Park · Matabeleland South, Zimbabwe
Tuli Safari Area
416 km² of mopane bush on Jurassic basalt along the west bank of the Shashe, run as hunting concessions, with Fort Tuli of 1890 and camping only.
Short answer
At Tuli Safari Area, international visitors pay from US$5 (about €4.50 or £3.50) per adult per day, depending on which section you visit. The rates apply from 25 January 2026 to 31 December 2026.
- Daily fee, international adult
- US$5 €4from, by section
- Malaria
- TravelHealthPro rates Zimbabwe below 1,200 m as high risk from November to June and recommends tablets then.
- Places to stay
- 6
- Where
- Matabeleland South, Zimbabwe21.95°S 29.10°E
Tuli Safari Area fees 2026
Checked Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority tariffValid 25 January 2026 to 31 December 2026, per person per day, in US dollars.
| Pay point | International visitors | SADC nationals | Zimbabwean residents |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conservation fee, day visitor | US$12 €11child US$6 | US$10child US$5 | US$3child US$1.5 |
| Conservation fee, staying in the park | US$5 €4child US$2.5 | US$4child US$2 | US$1child US$0.5 |
- Tuli is a safari area, not a national park, and it is run through hunting concessions. The historical sites sit in the non-hunting area, so visitors can see them while hunting goes on elsewhere. The ZimParks office is on the east bank of the Shashe River and the area is open every day of the year, 6am to 6pm. Entrance and accommodation fees are payable.
- Two rates apply. Day visitors pay the higher one. Visitors accommodated inside the safari area pay the lower accommodated rate for each day.
- There is no ZimParks lodge at Tuli and the 2026 tariff lists no Tuli accommodation. There are camping sites at the head office and inside the safari area. The sheet prices undeveloped campsites at other stations, Ngezi and Chimanimani for example, at US$8 local and US$12 international per person; I would expect something similar here but could not confirm it. Shashe Wilderness Camp, about a kilometre north of the reception on the east bank, is run by Wildlife Environment Zimbabwe.
- Tuli is not named in any vehicle table. The cheaper table covers 'all other Category IV parks': a Zimbabwe-registered car, pickup or 4x4 US$3 as a day visitor and US$1 a day when staying; foreign-registered US$10 and US$3. Crossing the Shashe to reach the office is about 600 m of sand and needs a 4x4.
- ZimParks' own booking site gives children aged 6 to 12 half the adult conservation fee, which is the child figure shown. The tariff sheet itself has no child line. A Mana Pools booking agent's sheet has under 6s going free; I have not seen ZimParks say so in writing.
- The sheet has three columns: locals (Zimbabweans), SADC visitors and international visitors. South Africans pay the SADC rate.
- Everything ZimParks charges is in US dollars and the booking site says rates include VAT and the tourism levy. Online you pay by Visa or Mastercard card or EcoCash; at the park, cash in US dollars or ZiG. Payment in foreign currency stays valid in Zimbabwe until 31 December 2030 under SI 218 of 2023.
- The 2026 rises fall on the SADC and international columns; the local rates are the same as in July 2025. Zimbabwe's standard VAT rate went from 15% to 15.5% on 1 January 2026 and tourism services lost their zero rating at the same time; ZimParks put the increase down to VAT now applying to park entry.
- The 2026 tariff carries no start or end date. The press reported it in force with immediate effect on 25 January 2026 and the PDF is dated 29 January 2026. I show it as valid to 31 December 2026 and will re-check when a new sheet appears; ZimParks changed its tariff in 2023, in July 2025 and again in January 2026.
- Fees are set by Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority. Official tariff · Seen a new rate? Tell us
€1 = US$1.12 · £1 = US$1.34 (ECB rate, 3 Nov 2026). Converted amounts are approximate; you pay in US dollars.
How we got these figures
- ZimParks' Parks Rates page still links only the 2023 sheet. The 2026 PDF is in the same media folder (uploaded February 2026) and its figures match what the trade press quoted in February 2026 (Mana Pools, Sapi and Chewore at US$8, US$18 and US$24); it is the sheet in force.
