Here at Ultimate Africa Safaris we have very close ties to Zimbabwe. Our most senior safari consultant Lorna is from Zimbabwe and her family still lives there… I myself went to University there and have many friends who live in Zimbabwe.  I recently enjoyed an amazing trip to Zim with my oldest son who is now 8…

Regarding the coup / military takeover President Mugabe has been in power for 37 years and is 93 years of age… a younger faction of Mugabe’s ruling party, which includes Mugabe’s wife, has been gaining power and many of the older military folks are not happy with this – especially since their man, the vice president, was kicked out of the government last week.  Their wealth and power is now threatened.

So with little fanfare the military took over government offices and has detained the President at his home. They are saying Mugabe is safe. Word is that the expelled vice President has flown back to Zimbabwe.

How does this all effect travelers planning to visit Zimbabwe? Since Mugabe took power in 1980 we have seen the country go through all sorts of messes… in the 80s through to late 90s things were pretty sweet. Then the wheels came off… at one point Mugabe ordered “war veterans” to violently take farmland from farmers across the country… we have experienced hyper inflation where useless 100 trillion Zimbabwe dollar bills could be seen in gutters and store shelves were empty.  Gas in the country was so limited people would wait more than 24 hours in line when there was a delivery. We have watched elections  and contested elections. We have seen worker strikes as well…

Throughout all of this Victoria Falls and the national parks have been unaffected and overall life in Zimbabwe has continued.  Friends and family still head off to work and school each day. A good friend regularly posts photos of houseboating on Lake Kariba and his new home he built in the eastern Highlands…

The day after the coup airlines are still flying their normal flights, tourists are still checking out Victoria Falls, the internet still works, and people are shopping / working… in short there has been no violence or chaos.

What do we advise? If you have a trip planned to Zimbabwe, particularly to Victoria Falls and the national parks, we see no reason as of yet to make changes. Our clients safety is paramount and if we feel in any way that there is a risk we will advise to make changes.

UPDATE: As of early December 2017 President Robert Mugabe resigned and the vice president has taken over. Troops have returned to their barracks and life in Zimbabwe goes on as per normal…

Ian Proctor
Ultimate Africa Safaris