Victoria Falls
Life-long memories are made at Victoria Falls, where you can ride the rapids of the great Zambezi River, spot game from the back of an elephant, abseil Indiana-Jones-like over the Batoka Gorge, or watch monkeys romp on your balcony. And that’s before you get to the Falls themselves, where that timeless African magic will enchant you as paths bordered by ferns, vine-draped ebonies, palms and the orange flames of Stralitzia lead you to the spectacular “smoke that thunders”.
Every viewing point offers a grandstand spectacle as water tumbles into the gorge in veils of white spray giving rise to myriad rainbows. The mist nurtures a lush pocket of rainforest, a World Heritage Site that is home to bushbuck, monkeys, butterflies and birds. Small wonder David Livingstone — on first approaching the Falls by dugout canoe in November 1855 — called them “the most wonderful sight in Africa”.
The Shona people believe the Victoria Falls are guarded by the Chipique, a long serpent-like creature with a thick body and human face. Local fishermen say he appears at night to oversee his domain. However, since visitors are not allowed in the area after dark, few will be able to put this theory to the test.
If you’re feeling adventurous, experience this slice of paradise by helicopter. A 15-minute flight throws the landscape into stunning, three-dimensional focus. Circle the Falls, dip into their misty breath and then head up river above elephant and impala.
If you’re feeling really brave, why not try a bungee jump? The one at Victoria Falls is the highest in the world with a 111-metre plummet towards the Zambezi River.
The sheer-sided, high-velocity zigzag rafting run of the Batoka Gorge offers more thrills and spills if you fancy some white water rafting down the Zambezi.
Later, a potent cocktail of African sunset, white wine and a slowly chugging riverboat will make for a tipsy cinematic evening on the glossy Upper Zambezi where pods of hippo balefully eye the barges and crocodiles gnash fearsome teeth on sandy banks.
It was this same broad ribbon of river that Livingstone described as ‘… so lovely (it) must have been gazed on by angels in their flight’.
True, Zimbabwe’s economy is in free-fall but its hotels are superb, its natural resources outstanding and its professional service second to none, while the quaint town itself still has the feel of a frontier outpost offering textiles, crafts, sculptures and ceremonial masks. At times like this, your bags will almost pack themselves …