- The 2026 sheet prices by station, not by a published category of park. The only category label in it is 'Category IV parks' in the vehicle table.
- Bulawayo24 wrote that the 2026 schedule replaces the 2025 fees. Those are ZimParks' July 2025 tariff (PDF dated 14 July 2025), which listed Tuli at US$3 and US$1 local, US$8 and US$3 SADC, US$10 and US$4 international. A Mana Pools agent's January 2025 summary still matches the 2023 sheet, so the 2023 rates ran until mid 2025.
- Only the ZimParks sheets give Tuli figures, and only the 2026 PDF gives the current ones. The 2023 sheet printed US$10 for an international day visitor and nothing else. The Zimbabwe Field Guide confirms entrance and accommodation fees are charged at Tuli but gives no amounts.
- ZimParks 2026 tariff: accommodation, conservation, venue and vehicle entry fees (PDF dated 29 January 2026, published on zimparks.org.zw in February 2026) · official · checked 18 Oct 2026
- ZimParks Parks Rates page (still links the 2023 sheet, the 2026 PDF sits in the same media folder) · official · checked 18 Oct 2026
- ZimParks 2023 rates (the schedule in force until the 2026 tariff) · official · checked 18 Oct 2026
- ZimParks 2025 tariff, revised July 2025 (PDF dated 14 July 2025, replaced by the 2026 tariff) · official · checked 18 Oct 2026
- ZimParks online booking FAQs (child discount, payment methods, VAT and levy) · official · checked 18 Oct 2026
- Mana Pools Tourism Services summary of ZimParks fees, 18 January 2025 (child ages, 2025 rates) · one source · checked 18 Oct 2026
- Bulawayo24 News, 25 January 2026 (2026 schedule in force with immediate effect, report sourced from NewZimbabwe) · one source · checked 18 Oct 2026
- Tourism Update, 12 February 2026 (ZimParks increases fees) · one source · checked 18 Oct 2026
- ATTA, 13 February 2026 (ZimParks lifts entry fees as VAT takes effect) · one source · checked 18 Oct 2026
- The Herald, 11 January 2026 (VAT to 15.5% and tourism services lose zero rating from 1 January 2026) · one source · checked 18 Oct 2026
- Tourism Update, 6 January 2026 (Zimbabwe VAT change) · one source · checked 18 Oct 2026
- CITE, 27 October 2023 (SI 218 of 2023 keeps foreign currency payments valid to 31 December 2030) · one source · checked 18 Oct 2026
- Zimbabwe Field Guide, Thuli Safari Area (hunting concessions, access, Shashe Wilderness Camp) · one source · checked 18 Oct 2026
Tuli sits in the far south-west of Zimbabwe, 416 km² of mopane and combretum scrub on the west bank of the Shashe, with Botswana across the river. It became a controlled hunting area in 1958 and a safari area in 1975, and since 2006 it has been Zimbabwe’s core piece of the Greater Mapungubwe transfrontier area with South Africa and Botswana. People come for a fort the Pioneer Column built in 1890 and for wild country at the end of very poor roads.
Getting there
Both ways in end on dirt. From Beitbridge, turn off the A6 for Nottingham Estate and follow the green and yellow Tuli signs; the Zimbabwe Field Guide puts the parks office at 152 km, and Wikipedia calls the road very poor. From Bulawayo, go through Gwanda and stay on the A6 for 6 km past town and turn right onto the Guyu road. The tar ends at Guyu after 57.5 km, then gravel through Hwali to the parks office at about 135 km.
Check in at the National Parks office on the east bank of the Shashe, just past the Tuli police camp. The Shashe crossing is around 600 m of soft sand. Come in a proper 4x4 or don’t come.
When to go
May to August. Beitbridge, the nearest weather station, gets almost no rain then and July nights drop to 7.9 °C, so pack a warm sleeping bag. January days average 33.5 °C. The rains run November to March.
