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Victoria Falls

WITH MISTS VISIBLE FROM FORTY MILES AWAY, VICTORIA FALLS IS one of the most spectacular waterfalls on the planet. Spanning a mile, the waters of the Zambezi River cascade 400 feet into a gorge and then streak the sky with rainbows as spray leaps 1,000 feet back up into the air. European eyes first saw the falls in 1855, when local tribesmen led explorer David Livingstone here by canoe. Although they already had the lovely name Mosi-O-Tunya (Smoke That Thunders), he coined them Victoria Falls after his Queen, and a nearby landmass that splits the falls in two was later pegged Livingstone Island in his honor. Despite being a serious tourist trap, both are worth a visit.

Two-thirds of Victoria Falls are in Zambia; the rest, in Zimbabwe. (While the latter is said to have the best views, many travelers avoid spending money there so as not to support the government of President Robert Mugabe. Among other things, his abhorrent policies and negligence have led to the shocking drop in life expectancy among Zimbabwean women from sixty-one years to thirty-four years—the lowest in the world.) Zambia has been investing heavily in its tourist infrastructure lately and features high-class resort hotels and lodges, including Tongabezi Safari Lodge and the Islands of Siankaba.

The adventurous will find no shortage of ways to charge their adrenaline at Victoria Falls, including bungee jumping from the century-old bridge spanning the Zambezi River, boogie boarding, tandem parachuting, gorge swinging, paragliding, canoeing, kayaking, and whitewater rafting through passages with daunting names like Ghostrider. If you have an extra $50 to burn, sign up for the fifteen-minute airplane ride over the falls—you’ll swear you hear angels singing.