Reviews of Zebra River Lodge
(94%) From 74 travellersThey do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa.
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Zebra River Lodge review
The location was great and the premises were charming. The service was very personal, which made it outstanding.
I especially liked that the owners dined with the guests and that everyone sat at a big table such that one could share experiences.
The friendliest place in Namibia?
Zebra River Lodge was one of the highlights of our trip. Set in a beautiful valley down it's own track, the focus here was on walking or relaxing on the veranda. The owners and staff were very wlcoming and went out of their way to make us feel at home. They even picked up and changed a tyre for us and cleaned our car! Our room was simply furnished but large and comforable, and they are planning to redo the bathrooms soon.
The main part of the lodge had recently been extended and was very homely. The food was delicious and meals are taken group style and we were the only guests on our first night and sat and ate with Elke, her friend Helen and Ralf the guide. Although I can appreciate that this might not suit everyone, we really liked it and the atmosphere was very relaxed and friendly and not at all intrusive.
The lodge is beautifullty landscaped - Elke loves her garden - and they are in the process of constructing a swimming pool which will be filled with water from their spring. We went on a couple of the walks (one escorted by the owners' dog, the other to the spring). We had 2 days here and would have liked to have stayed longer.
One tip - although we had an ordinary saloon car, I don't think they are suitable for the roads here and I'd really recommend a 4x4.
Zebra River Lodge review
The current owners had only been there 3 months and were still working on plans and ideas.
We are interested in natural history and were promised on the first day a library of reference books but in fact this didn't exist. One of the attractions of the place is the walking but in fact when we were there it was rather out of season and too hot for much hiking so we probably didn't get the best out of the place.
The sundowner trip on the first evening was very enjoyable but after that we found it a little off-putting to be the only visitors staying there.
Zebra River Lodge review
As frequent guests at Zebra River we knew it would be a different place following the departure of Rob & Marianne Field.The new owners Peter& Elke Young intend to change the way ZRL was managed and at the present time a lot of construction is taking place,extra rooms are being added,solar water heating,a new waterhole outside the lodge,new staff quarters and much more landscaping.The plunge pool was a bit neglected at the time of our visit,shame,because it was very hot! We feel that the intention is to cater for larger groups in future?
Highlight of our stay was dinner and sundowner combined up in surrounding mountain,lasted until 11.30pm.
(taking a bowl of soup with nothing but a clingfilm cover,although very tasty,was not the best of ideas!!)
Perfect start to our trip
Wow, what a place this is. We loved the location and the friendly 'house guest' feel of the place. All the staff were accommadating and met all our needs so effortlessly, including changing and repairing our one and only flat tyre!
We had what we think must have been the best room and enjoyed the fabulous night sky from our own elevated veranda and the sunrise from the comfort of our bed via the floor the ceiling windows. The food was fantastic especially the home baked breads and the gin & tonics at the sundowner spot were perfect.
There are some great walking trails from the lodge which saves on more driving and makes this already relaxing place even more so.
This place was one of our favorites and will stay in our memories for a very long time. We cannot recommend ZRL highly enough.
Zebra River Lodge review
This definitely did not live up to expectations. Great location with excellent walking opportunities. Service was really poor (bordering on terrible). Food wasn't really up to much either. When we arrived we were met by the new owner, but she seemed more focused on some other stuff she was doing than checking us in - she also just pointed us in the direction of our room -- couldn't be bothered walking to it with us to show us the ropes so to speak.
At dinner the owners, their friend and the other guests all sat round one table. Very noticeable that the owners etc. served themselves first before offering any food from the pot to the paying guests. The next day a small coach load of guests arrived and dinner was delayed by over an hour until they returned from a sundowner drive -- note that it wasn't option to get a G&T before dinner at the Lodge itself because the sundowner party had taken all of the gin with them!
Breakfast on the first morning was poor - first we had to ask for food. Second, the teapot was empty. When owner joined our table and i pointed out the teapot needed refreshing she reached to the other table for a full coffee pot, since she wanted coffee, but the teapot remained empty.
Bottom line: the owners are not service-minded and no matter how much they renovate the place, i don't see the level of service improving beyond "poor".
Zebra River Lodge review
The driveway into ZRL is quite an experience and you really dont want to see another vehicle coming towards you!
We had one of the higher rooms with the nice view and it was totally acceptable but more functional than good looking! , we had not stayed in a guesthouse before so did not really know what quality of accomodation to expect.
The food though at ZRL was superb, all guests sitting out chatting over dinner on the verandah very nice. Mega, the guide, took us on the drive/walk to the spring which was good.
I don't think ZRL should advertise as having a swimming pool though (I Know Expert Africa does not actually state it as such in their brochure which is fairer) as its really just a fish pond and so for somewhere to relax this lets it down if you are expecting this.
Zebra River Lodge review
When we first arrived I was a little disappointed with the feel of the place - it needs a bit of TLC as it feels unloved.
If we had stayed just one night we would have left feeling that it was a bit disappointing. However by the second night the place had started to grow on us as had the company. Elka is planning to do a spring clean/spruce up which should help.
Zebra River Lodge
Although appearing slightly disorganised due to the new owners only taking over 3 weeks prior to our arrival, our stay at Zebra River Lodge was still very enjoyable.
The area provided ample opportunities to walk safely in a lovely environment.
Beautiful location.
Unfortunately the new owners had only been there for 10 days so things were not running as they will be in a month or two's toime.
Again the roads to this location require a 4x4.
We have always believed that acting responsibly is the only way to approach tourism and we're one of
the few companies to hold AITO's original coveted 5-star status for responsible tourism. It's a lead
that others are now following.
