reached the lip in 1855 and named the falls for his queen; the Tonga name, Mosi-oa-Tunya, is the one UNESCO used in 1989. The sheet is 1,708 metres across, the largest curtain of falling water on the planet. The town is a resort of 35,000 whose entire economy is the gorge.

The 10 best things to do in Victoria Falls

1

Walk the rainforest path in Victoria Falls National Park

Waterfall· Livingstone Way, Victoria Falls National Park, Victoria Falls

The reason the town exists, and a morning to do properly: a kilometre and a half through rainforest fed entirely by spray, with sixteen viewpoints along the rim. Zimbabwe holds two thirds of the frontage and keeps water year round. Go early, when the light comes from behind you.

Time2 to 3 hr
CostUS$58 for international day visitors at the main gate (2026 tariff, after VAT)
Best at06:00
TipFrom March to May you will be soaked: bring a poncho and a dry bag
Map↗ Website
Victoria Falls Bridge, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe (Wimup)
2

Cross the 1905 bridge, and walk underneath it

Landmark· Victoria Falls Bridge, Victoria Falls

Rhodes ordered it and never saw it; it opened in 1905, a steel arch 111 metres above the Zambezi still carrying road, rail and foot traffic. The historic tour is the part worth booking: a catwalk under the deck, where the engineering and the full-circle rainbows both make sense.

Time1 to 2 hr
CostPaid guided tour
Best atLate afternoon
TipWatch a bungee jump from the walkway first, then decide whether you want one
Map↗ Website
3

Take a sunset cruise on the upper Zambezi

River· Zambezi Drive jetties, upstream of the falls, Victoria Falls

Above the lip the river is a different place: broad, slow and split by wooded islands, with hippo in the channels and elephant crossing at dusk. The big boats have the steadier bar; the small launches get closer to the banks. The one activity that works in every month.

Time2 to 3 hr
CostBooked through the operator
Best atThe departure roughly two hours before sunset
TipAsk which boat you are on before booking: the difference between 16 guests and 100
Map↗ Website
4

Raft the Batoka Gorge

Adventure· Batoka Gorge, downstream of the Victoria Falls Bridge, Victoria Falls

The water funnels into a basalt slot and becomes one of the great commercial whitewater runs anywhere: big-volume rather than technical, which means huge waves and a real chance of swimming. August to December runs the full course. Nobody warns you about the climb out.

TimeFull day
CostBooked through the operator
Best atAugust to December
TipThe walk out is 30 to 40 minutes of uneven steps: porters carry the kit, not you
Map↗ Website
Zambezi National Park, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe (Wimup)
5

Take a game drive in Zambezi National Park

Wildlife· Zambezi National Park, Parkway Drive, Victoria Falls

The park starts at the edge of town and runs upstream along the south bank. The river drive is the good one: elephant, buffalo, sable and giraffe, with no crowds compared with Chobe. Late in the dry season the animals come to the river and it gets much better.

Time3 hr
CostPark entry fee plus the operator's drive
Best atThe first drive of the morning
TipJuly to October concentrates the game on the river
Map↗ Website
Victoria Falls Airport, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe (Wimup)
6

See the whole 1.7 km from a helicopter

Scenic flight· Victoria Falls Airport, Victoria Falls

The only way to take the full width in at once. From the ground you see the falls in sections; from 300 metres you see one continuous line disappearing into a zigzag of gorges the river has cut and abandoned. Thirteen minutes gives two passes; twenty-two adds the Batoka Gorge.

Time13 or 22 min in the air
CostPriced per person
Best atMid-morning
TipAt peak flow the spray can swallow the falls: the longer flight buys extra passes and better odds
Map↗ Website
7

Eat lunch on the lip of the Batoka Gorge

Café· The Lookout Café, Batoka Gorge, Victoria Falls

The Lookout Café is built out over the gorge 120 metres above the Zambezi, looking straight at the bridge. The menu is fine but the position is the reason: the gorge swing and zip line launch from the same rock, so you eat while other people scream past. Free to walk in.

