London, UK to Harare, Zimbabwe from £497

🌍 About harare

Harare sits on the highveld at nearly 1,500m, so it stays mild and dry while the rest of the region bakes — the air is thinner and cooler than you'd expect this far into Africa. Head to Mbare Musika, the city's oldest and biggest market, for the real pulse of the place: traders, mbira and sungura music, vegetables, secondhand everything. Eat sadza, the stiff white maize porridge that's the national staple, with a relish of greens and stewed meat — you pull it apart with your right hand. The thing to time your trip for is October, when the jacaranda trees lining the older avenues drop a purple canopy over the streets. Come in the dry season, May to October: clear skies, cool mornings, no rain. November to March is the wet, humid rainy season — skip it.