What to do
Fort Tuli is why most people make the trip. It is a National Monument on a hill above the Shashe drift, where the Pioneer Column crossed into the country on 11 July 1890. It was the main way in until 1893 and was deserted once the railway reached Bulawayo in 1897. Boer War trenches from 1899 sit on the hill just north. Past the old gaol, about 1.6 km on, is a cemetery of roughly 25 graves ringed by a cement ditch to keep elephants out.
Elephant, lion, wild dog, black rhino and leopard all live here and wander freely into Botswana and South Africa, but this is hunting country, not a game-drive park.
Shashe Wilderness Camp, about 1 km north of reception, opened in 1976 as an environmental education camp for children and still takes anyone. Otherwise it is camping at the head office or in the safari area. No hotels, no self-catering.
Good to know
Tuli runs on hunting concessions. The historical sites sit in the non-hunting zone, so ask at the office where you may drive.
Fill up before you leave the tar and carry spare fuel; almost no fuel station in the country takes cards. Don’t drive these roads after dark. The Tourism Authority rates Matabeleland South low to no malaria risk, but it also rates everywhere below 1,200 m high risk from November to June, so ask your doctor about cover.
Wildlife you might see
8- likelyRiverine birdsThe huge riverine trees on the Shashe around Shashe Wilderness Camp, which the Zimbabwe Field Guide singles out for its birdlifesource
- possibleElephantThe herds move freely between Tuli and the Botswana and South African reserves next door, so whether they are on the Zimbabwe side on a given day is lucksource
- possibleGiraffe, eland and zebraThe mopane and combretum scrub that covers most of the areasource
- possibleSpotted hyena and black-backed jackalListed for the areasource
- rareLionPrides wander in from Botswana's Northern Tuli reserve. In 2013 The Herald reported lions killing donkeys around the Tuli Circle and in the villages of Beitbridge Westsource
- rareLeopardListed for the area. A sighting would be lucksource
- rareAfrican wild dogPacks move freely across the borders with Botswana and South Africasource
- rareCheetahListed for the area. A sighting would be lucksource
Likelihood is for a normal visit of two or three days, from the sources linked. Nothing is guaranteed in the wild.
Staying safe in Tuli Safari Area
- Malaria
- TravelHealthPro rates Zimbabwe below 1,200 m as high risk from November to June and recommends tablets then. From July to October the risk is low and bite avoidance is enough. source
- Hunting concessions
- Most of Tuli is let to hunting operators. Visitors check in at the parks office on the east bank and keep to the non-hunting zone, where Fort Tuli and the other historical sites are. Do not wander off into the concessions on your own. source
- Lions and elephants
- In 2013 lions believed to have strayed from Botswana's Northern Tuli reserve were killing donkeys in Beitbridge West and the Tuli Circle, and a man tracking his stray donkeys fought one off with a stone. Keep children close in camp, carry a torch after dark and give elephants plenty of room. source
- The Shashe crossing
- The Shashe is a sand river with no bridge that flows only a few days a year. At Tuli there are two legal crossing points. source
- The drive in
- Drive in daylight. The UK government warns of potholes, stray livestock and unlit vehicles on Zimbabwe's roads, tells drivers to stop at police roadblocks and keep the receipt for any fine, and names the Masvingo to Beitbridge road for smash-and-grab robberies. Fuel is sometimes not available, so carry spare. source
Tips from travellers
- There are two ways in: from Gwanda through Guyu and Hwali, or from Beitbridge through Nottingham and the Shashi irrigation scheme. The Beitbridge road is in very poor condition. one source
- Go between May and October. The November to March rains make the roads and the Shashe crossing harder, and an experienced local driver or guide is a good idea for the crossing. one source
- There is no lodge and no self-catering. You camp at the parks office on the east bank or at sites inside the area, or book Shashe Wilderness Camp a kilometre north, run by Wildlife and Environment Zimbabwe. It was set up in 1976 as an environmental education centre for children, so think separate men's and women's blocks and a shared dining and kitchen area, not chalets. one source
- At Fort Tuli, the Boer War trenches are on the lower slopes of the bigger hill north of the 1890 fort, and the pioneer cemetery is 1.6 km along the track past the old gaol. The whole cemetery has a cement ditch round it to keep the elephants out. one source
Checked 19 October 2026. Conditions change, so confirm with the park or venue before you go.