Time1 to 2 hr
CostFree to visit
Best atLate morning
TipBook a front table by the rail rather than taking what you are given at the door
Map↗ Website
The Victoria Falls Hotel, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe (Wimup)
8

Take high tea on Stanley's Terrace

Hotel· The Victoria Falls Hotel, Mallett Drive, Victoria Falls

The hotel opened in 1904, a year before the bridge it was built to serve, and the terrace looks down a lawn at the gorge and the column of spray. Tea is three tiers, silver and a view that has not changed in a century. Colonial-era theatre, and worth doing once.

Time1 to 2 hr
CostSet price per person
Best at15:00
TipBook ahead in the July to October high season
Map↗ Website
9

Book the Boma for dinner and the drum show

Dinner show· Victoria Falls Safari Lodge estate, Squire Cummings Road, Victoria Falls

Every visitor ends up here and most enjoy it more than they expected: wrapped in a chitenge at the door, fed a braai buffet, handed a drum. A set piece rather than a restaurant, staged for exactly the audience it gets, and the drumming is genuinely good. Book it for a first night.

TimeAbout 3 hr
CostSet menu per person
Best atArrive at sunset
TipReturn transfers from town hotels are offered at US$12 a person, which beats a late taxi
Map↗ Website
10

Swim Devil's Pool on Livingstone Island

Adventure· Livingstone Island, Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park, Livingstone, Zambia

A rock rim on the far side of the island holds back a pool you can sit in with the drop under your feet. It only exists when the river is low, typically mid-August to December. Access is from the Zambian side, so it means crossing the border, and it is the best hour anyone spends here.

TimeHalf a day with the border crossing
CostBooked with Livingstone Island
Best atOctober and November
TipA KAZA UniVisa at US$50 covers Zimbabwe and Zambia for 30 days and is issued at the border and both airports
Map↗ Website

7 of the 10, mapped

Victoria Falls · 7 spots
AllLandmarksMuseumsFoodFree

Victoria Falls travel FAQ

How many days do you need in Victoria Falls?+
Three to four. One covers the rainforest path, the bridge and the town. A second takes the river: a game drive in the morning and a sunset cruise to close it. A third is for whichever big activity you came for. A fourth buys the Zambian side or a day trip to Chobe.
When is the best time to visit Victoria Falls?+
It depends what you want. The falls peak between March and May, with April the most dramatic and the wettest to stand near. June to September is the comfortable middle: strong water, dry weather and the best wildlife viewing. September to December drops the flow, which closes some spectacle but opens Devil's Pool and the rafting course.
Is the Zimbabwe side or the Zambia side better?+
Zimbabwe, for the falls themselves. It holds two thirds of the frontage and keeps water year round, while the Zambian lip can dry to rock in October and November. Zambia gives you the Knife-Edge Bridge and, in low water, Devil's Pool. The bridge between them is fifteen minutes on foot, so base here and cross for a day.
How much does it cost to enter Victoria Falls?+
Under the 2026 tariff, international day visitors pay US$58 at the main gate, and moonlight viewing is charged separately at US$116. The gate opens at 06:00 and closes at 18:00, and the ticket is single entry, so leaving means paying again to return.
Do I need a visa, and what money should I bring?+
Most nationalities are issued a visa on arrival. If you plan to cross to Zambia, ask for the KAZA UniVisa: US$50, valid 30 days, multiple entries. Bring US dollars in small denominations, because tourism is priced in dollars, change is scarce, and stalls and taxis do not take cards.
Adventure

Best adventure in Victoria Falls

Eight ways off the edge, run by two long-established operators on the bridge and the gorge.
Victoria Falls Bridge

The bungee jump from the bridge

111 m free fall

One hundred and eleven metres from the deck into the Batoka Gorge, run by Shearwater for decades. Bring your passport, because the platform sits on the border.

Map↗ Website
Victoria Falls Bridge

The bridge swing

70 m drop, then the swing

A 70 metre free fall that converts into a long pendulum down the gorge, scarier to watch and easier to commit to than the bungee.

Map↗ Website
Victoria Falls Bridge

The bridge slide

No free fall

A cable run out from the bridge, upright and harnessed, with no drop. The gentle option, and it crosses between the two countries on the way.

Map↗ Website
Batoka Gorge

The gorge swing at the Lookout

Solo or tandem

Launched from the rock beside the café, so your audience is a terrace of people eating lunch. A free fall that turns into a swing across the gorge.

