Itinerary
The Falls, Two Parks and the Road South: How a Zimbabwean Trip Is Built
Zimbabwe's great sights fall into two journeys. The safari journey follows the Zambezi and its hinterland, from Victoria Falls to the elephants of Hwange and on to the river at Mana Pools, joined by road and by small aircraft in about ten days. The heritage journey runs by road through the south and east, from Bulawayo and the Matobo Hills to Great Zimbabwe and the Eastern Highlands. The dry season, from about May to October, suits both.
Updated 2026-10-09
Days 1 to 3: Victoria Falls
Three nights at Victoria Falls give a morning on the rainforest path, evenings on the river above the falls and a day for the gorge, a flight over the falls, the Zambian side across the bridge or a trip to Chobe in Botswana. The town's airport has regional flights, and the falls are a fine end to a trip as well as a start.
Days 4 to 7: Hwange
A few hours by road south of the falls, or a short flight, Hwange National Park fills four nights with game drives and walks, afternoons at the pans as the elephants come to drink, and the chance of painted dogs. A camp in the park's north is the easiest to reach; the private camps of the east are quieter.
Days 8 to 10: Mana Pools
A small aircraft crosses the country to the airstrips of Mana Pools, where the last days are spent on foot and on the water: walks across the floodplain with a guide, a canoe among the hippos and evenings on the bank of the Zambezi. A short flight to Harare begins the journey home.
Adding Lake Kariba
Lake Kariba lies between Hwange and Mana Pools, and two or three nights on a houseboat or at a lodge on the Matusadona shore fit easily into the route, joined by small aircraft.
The heritage circuit by road
A second journey of a week or more runs by road through the south: Bulawayo and the Matobo Hills, with rock art and rhino tracking, then east to Great Zimbabwe near Masvingo, and on to the Eastern Highlands for waterfalls and mountain walks, ending in Harare. It joins the safari journey at Victoria Falls, a long day's drive or a flight from Bulawayo.
When to go
The dry season, from about May to October, is the time for the parks, with cool days from June to August and the heat building towards October, when the animals gather most at the water; Mana Pools opens from about April to November. Victoria Falls is fullest from about February to May and clearest as the river drops. The rains, from about November to March, turn the country green and close many bush camps.