In and around Tuli Safari Area
14 places listedWhere to stay in Tuli Safari Area 6
- 21.93°S 29.18°EGuest housePakenham Camp
- 21.86°S 29.08°EWilderness hutMaliketwa Pools Ranger Station
- 21.90°S 29.18°ECampsiteNorth Camp
- 22.06°S 29.20°EWilderness hutSinongwe Spring Ranger Station
- 21.96°S 29.21°ECampsiteSouth Camp
- 22.01°S 29.06°EWilderness hutTuli West Ranger Base
Sights 8
- Fort Tuli PioneersAttraction
- Pioneer BaobabAttraction
- Pioneer Rubbish dumpAttraction
- Pioneer Rubbish dumpAttraction
- Pioneer Rubbish dumpAttraction
- Tuli Pioneer CemetaryAttraction
- Tuli PrisonAttraction
- Tuli RuinsArchaeological site
Quick answers
How much is the entry fee for Tuli Safari Area?
International visitors pay US$12 (about €10.50 or £9) per adult and US$6 per child per day. These rates apply from 25 January 2026 to 31 December 2026 and are set by Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks).
Do Zimbabwens and SADC citizens pay less at Tuli Safari Area?
Zimbabwean residents pay US$3 per adult and SADC nationals pay US$10 per adult per day. You need ID or a passport to get the lower rate.
When were these Tuli Safari Area fees last checked?
We last checked them on 18 October 2026 against 13 published sources. We re-check every two weeks, but always confirm with Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) before you travel.
Tuli Safari Area and the parks nearest it
| Park | International adult | Distance | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuli Safari Area | US$5 €4 | · | Matabeleland South |
| Matobo National Park | US$10 €9 | 172 km | Matabeleland South |
| Khami Ruins | US$10 €9 | 212 km | Matabeleland North |
| Great Zimbabwe | US$15 €13 | 266 km | Masvingo |
Where the Tuli Safari Area fees come from
- ZimParks 2026 tariff: accommodation, conservation, venue and vehicle entry fees (PDF dated 29 January 2026, published on zimparks.org.zw in February 2026)
- ZimParks Parks Rates page (still links the 2023 sheet, the 2026 PDF sits in the same media folder)
- ZimParks 2023 rates (the schedule in force until the 2026 tariff)
- ZimParks 2025 tariff, revised July 2025 (PDF dated 14 July 2025, replaced by the 2026 tariff)
- ZimParks online booking FAQs (child discount, payment methods, VAT and levy)
- Mana Pools Tourism Services summary of ZimParks fees, 18 January 2025 (child ages, 2025 rates)
- Bulawayo24 News, 25 January 2026 (2026 schedule in force with immediate effect, report sourced from NewZimbabwe)
- Tourism Update, 12 February 2026 (ZimParks increases fees)
- ATTA, 13 February 2026 (ZimParks lifts entry fees as VAT takes effect)
- The Herald, 11 January 2026 (VAT to 15.5% and tourism services lose zero rating from 1 January 2026)
- Tourism Update, 6 January 2026 (Zimbabwe VAT change)
- CITE, 27 October 2023 (SI 218 of 2023 keeps foreign currency payments valid to 31 December 2030)
- Zimbabwe Field Guide, Thuli Safari Area (hunting concessions, access, Shashe Wilderness Camp)
Open data: all park fees (CSV) · JSON (CC BY 4.0)
Cite as: Travel Africa Guide, "Tuli Safari Area fees 2026", checked 18 October 2026, https://travelafrica.guide/zimbabwe/tuli-safari-area/
Map of Tuli Safari Area
See every place on this map as a list