Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Botswana

HOW TO GET THERE
CURRENCY
ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
ELECTRICAL PLUGS
TIPPING
WHAT TO PACK
ACCOMMODATIONS
SECURITY & SCAMS
INTRO, HISTORY, & GEO

HOW TO GET THERE

This trip starts in Victoria Falls. There are two airports you can fly into – either Victoria Falls Airport (VFA) or Livingstone (LIV). Most airlines from the US fly to either Johannesburg or Cape Town before flying into Victoria Falls. If your flight schedule has you overnight in Joburg or Cape Town, we can recommend hotels for you.

If you are arriving early or staying later, please let us know and we will contact our supplier to get a group rate at the hotel so you only have to check in once.

You can easily route your flights using FlightsFrom.com to view the best way to get to and from destinations. We also recommend using Google Flights to compare the different airlines and their prices/routes. ALWAYS book your flights direct on and airline’s website and don’t use third-party sites. You don’t want to have issues in travel and must rely on calling a third-party for assistance. Airlines will not speak with you directly about third-party bookings.

CURRENCY

While different currencies are used locally in Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Botswana, the US dollar is accepted everywhere. Have plenty of US cash in small bills on hand for shopping and eating out. Credit cards are accepted in a few places.

Try downloading a currency app like XE Currency to see the most current currency conversion.

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS

You need a visa for this trip, but it is easy to get upon arrival at the airport. The entry requirements for US citizens to visit these countries is a passport with at least 6 months of validity and 1 blank page. For more information, please visit the State Department website here.

There are not vaccination requirements to visit as of June 19, 2023, but we always recommend checking Sherpa travel requirements that are updated by the government. That site can be found here.

ELECTRICAL PLUGS

If you traveling to nearby countries know that the Type M plug will work in Lesotho Swaziland, Mozambique, South Africa, Botswana, Namibia while the Type D is used in Niger, Senegal, Chad, Congo, Botswana, Madagascar, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Ghana, Nigeria, Sierra, Tanzania and Libya. We recommend purchasing a universal adapter/converter, so you don’t have any issues.

Click here to purchase your adapter/converter and see other travel accessories that will be great for this trip.

TIPPING

Each traveler will be expected to tip $100 USD to your guides. Your Happy Ambassador will collect tips from you at the end of the trip to distribute to the guides. You will need to have this cash ready before each tour to give your guides/drivers at the end of their service.

WHAT TO PACK

Packing for your trip to Victoria Falls or any safari trip trip can be difficult especially if it’s your first time and you are not sure what to expect. From our experience, we have found that Victoria Falls is normally part of a longer trip to Africa and this, of course, will need to be taken into consideration when packing, and you might need a separate list for each segment of your trip. Packing cubes can be very useful for this purpose.
Victoria Falls (Zimbabwe) is a very small tourist-based town – you will not find big malls, just small shopping centres, so the first advice would be to ensure that you have everything that you may need before arriving. Please don’t leave any shopping for essentials for when you get here, as it is more than likely that you will not be able to get them – especially any specific medication that you may need.

What Clothes to Bring
It is very important to know the weather at the time of the year that you will be travelling. Please check weather online for more details on expected temperatures and rainfall throughout the year.

One of the big mistakes is thinking that Africa is always hot. It can and does also get very cold in winter (June and July) especially on early morning game drives and activities, when a good jacket, scarf, gloves and a woollen hat are essential. However, it does warm up quite quickly so layers are the best advice, peel off the jackets and jerseys.
Outside of the very short winter, days are hot to very hot but nights can still get cool and a windbreaker/ waterproof jacket is still a good idea. For the very hot days, a little secret is to bring a bandana or buff, which can be dipped in water and is very refreshing and cooling around your neck.
Victoria Falls is a pretty casual destination and there are no specific restrictions on what you can and cannot wear, except for camouflage, which is prohibited. During the day shorts and tshirts are very much the order of the day. During the evening the top-end hotels have a smartcasual dress code and most other places are very casual, even shorts will suffice. Zimbabwe is a colourful nation so although neutral coloured clothing is the norm for when you are actually on safari when in town feel free to be as brightly coloured as you desire. All hotels and lodges will provide a laundry service so think three to four outfits.

