Victoria Falls is the most popular destination in Zimbabwe, being home to, believe it or not, Victoria Falls, the largest waterfall in the world. Before you start arguing what constitutes the largest waterfall, whether is water volume, height, width, area, some other metric, or whatever combination of the above, we don’t know which category this falls into, just that it is arguably the biggest in the world.
Bulawayo on the other hand, is Zimbabwe’s second largest city, but doesn’t offer much for tourists, with most people passing through.
When departing from Victoria Falls, as a tourist, it is $5 for a taxi pretty much anywhere in the town, which includes being taken to the bus station, train station or where the share taxis leave from.
There are three main ways to get from Victoria Falls to Bulawayo or vice versa – Bus, Car or Train.
Bus
Buses are the main form of public transport, and also double as a package delivery service. Due to the poor economic situation in Zimbabwe, the buses are rarely full as very few people are travelling around the country, both tourists and locals alike.
Buses leave from the side of the highway when leaving Victoria Falls for Bulawayo. All locals will know this location and you’ll need to catch a taxi from your accommodation, so the taxi driver will also know where to take you.
The first buses leave at 6:30am, arriving in Bulawayo between 1 and 2pm.
There are four main companies that operate the route between Bulawayo and Victoria falls. Stallion, Extra City, CAG and Pathfinder.
It’s recommended to go with Extra City as they are the most reliable, with the most comfortable buses. This is followed by Stallion.
Extra City reportedly has 4 services a day, departing Victoria Falls at 6:30am, 7:30am, 8:30pm and 9:00pm, however it is reported that some services may not operate due to a lack of demand.
From Bulawayo, Extra City departs at 00:30am, 9:00am, 11:00am, 2:00pm, 5:00pm and 11:30pm. Buses depart from the Extra City offices.
Stallion departs Victoria Falls at 6:00am and again at 8:30pm. Buses depart from the Stallion offices.
From Bulawayo to Victoria, the Stallion buses depart at 12:00pm and 2:00pm.
The bus fares differ depending on whether you book in advance, pay on the bus, or book online, but are all roughly $20 USD per person in each direction.
Car (share taxi)
Hitch-hiking is very common and surprisingly safe in Zimbabwe. For the same price as a bus fare, passing cars will pick up passengers waiting at the side of the road. For shared cars, you need to go to the same spot as the buses leave from. At time of writing the average bus price from Victoria Falls to Bulawayo was $20, so this is the amount most drivers would be expecting per person.
The cars will generally leave when all 4 spots in the car are taken, meaning you can effectively buy the whole car for $80, although you can negotiate a better deal as the driver will be able to leave immediately.
Some drivers are in a hurry and will take whoever is waiting and leave immediately.
The benefit of this option is the intimate environment you will be in while travelling, getting the chance to properly know some locals, and usually more flexibility in stops and such-like (though this could go either way). The downside is if you’ve got some annoying co-passengers or a reckless driver.
Car (private transfer)
A private transfer can be organised through your accommodation for approximately $120-$150. This is obviously the fastest and generally most comfortable mode of transport and takes between 5 and 6 hours.
The main advantage of this option is having a set departure time with the comfort of leaving from your accommodation and having the entire vehicle to yourself.
Train
The train is currently not operating but it is planned to resume operations as of May 2024.
The train between Victoria Falls and Bulawayo is perfectly comfortable enough and extremely scenic. The only problem is most of the trip is done overnight.
The train departs Victoria Falls at 7:00pm and arrives in Bulawayo at 5:00am. The reverse from Bulawayo to Victoria Falls does practically the same, departing at 7:30pm and arriving in Victoria Falls at 8:00am.
You need to buy your tickets on the same day you’re travelling so it’s best to arrive in the morning to purchase your seat/sleeper and then continue to do your day’s sightseeing.
Tickets cost between $23 and $30 depending on which class you opt for. The ticket office is open from 8:00 am until 7:30pm from Mondays to Fridays, and from 4:00pm until 7:30pm on Saturdays and Sundays.
One piece of advice: do not leave your window open in your sleeper carriage. Not because there are gangs of murderous Zimbabweans roaming the train lines, but rather the threat of baboons taking advantage of the situation.
