3 Days Victoria Falls Short Break

The 3 Days Victoria Falls Short Break is a 3-day sample itinerary: a tailor-made waterfall safari covering Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, Zambia. The essential Victoria Falls in three days: the rainforest walk, a sunset cruise on the Zambezi, a helicopter flight and both sides of the border.

Highlights

• Guided rainforest walk on the Zimbabwe side
• Sunset cruise on the upper Zambezi
• Optional helicopter flight over the gorges
• Day on the Zambian side, with Devil's Pool in season

Suggested places to stay on this route include The Victoria Falls Hotel, Victoria Falls Safari Lodge.

Who this safari suits

• First-time visitors with limited time
• Travellers adding the falls to a longer southern Africa trip
• Couples and families who want the main sights without long drives

Route and travel times

Victoria Falls Airport → Victoria Falls town (20 minutes) · optional crossing to Livingstone, Zambia, over the Victoria Falls Bridge · back to the airport.

Times are typical and vary with road conditions, border queues and weather.

Day-by-day itinerary

1. Day1

   Arrive at Victoria Falls

   You are met at Victoria Falls Airport and driven about 20 minutes to your hotel in Victoria Falls town. After settling in, take a short walk to get your bearings or relax by the pool. In the late afternoon, board a two- to three-hour sunset cruise on the upper Zambezi, above the falls, watching for hippos, crocodiles, elephants drinking at the water's edge and the spray rising from the gorge.

   Overnight Victoria Falls HotelMeals Dinner

2. Day2

   The rainforest and the bridge

   Start early with a guided walk along the rainforest path on the Zimbabwe side, when the light is soft and the paths are quiet; allow about two hours for the 16 viewpoints. After lunch, choose your afternoon: a helicopter flight over the falls and gorges, or cross the 1905 Victoria Falls Bridge on foot into Zambia for the Knife-Edge Bridge and, from about mid-August to January, a guided swim at Devil's Pool from Livingstone Island. Activities on this day are optional extras.

   Overnight Victoria Falls HotelMeals Breakfast

3. Day3

   Departure

   Enjoy a final breakfast, perhaps with a last look at the gorge from your hotel. Depending on your flight time, there may be time for the craft market or high tea at the Victoria Falls Hotel before your transfer to the airport. Many travellers continue instead to Chobe or Hwange.

   Meals Breakfast

When to go

Best time for this route: Year-round; see water levels. At Victoria Falls: March–July for thundering water; August–December for clear views, Devil's Pool and rafting. See the month-by-month water levels.

Making this trip your own

This is a sample route, not a fixed departure. You can add nights where you want more time, swap the lodges named for others at a different budget, drop activities that do not interest you, or join this itinerary to another one. Tell us your dates, the number of travellers and what matters most to you, and we will send back a tailored version with a price.

Lodges named are examples; ask about alternatives at other budgets. Activities depend on water levels and park rules.