Map↗ Website
Batoka Gorge

The zip line across the gorge

Head first, single or tandem

A fast, steep cable run out over the Zambezi, taken head first. Usually sold with the gorge swing and the flying fox as a combination.

Map↗ Website
Batoka Gorge

The flying fox

The gentlest of the cable rides

A horizontal high-wire run out over the gorge, face down, with no drop. The entry-level cable activity that makes the rest look survivable.

Map↗ Website
Batoka Gorge

Abseiling and rap jumping

Forwards or backwards

Down the gorge wall on a rope, backwards or facing the ground. The only gorge activity you can repeat as many times as your arms hold out.

Map↗ Website
Zambezi gorges

The canopy tour

Family friendly, about 2 hr

Slides and rope bridges through the hardwood canopy above the gorges, paced for families. The best option for children too young for the bridge.

Map↗ Website
On the water

Best river cruises in Victoria Falls

Four ways onto the upper Zambezi, from a hundred-seat deck to a fishing line.
Upper Zambezi

Zambezi Explorer

Multi-deck, premium upper level

The largest boat on the river and the most comfortable if you book the upper deck, which has its own bar and a smaller crowd. A solid choice for a group.

Map
Upper Zambezi

Ra-Ikane

Small launches, close to the bank

Three small launches modelled on Livingstone's boat, carrying a fraction of the passengers and working the banks, which is where the hippo are.

Map↗ Website
Upper Zambezi

A canoe safari above the falls

Half or full day

Half or full days paddling the braided channels upstream, drifting past islands and elephant crossings. The quietest thing you can do on the Zambezi.

Map
Upper Zambezi

Tiger fishing on the Zambezi

Guided, catch and release

The river holds tigerfish, and catching one is a fight out of proportion to the boat. Guided, tackle provided, almost everything returned.

Map
Parks and wildlife

Best parks and wildlife in Victoria Falls

What the town protects when it is not selling adrenaline, including a tree older than the country.
Airport road

Wild Horizons Wildlife Sanctuary

4,500 acres, since 1992

Private wilderness on the edge of Zambezi National Park. The elephant sanctuary began in 1992 with four orphans of the Hwange culls.

Map↗ Website
Victoria Falls

Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust

Research and veterinary work

The local research and veterinary outfit rather than an attraction, working on wildlife conflict and anti-poaching. Read what it does before choosing what to pay for.

Map↗ Website
12 km from town

Stanley and Livingstone Private Game Reserve

Big five, black rhino

Four thousand hectares twelve kilometres out, with the big five and a closely guarded black rhino population. The rhino tracking is the point.

Map
Zambezi Drive

The Big Tree

About 1,150 years old

A baobab on Zambezi Drive, 22.4 metres around and dated in 2021 to roughly 1,150 years, which makes it eleven centuries older than the town. Free, five minutes.

Map
Restaurants

Best restaurants in Victoria Falls

Seven kitchens worth a table, from a township courtyard to the hotel dining room.
Town centre

Three Monkeys

Pizza, grills, live music

The default answer when anyone in town is asked where to eat, built around a restored 1935 railway carriage. Live music several nights, and residents as well as visitors.

Map
Livingstone Way

Cassia at Ilala Lodge

Fine dining, deep wine list

The most serious cooking in the centre of town, with the longest wine list here and a lawn facing the spray. Close enough to eat to the sound of the falls.

Map
Mallett Drive

The Livingstone Room

Formal dinner at the 1904 hotel

The Victoria Falls Hotel's formal restaurant: silver, a pianist and a menu that has not modernised. The companion to high tea outside.

Map↗ Website
Safari Lodge estate

MaKuwa-Kuwa

Waterhole views, game meat

The restaurant at Victoria Falls Safari Lodge, on a deck above a waterhole, so dinner comes with whatever has walked in to drink. Game meat handled properly.

Map↗ Website
Chinotimba

Dusty Road

Traditional cooking, book ahead

In Chinotimba, where most of Victoria Falls actually lives, cooking Zimbabwean food over open flames in cast iron. The most interesting meal in town.

