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Amalinda Lodge
Amalinda Lodge
Amalinda Lodge
Amalinda Lodge
Amalinda Lodge
Amalinda Lodge
Amalinda Lodge
Amalinda Lodge

Reviews of Amalinda Lodge

Wildlife sightings and reviews

38 independent comments and wildlife information from our travellers who have visited Amalinda 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 Aug-2018, 17 of our travellers have recorded their wildlife sightings at Amalinda Lodge.
Leopard

0% success

Cheetah

0% success

White Rhino

100% success

Zebra

88% success

Giraffe

53% success

Wildebeest

40% success

Sable antelope

33% success

Hippo

29% success

Eland

7% success

Aardvark

0% success

Black Rhino

0% success

Pangolin

0% success

Spotted Hyena

0% success

Showing 1-10 of 38
Duration
Arrival date
Mark
Switzerland

"Amalinda Lodge review"

3 nights Arrived 2 Jan 2024
"Upset stomach due to insufficiently cooked eggs at breakfast.
Stunning view from bathroom.
Loved the room set in the rocks and the sunlight into the shower" See all these reviews: 9n in Zimbabwe; 2n in Zambia
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Good
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Good
Facilities:
Good
Sightings Report

White Rhino

1 sighting

The M Family
Cumbria

"Amalinda Lodge review"

3 nights Arrived 25 Jul 2023
"A beautiful location. Comfortable rooms and lovely staff who were very attentive.

The team at Amalinda are a credit to themselves.

Lovely stay." See all these reviews: 9n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Giraffe

4 sightings

Hippo

1 sighting

White Rhino

2 sightings

Zebra

6 sightings

Mrs J
Somerset

"Amalinda Lodge review"

3 nights Arrived 20 Sep 2022
"Great experience to stay here, just an extraordinary place. I loved the first approach when you end up driving up a rock face, we couldn’t believe there was a lodge up there!
We had a massive beautifully appointed room, food and catering was brilliant.
Really enjoyed drinks by the pool and exploring the grounds. We even saw the legendary zonkey…
It isn’t really a game lodge in the traditional sense, the Matopos felt to us to be more about history, culture and a good break between 2 game heavy areas with one caveat. We tracked white rhino on foot with the help of our guide Paul and the local game rangers and that was wonderful. They found an adult female with a male calf and adolescent daughter, such a privilege to get so close." See all these reviews: 11n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

White Rhino

1 sighting

Zebra

1 sighting

Mrs A.
Wells

"Amalinda Lodge review"

3 nights Arrived 20 Sep 2022
"The welcome by our host Billy was excellent, then the surprise of staying in a luxury cave was another special moment of the trip. Once again the facilities, food and drink were exceptional, complimented by wonderful people who could not do enough to look after us for the duration of our stay.
Our guide Paul was outstanding in his knowledge, entertainment and excitement, making the activities in the mountain terrain another life time experience that should not be missed. The life story of Cecil Rhodes to the 10,000 year old cave paintings were explained in Technicolor detail by Paul who also managed to get us up close with a family of Rhinos, absolutely stunning experience. Thanks to Billy and Paul for making such an effort to look after and entertain us." See all these reviews: 11n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

White Rhino

3 sightings

Zebra

1 sighting

Mr + Mrs M
Oxford

"Amalinda Lodge review"

2 nights Arrived 12 Sep 2022
"This was a very different experience from the hide and offered additional activities including viewing ancient petroglyphs, hiking to the Cecil Rhodes grave for the most amazing views as well as wild life sightings.

Again our guide was extremely knowledgeable and our driver took us on a tour of the historic area of Bulawayo on the way to the airport" See all these reviews: 6n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Eland

1 sighting

Giraffe

1 sighting

Hippo

1 sighting

Sable antelope

1 sighting

White Rhino

Multiple sightings

Wildebeest

Multiple sightings

Zebra

Multiple sightings

Mr and Mrs U.
UK

"Amalinda Lodge review"

3 nights Arrived 9 Aug 2022
"Amalinda is a unique and extraordinary place, that feels quite other worldly tucked away amongst the granite boulders.

It is peaceful and extremely comfortable, with huge rooms and bathrooms, excellent food, great service, knowledgeable guides and some fantastic activities. We tracked white rhino on foot, visited Rhodes grave with a couple of G&Ts and a stunning African sunset and hiked over the rocky terrain past amazing butterflies and antelope before reaching ancient cave paintings.

