River View Lodge

I can’t even describe how much I loved this place, it’s hands down the best hotel we’ve ever stayed in. The food is excellent (make sure you try the omelette for breakfast), they even serve a light lunch every day that’s included in the price, homemade cakes and cookies are available outside of meal times if you need a snack. Please make sure you try their dinners, they give you the menu every morning and you can tell the chefs put a lot of effort into it, we didn’t eat one disappointing thing the whole trip. The staff are so sweet and kind, the surroundings are beautiful, the rooms are comfortable and somehow totally free of bugs. It’s more money than I would usually pay for a hotel but I can honestly say it was 100% worth it, I will definitely be returning!

Stayed there for 2 nights all inclusive with 3 children. All loved it.
Excellent location on the banks of The Chobe River.
Large rooms and bathrooms, and a porch out front to relax and enjoy the view between activities.
The game guides are very knowledgeable and experienced. We got to see 4 of The Big 5 (rhinos are not found in Chobe), large numbers of elephants, giraffe, impala, hippos, baboons and many more animals and birds.
The staff are very friendly and accommodating.
The food was amazing! A top end restaurant would be envious.

Had a breakdown of our car on our way to Kasane and we were booked in for 3 nights. We could not make it for the first night as we broke down at night on our way to the hotel. Tried to contact the hotel via telephone six times and no one was picking up. Ended up going on their Facebook page to try and see if they have an alternate number and found a mobile number on there. I called the mobile number and explained that I have been trying to call the hotel six times and no one is picking the phone. The gentleman on the phone mentioned he was the director. I explained our situation and he was very sympathetic and even asked if we were okay.
Saturday pm the next day we checked in at the hotel. We met two ladies at the reception, one tall slim lady with short hair was exceptionally lovely, smiley and very professional. We checked in. I asked about the night we had missed and if there is anything the hotel can do. The other lady with short twisted hair (I think she works for reservations) abruptly spoke and said did you not read the terms and conditions there is no refund in a very abrupt way. Mind you this is the first time at this hotel. A car breakdown is neither our fault nor their fault. But the way she addressed the whole situation was uncalled for. She then told us to wait and see another lady called Shingi. At 4pm I went to reception and I saw this lady.

We never stayed here. I am sure these are excellent cottages. I want to alert others to be careful when booking through external service providers like booking. Com. The Lodge’s profile had put in fine print that if you book more than 3 rooms (we had booked 4) different terms and policies will apply. But, only in hindsight, I found the sentence alluding to this but no specifics were described or hyperlinked for one to read. Once booked, the email confirmation stated nothing about it too. But, a few days later, they foisted an arbitrary timeline expecting response in 24 hours on a reservation that are more than 7 months in advance. If you are someone like me that does not respond immediately to emails about things that are so far out into the future, you may end up paying penalties. We did not like the new terms and so I asked to cancel. We were charged a 10% fee. Also, the cost of the stay went up by more than 10% of what was quoted by booking. Com when the Lodge applied their new policies. Despite my earnest appeal to their courtesy, nothing. It was a very disappointing and unpleasant experience.

Couldn't fault this place from the time I started to make the booking to the end of staying there. Helpful staff arranged a pick up from Vic Falls to take us to Chobe and then back to Vic Falls airport. Organised our tours over email, sunset cruise followed by a 6 hour safari the following day. All executed perfectly and with lovely willing people. We had full Board and the dinners were very nice. A bonus was the complimentary lunch we didn't expect. The room had a river view, was very large, clean tidy and immaculate. The bathroom was huge with a lovely walk in powerful shower. This was a little bit of luxury after roughing it in Vic Falls and it did not disappoint. Thank you to all your employees they do you proud.

We only stayed for one night but very much enjoyed our time here! The food was great, and we appreciated the chilled water cooler for refilling our bottles. We did not get a chance to enjoy the pool or lounge area very much, but it looked very nice and relaxing. The air con in the room was strong and worked well, and the room itself was clean and comfortable. We had a great time on the boating safari and early morning game drive, and had a wonderful guide.

We stayed in this hotel 2 nights during a trip through Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe.
The hotel is outdated and rooms need a serious refurbishment.
Pool surrounded by a wooden terrace. Many planks close to the pool are rotten and partly repaired with metal plates, but remain extremely dangerous. This is far from the presentation on the webside.
Lounge choirs at the pools are disgusting and not cleaned on a daily basis. Used towels from the previous day were not removed in the morning at 9:30.
Sun umbrellas at the pool dirty and damaged. One broken wooden part just repaired with 2 plastic cable clamps.
Breakfast buffet far below average. Dinner served on a couple of small tables as well as a table of 12 persons, mixing rooms. This would be acceptable in a b&b type maison d’hôte in France or agriturismo in Italy but not in a hotel.
On the positive side, I would mention a friendly team and a well organized evening cruise tour.
Place definitely not to be recommended.