Map
Town centre

Mama Africa Eating House

African plates, live jazz

A township-style eating house with a resident jazz band and African dishes served with sadza. The hot pots are what to order.

Map
Zambezi Drive

Zambezi House

Riverside grill, communal tables

Communal tables, a grill and a large deck upstream of the falls. The relaxed alternative to a boat if you would rather watch the river than be on it.

Map
Bars and nightlife

Best bars and nightlife in Victoria Falls

A short list, because this is a small town, and the best drink here comes with a view rather than a queue.
Safari Lodge estate

Buffalo Bar

Sundowners over a waterhole

The deck at Victoria Falls Safari Lodge, over a waterhole with the sun going down behind it. The vulture feeding happens below the deck at 13:00.

Map↗ Website
Mallett Drive

Stanley's Bar

Hotel bar, classic cocktails

A small, dark, panelled room at the Victoria Falls Hotel where the gin and tonics are properly made. The drink before dinner rather than after.

Map↗ Website
Town centre

Shoestrings Backpackers

Late, loud, central

The late bar where the guides drink once their groups are in bed. The only place in town that reliably runs past midnight.

Map↗ Website
By the river

River Brew Co

Craft beer and smokehouse

A riverside taproom with its own beers, a smokehouse kitchen and weekend live music. Take a taxi back: animals move through town after dark.

Map↗ Website
Shopping and crafts

Best shopping and crafts in Victoria Falls

Where the carving, the silver and the stone are made rather than imported.
273 Adam Stander Drive

Elephant's Walk Shopping and Artist Village

Open daily 08:00 to 17:00, free entry

An open-air village of studios and galleries in a garden, with artists working on site rather than shipping in stock. Free, and the place for a hot afternoon.

Map↗ Website
Elephant's Walk

The Ndau Collection

Silver and antique trade beads

A jewellery studio founded here in 1998, working handmade silver around antique African trade beads. Each piece is one-off.

Map↗ Website
Town centre

Jairos Jiri Craft Shop

Crafts in aid of the association

Shona sculpture and textiles in aid of an association supporting disabled Zimbabweans since the 1950s. The one craft purchase with a paper trail.

Map
Zambezi Drive

The craft stalls at the Big Tree

Bargaining expected, cash only

A line of stalls beside the baobab selling carvings and basketwork. Bring small US notes, and decide your price before you start.

Map
Day trips

Best day trips in Victoria Falls

Three borders sit within an hour of this town, and two of the four trips below cross one.
Botswana, via Kazungula

Chobe National Park, Botswana

Full day, boat and game drive

The classic day out: cross at Kazungula, a boat on the Chobe river in the morning and a game vehicle after lunch. Chobe holds the largest elephant population of any park.

Map
Hwange National ParkSouthern Zimbabwe

Hwange National Park

2 hr 30 drive each way

Zimbabwe's biggest park, two and a half hours south, with elephant, lion and strong painted dog numbers. Stay a night rather than day-tripping it.

Map
Zambia

The Zambian side at Livingstone

Border crossing, half a day

Walk or drive across for the Knife-Edge Bridge and the face-on view back into the gorge that Zimbabwe cannot offer. Spectacular in high water, bare rock in November.

Map
Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park, ZambiaZambia

Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park, Zambia

Rhino tracking on foot

A small park along the Zambian bank with a white rhino population tracked on foot with armed rangers. The most reliable rhino sighting in the region.

Map
What's on

Festivals & annual events in Victoria Falls (2026)

Time your trip around the city's biggest dates.
Apr

Peak water on the Zambezi

The river lags the rains by two months, so the falls peak in April: the most impressive month, and the hardest to photograph.

Mar–Jun

Lunar rainbow nights

Around each full moon in the high-water months the park opens for moonlight viewing and the spray throws a moonbow.

18 Apr

Independence Day

Zimbabwe marks independence from Britain in 1980. Offices close, tourism does not, and hotels fill with Zimbabwean families.

5 Jul 2026

Econet Victoria Falls Marathon

The town's biggest sporting weekend, in early July, with a full marathon, a half and a fun run. Entries and beds go together.

Aug

Heroes' Day and Defence Forces Day

Two consecutive August holidays make the longest domestic travel weekend of the year. Expect full lodges and higher rates.

