If you're already in southern Africa, there are frequent services between Johannesburg, South Africa, and Harare and Bulawayo in Zimbabwe. The cheapest flights between Europe and Harare are with Balkan Airways, which flies via Sofia, but there are also competitively priced flights from London. Qantas flies from Sydney and Perth, Australia, to Harare once a week. North American visitors will probably have to connect through Jo'burg.

Popular land borders include the Victoria Falls/Kazungala crossing between Zimbabwe and Botswana (from where you can continue through Chobe National Park to Namibia), the Victoria Falls/Livingstone crossing to Zambia, and the road and rail links to South Africa via Beitbridge. To Mozambique (and Malawi), the route is from Harare to Blantyre via the Nyamapanda and Mwanza border crossings. Daily buses run this route.

Air Zimbabwe connects Harare and Bulawayo with Victoria Falls and Hwange National Park, amongst other places. Sometimes, combined flight and accommodation deals are available for the price of the air ticket, so it's worth making inquiries. There are two types of buses - express and local. Most foreigners use scheduled express coaches to travel between major tourist spots, but the local buses are often just as quick, and will almost always be cheaper. There aren't any schedules for local buses and they run only from early morning to late afternoon, departing from the 'African township' bus stations, which are never in the town centre. It's also quite common to strike a deal with a truck driver for intercity transport. Car rental in Zimbabwe is expensive, especially 4WD, and the vehicles are not generally well-maintained.

Cyclists will be happy to know that most roads are surfaced and in fair repair, and winds are rarely strong enough to make cycling difficult. Although distances between towns are long by European standards, they're generally only a day's ride apart and there are plenty of small stores between towns where you can stop for a drink and a chat. Zimbabwe has a good network of railways which connect Harare, Bulawayo, Mutare and Victoria Falls, and in economy class they're cheaper than the express buses. Most trains travel at night. There are two scheduled ferries on Lake Kariba, connecting Kariba with Binga and Mlibizi, which is handy if you want to do a circular tour of Zimbabwe without retracing your steps between Victoria Falls and Bulawayo.