By Aldridge Dzvene
NYANGA — Zimbabwe’s Eastern Highlands is set for a major tourism and lifestyle boost as the inaugural Nyanga Mountain Valley Marathon and Music Festival brings together sport, entertainment, wellness and destination tourism on 26 September 2026.
Organised by Rainbow Tourism Group (RTG), the event is positioning Nyanga not simply as a race destination, but as a broader tourism experience capable of attracting visitors, extending their stays and stimulating activity across the hospitality and services value chain.
Running under the theme “Run. Breath. Celebrate.”, the event will feature 3km Fun Run, 5km, 10km and 21km Half Marathon categories, before culminating in a major music celebration headlined by award-winning Zimbabwean musician Jah Prayzah.
RTG Corporate Affairs and Quality Manager Pride Khumbula said preparations were progressing well, with organisers focused on ensuring that the sporting, hospitality and entertainment components complement each other.
The significance of the event extends beyond the race itself. By combining a sporting challenge with music and leisure, RTG is seeking to create an experience that encourages visitors to travel to Nyanga, remain in the destination for longer and explore its wider attractions.
This approach speaks to the growing importance of destination-based tourism, where events become economic catalysts by creating demand for accommodation, transport, restaurants, tour operations and other services.
Gateway Stream Media Manager Elton Kurima said the music component was deliberately introduced to broaden the event’s appeal beyond professional and recreational runners.
The strategy gives the festival two interconnected markets, runners who come for the sporting challenge and music and leisure enthusiasts who may be attracted by the entertainment programme.
Jah Prayzah’s headline performance is therefore expected to provide a major drawcard, particularly for domestic travellers seeking a weekend experience in the Eastern Highlands.
The event also creates an opportunity to showcase Nyanga’s natural landscape. The 21km Half Marathon will take participants through the area’s distinctive highland terrain and elevation changes, turning the physical challenge itself into part of the destination experience.
For Zimbabwe’s tourism industry, such events can play an important role in diversifying the country’s tourism offering beyond traditional attractions by linking nature, wellness, sport and entertainment.
RTG’s plans to make the marathon an annual event and eventually develop it into a full 42km marathon further point to a longer-term strategy rather than a once-off event. The proposed expansion could potentially position Nyanga within the international running calendar and create stronger links with major endurance races in the region.
The event comes as RTG continues to strengthen its tourism footprint in the Eastern Highlands, including through investment at Montclair Resort & Conference Hotel. The Group completed a US$2 million refurbishment of the property in July 2026, increasing its room capacity from 85 to 110.
The combination of upgraded accommodation and a destination-focused sporting event provides an important platform for strengthening Nyanga’s capacity to host larger numbers of domestic and international visitors.
The marathon is supported by Pacific Breeze as Title Sponsor, alongside Stanbic Bank, Liquid Intelligent Technologies, Musabvunda, Montclair Resort & Conference Centre, Heritage Expeditions Africa, Colourmart Solutions, Aqua Sure, Colcom, Passions Events Crents, Morefresh and Defined Media.
With registration and accommodation arrangements already being put in place, the Nyanga Mountain Valley Marathon and Music Festival represents a broader attempt to use events as engines of tourism development.
If sustained beyond the inaugural edition, the event could evolve into one of Zimbabwe’s signature Eastern Highlands attractions, giving Nyanga a recurring platform through which sport, music, wellness, hospitality and nature-based tourism converge.
