No matter how you decide to visit “The Smoke That Thunders” very few people are ever really prepared for the incredible beauty and mesmerising strength and power of the mighty Victoria Falls. The heart-pounding sensation of actually standing on the edge of the precipice above the raging waters is something quite unforgettable.

You will find that you are able to hire rain coats and maps of the Falls from vendors in the car park. If you do not have a good water proof cover for your camera or you really don’t want to get soaked raincoats are a good idea for the tour of Victoria Falls. But I personally love the feeling of being drenched by natures own rain from the Zambezi River.

Entrance is through the Victoria Falls National Park entrance gate – where you are required to pay a US$30 entrance fee per person ($20 for Regional countries). If you are a local or regional visitor, they like to see your passport for proof of residence. So please remember to put it into a water proof bag for the rest of the trip as you really don’t want it getting wet.

The edge of the falls is reached through the cool, moist tunnels of the rain Forest. Always shrouded in fine spray, the forest is a fairyland of exotic plants thriving in the humidity. Concrete paths, (the only obvious man-made intrusions since Livingstone’s day) have been made to stop sightseers trampling away the lip of the gorge.

Parts of the precipice opposite the falls have been cleared of undergrowth to give a clear view, but the falls can also be seen from the depths of the forest through glistening, dripping, spray soaked leaves.

Early morning is a magic time to see the falls, as the sun rises it tints the plumes of spray pink and gold. There is a statue of David Livingstone (Sculptured by Sir William Reid-Dick) on the western end of the chasm, over looking the Devils Cataract.

You will also find a set of stairs going down to a view point called the “Chain Walk”– where you will be able to look into the Devils Cataract – I would say this is definitely well worth doing and is personally one of my favourite places to enjoy the view on the tour of Victoria Falls.

You can make you way along the designated path which takes you to the various 16 view points along the edge – some of them are better than others and as you come along to the main falls some of them are wetter than others.

You might find the path a little slippery along the way and I would encourage you to where suitable walking shoes. The sheer magic of the Victoria Falls is that you not find big barriers or walls to keep you away from the edge and one can really experience the sheer might of them – up close!

Danger Point is the far point at the end of the path and from here you can look across into Zambia – sometimes depending on the time of year you may be lucky enough to see a rafting trip starting far below in the gorge.

From Danger Point there is a path to the right that takes you to a view point of the bridge. It is a great place to see the structure of the Victoria Falls bridge and also to see some of the bungee jumpers – from their platform which is in the middle of the bridge.