Zimbabwe park fees for tour operators — ZimParks 2026 rates for Victoria Falls, Hwange and Mana Pools

Zimbabwe’s park fees have a twist most costing sheets miss. At many parks ZimParks charges a day visitor more than a visitor who is accommodated, and at Hwange the day-visitor rate is double. Price a two-night Hwange stay at the day-visitor rate and you overcharge. Price a transfer-in day trip at the accommodated rate and the shortfall comes out of your margin.

Every figure below comes from the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks). The main source is its 2026 tariff document (PDF), published on zimparks.org.zw in February 2026. It covers accommodation, conservation fees, vehicle entry and events. The document states no effective date. Note that ZimParks’ rates page still links a 2023 tariff, so work from the 2026 PDF. Previous rates come from ZimParks’ July 2025 tariff (PDF).

What are the ZimParks conservation fees in 2026?

Conservation fees are charged per person per day, in US dollars, in six columns: local, SADC and international visitors, each split into day visitors and accommodated visitors.

The tariff lists no accommodated rate for the Rainforest. For the Zambezi National Park river section, the tariff lists day-visitor rates of USD 12 (international), USD 12 (SADC) and USD 5 (local).

The tariff doesn’t define “accommodated”. It doesn’t say whether guests at private lodges inside or near a park qualify, or only guests in ZimParks accommodation. Confirm with ZimParks before you price a private-lodge stay at the accommodated rate.

What changed from 2025?

Compared with the July 2025 tariff, the international rates for the most-sold parks rose about 16 to 20%:

A package priced from the 2025 table undercharges an international couple USD 16 at the Falls alone.

What do vehicles pay?

Vehicles pay a daily entry fee on top of the per-person fees, and the rate depends on where the vehicle is registered. For Mana Pools, Hwange, Chizarira, Zambezi, Matobo, Kariba, Marongora, Rifa, Nyanga and Chewore:

Other parks have their own vehicle tables in the same document. This matters to cross-border operators: a vehicle registered in South Africa, Botswana or elsewhere pays the foreign-registered rate, which is double the local rate for a 4x4 day visit.

What currency are the fees in?

US dollars. The tariff states that all prices are pegged in US dollars, and that local clients may pay in local currency at the prevailing rate. For international clients, cost the fee lines in US dollars.

How do you build ZimParks fees into a costing?

Enter each park as two lines, and choose the day-visitor or accommodated rate for each day:

1. People: travellers × days × the rate for their residence and visitor type.
2. Vehicles: vehicles × days × the rate for vehicle type, registration and visitor type.

Worked example: two international adults in a Zimbabwe-registered 4x4. They visit the Victoria Falls Rainforest, then make a day trip into Hwange from outside the park.

• Rainforest: 2 × USD 58 = USD 116
• Hwange, day visitors: 2 × USD 24 = USD 48
• Vehicle, local-registered day visit: USD 5
• Total: USD 169, or USD 84.50 per person

If the same clients are accommodated in Hwange instead, their Hwange conservation fee is 2 × USD 12 = USD 24 a day and the vehicle USD 2 a day. How ZimParks counts days for an overnight stay isn’t set out in the tariff, so confirm it before quoting a multi-night stay.

The tour costing sheet keeps each rate, quantity and unit on its own line, which is what a day-visitor/accommodated split needs. A clear safari quote names the ZimParks tariff it applied, and says which days are priced as day visits and which as accommodated.

Selling Zimbabwe alongside South Africa or Namibia? See Kruger park fees for SANParks’ per-night rand rates, and Namibia park fees for the gazetted per-vehicle charges.