Southern Africa's Golden Triangle

Zambezi Adventure

Zambia was the next destination on the itinerary, which required a painfully early start the next morning. With a rapid transfer in Jo’burg, the flight to Livingstone takes just over five hours, but you are rewarded with a sight of the famed Victoria Falls upon arrival and departure.

From arrivals, we were taken to a jetty on the Zambezi River to board a speedboat for what must be one of the most surreal “airport transfers” anywhere. In seconds we were riding the rapids down towards the rising clouds of mist from the falls, zooming past pods of hippos. In all too short a time, we were stepping onto the arrival dock of the Royal Livingstone Hotel, where we were greeted with cocktails and cold towels. Incidentally, the dock is a great place to chill with a bottle of Mosi, the local lager, or a sun-downer of an evening.

We walked by the zebra grazing on the lawn to the Livingstone Lounge, adjacent to the Travellers Bar to check in. The hotel is actually a series of 17 two-story riverfront residences and has a distinctly Victorian feel despite being built at the turn of this century, not the last!

After a relaxing afternoon by the pool, it was time to get the glad rags on for dinner on the Royal Livingstone Express. Taking it’s cue from the legendary Orient Express, this working steam train takes groups along the tracks laid centuries before and across the Victoria Falls bridge and briefly into Zimbabwe. En route we had drinks as the sun set, accompanied by a fascinating talk by local hotelier and historian Peter Jones, before the guests made their way through to the beautifully restored dining cars where a five-course meal prepared by the Royal Livingstone hotel chefs awaited.

In a trip of “once in a lifetime” moments, the following morning was perhaps the most remarkable of all. A short hop on a river boat took us to Livingstone Island, a rocky outcrop in the centre of the Zambezi River on the edge of the falls. This spot, unreachable when the river is at its height from February to July, was where Dr David Livingstone first set eyes on what the locals called Mosi-oa-Tunya, “the smoke that thunders”. We were to have breakfast there, but first came the most surreal moment of the trip. From late September to December, the drier conditions reveal an area called “The Devil’s Pool”, a deep pocket of water on the lip of the falls which is reached by swimming across the river and clambering over a rocky outcrop, before diving in again. With the 110-metre high falls just inches away, sitting on the edge of this pool is perhaps not the most intelligent thing I’ve ever done, but it’s certainly one of the most exhilarating.

With your guide taking pictures throughout, the images are there as wonderful reminders, although anyone who hasn’t been there would swear they were faked. Google “Devil’s Pool” to see what I mean!