Tourism in Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe boasts several tourist attractions, located in almost every region of the country. Before the economic changes, much of the tourism for these locations came to the Zimbabwean side but now Zambia benefits from the tourism. The Victoria Falls National Park is also a tourist attraction in this area and is one of the eight main National Parks in Zimbabwe,[1] largest of which is Hwange National Park.

The logo of the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority showing the Victoria Falls and the Zimbabwe Bird found at Great Zimbabwe.

Great Zimbabwe as featured on the defunct $50 note

Victoria Falls, the end of the upper Zambezi and beginning of the middle Zambezi

Chefs at the Victoria Falls Hotel

The Eastern Highlands are a series of mountainous areas near the border with Mozambique. These hufhlands stretch from Nyanga in the north with the highest peak in Zimbabwe, Mount Nyangani at 2593 metres is located here as well with the Bvumba Mountains further south and the magnificent quartzite Chimanimani range are the southern most slopes. Mt. Binga is the highest of the Chimanimani peaks. It straddles both Mozambique and Zimbabwe. The endemic species of this transfrontier park attract scientists and hikers from all over the world. Views from all of the Nyanga mountains are famed that places as far away as 60–70 km are visible and, on clear days, the town of Rusape can be seen.

Zimbabwe is distinctive in Africa for its large number of medieval era city ruins built in a unique dry stone style. Possibly the most famous of these are the Great Zimbabwe ruins in Masvingo which survive from the Kingdom of Zimbabwe era. Other ruins include Khami Ruins, Zimbabwe, Dhlo-Dhlo and Naletale.

The Matobo Hills are an area of granite kopjes and wooded valleys commencing some 35 kilometres south of Bulawayo, southern Zimbabwe. The Hills were formed over 2000 million years ago with granite being forced to the surface, this has eroded to produce smooth "whaleback dwalas" and broken kopjes, strewn with boulders and interspersed with thickets of vegetation. Mzilikazi, founder of the Ndebele nation, gave the area its name, meaning 'Bald Heads'. They have become famous and a tourist attraction because Cecil John Rhodes famous for his vision that led to foundation of Rhodesia, and other early white pioneers like Leander Starr Jameson, Major Allan Wilson, and most of the members of the Shangani Patrol are buried in these hills at another site named World's View.[2]

Hwange National Park and Mana Pools, a UNESCO World Heritage site, are some of the best National Parks and safari destinations in the region. The tourism sector in Zimbabwe has been on the rise for past 2 years.

The deployment of widespread police roadblocks issuing fines for minor or non-existent infringements has had a negative impact on tourism to the country.[3]

Arrivals by country

In previous years, most visitors arriving to Zimbabwe on short term basis were from the following countries of nationality:[4]

Country	2017	2016	2015	2014
South Africa	716,234	736,993	744,627	607,616
Malawi	407,006	409,302	320,181	321,874
Zambia	353,214	310,495	327,559	285,727
Mozambique	189,237	171,684	181,435	169,829
Botswana	101,845	94,347	70,354	71,384
United States	101,206	82,699	66,577	57,410
United Kingdom and  Ireland	73,552	32,457	53,528	38,606
Germany	37,304	28,929	26,355	24,572
Japan	34,214	22,566	12,713	18,443
Democratic Republic of the Congo	33,811	26,223	26,422	28,368
Total	2,422,930	2,167,686	2,056,588	1,880,028

References

1. "Zimbabwe Tourism Authority". Retrieved 2007-11-16.
2. "The Spirit of Matobo". Archived from the original on 2013-11-01. Retrieved 2007-11-16.
3. Matyszak, Derek (20 September 2017). "Zimbabwe's shady police roadblocks reflect its failing governance - ISS Africa". ISS Africa. Retrieved 2017-09-22.