Food was good, rooms spacious and clean but, apart of Mike the team was super passive and not really spreading good vibes. Pool water is not inviting (blurry) and the wooden deck broken (seems since a long time) over all…. Unfortunately not good value …. You need to work on the positive vibes!

We stayed at river view lodge for 2 nights and overall were a little disappointed with the stay. The room and location were lovely but we didn't find the staff particularly friendly or welcoming. We went on the village walk which was great and the man who did this with us was lovely! Experience wise the boat trip was very good but the game drive was quite poor in terms of wildlife — we realise that nature is not a zoo, but there did not seem to be the density or variety that we saw in other places. This was the least amount of wildlife we saw while in botswana so would recommend going elsewhere if this is the main reason for your visit as it was for us!

The location and rooms were nice. The pool could use a good regular cleaning. The staff super friendly and attentive and kind.
I would recommend that owners ensure that there is more prompting for tipping the staff — perhaps an envelope for the cleaning personnel in each room — perhaps prompting from reception stuff at check in and check out. The little tips box in the dining area is barely visible so most tourists visiting the lodge do not pay attention to it.

The staff at this lodge is so attentive and friendly. We had a great stay here with clean, spacious, and well-designed accommodations. The food was delicious every meal, and they were able to accommodate my vegetarian diet (most days there was automatically a vegetarian dinner option). The river view is serene especially for watching sunsets.

After much debate we opted not to hire a car and so I emailed the lodge to ask advice about airport pick up and taxis to Victoria Falls and info on what activities were available. Shingi was quick to respond and we got everything in place before we arrived.
The lodge is a little out of the way, small but lovely. Our room was exceptionally clean and the bed was very comfy. Food is ordered earlier in the day with a choice of two starters and mains, and we couldn’t fault it. Breakfast had a selection of fruit, cereal, meats and cheeses and there was the option of cooked, omelet or a special every day.
Staff were friendly and helpful and we were always greeted with a smile. We enjoyed the communal set up for dining instead of everyone being sat at their own table. It was a great opportunity to talk to other guests, get hints and tips about some of the trips and to discuss where they had been and what they had seen.
We booked two morning game drives and two afternoon boat trips. Matthew took us on all but one of these. He had great knowledge of the animals and we saw lion, elephants, giraffes on the game drives. The highlight for us though were the two boat trips, they really were special. Great opportunity to see elephants at play in the river and hippos going about their lives, we were also luck to capture two buffalo swimming between islands.

I just fell in love with Botswana on our stay here. We had the most incredible time. The rooms were beautiful and had everything we needed. They offer a complimentary “safari lunch” which was lovely every day, dinner was also super lovely. Breakfast however was just beyond great, I had one of the best omelettes ever.
Now on to the staff, staff were exceptionally friendly and so helpful. I didn’t get everyone’s names but everyone was still greasy. We were greeted by unity who was so helpful. Emily was so lovely too. Sofia was super helpful and friendly!
John was brilliant too! He was our guide for the game drive and cruise in the evening. We left quite early, before many others and I’m so glad we did. We enjoyed it so much we booked on for a second morning. Now John was great because he kept an eye out for everything and made sure to stop for things we wanted photos of, he would talk about the animals and give us details on them. We heard he’s quite new to the team but wow is he an asset! We have been on a few drives in Southern Africa but no guide has ever been as thorough as he was. We even got lucky with being the first to spot the lions one day and enjoy them before other lodges arrived.
So thank you for such a lovely stay!

We throughly enjoyed our stay here. The accommodation is extremely clean and welcoming. The staff were so friendly and helpful. We arrived at 10am in the morning and they let us check in as our room was ready, really super customer service that we were so grateful for. All the grounds are absolutely immaculate. The staff organised a Sunset river cruise, it was fantastic and a must do. We had dinner at the lodge which was 3 course, it was delicious and very good value for money. I would highly recommend The River view lodge to future guests and look forward to returning again in the future. Thank you for a wonderful stay.

As a family of six, (three generations) we spent five wonderful days at River View Lodge enjoying this intimate, well run little oasis on the banks of the Chobe Tover.
Our accommodation was extremely comfortable, each room tastefully decorated and thoughtfully furnished.
The meals were delicious and generous. We enjoyed relaxing while enjoying a great view of the Chobe River from the open lounge area or around the pool.
The game drives and sunset cruises were well organised and enjoyable with the Rangers doing their best to show us as much game as possible.
We can fully recommend this amazing Lodge and look forward to a future visit.
Our heartfelt thanks to Sofia and her friendly staff who went the extra mile to ensure that we all had a good time both before our visit and during our stay.

The River View Lodge was the biggest disappointment on our 2-weeks journey across Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe. Value for money is really poor. The rooms are ok (but also need an update), the pool and bar areas are really nice, the dining room is small and not inviting. The food is average. The staff does not give the impression that they enjoy what they are doing. We had high expectations when we booked the lodge (also because of many positive reviews). However, our experience didn’t meet those expectations.

Great service and Safari tours. We spent three nights in the suite apartment, very comfortable. Had as many safaris as possible —. By boat and on land.