From Pamushana we took another charter fight to Victoria Falls. It had been several years since I visit this wonder of the natural world and I was excited to see what changes had been made.
We spent two nights at Stanley & Livingstone Boutique Hotel. This is a Garden of Eden in the parched National Park just outside the town limits. The very spacious suites overlook a watering hole that was visited by a myriad of wild animals that emerged from the surrounding parched bush. While dining we saw a herd of buffalo, giraffe, zebra and numerous other plains game.
We found the accommodations to be very comfortable and the meals in their dining room were excellent. This property remains a very good option for our clients. The heat was oppressive but that night we were treated to one of the first thunderstorms of the season. The next morning temperatures dropped to a much more manageable 92 degrees.
Laura – our guide at the Falls who over the years has hosted many of Mushinda’s clients, escorted us on an inspection tour of some of the newer properties.
We visited the brand new Malachite Lodge on the banks of the Zambezi River, River Lodge’s two family suites and then took a boat ride to the Island Suites. These three properties, all on the water, are a great option for our clients with the right budget.
Lunch was at the new Baines restaurant, also on the banks of the river, and then to the townships where we visited a traditional restaurant called Dusty Road that would be a perfect dinner spot for clients wishing to experience authentic African cuisine.
Although this was the slow season, we found Victoria Falls to be quite busy with a steady flow of tourists. Despite this influx the local authorities have done an amazing job of accommodating tourism while protecting the natural environment. The Falls themselves remain spectacular even in the low water season and are the magnet that drives the local economy. The town has become a preferred residence for many of the younger Zimbabweans who are moving in from all over the country.
For clients who have not experienced the raw emotion and the thunder as a million gallons of water per minute cascades over the mile wide precipice, this remains a spectacle to behold. There are numerous activities that, in a non-commercialized way, expose one to this natural phenomenon and the culture of the region.
