Reviews of Old Drift Lodge

"Old Drift Lodge is a beautiful place to stay with a gorgeous location right by the Zambezi river. All the staff at the Lodge were helpful, kind and efficient.

The furnishings and decor are all top quality.

Our guide Richard was knowledgeable, informative and good company. We very much enjoyed our time with him.

Special mention must go to Admire who was our waiter for several of our meals. He was excellent and really went out of his way to make sure we were well looked after." See all these reviews: 3n in Botswana; 3n in Zimbabwe; 1n in South Africa

"The lodge location was very good with wonderful vista of the Zambesi river and comfortable rooms. However, we were disappointed by the food and the organisation of activities.

The menu was very simple, and this would be fine but the quality was average at best. There was an impression of restriction on drinks and the servings were small.

Organisation of activities was confused. The first afternoon we chose to not go on the river cruise because we were assured we could do the cruise the second afternoon. When the time came to go on the cruise, it seemed to be a surprise to everyone. We were advised that we could do the morning cruise on day of departure, but when the day came we were told that there was not time to do it.

The river cruise was definitely the highlight of the Lodge. The Victoria Falls walk was similar to the one that we did last year, but the breakfast at the Summit lookout was most enjoyable and views amazing. We received an intimate visit from elephants at our room which was a thrill. They drank the water from our plunge pool and were wonderful to watch." See all these reviews: 13n in Botswana; 2n in Zimbabwe

"Great spot on the Zambezi River.

Great guide to view the Victoria Falls. Very accommodating and great staff.

We took the helicopter flight over the falls, and even though it’s expensive, it’s spectacular." See all these reviews: 9n in Namibia; 6n in Botswana; 3n in Zimbabwe; 1n in South Africa

"Old Drift definitely passes the "eye test." The chalets are in fact larger that my apartment (by a wide margin), and the main areas are spacious and elegant. Like most camps you'll find in the more proper wildlife areas of Zimbabwe, the staff are exceptional and willing to talk about a range of things. And despite this park being less wild than others, there are cool opportunities to be had. Visiting the Falls is always a phenomenal experience, and spending the afternoon eating lunch at The Lookout Cafe is unique in itself.

But a few small details keep this place from feeling like what it aspires to be. The food was very much average, and definitely not to the level of the camps and lodges you find in the more remote areas of the country. Also, breakfast was always late being set up in the morning. Their information packets state that a cold breakfast bar should be set up by 7am (it could even have said 630am), but very often they would still be scrambling to get things going at 730." See all these reviews: 18n in Zimbabwe

"There are no words to adequately describe my wonderful week at this amazing lodge on the edge of the river Zambezi in the National Park near Victoria Falls.

Despite my Parkinson's the entire staff family at Old Drift ensured that I got opportunities to get to experience things I never thought I would have the chance to experience again. A very special place to stay which is why I came back again after my "once in a life time" trip last March 2019! Thank you to you all." See all these reviews: 6n in Zimbabwe

"What an idyllic place, it caters for every need. We were treated to the best service imaginable. The staff were phenomenal, all introducing themselves to us on arrival, remembering our names. The service was second to none, nothing was too much trouble.

The tented accommodation was exceptional, so very comfortable, it was luxury, I felt like a lottery winner. I was in chalet 9 and the view down the the river wasn't as open as chalet 8 and was in the shade for best part of the afternoon, but didn't detract from the wildness and back to nature feel. Everything in the chalet was well thought out, down to the bath salts for the outside slipper bath, robes slippers and even an ice maker. It was surprisingly bug free, and the turn down service at night covering the huge bed with mosquito nets was ideal.

The restaurant and waiters were fantastic. There was a good variety of game meat on the menu, new to me, and well worth a try. We asked for a high tea one afternoon, it was duly prepared, and delicious. It was nice having a dining table and waiters allocated to us.

I was so pleased to see Old Drift lodge was environmentally friendly, the use of plastics very limited, reusable glass bottles for drinking water.

