Why Water Levels Matter More Than Dates
The single most important decision in planning a waterfall safari is when to go. Here is how to read the river.
Waterfalls are seasonal, and their seasons rarely line up with the best months for safari. The Zambezi floods long after the rains have ended, because water from the Angolan and Zambian highlands takes months to arrive. Victoria Falls peaks in April, when the parks are green and game is dispersed.
In Ethiopia, Blue Nile Falls is fullest after the August rains. In South Africa, Tugela Falls runs in summer, from November to March.
The trade-off
For most travellers the sweet spot falls between high and low water: June to August at Victoria Falls, when there is still plenty of water and the safari season has begun. See every major fall month by month in our seasonal calendar.
The Zambezi: a flood that arrives late
The rains that feed Victoria Falls fall mostly between November and March on the highlands of Angola and western Zambia. The water then travels slowly across the flat Barotse floodplain, so the flood reaches the falls months later. Flow usually peaks around April, stays high into June or July and drops to its lowest around October and November. The same pattern governs Ngonye Falls upstream.
The Nile: steady all year
The Victoria Nile is released from Lake Victoria, a reservoir so large that the seasons barely touch it. Murchison Falls therefore runs at full force in every month, and the best time to visit depends on the safari: the dry seasons of December to February and June to September.
The Ethiopian Highlands: a summer monsoon
Blue Nile Falls depends on the June-to-September rains in the highlands around Lake Tana. The curtain is fullest from August to November. Water is also held back upstream for hydropower, so in the dry months the falls can be much reduced.
Southern Africa's summer rains
In South Africa and Lesotho, the rains come in summer, from November to March, often as afternoon thunderstorms. Tugela, Maletsunyane and Howick are fullest then. Augrabies on the Orange River and Epupa on the Kunene peak a little later, as water from distant catchments arrives.
North and West Africa
Morocco's Ouzoud Falls are best in spring, after winter rain and snowmelt in the Atlas. In Ghana, Wli Falls runs highest in the rainy season from about May to October.
Choosing your compromise
Safari seasons favour dry months, when animals gather at water and grass is short. Waterfalls favour wet ones. The best trips accept a little of each: at Victoria Falls, June to August gives strong water and good game viewing in Chobe and Hwange. Use the month-by-month calendar to see every fall side by side, then tell us your dates and we will suggest the right combination.
