Flights to Livingstone land at Harry Mwaanga Nkumbula International Airport (code LVI), about 5 km from the town centre. At the time of writing (late 2026), the main routes are from Johannesburg, Lusaka, Cape Town and Nairobi, with smaller links to Mbombela, Windhoek and, seasonally, Maun. There are no direct flights from Europe, North America or Asia, so most visitors connect in Johannesburg.
Routes at the time of writing
Airport and airline listings in late 2026 show the following. Treat this as a starting point; regional schedules in southern Africa change often, and some routes only run in the dry season.
| From | Airlines listed | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Johannesburg | Airlink, FlySafair, CemAir, Zambia Airways | The busiest route, about 1 hour 45 minutes |
| Lusaka | Proflight Zambia, Zambia Airways | About 1 hour 10 minutes |
| Cape Town | Kenya Airways, Proflight Zambia | A few days a week, not daily |
| Nairobi | Kenya Airways | About 3 hours 15 minutes |
| Mbombela (Kruger) | Airlink | Certain days only |
| Windhoek | Proflight Zambia | Lusaka–Livingstone–Windhoek, three times a week from March 2026 |
| Maun | Proflight Zambia | Seasonal, May to October 2026 |
The Kruger link is useful if you are pairing a safari in South Africa with the falls; there is no need to backtrack through Johannesburg on the days it flies. The Maun flight, if it returns next season, connects Livingstone with the Okavango Delta without a long drive.
From Europe and the UK
There is no direct flight. The usual routings are:
- Via Johannesburg. Overnight from London, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Paris, Zurich and others, landing in the early morning, then a late-morning flight to Livingstone. This is the most common and has the most connection options on the same ticket.
- Via Nairobi. Kenya Airways connects Europe to Livingstone through Nairobi on its Livingstone days. Useful if you are coming from East Africa too.
- Via Lusaka. A handful of long-haul and Gulf or African carriers serve Lusaka, from where Proflight and Zambia Airways fly on to Livingstone. Domestic schedules can change at short notice, so leave a generous gap.
Victoria Falls Airport in Zimbabwe has a wider choice, including Ethiopian Airlines from Addis Ababa and a seasonal Discover Airlines flight from Frankfurt, according to airline listings. If you are staying in Livingstone, see the Victoria Falls border crossing guide before you book a flight there.
From North America
Expect two connections or one long one: a flight to Johannesburg (direct from New York and Atlanta on some carriers, or via Europe or the Gulf), then the regional leg. Arriving in Johannesburg in the evening often means a night at the airport before the morning flight to Livingstone.
Booking tips
Put the regional leg on the long-haul ticket. If Airlink or another partner of your long-haul airline flies the Livingstone leg, booking both together gets your bags checked through and protects you if the first flight is late. Low-cost carriers such as FlySafair are usually booked separately.
Book the Livingstone leg early in peak months. July to October and the December holidays fill up, and with fewer seats on the regional aircraft, the price on this short hop can climb faster than the long-haul fare.
Check baggage limits on small aircraft. Proflight flies some routes with 29-seat and 50-seat aircraft. Checked-bag limits can be lower than on the long-haul flight, and space is tight. Soft bags travel better.
Keep an eye on schedule changes. Regional flights in Zambia are rescheduled more often than you might expect. Make sure your booking has an email address you check, and reconfirm a week before.
Lusaka or straight to Livingstone?
If you want to see only the falls, fly straight to Livingstone via Johannesburg. Lusaka makes sense if you are also visiting Lower Zambezi or South Luangwa national parks, which are reached by light aircraft from Lusaka, or if a long-haul fare into Lusaka is much cheaper. The road alternative is covered in Lusaka to Livingstone.
Landing
Livingstone's terminal is small and arrivals are usually quick. Visas, including the KAZA UniVisa, are issued at the immigration desks. The Livingstone airport guide covers the arrival process, money and transfers.
Many lodges along the river collect guests from the airport. Zambezi Dusk includes airport transfers in its rates and is a short drive away, which takes care of the first hour of the trip.
