The Elephant Hills Resort

Victoria Falls

The Victoria falls is 1708 meters wide, described by the Kololo tribe living in the area in the 1800’s as ‘Mosi-oa-Tunya’ - ‘the Smoke that Thunders’ and in more modern terms as ‘the greatest known curtain of falling water’.  It drops between 90m and 107m into the Zambezi Gorge and an average of 550,000 cubic metres of water plummet over the edge every minute.

Facing the Falls is another sheer wall of basalt, rising to the same height and capped by mist-soaked rain forest. A path along the edge of the forest provides the visitor who is prepared to brave the tremendous spray with an unparalleled series of views of the Falls.

One special vantage point is across the Knife edge bridge, where visitors can have the finest view of the Eastern Cataract and the Main Falls as well as the Boiling Pot where the river turns and heads down the Batoka Gorge. Other vantage points include the Falls bridge and the Lookout Tree which commands a panoramic view across the Main Falls.

Victoria Falls Demographic

National Parks

Open to visitors throughout the year, the Victoria Falls National Park in north-western Zimbabwe protects the south and east bank of the Zambezi River. It covers 23.4 km² extending from the larger Zambezi National Park about 6 km above the falls to about 12 km below the falls.

A notable feature of the park is the rainforest which grows in the spray of the falls, including ferns, palms, liana vines, and a number of trees such as mahogany not seen elsewhere in the region.

Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park in Zambia is an UNESCO World Heritage site and is twinned to the Victoria Falls National Park on the Zimbabwean side. It stretches from and including the Falls for about 12kms up river. It is only 66 square kilometers but provides a home for numerous antelope species, zebra, giraffe and the recently acquired white rhinos, one of whom gave birth in the park in 1994. These are the only rhinos to be seen in Zambia as its previously large population has been completely eliminated through poaching.

It froms the south-western boundary of Livingstone and has two main sections, a wildlife park at its north-western end and the land adjacent to the Victoria Falls.

Nearby Towns

Victoria Falls town (in Zimbabwe) lies on the southern bank of the Zambezi River at the eastern end of the Victoria Falls themselves. Victoria Falls Airport is 18 km south of the town and has international services to Johannesburg and Namibia.

Livingstone (in Zambia) is a historic colonial city and tourism centre for Victoria Falls lying 10 km south on the Zambezi River, and a border town with road and rail connections to Zimbabwe on the other side of the Falls. The Airport has connections to Lusaka and Johannesburg in South Africa.

Shopping

The best place for a wide range of crafts and curios is the Mukuni Victoria Falls Craft Village. From intricate animal carvings in stone, wood, or the beautiful green malachite, masks, drums, marimbas, spoons, book ends, walking sticks, jewellery and much more.

Getting There

The Falls can be approached from the town of Livingstone by traveling south on Mosi O Tunya road for some 11 kilometers. Just before the border, there is a turning to the right which leads to a parking area. Walks all around the Falls are accessible from this point. If approaching from Zimbabwe, cross the border at the town of Victoria Falls and watch for the left turning just after the Zambian customs post.

Victoria Falls Visa requirements

Nationality	Requires Visa
American	Yes
British	Yes
European Union	Yes
South African	No

Victoria Falls Weather

Winter:  May to Mid August - in Victoria Falls is mild and dry. Average high temperatures ranging from 25-27°C (77-81°F) and average lows between 7-10°C (45-50°F). Not a bad winter day!

Summer:  Mid August to end April - in Victoria Falls is generally hot to very hot and wet during the rainy season (Mid November to April). Average highs between 32-34°C (90-93°F) and average lows between 15-19°C (59-66°F)

Seasons

The river's annual flood season is February to May with a peak in April. The spray from the falls typically rises to a height of over 400 metres (1,300 ft), and sometimes even twice as high, and is visible from up to 50 km (30 miles) away.

During the flood season, however, it is impossible to see the foot of the falls and most of its face, and the walks along the cliff opposite it are in a constant shower and shrouded in mist. Close to the edge of the cliff, spray shoots upward like inverted rain, especially at Zambia's Knife-Edge Bridge.

As the dry season takes effect, the islets on the crest become wider and more numerous, and in September to January up to half of the rocky face of the falls may become dry and the bottom of the First Gorge can be seen along most of its length.

The minimum flow, which occurs in November, is around a tenth of the April figure.