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Solo Female Travel in Zimbabwe: My Experience

Going to Zimbabwe alone
Let’s do this!

Contents

  • I had a total blast traveling to Zimbabwe alone
  • Zimbabweans are the best, but…
  • Some things that happened:
  • The worst part
  • More on this finding a husband during solo female travel in Zimbabwe idea…
  • On Solo Female Travel in Zimbabwe and Alcohol…
  • Being a woman alone can send a strong message in certain conditions:
  • Some final thoughts on Solo Female Travel in Zimbabwe

I had a total blast traveling to Zimbabwe alone

But time and again, local people and other travelers alike were shocked upon hearing that I, a girl, was traveling alone in Zimbabwe. I figured I would share my general experiences so that if you are planning on doing your own solo female travel to Zimbabwe shindig you will at least know what to expect. I went backpacking all around Zimbabwe independently.

see also: My Tips for Solo Female Travel in Central Asia

Bulawayo Train station waiting room
Mugabe is always watching…

Zimbabweans are the best, but…

Zimbabweans are SO friendly. This was great for meeting new friends, but I also felt like it emboldened some men to pester me.

If you stand out somehow (for example, I am a pasty white girl…but just having a tourist’s backpack is enough…) you will naturally attract more attention from people. I am pretty timid and intimidated around strangers so the attention I got from younger became frustrating at times.

At one point, on a train, a man stood in my compartment doorway and just stared at me for 20 minutes. He didn’t even stop when I confronted him about it. My Zimbabwean friend ended up slamming the compartment door and muttering “that was weird…”.

See also: My Lovely Zimbabwe Travel Guide

I was relieved that that wasn’t something normal for her, a Zimbabwean woman traveling long distances alone. I was afraid she was going to just say “oh yeah that happens all the time just ignore them…”

But I had so many good experiences with both men and women from Zimbabwe that it outweighs the bad experiences.

solo female travel zimbabwe
I met so many wonderful women while traveling around Zimbabwe alone!

Some things that happened:

Most of the issues I had happened around Victoria Falls. I am actually going to write a separate post about how I hated Victoria Falls, but I will spare you from that right now.

Long story short, there are a lot of people who will walk up to you on the street and try to sell you things. Obviously this is very normal in such a tourist hot spot, but after repeated attempts to say no to buying things, some men would suddenly switch gears…

Long story short, they would solicit sex.

“You want to see my penis? I can find you later…”

sigh.

But it wasn’t just at Victoria Falls. Some drunk grandpa asked me to give him a blowjob by toilet at a practically abandoned border post, so there ya go…once again, I declined.

solo female travel to Zimbabwe

The worst part

The worst part about this experience was that you would often end up  passing  the same men several times a day. I wasn’t going to let their inappropriate comments keep me locked in the house out of fear, but I felt uncomfortable while walking in certain areas.

Thankfully they never brought it up again.

When I spoke to one Zimbabwean couchsurfing host about my experience, he sighed and said that sometimes local men think tourist girls are there just to hook up with them. Why else would a girl travel alone to Zimbabwe?

Obviously everyone has their own reasons to travel and I am not commenting on that, but I seriously doubt ALL women go to Victoria Falls just to hook up with men they meet in bars…but hey I may have this whole solo female travel in Zimbabwe wrong…

solo female travel zimbabwe
so you wanna solicit sex from me?

More on this finding a husband during solo female travel in Zimbabwe idea…

I heard that theory for the first time in Zimbabwe, but then I heard it repeated throughout my travels in Zambia as well.

“Don’t all you women come here to find a husband?” People would ask me.

I mean, I don’t want to put down any women who decide to travel to Zimbabwe alone (or wherever) to try to meet someone special. There must be a couple of them if so many people were talking about it! Just for my own solo female travel in Zimbabwe adventure, well, that wasn’t the goal.

On Solo Female Travel in Zimbabwe and Alcohol…

One of my couchsurfing hosts took me to a local (non-tourist) bar. At the bar he ran into an ex girlfriend he ghosted (oops) who was there alone. He seemed really shocked and upset to see her, and so I assumed that had to do with his own personal relationship problems and didn’t pry.

Nope. I learned that women hanging out at bars alone (that aren’t tourist bars) are usually sex workers. I would be upset also if I ran into my ex in those conditions! He felt really bad for her.

This phenomenon exists all over the world, though, and not just in Zimbabwe.

“Pretend you are doing her hair!”
“I have no idea how to do that!!!”
This is the result. Notice that they are laughing at me.

Being a woman alone can send a strong message in certain conditions:

Why am I telling this story? It is mainly to bring to your attention that drinking alcohol in certain situations may send a strong message to the people around you, especially if you are traveling alone.

You may be completely unaware that you are shouting “solicit sex from me!” to people there.

This doesn’t apply to the tourist/hostel bars in cities or bars at safari lodges, though, but I would not recommend entering a local bar alone to enjoy a few beers.

When I stayed with different Zimbabwean families, it seemed like the women would socialize in and around the homes at night when the men would all go to the bar together.

I also had situations where there were some girls who would hang out and go to the bar with groups of guys as friends. But they would never just go alone unless they knew people already there.

solo female travel zimbabwe
Many Zimbabwean women travel alone, but only she is traveling with her green deer baby!

