Livingstone Museum: hours, tickets and how to get there

Livingstone Museum

Photo: Google Maps

Type

Museum

Address

317 Mosi - Oa - Tunya Road, Livingstone, Zambia

Area

Livingstone

Entry fee

Non-resident visitors pay US$5 per adult and US$3 per child.¹

Time to spend

Nkwazi Magazine suggests spending at least two hours at the museum to see all the exhibitions.⁴

Google rating

4.3 (1,757 reviews) on Google Maps, checked October 2026

On the map

Open in Google Maps

Opening hours on Google Maps, checked October 2026

Day	Hours
Monday	09:00–16:30
Tuesday	09:00–16:30
Wednesday	09:00–16:30
Thursday	09:00–16:30
Friday	09:00–16:30
Saturday	09:00–16:30
Sunday	09:00–16:30

What’s inside: archaeology, history and David Livingstone

The museum covers a lot more than one explorer. Its collections are internationally significant¹, and they span four fields:

• Zambian archaeology
• History
• Culture
• Natural history

The David Livingstone gallery is the big draw. It holds a large collection of his personal relics, letters, documents and photographs³. That makes sense once you know the place began in 1934² as the David Livingstone Memorial Museum.

Livingstone Museum tickets and opening hours

Tickets cost less for Zambian residents than for visitors, and the in-house guides are free.

The museum is open every day from 09:00 to 16:30¹ (checked October 2026). Entry for non-residents is US$5 an adult¹ (checked October 2026).

Give yourself time: allow at least two hours⁴ to see all the exhibitions, Nkwazi Magazine suggests. A guided tour runs longer, at about 2 to 3 hours⁵ each according to the travel guide site victoriafalls-guide.net.

The museum gives its address as Plot 567 Mosi-o-tunya Road, Livingstone¹, while Google Maps lists 317 Mosi - Oa - Tunya Road⁶. Both are on the same road, so the museum’s name is the easiest thing to tell a taxi driver.

Getting there from Victoria Falls

The museum is on the Zambian side², so a visit from Victoria Falls town on the Zimbabwe side means crossing the border. Victoria Falls town sits across the border from Livingstone, Zambia⁷, and the trip goes like this:

1. 1

   Cross the border

   You can cross on foot. Wild Horizons puts border formalities at 30 minutes to 1 hour, depending on how busy the posts are.

2. 2

   Take an official blue taxi

   Livingstone's official taxis are blue with a red number plate. A taxi between town and the falls usually costs US$10 each way.

3. 3

   Get dropped in the centre

   The museum is in the heart of Livingstone town, on Mosi-o-tunya Road.

Rather not handle the border yourself? A guided tour of the falls from both sides crosses into Zambia for you; check whether it can stop at the museum before you book. If you’re staying across the river for longer, read up on the Zambian town of Livingstone first.

Who the museum suits

The museum works for most visitors, including those who need step-free access:

• Wheelchair users: all public areas of the museum are wheelchair accessible¹.
• Families: Wild Horizons calls its museum tour a family-friendly experience⁹.
• Anyone staying for lunch: meals, snacks and refreshments are sold at the museum restaurant just outside the main building, and the craft shop in the central courtyard¹⁰ sells crafts and souvenirs.

Guided museum tours

The museum’s own guides are free of charge, subject to availability¹. If you want a guide for certain, Wild Horizons runs a museum tour lasting 3 hours⁹.

Was David Livingstone anti-slavery?

Yes. Wikipedia describes David Livingstone as an anti-slavery crusader¹¹. He hoped his fame would give him the influence to end the East African Arab-Swahili slave trade¹¹.

The town around the museum carries his name too. Livingstone is named after the Scottish explorer and missionary who was the first European to explore the area¹².

Nearby attractions

Livingstone has more museums close by, and the Zimbabwe side has its own sights once you’ve crossed back:

• Maramba Cultural Museum: traditional dancing, singing and costumes¹², in Livingstone.
• Railway Museum: Livingstone is home to the Railway Museum of the Mulobezi Railway¹².
• Victoria Falls Bridge: a steel arch with a view of the falls from its centre⁷. See the steel bridge across the gorge.
• The Big Tree: an ancient baobab estimated to be 2000 years old⁷, on the Zimbabwe side.
• Zambezi National Park: Victoria Falls town is surrounded by the Zambezi, Mosi-oa-Tunya and Victoria Falls national parks¹³. Read about wildlife and activities on the Zambezi.

For the falls themselves and the adventure activities, see everything else to do around Victoria Falls.

Questions people ask