My wife and I are travelling to South Africa next month and were thinking of flying up to Victoria Falls. Our only concern is that the U.S. State Dept. doesn’t have the most encouraging words for travellers planning on visiting Zimbabwe.
Although we’re still doing research on the subject, it appears that the town at Victoria Falls is largely a tourist center. There’s very little mention of anything resembling a regular city or urban center; it seems designed almost exclusively around the tourist trade. This would suggest that, though it may be a magnet for thieves and such, it wouldn’t face the same type of crime problems that, say, downtown Harare would.
I’d like some personal responses from Dopers who have been to Victoria Falls–how safe did you feel? Were there mostly Africans there or was there a disproportionately large number of tourists? Was it like any other city or did it have more of a manicured feel because it’s largely a tourist center? This is supposed to be a vacation and the last thing we want to do is worry, even though we’d only be there a day or two (by all accounts, Botswana is much safer so we’re going to spend more time there, we suspect).
I was at Vic falls a few years ago before all the recent troubles so things will probably have changed. But I read in the paper a few weeks ago that Mugabe is trying to get the tourist industry back on track because they really need the cash so it may be still safe. I would definitely be wary of this now though.
When I was there, I felt very safe. You are correct, there are lots of tourists there and lots of hotels and casinos. I would still follow the general rule in Africa, to not go out at night by yourself unless it is a well patrolled or you are very sure of the area (doesn’t matter what color you are there is a high probability that you will be robbed if you do this). During the day however, we felt very secure.
The falls are nice, but be careful when looking at them, some British woman fell over the side and died when we were there. Imagine Niagra falls with only a flimsy bamboo railing between you and the rocks below. You can walk across the bridge to Zambia and see it from their side which is less crowded, but even less fencing if any.
Try the white water rafting on the Zambezi and gets some waffles from the “Pink Baobob” if it still exists.
My brother lives in Zambia, but he happenes to be in the States for a few weeks now, so I asked him about your concerns. He suggested going the Zambia route - you can fly into Livingston International Airport through South African Airlines. He and his family have gone to Victoria Falls several times and he thought that the best hotel there is the Royal Livingston. It’s a 5-star hotel with a lot of extras. Next to it is the Zambezi Sun, another good hotel.
He also said that he has always felt safe there. There are day trips available into a Botswana game reserve (on preview, probably the same one as Balduran mentioned). He did not recommend going to Zimbabwe. (He has lived in Africa for much of his life, and I trust his assessment on safety.)
Here is a link to Victoria Falls from the Zambia Side. It includes hotel information and links. Check with the airlines about package deals with the Royal Livingston Hotel (they’re apparently pretty good).
brotherrhynchos raves about the Falls. It sounds like you should have a wonderful time there!
Sneeze here, seconding the idea of going the Zambia route.
While I havent been, I am going soon (Peace Corps, Zambia, September), and my parents have found one or two little blurby articles stating how Zambia is a safe and good bet if you want to see the falls. (I have no sites, but I swear I read them myself.)
I have never been to Africa, but I’ve been to other developing countries and have always read the State Department warnings with amusement. They get worked up over any sign of political instability, when your odds of getting hurt in an uprising are miniscule compared to your odds of being in a car accident. The information for Zimbabwe says: “Victoria Falls is a major tourist destination and is considered relatively safe,” so I wouldn’t worry. Demonstrations are rarely spontaneous and are easily avoided.