This section is dedicated to take away all your "I wish someone had told me that before I went!" experiences. This way, you can spend less time settling in, and more time making new friends in your chosen hostel. We share our insider knowledge of tips, tricks and important things to look out for in Chimoio.
Chimoio, Mozambique, is a small city in the west of Mozambique and the capital of Manica Province. It is just ninety kilometers east of the Machipanda border post with Zimbabwe, just east of Mutare. It is either the first or last place in Mozambique that travelers stop in on the way between the two countries.
Chimoio doesn't have a lot to offer tourists, but it is a pleasant city and easy to walk around. It's a useful stop over for those arriving from Zimbabwe and getting oriented to a new country, culture, and language. It has all the infrastructure you'd expect from a city, so you can load up on meticais from bank ATMs and connect to the Wi-Fi.
Chimoio lies in the "Beira Corridor," on the EN6 highway, that links interior Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Malawi with the port in Beira. The main tourist attraction here, is the Cabeca do Velho, a rock outcrop in the shape of a man's head, five kilometers northeast of the center. The rock is also of spiritual significance to some of the local people and ceremonies are sometimes held there. A walk to the top of the rock is fairly easy, and recommended for the view of Chimoio and the chance of seeing monkeys or antelopes.
There are a number of guesthouses and hotels around Chimoio; backpackers will find a Chimoio, Mozambique hostel on the west side of the city. Your Chimoio, Mozambique hostel has budget dorm beds and is an excellent place to get information about the region and for onward travel. Your hostel in Chimoio, Mozambique, can also help in booking bus tickets, but be aware that the long distance buses leave at around 4 a.m. each day! Your Chimoio, Mozambique hostel is just a ten-minute walk from the bus station and the city center, so it's very conveniently located, while being just a little out of the hustle and bustle of the city center.
While Chimoio isn't full of tourist attractions, it's a very pleasant place to break the otherwise very long journey between the coast and the Zimbabwe border.
Written by local enthusiast for Chimoio hostels
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