Zimbabwe Travel Guide

Zimbabwe's currency is the US$ which makes it very easy for travellers to pay there - no difficult exchanging money, no rip-offs on the street by exchange bureaus offering you dream rates and fake money. When you withdraw money from a Zimbabwean ATM, you are very likely to get very old US$ notes, some of them hard to recognise as US$. Moreover,...

To get a good view of the Victoria Falls, the best thing you can do is to make a flight by Cessna or helicopter. We choose for the helicopter.In 1994 the costs were 50$ per person. A lot of money in those days. But you got back a real life time experience in return. Twenty years later the price is triple. You can book the flight in town. The...

It is very easy to travel from Harare to Masvingo (close to Great Zimbabwe) by bus from Harare City Centre. Although you can get 'Chicken Buses' from Mbare Musika for about $7, they only leave when full (maybe hours waiting) and can be slow and overcrowded.I would recommend the Harare - Joburg 'luxury' buses which run from the Roadport bus station...

There are lots of taxis in Harare, though vehicles can be a bit old and drivers vary a lot - one driver was very aggressive and nearly ran down an elderly man in the city centre. A ride to the inner suburbs (up to about 3 km) costs $5; prices tend to rise in multiples of $5 - though always negotiate (in advance) if you think the fare is too...

Rock formations like this is found around the Matobo hills. They are formed by nature over two thousand million years. Rock paintings can be seen as well.Linked below is a very informative page about Matobo, with links to booking opportunities.

In this park you can see incredible rock formations and the grave of Cecil Rhodes. It's worth a visit.It's located outside of Bulawayo. You can ride in their with your own car or do a tour with a local company.More information and photos you can find on my travelogue A visit to the grave of Cecil Rhodes.

We finally found the Rhino's again!This time though he was accompanied by his wife and baby!These Rhino were white Rhino which are the most common, white Rhino are in general friendly animals - black rhino are aggresive and so you would never be able to walk with them!Rhino dont have the best eyesight and it took them ages to spot us, we were ever...

During our time on the houseboat we anchored a few times at different spots around the Matusadona National Park which lies on the shore of the Lake.To be honest we never saw amazing game whilst in this park but we had a delightful morning walk and saw some Buffaloe.The walks we took in the national park were relaxing, at times it felt really eerie...

There were plenty of hippo in the shallows of Lake Kariba - there were places you could swim in the lake, by the shore wasnt one of them!I love the Hippo though, congregating in their groups around the edge of the shore - when our boat was coming in they didd'nt want to move!

I loved sitting out on the deck of our houseboat with a beer in hand and watching the incredible sunset................always so calm...........always so beautiful.

The Matobo hills is one of the richest areas in the world for prehistoric rock art and this form of recorded history is dated from about 25'000 years before the present.This rocky area has numerous of these graphic art forms but unfortunately these paintings are subject to vandalism and this is destroying them faster than weather elements. These...

On our way out of the national park our guides took us past the Matobo Hills. By this late stage in the day I was very ill and was in desperate need of my bed!!!! The Matobo Hills are remarkable for their unusual scenery and the diversity of their flora and fauna. The hills cover about 790,000 acres and have been eroded from an exposed granite...

The Dutch Oven is an experience in itself. It is an American cafe run by Indians called the Dutch Oven. They serve Indian food, hamburgers, African food, doughnuts, milkshakes, etc. The clientele are generally local and are a very interesting mix of white, black, and Indian Zimbabweans. A great place to meet up with friends, meet some new friends,...

Foe something like 5USD you could participate in the breeding programme. Still onsite at Antelope Park this is the sort of place that to me feels like a zoo and I diddn't like it.But here they are doing all of this for good reason, there are so few lions left in the wilds of Africa its heartbreaking - here they are breeding and monitoring them very...

Antelope Park has an undercover area with seating and an outside patio area on the lawns by the river. We loved sitting here and chilling out - especially at Sunset.

Except for the vultures we did not see many birds in Hwange. I had to search the web to find the name of this one. It has alarge yellow spot on the beak, which is not visible on this picture.

This is the most dangerous thing a giraffe can do, lucky for him that the lions were full! And lucky for him to have another (the mother?) standing guard (pic 2)

As always Drifters had hired a local guide to pick us up and drive us around. All our guides / drivers were very knowledgeable and very concerned about safety. When this lioness passed just a few meters behind our jeep to inspect us, we were told to sit tight and not make a move. Looks like she did not see us as competitors, she lay down, but kept...

