Victoria Falls

Getting In and Around

Visas: To enter Zimbabwe, most foreigners require a visa, which can be obtained in advance from an embassy or a consulate or, in some cases, at the airport. All foreigners must have proof of vaccination against yellow fever and cholera. For complete visa details and requirements, check the website of the Embassy of Zimbabwe in Washington, D.C.

Transportation: There are no direct flights to Victoria Falls from overseas, but Air Zimbabwe offers daily flights from Harare, the country’s capital, and British Airways and South African Airways operate daily flights from Johannesburg. Victoria Falls’s recently upgraded airport is about twelve miles from town. Bus companies such as City Link have routes from Harare to Victoria Falls.

Safety and Security

The majority of crimes committed in Victoria Falls are non-violent. However, pick-pocketing and purse snatching does occur, so avoid carrying valuables and remain aware of your surroundings at all times. Proper planning and vigilance are the best ways to avoid any criminal incidents.

Malaria is prevalent throughout Zimbabwe, including in Victoria Falls, so preventive measures should be taken prior to traveling. FYI: June through August are low-risk malaria months.

The Top 3: Local Advice

1. Victoria Falls town is located in southwestern Africa, in the northwestern corner of land-locked Zimbabwe, where the country forms borders with Zambia, Namibia and Botswana.

2. Zimbabwe’s major daily publications are both government-owned: the Herald, which is based in Harare, and the Chronicle, which is based in Bulawayo. NewsDay, the Financial Gazette, the Standard, and Zimbabwe Independent are all private weeklies.

3. Before Scottish explorer David Livingstone arrived at Victoria Falls in 1855 and named the site after his queen, the falls were known in the Makololo language as Mosi oa Tunya, “The Smoke That Thunders.”

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