Evenings around the fire before and after a 3 course dinner were a real treat, our guide joining us sometimes too, giving us an opportunity to get to know him and the Zimbabwean culture a little more. The infinity pool, set apart from the lodges, was stunning, the freezing cold water offering welcome relief from the hot sun. There was even a chameleon nestled in the plant by the bar to provide us with entertainment.

All in all, a very special place." See all these reviews: 11n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Giraffe

Multiple sightings

White Rhino

Multiple sightings

Zebra

Multiple sightings

Dr D
Salisbury

"Amazing architecture in striking envirnoment"

3 nights Arrived 27 Sep 2019
"Amalinda is an extraordinary lodge, built between the massive granite boulders of the Motopos National Park. We were in the two 'honeymoon 'rooms (9 and 10), which were thatched cathedrals between the granite outcrops at the top of the lodge, with spectacular views over the Motopos. Just being there is an amazing experience.

The pool is a stunning pool in a natural, granite bowl, looking out over the Motobos. The poolside bar has a sunset lounge where you can drink you sundowners if not out on a drive or on the high rocks above the lodge.

The staff were friendly and knowledgeable and Melissa, the new lodge manager, was on top of her job after only 10 days in post. The food was excellent and service impeccable.

Our guide Kevin was a very switched on guy, with an in-depth knowledge of nature from the smallest plant and insect, up to the rhinos, along with detailed knowledge of the history and culture of Zimbabwe (ancient cave paintings included). Kevin took us to see the cave paintings, walking with rhinos and to a memorable sundowner at the View of the World burial site of Cecil Rhodes, high in the Motobos. he was great company in every respect.

I would highly recommend a stay at Amalinda for the stunning lodge on its own merits, but particularly for a stay focussing on the geology, culture and history of Zimbabwe and the Motobos. You won't see the range of wildlife seen at the Zim lodges, but you do get the chance to track rhinos on foot with the guide and Park Rangers - a real privilege.

Disabled access might be an issue for many areas of the lodge, with steep and narrow access through gaps in the boulders." See all these reviews: 11n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Giraffe

2 sightings

Sable antelope

1 sighting

White Rhino

2 sightings

Zebra

2 sightings

B family
Surrey

"Lovely setting"

3 nights Arrived 18 Sep 2019
"Not an ideal trip due to extensive fires in the park, meaning we could not safely visit the caves.

Seeing rhino is dependant on finding the rangers who know where they are.

We wasted time while the guide disappeared looking for them to no avail - this was not atypical of having a well meaning guide, but who did not listen properly to our wishes." See all these reviews: 13n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Good
Activities:
Average
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Good
Facilities:
Good
Mr & Mrs R
Hants

"Great Zimbabwe and rock art from Amalinda Lod"

3 nights Arrived 18 Sep 2019
"Amalinda Lodge reflects the local scenery with rooms built into the great rocks. You needed a degree of agility to get to our room!

The main dining area felt slightly cramped with insufficient room for everyone to comfortably gather and mingle before meals and the mix of one large table and two small tables seemed awkward. However, the whole lodge felt friendly and well run and it was a superb base for exploring the Motopos area. The work done by Amalinda to protect the local habitat and wildlife is laudable.

We had the pleasure of two days with Paul Hubbard, a local archaeologist. We had a 4 hour drive to Great Zimbabwe where we spent 5 hours exploring the fascinating medieval ruins. Paul's knowledge of the beautiful sight was inspiring.

The following day we had another full day out with Paul, firstly tracking a group of 6 White Rhino, then exploring a number of sites with stunning rock paintings. The quality and state of preservation of the paintings was staggering and again Paul's knowledge made for a fascinating day." See all these reviews: 12n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Good
Food:
Good
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Sable antelope

1 sighting

White Rhino

1 sighting

Mr & Mrs J,
Edinburgh

"Just a wonderful place - highly recommended!"

3 nights Arrived 12 Sep 2019
"Amalinda was our favourite stop of our whole trip to Zimbabwe - beautiful setting, wonderful rooms, fantastic infinity pool and great hospitality.

Although the game drives are quite benign compared to elsewhere in the country, but scenery is stunning and the close encounters with the white rhino are an amazing experience we will never forget.

Our day being guided by Paul Hubbard was also a real highlight, with Paul really bringing the history and rock art to life.

We didn't want to leave this very special place." See all these reviews: 11n in Zimbabwe; 3n in Botswana
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Giraffe

1 sighting

Sable antelope

1 sighting

White Rhino

1 sighting

Wildebeest

1 sighting

Zebra

1 sighting

Showing 1-10 of 38
95%
38 reviews of Amalinda Lodge by travellers since August 2007
Overall rating by our travellers
30
7
1
0
0
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