Zimbabwe’s bustling capital, Harare (Salisbury of old), is often described as the place that never sleeps—and for good reason. It’s a modern metropolis with a large and growing population, and despite an ongoing set of economic challenges, it offers residents and visitors a wealth of action, activity and excitement that makes it one of Southern Africa’s buzziest cities.
Before colonial settlement, people lived along the fringes of waterways around what is now the greater Harare area. But since that settlement of the late 19th century, growth has been focused around a highly active business district in the heart of the city, in turn surrounded by a mix of high-density and low-density suburbs, industrial areas, shopping centres, parks, golf courses and green areas. A drive from the southernmost suburbs to the northernmost fringes is a journey of 40 kilometres or more, and growth just never seems to stop.