You can go from Mutare,by taxi for 10 $ (the hole car! some drivers will tell you when paying it´s per person) or by shared taxi leaving from D Avenue for 2 $ per person. Cross the border, visa on that border is 76 $, walk 100 m further and a Chapas (minibus, very crowded) to Chimoio for 80 Meticais (2,70 $). From there frequent Chapas to Beira for...

A European sounding menu - until you see "braised wildebeeste in red wine sauce"! I was there with a large group, seated in a private dining room, so I can't say much about the ambiance, but the grounds are lush and lovely. That's fortunate, as you'll need a stroll through them to help work off the meal. Or stay overnight - there appeared to be a...

To find the trail that leads up here is one of the hardest parts of the trip. It was a very narrow gravel path that was leading to kind of a parking..... If we didn´t had four wheel drive we would have stucked there for ages..... Maybe we should have stopped earlier, but we were following signs......Anyway, at last we found the trail, and it was...

This botanical garden must be wonderful in bloom... I have only been there inwinter and so it wasn´t that colorful.... The arrangements are pretty at any time of year...It´s one of the main tourist attractions around Vumba!

Well, at least we only had a drink at this noble restaurant and hotel. It was nice to sit on the terrace next to the golf green and watch the rich........there was a wedding going on too....

The lazyness of life! Just bring your favourite book and relax.... or take a hot bath in between..... There is not so much more to do though....... The darkness at night!

I highly recommend to bring a torch with you.. The night I stayed there I woke up in the middle of the night and it was so dark that I couldn´t see my hand in front of my eyes... I never experienced such darkness before and felt a bit scared and so I hurried to fall asleep again...luckily it worked out ;)There is electric light as long as the...

Chiredzi is situated in the "Lowveld" and as such has a huge malaria problem, I had it a few times when I lived there and it's not pleasant - alyhough it is a good way to lose weight lol.If your driving in the area, please watch out for stray animals/ children, neither of which have any road sense.It is a Hot hot place, so cover up or coat yourself...

Chiredzi is located on the border of the Gona Re Zhou(Place of elephants) National Park. This is about as wild as it gets in Africa - Ammenities are simple ("long drop" loo's), and if you're lucky, a small thatched shelter without walls.I've spent many a time here, often without seeing another person, but plenty of wildlife to keep you busy, and it...

Sasda from $ 2,engish breakfast $ 5 in a small quiet garden, closing (like most other restaurants in Masvingo) early Sadza (sort of polenta, in southafrica called pap) with beef

Great Zimbabwe, 36 km, is the main reason to go to Masvingo, you can go there from Masvingo by taxi, i was quoted 20 US $, or by minibus leaving from the town center before the TM supermarket at Hughes street for 2 $ (1,50 if you have change or if you are 2 or more), it might take half a hour until the bus is full. You arrive then at a turnoff to...

There are three main musts in the Site:- The Hill complex, is the upper part, up the hill. Was the first built part.- The Great enclosure, at the low part.- The Museum, small, where you can see the National Emblem Bird of Zimbabwe (the one in the bank notes) and some other interesting pieces.To see all this relaxed you'll need all day.

Usually you can see Zimbabwes highest mountain from this viewing point, the Nyangani.It´s 2592 meters high.. I haven´t seen it, cause there were a lot of clouds around at that day ;(

These lakes are a very popular trout fishing spot....so if you are interested in such kind of angling, why not try out this area???

Wow, it really seems that you can see all of Africa under your feet from here. I remember that is was really cold up here in the early morning hours on this winter day.....

No fires are allowed though, and they have had serious wild fire problems here in the park. Bring a stove or just deal with a cold meal if you want to be compliant, but most people are not as you can see evidence of camp fires near the caves. Be very careful if you do have a fire and be smart about not lighting it until after sun set so you don’t...

I personally never climbed up to the 2,440 m Mount Binga because my group was very tired. However, I have been told that the views into Mozambique are outstanding and on a clear day it is possible to see the Indian Ocean. We chose a more modest trail to the boarder at Skeleton Pass which is a little more north of Mount Binga. Be careful about...

Chimanimani National Park is one of Zimbabwe’s premier hiking venues. The mountain floral is primarily sub-Alpine plants such as heather, lobelia, orchid, aloe. Big game is not here but there are klipspringer, chacma baboon, blue duiker, and leopard. The range is on the boarder with Mozambique to the east and has a maximum altitude of 2,440m at...