Suggested Packing List

Clothing
• Comfortable sneakers/sandals/walking shoes for walking the Victoria Falls rainforest, game
activities etc.
• Flip-flops or similar for around the pool/hotel and even on some activities.
• Good wide-brimmed hat and/or cap.
• Shorts/cut-offs for daytime wear.
• Sleeveless cotton shirts/ T-shirts for daytime wear. Easily breathable fabrics are more
comfortable in a hot climate.
• Earth-toned clothing, if you are going on safari.
• Jeans, pants or trousers and cotton long sleeve shirts for evenings, as this is good prevention
against mosquitoes.
• Loose-fitting, harem like pants for comfort around your hotel.
• Sarong
• Bandana or Buff
• Bathing Suit
• Underwear
• Socks, essential to keep the mosquitoes at bay
• Winter months can get cold especially on safari so a good fleece/jacket, gloves, scarf and
woollen hat.
• Summer months – light windproof jacket and jersey

Additionals
• Toiletries
• Sunscreen
• Insect Repellent
• All Medication *Malaria Prophylactics
• Plug Adapter – although a lot of places now have universal power sockets
• Powerpack to top up your electronics
• Small Torch to get around at night
• Sunglasses to protect your eyes from the African sun.
• Water Bottle, so that where possible, you don’t have to buy plastic bottled water and you can
refill your bottle from the water stations.
• Rehydrates – During the hot months you will sweat a lot and topping up vital salts and
minerals is essential to keep your energy levels up.

Cameras and Binoculars
Cameras – these days modern cell phones take brilliant photographs in high resolution, that can capture your holiday perfectly. But for someone wanting a bit more functionality than happy snaps, I would recommend a bridge camera. They are now so advanced and compact but give you the same shooting power and versatility of professional-looking camera bodies and huge lenses that one used to have to lug around. Don’t forget to bring extra batteries, memory cards and your chargers.

Documents to Pack
These are pretty obvious to most international travellers but serve here as reminder.
Passport and visas – you can get your visa upon arrival at the airport
Travel Insurance
Credit cards and cash

Things Not To Pack
High heels
Skirts
Camouflage clothing, as this is prohibited in Zimbabwe
Drones as they are illegal in Zimbabwe
Valuable and sentimental jewellery, it is best left safely at home

If you would like to include some of the local community needs in your packing, Pack for a Purpose is a charitable organization that encourages travellers to devote five pounds worth of their luggage weight allowance to school supplies, medical equipment and other necessities that can be donated to locals in need. Please have a look at their website where you will find further details.

ACCOMMODATIONS

You will be staying at the Nkhosi Livingstone Lodge & Spa. Our very own Happy Ambassador and avid Happy traveler, Kathy Matyas, is the part owner of this BRAND NEW, amazing property! https://www.nkhosilivingstone.com/ An upscale value-for-money resort Lodge located in the rural Mukuni Village, just seven kilometers from the world heritage site of the Victoria Falls, right by the Elephant’s corridor. A fabric patterns statement, art pieces that fill the interior. Rooms furnished with locally sourced products, with the use of the sustainable practice, we make sure we give our guests a comfortable stay using solar lighting and natural hot water showers. The natural environment with beautiful gardens, and a pool to relax in after a full packed day of activities. Culture exchange with the local villagers that also showcase their curial art crafts, our youth, and women empowerment programs our clients can also participate in visiting to experience what we are doing to help the locals achieve their dreams through their sustainability ventures.

SECURITY & SCAMS

Victoria Falls is a safe place to visit (as long as you are mindful of the guardrails). While the countries that share control of Victoria Falls, Zambia and Zimbabwe, have some problems, the area around Victoria Falls is safe. As always when you travel, be aware of your surroundings and belongings to avoid petty theft.

INTRO, HISTORY, & GEO

One of the most stirring sights in Africa, the Victoria Falls is a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of the Seven Wonders of the Natural World. It is where the mile-/kilometer-wide Zambezi River suddenly plunges 30 stories into the Bakota Gorge, at times spilling water at a volume of more than 2 million gallons/7.6 million liters per second. Rainbows, mist and the tremendous roar of the water stir the senses—few other natural wonders match the raw power of the Victoria Falls.
The first European to see them was David Livingstone on 17 November 1855, during his 1852-56 journey from the upper Zambezi to the mouth of the river. The falls were already well known to the local people and the Matabele named them Mosi-au-Tunya, “the smoke that thunders,” because of the cloud of spray that rises above them. Livingstone named them in honor of Queen Victoria.
Livingstone’s fantastic stories attracted many European adventurers and travelers, and the town of Victoria Falls quickly grew. The famous Victoria Falls Bridge and Victoria Falls Hotel were both built in 1905. Today there are numerous hotels, attractions and activities around town and no shortage of operators to organize it all..
The falls themselves can be seen within the Victoria Falls National Park, where there are many viewpoints. There’s another major viewing point from the Victoria Falls Bridge that connects Zimbabwe to Zambia. It can be crossed on foot and the border guards will issue you a day pass to access the bridge, which serves as no-man’s-land between the two country’s borders. We highly recommend this view, as the angle up the gorge of the Zambezi to the center of the falls is spectacular. If you are feeling daredevilish, you can bungee jump—a 360- ft/110-m plunge—off the bridge.
Apart from the falls themselves, there are few sights, but there are lots of activities below and above the falls and on the Zambezi River. During most of the year, you can go whitewater rafting (the rapids are world-class), canoeing, elephant and horseback riding in the surrounding bush, and for the very active, rappeling or gorge-swinging (flying fox and rap jumping) in the Batoka Gorge.