I don't usually rate hotels as excellent, as in my opinion there is always room for improvement. However on this occasion I can add nothing, because how can you improve on perfection." See all these reviews: 4n in Zimbabwe

"After the extreme heat of Botswana, it was a treat to have some air conditioning for two nights recuperation. The Lodge is very pleasantly situated but there is less to do by way of game viewing than other places.

The Falls of course are a draw, but I would say this is a place for a quick rest before the rigours of a real safari camp, and that's why we were there. Being upside the main town is certainly a plus. We had a good guided walk, and learned a lot abut the bush, without seeing very much.

The river cruise is a bit tame." See all these reviews: 8n in Zimbabwe; 7n in Botswana; 7n in South Africa

"There are no words to adequately describe the wonderful week I spent here - I am having severe withdrawal symptoms ! I cannot thank Lucy Copson enough for pointing me towards making the choice to stay there. She said they would look after me and that is the understatement of the year!

All the staff were magnificent and contributed to making my stay a fantastic experience throughout. They make an excellent team led by Brad and Annie who were instrumental in arranging every detail of, not just the wonderful activities but the support and assistance given to me meant that I achieved far, far more than I had ever imagined I would be able to accomplish in the time I was there.

To mention any of the staff by name may detract from the overall contribution given by each and every person who make up the 'family' at Old Drift but I have to mention Presha who, was given the job of looking after me on so many occasions. He was always smiling, great fun to be with, incredibly caring and helpful and never once tried to do anything but encourage me to over come any difficulties which I encountered.

But all the staff were so understanding of the diverse conditions that my Parkinson's Disease can present. They fussed over me and cared for me in a manner that made me feel 'normal' . When I over did things everyone rushed to be of assistance and no one did anything other than encourage me and support me in every way. My dreams for this very special trip were fulfilled beyond my wildest hopes.

My lodge was spacious beautifully appointed and equipped. Spectacular location beside the river - I had only been there 20 minutes and looked up from my unpacking to see a large bull elephant strolling by my plunge pool! I had three excellent massage sessions of one hour and at the end of one of them we had to wait before the lady could depart from the lodge as there were a number of cappacino monkies lined up on the veranda looking in!

I had so many encounters with wild life it is impossible to detail all the game drives and the sun rise and sun set cruises presented wonderful encounters from the hippos to the warthogs and guinea fowl. I spent ages early one morning on the river with Presha observing a goliath heron and other birds. But the elephants were something else and they kept popping across my path all the time - sitting quietly in a stationary vehicle whilst 20 or more slowly and majestically crossed the road in front of you was magical. On one occasion there was a young one about 2 weeks old that held up all the process of getting across the road as it was busy nursing from its mother.

Then there were the majestical giraffes, the plonking impala the statuesque kudo and the intriguing zebra. I heard the lions roaring from my lodge in the night and apparently they had killed a zebra near to one of the lodges but the knowledge of the guides and the security in place never made me feel anxious just well looked after and thrilled to be able to spend time in such an amazing place.

I had a wonderful time at the Elelphant Encounter walking with the elephants and afterwards feeding them. I could hardly believe my good fortune to have such an opportunity - all well thought out and most informative.

The two visits I made to the Falls park were spectacular and thanks to the wheel chair provided by Old Drift I managed all 14 viewing points on both occasions. There are no words to describe being at the Falls from the noise - the mist - the rain forest surroundings - you just have to go there in person!

The only slight negative to my whole week was my helicopter trip and I spoke to Lesley as well as Brad and Annie about this so they could pass it on. The whole thing was very rushed from beginning to end when we were taken to view the video that had been made. As we went in I and two others requested some water which was duly supplied and then when we were waiting to pay for the film two US dollars were demanded in cash for the bottle of water! Seemed extraordinary given the cost of the trip!

Brad and Annie organised a trip across the boarder to Livingston in Zambia and sent Presha with me. Thanks to all their efforts I enjoyed a fascinating five hours tour including a drink at the Royal Livingston hotel where we saw a giraffe and some impalas enjoying the grass and trees on the well watered roundabout on the approach drive ! I would never have coped on my own with this trip and this is a good example of how Old Drift went the extra 'mile' to ensure I got every opportunity to experience all I wanted to do." See all these reviews: 7n in Zimbabwe