Afrinkong
Highveld and Escarpment
Granite kopjes across the highveld, and the Zambezi escarpment dropping into the valley.
Photo Anh Thu Le / Pexels
ZIMBABWE · Tourism
Great Zimbabwe and the Zambezi
Victoria Falls on one border, Great Zimbabwe's stone city in the interior, Hwange's elephant herds and Mana Pools — the park where the walking safari was refined into an art.
Southern AfricaRegion
27Tourism experiences
Great Zimbabwe and the ZambeziKnown for
01
Featured destinations
Where the country actually takes you.
MountainsThe Eastern Highlands
Nyanga, Vumba and Chimanimani along the Mozambique border, up to 2,592 metres.
Victoria Falls
Mosi-oa-Tunya — a mile and a half wide, and a hundred metres down, in full flood.
The Zambezi and Kariba
The Zambezi above the falls, and Kariba's drowned forest downstream of them.
Beaches & CoastLandlocked
No coast — the water here is the Zambezi, Kariba, and the pools of the Mana floodplain.
Photo Kabwe Kabwe / Pexels
Forests & RainforestMsasa and Miombo
Miombo woodland across the country, and msasa that comes into red leaf in September.
02
Wildlife & safari
What lives here, and how you see it without disturbing it.
Wildlife
Hwange's Elephant
Forty thousand elephant in Hwange, drinking at pumped pans through the dry season.
Photo Dorota Semla / Pexels
SafariMana Pools on Foot
The park where you may walk unguided, and where the elephant stand on their hind legs.
Photo ubeyonroad / Pexels
Eco TourismCAMPFIRE
The community wildlife programme that much of the region's conservation policy was built on.
Photo Magda Ehlers / Pexels
03
Culture & heritage
The part of a country you cannot photograph from a vehicle.
Culture
Shona and Ndebele
Shona across the centre and east, Ndebele in the west, and stone sculpture from both.
Photo Magda Ehlers / Pexels
The Stone Sculptors
Zimbabwean stone sculpture is the country's clearest contemporary export.
Photo GOWTHAM AGM / Pexels
Sadza and Braai
Sadza with relish, and meat over coals wherever there is a fire and company.
Photo DΛVΞ GΛRCIΛ / Pexels
Festivals & CelebrationsHIFA and the Harvest
The Harare arts festival, and the harvest ceremonies that still open the season.
Photo Edias Vandirai / Pexels
Stone, Basket and Wire
Serpentine carving, Binga basketry, and wire sculpture sold on every roadside.
Photo Magda Ehlers / Pexels
Historic SitesGreat Zimbabwe
Eight hundred years old, mortarless, and the largest stone structure south of the Sahara.
Photo Magda Ehlers / Pexels
HeritageKhami and Matobo
Khami's terraces, and the Matobo hills where Mzilikazi and Rhodes are both buried.
Photo Hannah Barata / Pexels
04
Cities & everyday life
Where people actually live between the landmarks.
CitiesHarare and Bulawayo
Harare on the highveld, and Bulawayo's wide colonial grid built for turning an ox wagon.
Dry Stone
Great Zimbabwe's coursed granite is the architecture, and nothing since has matched it.
Photo Derek Keats / Pexels
Kombis and Musika
The country runs on kombis and market days, both of which are worth an afternoon.
Photo Abdul Basit / Pexels
Family & CommunityFalls and Elephant
Victoria Falls, a steam train, and elephant at a waterhole — a good week for children.
Photo Alex Levis / Pexels
05
Adventure & outdoors
For travellers who would rather walk it than watch it.
Adventure
Walking, Canoeing, Rafting
Canoe the Zambezi past hippo, raft the gorge below the falls, and walk Mana with a guide.
Raft, Canoe, Walk
Grade five rafting below the falls, multi-day canoe trails, and walking safaris in Mana.
Photo Ana Kenk / Pexels
Luxury TravelThe Old Safari Standard
Small owner-run camps in Mana and Hwange, run by guides with the country's toughest licence.
06
Travel inspiration
The frames people come home with.
Albida Light
The winterthorn cathedrals of Mana Pools, in dust and low sun, are photographed everywhere.
Hidden GemsChimanimani
A mountain range on the Mozambique border that you walk into and camp in.
Photo Rodrigo Menezes / Pexels
Why Visit This Country
Guides, and Great Ruins
The hardest guiding exam in Africa, and a stone city most visitors have never heard of.
Guides, and Great Ruins
The hardest guiding exam in Africa, and a stone city most visitors have never heard of.
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