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Harare

More attractive than most other Southern African capitals, Harare is a laid-back city where wide avenues are lined with dusty red earth, and indigenous plants and blooming jacarandas give it a lovely African summertime feel. While it’s tempting to rush off to your safari, it’s worth hanging around in Harare to sample its fine dining, museums, craft markets and varied bars.

Top attractions

These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Harare.

Monument
National Heroes' Acre
The grandiose obelisk of Heroes' Acre, overlooking the town, is straight out of Pyongyang, yet lies just 7km from Harare. Designed with the assistance of North Korea, it serves as a sombre memorial to the forces who died during the Second Chimurenga. There's a giant socialist-realism statue of the unknown soldier (actually three soldiers), flanked by bronze friezes depicting stirring war victories. Entrance is free, but there's an admission fee for the interesting museum dedicated to the resistance movement.
Gallery
National Gallery of Zimbabwe
In the southeast corner of Harare Gardens, this lovely gallery has multiple spaces exhibiting a mix of contemporary local, African and international artists. Shows change monthly, with a mix of paintings, photography, stone sculptures, masks and carvings. The attached shop is an excellent place to stock up on crafts and books on Zimbabwean art, before coffee and cake in the cafe. There's an open-air Shona sculpture garden outside.
Gallery
Delta Gallery
A must for contemporary art lovers is this gallery inside the charming colonial house of eminent Rhodesian painter Robert Paul (1906–79). It showcases wonderful works by contemporary Zimbabwean artists, with shows held monthly.
Wildlife Reserve
Wild is Life
A wildlife sanctuary with a difference – sip on afternoon tea and champagne while getting a hands-on experience with the injured, rescued or orphaned animals here. Located near the airport. You need to book well in advance and children under 12 are not permitted.
Wildlife Reserve
Mukuvisi Woodlands Environmental Centre
Only 7km from the city, most of the 265 hectares here are natural msasa parkland where zebras, giraffes and antelope species roam free. View from the platform (bring binoculars) or on foot with a safari guide (US$10), or go on a horse safari (adult/child $15/12) at 8.30am, 11am and 3pm. Sundays are a good time to visit because you can cycle or walk about without a guide. Birdwatching is excellent ($20 for three hours). Note that there are some depressing animal enclosures.
Gardens
National Botanic Gardens
If you thought Harare couldn't get any more relaxed, you clearly haven't visited its botanical gardens. Spread over 68 hectares, it's an extremely peaceful spot, showcasing 90% of the different ecological habitats found in Zimbabwe. However, it's suffering neglect from recent drought and lack of funding. A bicycle is the ideal way to get around; hire one from It's a Small World. Its restaurant is a pleasant spot for lunch; otherwise pack a picnic to enjoy on the lawns.
Museum
National Archives of Zimbabwe
Founded in 1935, this building is the repository for the history of Rhodesia and modern Zimbabwe. It's worth a visit to see artefacts, photos, accounts of early explorers and settlers, and displays about the Second Chimurenga and pre-colonial Zimbabwe. There are original newspaper clippings from significant moments in history, oil paintings and the first Union Jack flag raised in Harare (then known as Fort Salisbury) in 1890. To get here, take Churchill Ave off Borrowdale Rd, from where it's signed.
Architecture
Eastgate Centre
Inspired by the ruins of Great Zimbabwe, the Eastgate Centre shopping complex is noteworthy for its sustainable design based on a termite mound, which allows for natural cooling and ventilation. Completed in 1996, it uses 10% of the energy of other buildings its size. It was designed by Harare architect Mick Pearce, who's worked on similar eco-buildings around the world.
Notable Building
Tobacco Floor
Not quite the NY stock exchange but certainly fast paced. Get among the action on the floors where farmers on one side sell bales of tobacco to brokers on the other. Tobacco used to be one of Zimbabwe’s major foreign-exchange earners and the country produced the best leaf in the world. Auctions only take place from around February to July.