Reviews of Ilala Lodge
Wildlife sightings and reviews
259 independent comments and wildlife information from our travellers who have visited Ilala Lodge and kindly agreed to share their thoughts. They do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa
Wildlife sightings by our travellers
Starting in Jul-2019, 46 of our travellers have recorded their wildlife sightings at Ilala Lodge.
Leopard
0% success
Elephant
54% success
Buffalo
18% success
Zebra
18% success
Mr & Mrs M
Edinburgh
"Ilala Lodge review"
2 nights Arrived 10 Jul 2019
"Amazing location, spectacular view of the Victoria Falls spray from our balcony, great room, well maintained grounds, lovely food.
Staff were very friendly and delivered a high level of service.
Highly recommended." See all these reviews: 21n in Namibia; 2n in Zimbabwe
Staff were very friendly and delivered a high level of service.
Highly recommended." See all these reviews: 21n in Namibia; 2n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent
Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Mrs G.
St Albans
"Excellent location with helpful staff"
3 nights Arrived 3 Jul 2019
"We stayed in the new wing and were very pleased with our choice. From our balcony, we could see mist from the Falls, the entrance to which is about a ten minute walk from the hotel. Our room was comfortable with a large bathroom. There is ample space to store cases, but no drawers and little space for hanging clothes. Clearly guests stay for just two or three nights and are not expected to unpack.
The dining experience here is excellent and very popular. Most people eat outside, but you can eat inside if you prefer. A pianist played inside the dining area each night we were there. Breakfast is a mixture of buffet and waiter service. There are a number of hot food options that you order from a menu, but there are also a number of continental items on the buffet. We chose to eat all our evening meals in the hotel and were very happy with that choice. During our stay, it was cold in the evenings and mornings, so mosquitos were not a problem.
If you have any free time during the day, there are plenty of loungers in the small pool area and outside bar. The hotel booked a number of activities for us before our arrival, including a helicopter ride. We found all the staff pleasant and helpful.
You can see both sides of Victoria Falls in a day, but we were pleased to finish our holiday at a relaxing pace and stayed at the hotel for three nights. When we stayed, the hotel had a package for guests staying three nights. In the hotel's restaurant we had one complimentary dinner ( food only) and a complimentary river cruise on the hotel's own boat ( price is usually $85.)" See all these reviews: 5n in Botswana; 3n in Zimbabwe; 2n in Namibia
The dining experience here is excellent and very popular. Most people eat outside, but you can eat inside if you prefer. A pianist played inside the dining area each night we were there. Breakfast is a mixture of buffet and waiter service. There are a number of hot food options that you order from a menu, but there are also a number of continental items on the buffet. We chose to eat all our evening meals in the hotel and were very happy with that choice. During our stay, it was cold in the evenings and mornings, so mosquitos were not a problem.
If you have any free time during the day, there are plenty of loungers in the small pool area and outside bar. The hotel booked a number of activities for us before our arrival, including a helicopter ride. We found all the staff pleasant and helpful.
You can see both sides of Victoria Falls in a day, but we were pleased to finish our holiday at a relaxing pace and stayed at the hotel for three nights. When we stayed, the hotel had a package for guests staying three nights. In the hotel's restaurant we had one complimentary dinner ( food only) and a complimentary river cruise on the hotel's own boat ( price is usually $85.)" See all these reviews: 5n in Botswana; 3n in Zimbabwe; 2n in Namibia
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent
Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report
Mr & Mrs J
Oxforshire
"Ilala Lodge review"
1 night Arrived 27 Jun 2019
"Very clean & comfortable, good restaurant.
Great location, a short walk to the falls. We didn't take part in any other activities on offer as we only stayed 1 night." See all these reviews: 13n in Zimbabwe
Great location, a short walk to the falls. We didn't take part in any other activities on offer as we only stayed 1 night." See all these reviews: 13n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent
Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Mrs B
Oxon
"Excellent stay in all respects"
1 night Arrived 27 Jun 2019
"Lovely comfortable room, excellent food and service and friendly helpful staff"
See all these reviews: 13n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent
Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
F family
Sherborne
" Ilala Lodge - Ideal for the Falls"
2 nights Arrived 19 Jun 2019
"We very much enjoyed our stay at Ilala Lodge: easy ten minute walk to the Falls; comfortable rooms; excellent food; great service."