Sep–Dec

Low water and the Devil's Pool season

As the flow drops, Livingstone Island and Devil's Pool open from mid-August and the full rafting course runs through December.

22 Dec

Unity Day

A holiday marking the 1987 accord that ended the conflict of the early 1980s. It opens the Christmas run, which is peak season.

29–31 Dec

Victoria Falls Carnival

Three nights of live music, a river party and a bush dinner over New Year, drawing acts from across southern Africa.

Getting around

Victoria Falls transport & airports

How to arrive and move around the city.
VFA

Victoria Falls International Airport

About 18 kilometres south on the Bulawayo road, rebuilt in 2016 to take wide-body aircraft. Regional flights connect Johannesburg, Nairobi and Addis Ababa. A taxi into town takes about twenty minutes.

Map↗ Website
472 km

The overnight train from Bulawayo

A sleeper service on the 472 kilometre line: out Friday evening, back Sunday evening. First class berths and economy seats, slow, unreliable and much loved.

Map↗ Website
Centre is walkable

Taxis, shuttles and walking

The centre is a handful of blocks and the falls gate is a fifteen minute walk from most hotels. Do not walk between hotels after dark: elephant and buffalo move through, so lodges provide escorts.

Map
Passport

The border crossings

Two borders sit within an hour: the bridge to Zambia and Livingstone, and Kazungula to the west for Botswana. The KAZA UniVisa covers Zimbabwe and Zambia for 30 days and is issued on arrival.

Map
Traditional food

Must-try dishes in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe

The classics to order before you leave.
Zambezi bream, Victoria Falls (Wimup travel guide)

Zambezi bream

Tilapia from the river, grilled whole or pan fried with lemon and a chilli relish.

Sadza ne nyama

A stiff white maize porridge rolled by hand and dipped into a stew of beef, goat or chicken.

Muriwo une dovi

Leafy greens cooked down with onion, tomato and peanut butter until rich and nutty.

Madora, the mopane worms

Caterpillars dried or smoked, then fried with onion and tomato. A staple in Matabeleland, not a dare.

Kapenta

Small dried fish netted on Lake Kariba, fried crisp with tomato and onion over sadza.

Game meat

Kudu, eland, warthog and crocodile appear on tourist menus. Kudu first: lean, dark and closer to venison.

Nhopi

Pumpkin pureed with maize meal and finished with peanut butter, sweet or savoury. Usually a side.

Maheu

A thick, mildly fermented maize drink sold cold at every stall. Somewhere between a drink and a snack.

Victoria Falls fact sheet

Victoria Falls at a glance

The essentials worth knowing before you go.
Country
Zimbabwe
Region
Matabeleland North, on the south bank of the Zambezi
Population
35,199 in the town (2022 census)
Founded
Grew around the railway and the bridge, which opened in September 1905
Nickname
Mosi-oa-Tunya, the smoke that thunders
Language
English, with Nambya, Ndebele, Tonga and Shona in daily use
Currency
US dollars in everyday use alongside the Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG)
Time zone
UTC+2, no daylight saving
Calling code
+263
Airports
Victoria Falls International (VFA), 18 km south of town
Power
230V, 50Hz, types D and G
Emergency
999 for all services, 995 police, 994 ambulance, 993 fire
Ideal length
3 to 4 days
Getting around
Walk the centre, taxis and hotel shuttles beyond it
Tourism board
Official site

Interesting facts

  • At 1,708 metres across, Victoria Falls is neither the tallest nor widest waterfall, but the largest single sheet of falling water anywhere.
  • Livingstone reached the lip in 1855 and named the falls for his queen. The Tonga name, Mosi-oa-Tunya, is the one UNESCO used in 1989.
  • Cecil Rhodes ordered the bridge built where the spray would fall on the carriages, and never saw it: he died in 1902, it opened in 1905.
  • The Big Tree, a baobab on Zambezi Drive, was dated in 2021 to roughly 1,150 years, with a trunk 22.4 metres around.
  • The park has no fence on the town side, so elephant and buffalo walk down residential streets at night. Hotels escort guests after dark.

Headed to Victoria Falls?

Get our one-page Victoria Falls cheat sheet plus a fresh destination every Thursday.

Photo credits (8)