Reviews of Mountain Gorilla View

"The rooms are not fancy but comfortable.

The lodge is very well positioned for gorilla trekking.

The quality of the food was mixed." See all these reviews: 8n in Tanzania; 4n in Rwanda

"This was a fantastic location to start 3 days of trekking in the Volcanoes National Park.

However the lodge is large and is somewhat outdated. For our use it was fine, but the service was average and the rooms were not particularly comfortable or clean. We had to ask repeatedly for new towels, for example as we were frequently left without them. The bedsheets and rugs in the rooms were marked through over use and whilst they were 'clean' really needed to be replaced.

Given the newer luxury lodges that are being constructed in the area, we would not suggest that this is more than a 3* property by European standards. The food was fairly good, however with a good choice and freshly cooked each day." See all these reviews: 4n in Rwanda; 2n in Kenya

"The only reason not to give this hotel an excellent rating was the slippery shower, a small detail but my wife slipped and fell. Luckily only her pride was injured, though she was a bit sore the next day. Other than that, the food was wonderful, a mix of local and international fare and the staff was super. We would return here without hesitation.

Whilst at Gorilla Mountain Lodge these guests did a morning trek in search of Golden Monkeys; here's what they said about it:
Easy hike and a good way to aclimate oneself to the altitude. We were pleasantly surprised as to how close the monkeys got.

They also did three Gorilla treks; and here's what they said about those:
For anyone who loves animals and the outdoors, this is a must at least once in your life. We did three treks and it kept getting better each day. Day 1 was the Isabukuru Group, a med level hike of 2.5 hours. After 45 minutes with the Silverback, heavy rain and hail began and we eventually called it quits, though it was still a wonderful experience. Day 2 was the Agashya Group, an easy 1 hour hike in the beautiful sunshine where we were rewarded with great views of the Silverback. Day 3 was the Hirwa Group, another mid level 2 hour hike. This group with its playful youngsters was wonderful beyond words." See all these reviews: 6n in Botswana; 6n in Rwanda; 2n in South Africa

"The position of the lodge and setting was good. The chalet however was not well designed and appointed. The room was large and with a concrete floor was cold even though a fire was lit in the fireplace in the evenings. The bathroom was also large. The shower was in one of the corners but didn't have a cubicle or shower curtain around it and when turned on the water sprayed onto the bathroom floor which strangely was a wooden floor. So there was a part of the floor which was repaired presumably where the floorboards had rotted from the shower water.

Good points about the room were the fireplace and evening fires and a hot water bottle in the bed in the evening.

The main lodge was adequate but not particularly comfortable. The food was good with lots of choice including freshly cooked stir fries in the evening and eggs and omelettes at breakfast. The service throughout the lodge was good." See all these reviews: 11n in Rwanda; 2n in Kenya

"We had a great stay at the Mountain View Gorilla Lodge for the first two nights, the team there was very welcoming and pleasant – a great stay for people who are looking for comfort within a sensible budget with great views and looking for accommodation near the park entrance! A nice touch was the fireplace in the banda, which certainly kept us warm, as the nights were relatively cold in December. If I wanted to be critical and to provide some sort of constructive feedback then I would have say that the bathrooms certainly require a bit of TLC – although we knew this before proceeding with the Mountain View Gorilla Lodge from the reviews, however, the team at the lodge, the food, and the atmosphere made up for this!" See all these reviews: 3n in Rwanda

"The Gorilla Mountain Lodge is in a great location with amazing views of the mountains where the monkeys and gorillas live. The lodge is quite quirky, with rooms spread out over the site. The food was great; three courses at lunch and dinner with plenty of options. The evenings were quite chilly so we had a real fire in our rooms, which were very welcome. Also, hot water bottles in our beds; very nice!!

We had a great time here, the only negative points we would say is on the point of tipping. We decided to leave a tip at the end of our stay, to be shared amongst all the staff. Whenever any of the staff did anything for us they would linger, obviously waiting for a tip. We actually found this quite embarrassing and it made us feel uncomfortable. I would suggest that the hotel is made aware of this, as I am sure other people felt the same.

Whilst in Rwanda, we organised a private driver-guide and 4WD for these travellers. They commented:

Theo picked us up from the airport and was very professional at all times. He was a very careful and safe driver and made us feel very confident, even when we were in busy traffic. He was very knowledgeable and told us a lot about Rwanda and the genocide that happened. He recommended a visit to the local market which we found very interested. We didn't really do a lot with him as we were only in Rwanda 4 days; one day travelling to the gorillas and three days seeing the monkeys and gorillas.

On our return to the airport my daughter left her passport in the hotel. Fortunately Theo hadn't left the airport and was waiting to make sure we got on the plane OK. He quickly took my husband back to the hotel to pick up the passport; I don't know what we would have done if he had gone." See all these reviews: 9n in Tanzania; 4n in Rwanda

"A large lodge, exceptionally well located in the shadow of Volcanoes National Park. Absolutely magnificent views of the chain of volcanoes in the Park. Dated, somewhat dilapidated common areas and rooms. Somewhat uncomfortable rooms (especially in the cold of morning and late of day) useful almost solely for sleeping. Cafeteria style dining in order to accommodate the very large number of guests. Average food. Attentive dining service by a large, well-meaning staff. Good service otherwise, especially the complementary boot-cleaning available to those returning from a muddy hike.

Words cannot adequately describe primate tracking in the Park, whether gorillas or golden monkeys. It is simply an experience of a lifetime.

The lodge is excellently located amid the various jumping-off points for tracking. Two days of gorilla tracking provide the opportunity for many points of comparison in tracking experiences and is recommended. For those with time and/or who are seeking additional pre-tracking acclimatization to altitude, the nature walk is recommended for its beauty and its solitude (we were the only visitors on our particular walk)." See all these reviews: 12n in Rwanda; 7n in Mozambique; 1n in South Africa

"Staff very pleasant and helpful" See all these reviews: 9n in Kenya; 3n in Rwanda

"Very attentive and friendly staff.

Food was very good.

Items in the shop were extremely over priced e.g postcard was $3 and identical thing was $1 at tourist shop down the road." See all these reviews: 8n in Botswana; 3n in Rwanda; 1n in Kenya; 1n in South Africa

"This lodge is ideally placed for the Gorilla trekking in the volcanoes national park. The room was nice, with an open fire which was lit and stoked up periodically.

The bathroom however was very basic. Some sort of enclosure around the shower would be good, and maybe a handle or something to hold onto as it was a large area and fairly slippery.

The food was a buffet with a reasonable amount of choice. The staff were very friendly and helpful - and keen that you enjoyed your stay.

The gorilla trekking that we did from here was well worth it. We had requested a 'short' walk which was 2 hours, much of it uphill and a very steep downward trek. However the rangers and porters were great at ensuring that everyone kept up, and it was well worth it once we arrived at Family Kwitondo!!

On our way back to Kigali our guide took us to two beautiful lakes - which was a trip well worth doing." See all these reviews: 7n in Tanzania; 4n in Rwanda