Some final thoughts on Solo Female Travel in Zimbabwe

I don’t want to sound like an annoying American girl who arrives in a country and instantly starts to throw around her own ideas about how a society should be. I’m sure Zimbabweans would find plenty of faults in my own society  (lol, I sure do…). I just wanted to present some of my own experiences so that you may know what to expect when you travel to Zimbabwe alone.

Also I don’t want to make it seem like I was the first woman  ever to travel around Zimbabwe alone. Zimbabwean women travel all over the country and the region alone all the time. I was lucky enough to be able to hang out with lots of ladies doing this! It is not something abnormal there.

Sure, this post addresses harassment and some inappropriate situations, but I must emphasize that I never once felt unsafe during my solo female travel in Zimbabwe. It was all verbal but nobody ever touched me or followed me out of public spaces. But that obviously doesn’t excuse that kind of behavior!

I am so happy I traveled to Zimbabwe. Of course it is important to be aware of these realities, but I know you will probably have a wonderful time if you travel to Zimbabwe alone! Don’t let these anecdotes prevent you from making the trip!

 

 

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  2. African Camping- is it Safe? 9 Tips to Keep You From Being Eaten Alive
  3. Independent Travel in Southern Africa : You can do it! Here’s my trip overview:
  4. Is Backpacking in Africa Expensive? Here’s my Africa travel budget!
Previous Article Taking the Train from Mozambique to Zimbabwe Part 2: The Party Train
Next Article Taking the Train from Harare to Bulawayo, Zimbabwe: The Scary Train

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15 Comments

  1. Naomi Reply
    February 22, 2018 at 3:41 pm

    Thanks for writing this. I’m starting a camping safari from Victoria Falls and am deciding how many days early to go. I think maybe few, before meeting up with the group. When did you write this? Was it recent enough you can recommend a place to stay? Thanks!

    • Babeesh Reply
      February 22, 2018 at 6:01 pm

      Hi Naomi, thanks for reading! I was there last summer so it was rather recent! When I was in Victoria Falls I was couchsurfing, but I did spend time hanging out at Shoestrings backpackers. It definitely had a young backpacker vibe, though, so I am unsure if that may be what you are looking for. There are a lot of wonderful options in Victoria Falls, though, and so you won’t have any trouble finding something. Also, if you are going to Zambia I felt like the hostel options were much more varied and all around better in Livingstone! But it may not be worth the $50 visa just to go there and stay in a hostel.
      Good luck and enjoy your trip! It sounds awesome!

      • Naomi Reply
        February 22, 2018 at 6:55 pm

        Thanks for getting back to me, I had an eye on Shoestring because it has good reviews and is near the next day’s meeting place. It’s helpful to hear you’ve been. I’ve enjoyed reading your accounts of southern africa, thanks for sharing! I look forward to writing my own this coming fall on my site, temptedtolinger.com! My camping safari will take me south, but I’m thinking to start with a trip to Zanzibar, did you go there and/have you written about it?

        • Babeesh Reply
          February 22, 2018 at 8:48 pm

          Yes- shoestring was fun and it’s good option if you are into being social! They had great food too! And you can walk there rather easily from anywhere in town. Thanks for your kind words! Your site looks great and I am looking forward to hearing about your trip! I have not been to Zanzibar, but it looks so amazing there! I hope you make it and take tons of pictures!

  2. Annika Jonsson Reply
    February 26, 2018 at 11:58 pm

    Hi Babeesh,
    I am planning to do a wildlife internship in Zimbabwe and was wondering what your experience was with the airports? And how safe you felt in general overall. I am a bit nervous about traveling alone especially as a young white female, but it seems the more dangerous places were in the city?

    Thanks

    • Babeesh Reply
      February 27, 2018 at 4:55 pm

      Hey Annika!
      I actually never went to the airports in Zimbabwe, but from my own experience there you should be totally fine. Zimbabweans are so friendly you will have a wonderful time! I would say just be sure you know exactly where you need to go once you arrive in the airport. Ask the people from the internship how they recommend to get to where you need to go and if it is possible to try to book in advance. I imagine there will be plenty of taxis at the airport, though, and that should be fine.
      If you are arriving during the day you shouldn’t have much to worry about. If you are arriving after dark, just be extra sure that you know where you are arriving and that you have a way to get there.
      Have so much fun!

  3. Nikita Reply
    May 18, 2018 at 2:40 pm

    hi I’m traveling to Zimbabwe with my two sons (2 and 6 months) to meet my hubbies perants. unfortunately he can’t get the time off work so I’m going alone and I’m sooo nervous. we are staying with family in Harare

    • Babeesh Reply
      May 19, 2018 at 4:13 am

      I hope you have a wonderful time! I hope you won’t feel too nervous, especially since you will be with his family! I loved traveling to Zimbabwe!

  4. Anaira Reply
    October 24, 2018 at 11:26 pm

    Hi Babeesh, what airline did you travel with?

    • Babeesh Reply
      December 7, 2018 at 1:48 pm

      Hello! I actually went to Zimbabwe via train. I flew Ethiopian to Johannesburg, South Africa and took public transportation from there.

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Hello and thanks for visiting! I’m Babeesh, a Michigander who loves solo and adventure travel. I spent several years living abroad in France and Norway and now I'm back in freezing cold Michigan. I’m obsessed with eating raclettes and I have had the honor of visiting over 100 countries. Want to learn more? Check out my about me page!

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