Jameson Vic Falls Carnival: One of Africa’s best

Prince Mushawevato and Andrew Moyo recently in Victoria Falls
THE annual Jameson Vic Falls Carnival once again proved to be popular with tourists from all over the world, despite registering fewer numbers of revellers when compared to the previous editions.
The Jameson Vic Falls Carnival is now regarded as one of the best music festivals in Africa and its popularity has aided to growth of the tourism business in the resort town.

The carnival ran from December 29 and lasted for three days.
During the period, hotels and lodges in the resort town were fully booked.
Organisers had increased the capacity of the train and bush party by adding more train trips to “the secret location” which is situated in the forest surrounding Jafuta.
Unlike in 2014 when a rain-drenched multiracial crowd welcomed 2015 on New Year’s Eve at the Victoria Falls Primary School, popularly known as Farm School; there were no rains this time around.
Thus, the weather was favourable for merrymakers to cross over into the new year without any hindrances.
Yet the good weather did nothing to attract more numbers.
Accordingly, market watchers are saying that the weakening of the South African rand against the United States dollar was one of the major contributors to the low turnout.
A huge chunk of tourists that grace the annual event, which has been running since 2009, are said to be South African.
Some are also arguing that delays in the payment of civil servants’ salaries also contributed to the subdued turnout.
ln most cases, when civil servants get paid, entrepreneurs also smile all the way to the bank as there will be more activity.
In an interview with The Sunday Mail Leisure on the sidelines of the Farm School celebrations, the Deputy Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Industry, Anastancia Ndhlovu conceded that the turnout for the carnival was low.
“I think the carnival has been a huge success considering that 2015 has been a difficult year for most countries and especially looking at the performance of other currencies against the United States dollar. Indeed, it was a bit smaller compared to the last edition but it was successful in the sense that it brought more business for operators,” said Deputy Minister Ndlovu.

She also revealed that her ministry is exploring ways to make the annual event bigger and to spread its benefits to locals despite the class, race or ethnic group they belong to.
“We want to work more closely with the organisers so that we grow the event in a way that will incorporate locals. Our ministry has a mission to demystify tourism as a preserve for the elite.
“I noticed that most of the locals could not afford to come for the event, but I’m happy they managed to benefit from the event.
“Most residential areas are occupied by visitors and that is empowerment. The President wants us to exploit resources for everyone’s benefit, thus we should also look for other avenues through which these benefits can be passed on,” she added.

However, despite the low turnout, the festival gave revellers interesting talking points.
With an exceptional line-up consisting of Mango Groove, Mokoomba, Judgement Yard, Diloxclusiv, GoodLuck, Monark and Jason Le Roux, among others; the New Year’s celebrations could not have gone any better way.
The festivities kicked off on December 29 with the popular train ferrying people to the bush party.
The atmosphere in the town was electric as both local and foreign music lovers eagerly awaited the celebrations.
From the time that the first train left the station, it was non-stop grooving to the pulsating Electro-Dance-Music (EDM) and house music that was being played by the DJs.
However, some revellers felt that more genres need to be part of the event to incorporate other tastes.
The popular sound movement – Judgment Yard – managed to do just that on the final day of the celebrations. They literally brought the house down with a blend of local and international dancehall and reggae beats.
In previous years; venues like Shoestrings, Adventure Lodge and Rest Camp, among others held various themed parties to complement the main festival.
However, things were a bit different this year.
Rest Camp upped its game and brought in some competition for the main carnival through collaborating with Davis Events LIVE to organise an equally big party which was dubbed “Fallin 2015”.
lt matched the Jameson Carnival in every aspect, except on pricing.
Patrons simply had to pay US$5 at the gate to attend the “Fallin 2015” while one had to part with a minimum of US$65 to be part of the Jameson Vic Falls Carnival.
“Fallin 2015” boasted of top DJs such as DJ T Base, Raydizz, Djembe Monks, Ryan G and DJ Francis. The team was just explosive.
Considering affordability, this party ended up being an alternative for many who could not afford to attend the more expensive train party and the December 31 Jameson Carnival main celebrations.
The “Fallin 2015” party gained momentum and thousands of patrons invaded the venue and created an electric atmosphere. The party went on till the wee hours of the morning.
In an interview with The Sunday Mail Leisure, Rest Camp’s general manager Olga Mutamba said that they organised the unique New Year’s party with the local community in mind.
“We have always organised small New Year’s Eve parties for our patrons but this year we collaborated with Davis Events to create a bigger party so that the locals who cannot afford to pay US$65 for the main carnival tickets would also get to celebrate.
“We have realised that most of the members of this community who service the tourists find it difficult to fork out huge amounts for such events; talk of the waiters, chefs, cleaners and drivers, just to mention a few. This is why we saw it fit to also provide them with a cheaper alternative,” said Mutamba.
She went on to say that considering the overwhelming response, they were considering repeating the event this year.
“We have been having a lot of positive feedback from the local community, many people are thanking us for hosting this party. We are considering doing this again and if everything goes well, it might be bigger and better this time around,” she said.
Rest Camp used to organise the “Falls Fest”, which came before the Jameson Vic Falls Carnival.
Speaking to this publication, Seed Experiences Marketing Director, Charlotte Kanter said Rest Camp’s initiative was a welcome development.

“Vic Falls is an amazing place to come and these guys have seen a great potential to throw a big event. For us, the more events taking place, the better for us because it means more people will come to visit the town.
“We seek to partner with local businesses and the local community. That party is one of the community parties that complement the carnival, along with those at Shoestrings and Adventure Lodge,” said Kanter.
She added that their festival is transcending time because of innovation.
“Last year, we created a colour festival and this year we decided to add two more trains on to the itinerary. Every year that we hold the event it grows,” she said.