See all these reviews: 7n in Zambia; 4n in Malawi; 2n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent
Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Mr & Mrs R
Picton, NZ
"Luxury Ilala lodge"
2 nights Arrived 19 Jun 2019
"Very pleasant stay in this comfortable lodge that has a lot of character.
Very attentive staff and excellent food and service in the dining room.
The icing on the cake was a pianist to entertain us during the evening meal, absolutely wonderful." See all these reviews: 9n in Namibia; 5n in Botswana; 2n in Zimbabwe
Very attentive staff and excellent food and service in the dining room.
The icing on the cake was a pianist to entertain us during the evening meal, absolutely wonderful." See all these reviews: 9n in Namibia; 5n in Botswana; 2n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent
Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Mr & Mrs L
Hinckley
"Ilala Lodge review"
3 nights Arrived 14 Jun 2019
"Overall an enjoyable stay: room was comfortable, everything worked.. but it wasn't "special" - a typical decent hotel room. Swimming pool was cold (although I've known worse!). The proximity to the Falls - great for convenience - did mean that there was a fairly constant drone from overhead helicopters/planes etc. Staff very efficient/friendly/helpful."
See all these reviews: 10n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good
Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Rooms:
Good
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Good
Dune lover
London
"Ilala Lodge Review - beware the baboons"
3 nights Arrived 23 May 2019
"The hotel itself was well appointed with good facilities. The staff were helpful and the main rooms and dining area well decorated and well laid out. It was a short walk to the Victoria Falls and so the location was excellent.
The town of Victoria Falls has limited attractions away from the river and the Falls themselves. the hotel is surrounded by street sellers which made the walk to the Falls unpleasant and they were very persistent. Any street sellers we encountered in Namibia were always friendly and courteous and would leave you alone if you did not wish to buy. No such luck in Victoria Falls!
There was a waterhole in the grounds of the hotel and we frequently saw elephants. There was also a very persistent presence of Baboons! Never leave anything outside your room no matter which floor you are on!!" See all these reviews: 16n in Namibia; 3n in Zimbabwe; 1n in South Africa
The town of Victoria Falls has limited attractions away from the river and the Falls themselves. the hotel is surrounded by street sellers which made the walk to the Falls unpleasant and they were very persistent. Any street sellers we encountered in Namibia were always friendly and courteous and would leave you alone if you did not wish to buy. No such luck in Victoria Falls!
There was a waterhole in the grounds of the hotel and we frequently saw elephants. There was also a very persistent presence of Baboons! Never leave anything outside your room no matter which floor you are on!!" See all these reviews: 16n in Namibia; 3n in Zimbabwe; 1n in South Africa
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent
Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Mr & Mrs C
Berwick
"Overnight stay"
1 night Arrived 21 Apr 2019
"We only stayed briefly, arriving mid evening and leaving early morning.
It is a lot larger than when we last visited several years ago and consequently has lost its small hotel appeal. Staff very friendly and helpful." See all these reviews: 17n in Zimbabwe
It is a lot larger than when we last visited several years ago and consequently has lost its small hotel appeal. Staff very friendly and helpful." See all these reviews: 17n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good
Location:
Excellent
Service:
Good
Rooms:
Good
Food:
Average
Mrs G.& Mr H.
Moelln
"Very nice hotel to explore the falls"
2 nights Arrived 17 Apr 2019
"If you want t visit vic falls, you need a lot of money!
Visa 30$
entrance to the falls 30$
helicopter ride 10$ for flying over the national park, plus the helicopter ride (worth every penny!)
So we paid, just for the visit of the falls, 70$ each .
The hotel wasn't anything spectacular, but good.
Very nice sundownertrip with the IKA Rane boats." See all these reviews: 13n in Namibia; 3n in Botswana; 2n in Zimbabwe
Visa 30$
entrance to the falls 30$
helicopter ride 10$ for flying over the national park, plus the helicopter ride (worth every penny!)
So we paid, just for the visit of the falls, 70$ each .
The hotel wasn't anything spectacular, but good.
Very nice sundownertrip with the IKA Rane boats." See all these reviews: 13n in Namibia; 3n in Botswana; 2n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent
Location:
Good
Service:
Good
Rooms:
Good
Food:
Good
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