The Devil’s Pool Swim

There is only one tour that runs into the actual Devil’s Pool of Victoria Falls – the Livingstone Island Tour. The guides check the water for crocodiles and hippos before leading the tourists in through a safe swim zone.

Quick stop during the walk to where the swim for Devil’s Pool begins.

The tour has never experienced a hippo or crocodile in the actual Devil’s Pool, and they’ve never had any casualties.

Swimming in the Devil’s Pool is relatively safe, as a thick rock creates a barrier before the 100 meter drop.

To get to the pool, you’ll take a motorboat from your hotel (or a nearby hotel), then a short walk to the falls for a brief, shallow swim. The swim happens as a group and only with the guides.

2. Adventurous Activities at Victoria Falls

There are so many exciting ways to see Victoria Falls. Consider all of the options:

• Micro-lighting over Victoria Falls
• White-water rafting at the foot of the falls
• Bungee Jumping over Victoria Falls
• Helicopter Ride over Victoria Falls
• Train dinner taking you to Victoria Falls
• Sunset River Cruise to Victoria Falls

Personally, I’ve been bungee jumping, on helicopters and river cruises twice (each), so I opted for a new experience … micro-lighting over Victoria Falls! It was amazing. I could see the falls, hippos, crocodiles and elephants from my flight!

3. Animals Encounters at the Royal Livingstone

The highlight of my experience at Victoria Falls wasn’t just the actual falls, but rather my stay at a safari lodge at Victoria Falls. My partner for the trip, Anantara Hotels hosted me at the Royal Livingstone, Victoria Falls, Zambia.

I’ve been traveling for five years — three as a travel blogger — and I just have never experienced something like this!
Monkeys, giraffes, zebras, antelope and hippos all called the Royal Livingstone home!

Rates for the hotel are modest for the return. You can stay in the Presidential Suite for $700 a night! (Prices vary across season). If you can’t stay at the hotel, I highly suggest coming for lunch or a drink to experience the animals.

Please note that while the animals on the property are accustomed to people, they are wild and CAN NOT be touched!

This is such a powerful, exciting and ethical way to experience a wild animal encounter. I can’t emphasize enough how special this trip was.

4. Hiking from Victoria Falls Zambia to Victoria Falls Zimbabwe

We weren’t entirely prepared for a hike from Zambia to Zimbabwe. However, upon entering the park (it’s free for hotel guests of the Royal Livingstone), we learned a lot.

Victoria Falls Entrance Fees: Bring cash as the credit card machines are frequently out of service.

While you don’t need a tour guide to walk to the falls, we HIGHLY suggest bringing along a nice tip (we did $20 USD for each guide) to have a local guide escort you on a hike from Zambia to Zimbabwe. They know all of the great photo spots, will guide you through back routes and look out for your safety. The guides we met were amazing and their back route hike was absolutely one of the best experiences at Victoria Falls! We can’t recommend them enough.

5. Day Trip to Botswana from Victoria Falls

I was still in a little jet lagged when we headed to Botswana for one of the BEST experiences of my life. To be frank, I almost passed up on it and totally regret the hesitation. You have to book with Bushtracks for a safari river experience.

They took care of everything which made the day trip easy and timely. This is how a day trip to Botswana from Victoria Falls works:

• They picked us up from the Royal Livingstone Hotel
• We then drove to the border for 90 minutes to 2 hours.
• We took a ferry boat across the Zambezi River for about 10 minutes
• Another Bushtracks car and tour guide was waiting for us on the other side of the river.
• He drove us to the official border of Botswana where we walked through immigration (10 minutes, carry cash for a visa).
• We then drove to a partner hotel for a bathroom break, followed by the Big 5 Game Drive, lunch and the safari river cruise. We made it back to our hotel in Victoria Falls by late evening.

Botswana Big 5 Drive in Chobe National Park