Tourists tempted back to Victoria Falls World

It is one of the seven natural wonders of the world, the stupendous roar of its cascades synonymous with the raw beauty of the African landscape.

But for nearly two decades, Victoria Falls was a little-visited gem, as the political violence and mismanagement of Robert Mugabe’s regime kept tourists away from Zimbabwe.

Now, six months after Mugabe’s 37-year rule ended in a soft coup, the Falls are once again seeing a surge in visitors from Britain – and locals say they are hoping for a return to the glory days when it was one of the most important destinations in Africa.

‘‘This place has gone ballistic, shopping malls are going up, every man and his dog wants to be at Vic Falls at the moment . . . it’s great,’’ said Trevor Lane, local wildlife expert and long-time Victoria Falls resident.

‘‘Remember we lost 18 years when people stayed away, and I hope new hotels and corporates will not swallow some of the firstclass smaller local operators,’’ Mr Lane said. Locally known as Mosi-oa-Tunya, meaning ‘‘the smoke which thunders’’ in the local Tonga language, the site has fascinated Western visitors since David Livingstone, the Scottish missionary, stumbled across them more than 160 years ago.

In the 1990s, nearly 200,000 people were checking in at the ticket office to see the Victoria Falls every year. All that changed nearly two decades ago, when a new opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) nearly won elections in 2000.

In retaliation, Mugabe’s regime sent veterans of the Seventies war against white ruled Rhodesia on a campaign of land invasions of more than 4,000 white-owned farms.

As the economy crashed, Western countries imposed sanctions, and thousands of political activists were killed or fled the country, tourists began to give the country a wide berth.

By 2008 visitor numbers were down to 25,000, according to statistics from the Zimbabwe Tourist Authority and the Parks and Wildlife Management Authority, Tourists are flocking back to Victoria Falls, pumping cash back into the local economy. which runs most wildlife conservancies.

The two agencies now say they are expecting 300,000 people to visit the Falls this year alone.