Going for a swim at the top of the falls in Devil’s Pool had been at the incomparable #1 spot on my bucket list for years. I was shaking with excitement.
What Is Going on at Devil’s Pool?
As a quick overview, Victoria Falls is a massive waterfall on the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia. The Zambezi river falls into a massive gorge, which is spectacular to look at and provides tons and tons of fun.
During the wet season, the falls are obviously at their fullest, and should be most impressive to walk around and to see from a helicopter. There are many islands inside the river at the top of the falls, but during the wet season the water is so powerful that most are completely underwater. But I preferred to go during the dry season, which is when the best activities are open for business. Things like white water rafting, and of course Devil’s Pool, are only open when the water levels are low. So if you’re an adrenaline junkie, go dry season. If you just want to walk around and behold, then go during wet season.
Devil’s Pool is a small natural pool at the top of Victoria Falls. Literally at the very edge of the falls. You sit on a flat rock face where the water isn’t rushing over too fast, and look directly over the edge into the gorge. It is super super crazy and I was just dying to go.
I booked mine ahead through a tour operator, because I was afraid it would sell out. But I had friends sign up days in advance and it was fine! Be prepared to shell out some cash; this is not a budget activity given the hoops they have to jump through to make this happen.
Zimbabwe vs Zambia Side
As I mentioned, the river is also an international border. The majority of people visiting will stay on the Zimbabwe side in a town called Victoria Falls. I definitely recommend doing this. It was a cute town, tons of hotel options, tons of food options, and amazing vibes. I spent half the day in Livingstone, which is the city on the Zambia side, and did not enjoy it nearly as much. Vibes were off, people were far more aggressive trying to sell things like bus tickets, and we had a harder time finding good food. But hey, maybe that was just us idk.
Either way, the Zimbabwe side is lovely and contains a majority of the river views and activities. The only thing the Zambia side has to do with Vic Falls is Devil’s Pool. So stay in Zimbabwe and just do the very easy border crossing the morning you are going to Devil’s Pool and then cross back.
Another big thing to keep in mind is that you will need cash to get around, and that will likely be USD. Zimbabwe officially uses USD, and everyone we encountered on the Zambia side accepted it (tho at a kinda bad exchange rate, but we couldn’t find an ATM, so we accept that loss). Don’t expect card to be accepted, and make sure to be prepared to haggle aggressively with taxis. No uber or other apps obvi.
Crossing the Border
There is one main bridge between the countries that you can cross that has an immigration office on one side for Zimbabwe and the other side for Zambia. Make sure to ask your hotel what the office hours are for immigration so you don’t end up stuck on the other side of the border crossing.
The logistics of the bridge feel super confusing but actually are simple. Just be prepared to walk a long way. You walk a long road down to the bridge, then go through Zimbabwe exit immigration. Then you walk another long way across the bridge in a weird country no man’s land that isn’t either country, then go through Zambia entry immigration. I recommend not taking a taxi through this unless you are unable to walk, because they’ll charge you a shit ton of money. Then after the Zambia entry, there is another way longer long walk up to town, so it is at this point where you break and take a taxi.
A fun fact of this is that the bridge gorge swing and the bungee and the zipline are both in no man’s land. You do not need to go through Zimbabwe exit immigration and get your passport stamped! Ask them for a pass to the bungee, they’ll stamp a little thing, and you present it on your way back out of the bridge again on the Zimbabwe side! Obviously this will not allow you into Zambia though. We did the gorge swing in the evening with just the bridge pass. Then the next day did the full visa thing to go to Zambia for the day and came back.
Be prepared for lines and for a good amount of walking along, unless you shelled out for a guided tour, which looking back low key might’ve been worth it. We left maybe 9am, then went to the Zimbabwe side park overlooking the falls and walked around the paths for ages, then did a nice leisurely border crossing, took a taxi into Livingstone, drove and walked around a bit to kill the extra time we had left in case the crossing was long, had a yummy lunch, then took a taxi down to the Devil’s Pool Entry area.
Boat ride over
Make sure to get there early!!!!! We got there 45 minutes before our time slot, and we were the last people by far, had missed the boat, and they were very mad at us. So idk how early you’re supposed to be, but earlier than that. Either way, it actually worked out perfectly for us. We were very last, so we got our own boat over and had nobody waiting, so we got to take our good sweet time with the pictures and swimming in the pool.
Once you arrive (early), you sign your life away, they give you your life jacket, and bring you over to a boat. This boat ride is truly magical. There are a ton of very shallow rocks under the water that you cannot see, as well as very unexpected currents, so they take a ridiculous path through the river that is the most fun time ever.
Once you arrive at the island, they give you a place to store your stuff, a changing room to put on your bathing suit, and then a guide takes you to the pool. He’ll carry your phone in a dry bag to keep it safe. You’re walking along the island at first, and then have to swim. They again have a super specific path to swim and ropes to go along, to make sure you’re not swept over the edge. Then you arrive on a mini island, where you can then descend into the pool of the devil once it is your turn.
Fishies and pictures
Once there, if you’re like me, you will feel an absolute chaos of sensations and emotions. The water is super loud, the water can be chilly, the mist is flying everywhere, you’re so excited you’re finally here but also it is literally so scary too, you’ve gotta be brave and get it together hahaha. You’re also trusting a stranger with your life, since they literally just hold your ankles while you lean out over the edge of the falls.
Interestingly enough, the most dangerous thing to me felt like it had to be the fish. There were these viscous little fish in the pool biting you at all times. All over. It was honestly just a little painful, but mainly so extremely uncomfortable that your first instinct is obviously to jerk your leg away from the bite. But equally obvious is the risk of falling over the falls if you yank your leg away from your kind anchor guy, so just be aware in advance lol.
The absolute pro guides here will actually provide you with the biggest fright. They seem to have no fear of heights, and will walk along the edge to get the most insane shots you’ve ever gotten of yourself. Thank them and tip them lol
Because of the rush of emotions and adrenaline, you’re going to have the best time ever. I was in a state of absolute thrill at finally being at a place I had dreamt of. It was so wild and so fun and so stunning and impressive. It was the big finale of my 2 week safari, and just really lived up to everything I hoped.
Afternoon tea
Then afterwards, you get an honestly super impressive and delicious snack. I went with afternoon tea, even tho it was priciest, bc I just had to. Tea and snick snacks on the top of the falls??? Hell yeah. You feel fancy and such a thrill, you have your gin and tonics and your little chocolate cakes, and let it all wash over you how lucky you are to be there. And then you’re lucky all over again because you get to take the boat AGAIN back to the shore from the island and enjoy the views and hopefully avoid the hippos. Wow and wow.
Make it happen! You’ll never forget it. The perfect adventure
