"LIFE IS EITHER A DARING ADVENTURE OR NOTHING AT ALL."
Hellen Keller
Family Itinerary Suggestions
Sample Four Night Itinerary
Here's a sample four night general interest itinerary. The trip can be shortened to three nights or lengthened to suit your wishes. If your family has been to Africa before, longer trips to the Okavango Delta of Botswana or the Luangwa National Park in Zambia are very exciting and rewarding. But for families visiting for the first time, this itinerary is a good place to start.
Day 1 Arrive Walking Tour of Victoria Falls
Arrive Livingstone International Airport. Our staff will meet you in baggage claim. We'll be holding a sign with your family name on it. We'll then escort you and your luggage to one of our riverfront hotels. You'll receive a warm welcome from the hotel staff and a refreshing drink and check into your room.
Later this afternoon, we'll go for a walking tour of Victoria Falls. If you are here at a time when the falls are full (see our weather report in the Travel Information section of this website) you and the family will get soaked, so bring a poncho and wear shoes you don't mind getting wet. Our guide will stay with you throughout the walk and take family photos. (You provide the camera).
Return to the hotel, dry off and get ready for dinner. Before dinner enjoy the sunset and a cocktail on the deck overlooking the Zambezi River.
Depending upon the night of the week, the hotel may have a traditional African barbecue "Boma" dinner when a local dance and musical group performs.
Day 2 Visit to the Zimbabwe Side of the Falls Free Time
Breakfast at the hotel, then a morning trip to the Zimbabwe side of the falls. Yes, you do need to see the from both countries. Plus, you'll cross the amazing Victoria Falls Bridge that links Zambia with Zimbabwe. Return to the hotel for lunch and a free afternoon. (We find that no matter how much bonding is happening, family members need a little break from each other.)
This is a good afternoon for a private visit to one of our township villages.
Keep in mind that we are local and our mobile phones are always on, so if you need advice or have a concern or a problem, please call.
This evening you may dine at the hotel or you have the option of a dinner on a restored steam locomotive on a journey that crosses Victoria Falls, or a Zambezi River dinner cruise.
Day 3 Africa Your Way
Before breakfast, how about sunrise over Victoria Falls. You know the way by now and depending upon the time of year, the park opens at 6:00 or 6:30 a.m.
Return to the hotel for breakfast. Then participate in one of our exciting half day tours or activities such as a canoe adventure on the Zambezi, a helicopter flight, a relaxing river safari cruise or exhilarating jet boat ride. For the thrill seeking members of the family (and we've all got them) bungee jumping, river rafting or swimming on the edge of Victoria Falls
Then this afternoon visit one of our villages or get involved in a community service program.
Return to the hotel for sunset and dinner.
Day 4 Botswana
Chobe National Park, Botswana. This is a full 10-hour day and a great one. You'll experience one game drive on land and the other by boat along the Chobe River. This boat safari may be your highlight of Africa. You'll need your passports. For more on Chobe National Park, visit: http://www.chobenationalpark.com/
The day begins with a one hour drive ride through villages, grassland, and some woodlands to the Zambia-Botswana border at Kazungula. Your guide will direct you through the Zambia emigration process. After crossing in Botswana, you'll board a boat for a five-minute cruise across the Chobe River. The captain will point out where Zimbabwe, Namibia, Botswana and Zambia converge.
Once in Botswana, you pass through immigration and have your passport stamped. Next you'll meet your safari guide who will take you first to one of the deluxe game lodges for a "rest stop". Then you'll begin your game drive of Chobe National Park, home to one of the greatest concentrations of wildlife, including birds, on the African continent. This 10,000 square kilometer (4,000 square miles) park is home to more than 100,000 elephants.
After your full morning game drive, it's time for a buffet lunch at the Cresta Mowana Lodge (http://www.mowanasafarilodge.net/).
After lunch, the family will walk to the lodge dock and board a pontoon boat for a two-hour cruise along the Chobe River, which flows between Botswana and Namibia. Along the way you’ll pass a number of animals including antelope, buffalo and elephant. If you're lucky, you may see elephants swimming. You are also sure to spot hippopotamus and crocodile. And the birdlife along the river is amazing – more than 450 species.
After the cruise, you’ll make a brief stop at the lodge and then begin the return trip to Zambia. Your Botswana guide will be with you until you board the boat for the return river crossing, where you will meet your Zambia guide for the return to your hotel.
You'll be back in time for dinner. Tomorrow, you will be leaving for home or your next destination. When you return to the hotel, our staff will review the departure times and procedure for tomorrow. You'll also receive a Farewell Letter containing this information.
Day 5 Depart for Home
At the time stated in your Farewell Letter, meet our staff at the hotel entrance. We'll travel with you to Livingstone International Airport and guide you through airline check-in, security and the emigration process. This will be a sad day for us, as we will be saying farewell to new friends. We wish you a pleasant journey home. Thank you for allowing us to be of service.
