Holiday in Zim this July - some advice welcomed
 

Coming to the end of our time in the Gulf and I want to take the wife back to the country of her birth and show the boys some animals and an experience of Africa. Flights are booked so we are definitely going, yay

Most of the trip is semi sorted already (few days in Vic falls, houseboat on Kariba, few days in Bullies and a decent lodge around the Matopos but we will be landing in Harare and spending a few days there for the wife to reminisce. Can anyone confirm if car hire is a sensible option from Harare International or is it easier to find a reliable driver, with a reliable car to run us around?
Looks like we will book the Monomotapa for those few days unless anyone has any good recommendations.. If anyone there or who has recently been there has any comments, they would be gladly received
Thanks Tock

Re: Holiday in Zim this July - some advice welcomed
 

Can't help with your question. May I ask you to post your experience? I have memories of "Salisbury", Meikles Hotel etc., travelling in armed convoys. My last trip was during Lancaster House agreement. Enjoy your trip.

Re: Holiday in Zim this July - some advice welcomed
 

Ja no worries at all. It appears we have chosen the worse weeks of the year to visit as stacks of places are full particularly down in the matopos. Fortunately my wife used to be a travel writer in Zim so that appears to be opening a few doors, thankfully. Will post a full report upon completion but one thing I can say now is that Zim is appearing fiercely expensive especially in wankie which is probably out of reach now at a 1000 gbp per night !!

Re: Holiday in Zim this July - some advice welcomed
 

House boats on Kariba are still very reasonable so looks like lots of fishing and checking out flat dogs

Re: Holiday in Zim this July - some advice welcomed
 

Hi Tock,

Do you still need any advice or is everything pretty much booked and paid for at this point? I'm in Harare so I could try answering some questions. Roads in Harare (most of Zimbabwe actually) are horrific atm. So maybe getting a reliable driver might be easier (if budget allows). I personally now know where potholes are on my regular routes and there's nothing worse than running into a new one or driving slow on a new route you're not familiar with. Even on familiar routes, it's still pretty exhausting trying to manoeuvre through. However, if it's a true Zimbabwean experience you're looking for...:thumbsup:

Re: Holiday in Zim this July - some advice welcomed
 

Re: Holiday in Zim this July - some advice welcomed
 

Hi All,

Just jumping on this thread. We have booked tickets from mid Jan to early Feb and will be on a house boat on Lake Kariba for five days.

I haven't been there for many, many years, and can't remember what safety precautions we need to take.

Can anyone advise please?

Re: Holiday in Zim this July - some advice welcomed
 

Re: Holiday in Zim this July - some advice welcomed
 

Thanks for such a detailed and insightful response. It's been very helpful. 😕

Re: Holiday in Zim this July - some advice welcomed
 

A few days ago I spoke to a friend who visited Zim in May. All she said was that they enjoyed their stay (Vic Falls). Overall I heard nothing negative. It was not a group tour but self-organized to various Central and Southern African countries.

Re: Holiday in Zim this July - some advice welcomed
 

Re: Holiday in Zim this July - some advice welcomed
 

Re: Holiday in Zim this July - some advice welcomed
 

Do you have much personal experience of visiting Zimbabwe?

Re: Holiday in Zim this July - some advice welcomed
 

​​​​​​
I didn't ask, Alfresco asked on our behalf. He said we'd already booked so not going isn't really an option. The trip is to visit an elderly family member so not just a chilling holiday.

Re: Holiday in Zim this July - some advice welcomed
 

Thanks ​​​​​​for the feedback. At this stage we are staying in Harare with five nights booked on the houseboat at Lake Kariba. As long as I get to see a hippo, I'll be a happy bunny.