Skip to content
Contact
Contact

Experience

The Zambezi by Jet Boat

A small jet boat that threads the shallow channels between the islands above Victoria Falls, where the bigger boats cannot go, in the late afternoon.

At a glanceOn water
How longTwo hoursAbout two hours, late afternoon
How hardNoneSeated in a small boat; a step on and off at the bank
SeasonYear-roundRuns year-round, water permitting; the start time moves with the season

Above the falls the Zambezi spreads out and breaks up among islands, some big enough to hold forest, some little more than a sandbank and a stand of reeds. The cruise boats keep to the open water. A jet boat has no propeller hanging under it and floats on very little, so it can go in among the islands, into side channels where the water is shallow and the banks are close.

That is the point of it. In the side channels you are near the banks, and the banks are where things happen: crocodiles flat in the sun on the mud, hippos in the deeper pools, and on some evenings elephants crossing from one island to the next with their trunks held up like snorkels. Birds are the constant: kingfishers on the snags, herons in the shallows, a fish eagle calling from somewhere overhead. None of it can be promised, but the odds are decent and the guide knows where to look.

It is a wildlife trip, not a thrill ride. The engine is there to get into places rather than to spin the boat or soak you, and once you are in a channel the driver usually slows right down or cuts it altogether. Somewhere downstream the spray from the falls hangs over the trees, closer than you would think.

There are drinks and snacks on board, and the timing brings you back in the last of the light. You are collected from your hotel in Victoria Falls town, which makes it one of the simpler things to add to a stay on the Zimbabwean side, the only side it runs from.

The choice people weigh is this or a sunset cruise. Most cruise boats are bigger and slower, and the evening is about the drink and the sky; the jet boat is smaller and gets in closer. Some people do both on different evenings, and it pairs well with a morning walk at the falls.

Good to know

  • It runs from the Zimbabwean side only, with pick-up from hotels in Victoria Falls town.
  • Bring a warm layer for the ride back. An open boat in the evening is cooler than you expect.
  • The days it runs are confirmed at booking, and the start time shifts with the season.
  • Keep cameras in a bag between sightings. The run between channels can throw up spray.
  • Tell us in advance about back trouble. A small boat can bump a little between channels.

Hotel pick-up in Victoria Falls town is listed at about 15:00 in winter and 16:00 in summer, for about two hours on the water, with drinks and snacks on board; the days it operates are not stated and must be confirmed at booking. Whether it runs at every water level, and any park or river levy, are to be confirmed. We confirm what applies to your dates in writing before you pay anything.

The engine idles in a side channel, and the only sound left is the falls, somewhere downstream.

Where to do it

Where we arrange the zambezi by jet boat

Start from the destination, and we will build the days around this.

Or browse every itinerary andthe rest of the experiences.

Questions we are actually asked

How is this different from a sunset cruise?
A cruise boat is bigger and keeps to the open river; the evening is about the drink and the sky. The jet boat is small and shallow enough to go into the side channels among the islands, closer to the banks, which is where the animals are. Both go out late in the afternoon.
Is it fast and wet?
It moves quickly between channels and you may feel some spray, but it is not run as a thrill ride. In the channels the boat slows right down for the wildlife. If you are hoping for the spinning, soaking kind of jet boat, tell us, because this is not it.
What might we see?
Crocodiles on the banks and hippos in the deeper water are the likeliest. Elephants cross between the islands on some evenings, and the birdlife along the channels is rich. Nothing is promised on a wild river, and a good guide keeps a respectful distance.
Can we do it from Zambia?
This one runs only from the Zimbabwean side, with pick-up in Victoria Falls town. If you are staying in Livingstone, the African Queen sunset cruise from the Zambian bank is the easier evening on the river.

Keep reading

Where to go next

Each of these answers one of the questions this page opens.

Ask us about the zambezi by jet boat

Dates and how many of you is enough to start. We reply within one working day.

Plan your journey

Tell us a little; we’ll do the rest. One of our travel designers replies within one working day.

When would you like to travel? (a rough month is fine)

“Honeymoon in September, two of us, bush then beach…” A sentence is plenty.

We’ll only use your details to reply to you. See our Privacy Policy.

Back to topChat on WhatsApp

Resident hotel ratesContracted KSh rates, filtered by region, month and boardCan’t find it? Just ask.Flights, stays anywhere, groups, cruises: tell us what you’re after and we’ll price it.