1

Hi,

The reason for that is because there are minimum costs in running a trip, such as for fuel, staff wages, vehicle entry fees to national parks, etc. So it is generally not financially viable for the tour operator to run a trip for one or two people unless they pay a premium.

Would suggest you contact the tour operators directly and see what their thoughts are. Perhpas they can advise you if / when they receive other bookings for that same trip?

2

HI there,
Its pretty easy and affordable to use public transport than going on a booked tour as most tour operators as missmullen09 said will work on a minimum number of peopel to break even.The cost they charge or the number of people should make it viable to have the trip running.
Depending on where you come in from you can break the trip into two.
Arrive Bulawayo , do the matopos as a day trip from Bulawayo, overnight and then take the Pathfinder Luxury coach which goes to Vicfalls from Bulawayo via Hwange. Drop off at Hawnge do your Hwange leg of the trip maybe overnight or two days(advisable to do multidays as that is when you get the best of Hwange).the get on Pathfinder from Hwange to the falls a few days after that.
Your total transport cost from Bulawayo toVicfalls will be about USD50 even if youbreak it into two legs and on an organised tour the bulk of the payment goes to the transport aspect of the trip.
Recommend Sikumi Tree Lodge in Hwange.vey friendly managers and staff and reasonable rates for the service given ....recommend Burkes' Paradise in Bulawayo very friendly and efficient in organising Matopo day trips.
Hope this helpsxx

3

Thanks a lot. Do you know whether the Pathfinder coach runs daily from Vic Falls to Bulawayo? Can I count on getting a seat or should I try to book that in advance?
Thanks again.
niels

4

From memory Pathfinder only runs 2 days a week, leaving from The Kingdom Hotel, would definitely suggest you book in advance if you're wanting a comfortable journey.

I'd also highly recommend Sikumi Tree Lodge ;)

5

Niels,

I'm planning a similar trip but in March and was wondering if you'd had any luck with these recommendations? I have emailed with African Wanderer Safaris who seem great but they haven't got a tour going on the day I need at the moment. I can't find many other tour operators...

Thanks,
Charlie

6

Hey Charlie,
no luck for me either. I would recommend checking with Steph at jj Africa Tours (http://www.jjafricatours.com). Unfortunately, they didn't have a tour at the time I was looking for. It seems that tours rarely fill up with independent travelers.

Enjoy your trip.

niels

7

See my post of today entitled "Zimbabwe: traveling alone was cheaper than a group tour." Couldn't get into all the details there, but if you want more specifics about any aspect, please either post here or PM me.

8

Thanks for all the tips everyone. i had a great time and managed to fix up the exact itinerary i wanted even if i did pay a bit more. I've written about my time here on the LP Thorn Tree travel forum under "Zimbabwe - Bulawayo, Matopos, Hwange and Vic Falls PLUS Livingstone, Zambia"