I was thinking about a trip to Cape Town. A
friend suggested Victoria Falls also.
Actually Victoria Falls sounds much more
interesting. How does one fly from West
Coast US to Victoria Falls? Prefer BA or
LH. Any nice hotels? Guides and/or tours?
Thanks.

The best way to reach Victoria Falls is either from Harare Zimbabwe or Lusaka Zambia. BA and Lufthansa both fly there. I stayed at the Victoria Falls Hotel and it was quite good. Go during the rainy season and the falls are in their true majesty. I will also recommend a boat ride along rhe Zambesi river

Note that Victoria Falls isn't in South Africa, but Zimbabwe.

Not to be alarmist, but the rule of law is being challenged in both places these days, and although you'll almost certainly survive and enjoy a trip to South Africa, you should do a lot of homework to make yourself aware of the situation. The JNB newspaper has an on-line edition (I can't find it in my favorites, drop me a note if it doesn't pop up in a search) and alt.culture.south-africa is the newsgroup to read. Be suspicious of partisans claiming how wonderful things are down there. It's not your grandfather's RSA.

I haven't tried this yet, but I plan to later this year. Fly to Johannesburg and take the 5-star Blue Train to Victoria Falls. BA or LH will take you JNB.

Victoria Falls is quite spectacular: you can fly there from JNB: I recommend flying SAA rather than Air Zimbabwe. (I flew Air Zim 2 years ago: it was "interesting".)
From CPT you will need to connect in JNB on to VFA.

I would not spend too much time in JNB, but VFA is worth a few nites.
You may also want to go to Hwange Nature reserve (used to be called Wankie).
If you want excellent game-watching, you should try the Okavango or Chobe locations in Botswana. (They are pretty expensive though.)
To get to VFA and CPT with BA: SFO - LHR - CPT.
BA also flies in to Harare (capital of Zimbabwe), but to get there from VFA you have to use Air Zim, which I would avoid.
An alternative would be BA to Lusaka, surface to VFA, and then SAA to CPT.


The main newapaper in JNB is the Star: www.star.co.za. (http://www.star.co.za.) There may be links to travel agents or in-bound tour operators.

There are a number of great hotels, with different themes. The Victoria Falls hotel is a colonial style hotel, with a lot of character. Elephant Hills is great to stay at if you want to include some game-watching from the patio.

Activities at VFA:
White water rafting which is supposed to be spectacular (no, you don't go over the Falls, which are 100m deep and 1 mile across).
Bungee jumping off the bridge.
Elephant rides
Zambezi River cruise


Be cautious in CPT, and especially in JNB. Be aware of your surroundings.

Actually Victoria Falls, whilst most certainly not in South Africa, is not in Zimbabwe either. The best view of course is from Zim. The "Falls" are clearly in Zambia. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

Zambia is the more interesting side. You can sit in the falls, right on the edge of the drop. Easy access from Victoria Falls town in Zim, across the bridge.

Yes, Zambia is the best bet. Zimbabwe is not a good place to be at this time. This is sad as it is achingly beautiful.

I've just returned from two weeks in Zimbabwe: the major challenge I anticipated was getting sufficient gas [petrol] to get around the country. However, this wasn't an issue since the Zimbabwean government imported large quantities of petrol prior to the eclipse (21 June) and increased the price by 70%, so there was no shortage. Car rental companies will generally guarantee availability of gas to those who rent cars from them - you just need to visit their offices to fill up.

Zimbabwe is not dangerous for tourists - one should stay clear of farms, but these are not on the typical tourist's itinerary anyway. Game reserves and tourist attractions are safe; in cities one should be aware of any planned labour actions and avoid large [political] crowds. There was a two day strike during the time that we were there, but this just seemed to result in lots of people standing around and no gas service available in Gweru due to a lack of working attendants. [We got gas in Kwe Kwe instead] Due to the negative international press, tourism is down in Zimbabwe, and this results in far better availability, cheaper rates and more personal attention than usual. One thing that you should be aware of is the existence of a parallel exchange rate: the official exchange rate is Z$55:US$1, but airlines, foreign embassies and bureaux de change use a parallel rate which is over Z$100:US$1 - when you are changing money ask for this rate. (It was about $150 when I was there, but has a wide spread and can vary significantly from day to day) You could get an even better black-market rate on the street, but are exponentially more likely to be ripped off.

As for Vic Falls specifically, although the bulk of the water may go over the Zambian side, the view and amenities are far better on the Zimbabwean side. You can always walk across the bridge to look at the falls from the Zambian side - don't forget your passport and any 'visa charge' Zambia may now ask foreigners for. While based at Vic Falls, I would also recommend a day trip to Botswana's Chobe - three years ago safari companies offered a day trip including a morning boat ride up the Chobe river, afternoon game drive, lunch, drinks and transport to and from your accommodation in Vic Falls for US$100.

Air is definitely the best way to travel to Vic Falls, since it is an long and roundabout drive most Zimbabwean cities. If you like BA, you should investigate whether their South African subsidiary, ComAir flies to VF. Also FYI, at present BA service to Lusaka goes via Harare. This service departs from Gatwick, while BA flights to SAfrica generally depart from Heathrow.

Hope this helps.

baobab

[This message has been edited by baobab (edited 07-11-2001).]

Has anyone taken the Blue Train from JNB to Vic Falls?

I was under the impression that the Blue Train was only between CPT-JNB and Rovos Rail had a train going north from JNB. I have not been on either train but I stayed at the Rovos hotel in Pretoria about two years ago and it was a throw back to the colonial era.

Try http://www.bluedtravel.com/bluetrain/

I've heard wonderful things about it from random people, but I'd love to hear from a Flyertalker who has tried it.

Does enybody know of a cheaper hotel to stay @ in Victoria Falls. I am going next June and everything I can find on the internet is about $300 per night. Also should I stay in Victoria Falss or Livingston?

Thanks

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<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by ds4217:
Does enybody know of a cheaper hotel to stay @ in Victoria Falls?
Thanks</font>

I have no recent info on rates, but I think your cheapest option would be the Sprayview. (A misleading name, by the way. You can see the spray from the hotel, but that is true just about anywhere in Victoria Falls if the volume of water coming down the Zambezi is high enough).

You could also try A'Zambezi Lodge or the Rainbow Hotel.

johan

We took the train (Rovos Rail) from just outside JNB to about the half-way point between JNB and Victoria Falls, and then flew on Rovos Air into Livingston. We then stayed at The Royal Livingston Lodge (just above the falls). And had a great trip!

We are going to the Falls in August and we'll be staying at a chalet type lodge on an island on the Zambian side of the falls. It's called "The River Club" and is away from the crowds and Victorian in atomsphere, also near Zambezi National Park and 18k from VF. You can take a look at it on the website which is www.riverclubzam.com. (http://www.riverclubzam.com.)