Mutare, formally Umtali, is the fourth largest city in Zimbabwe and is also the capital of the Manicaland Province. Mutare was founded as a fort in 1897 when gold was discovered in the Penhalonga Valley. This is the same area where the Mutare River flows and where gold panning began.

About Mutare

The town lies north of the Bvumba Mountains and south of the Imbeza Valley. It is home to the Mutare Museum, the Utopia House Museum dedicated to Kingsley Fairbridge, the National Gallery of Zimbabwe, Murahwa Hill, known for its rock paintings and Iron Age village, Cross Kopje with a memorial to Zimbabweans and Mozambicans killed in World War I and a nature reserve. It is also home to the Africa University, a pan-African United Methodist funded university of about 1,200 students.

Mutare is served by rail with daily passenger and freight links to the towns of Nyazura, Rusape and Harare.