Reviews of Garden Lodge

"it was a lovely start to our holiday and wished we could of stayed longer.everyone was so helpful and the activities very well organised. An amazing location." See all these reviews: 9n in South Africa

"A fine place to stay for a couple of nights - lovely staff and a special location - driving through the finbos was facinating - such a pity we are not horse riders..." See all these reviews: 13n in South Africa; 3n in Zimbabwe

"Fantastic views and amazing rooms.

The 4x4 drive into the fynbos was the highlight of our stay there. Brummer was an excellent guide.

We opted for a beach walk in the afternoon and were rather surprised that the guide didn't seem to have realised it would be high tide (and therefore no beach!)" See all these reviews: 7n in Botswana; 5n in Namibia; 2n in South Africa

"The suites are first class. They are very large and comfortable.

We did however have a very bad problem with severe and widespread leaks as a result of the very heavy and prolonged downpour which we experienced on our second night. A pile of clothing just back from the laundry was soaked and required rewashing and ironing and a suitcase had a large puddle of water inside. Luckily cameras and field glasses were elsewhere otherwise the damage could have been significant. Many other suites were, we understand, also affected as was the main building. This part of the development is relatively new and possibly has not been subjected to such heavy rain before.

The rain prevented any activities but the suite was so comfortable that we could happily sit and have a day off reading and relaxing which is not something that I am prone to do when on holiday. We had the extra luxury of having a fire lit for us in the wood burning stove with plenty of fuel. Going to and from the restaurant in the main buliding was not any problem as large umbrellas were supplied and there was shelter from the trees.

We very much enjoyed the bird watching safari and the flora safari. The guides were very knowledgeable and amusing. The milkwood walk was interesting but short. There was a beach safari normally available but this was cancelled due to the weather, probably as much because no one wanted to go out in the downpour as for any other reason. In addition there were two add on extras - a 2 hour boat trip to an island to watch whales, dolphins and seals and a flight along the coast to see the whales etc from above. Both of these were expensive. One of our quartet went on the boat and said that the viewing was excellent with an added bonus of seeing a great white shark. However it was rough and some were seasick.

We had the milkwood walk on our first afternoon and the bird watching safari in the morning of our first full day and the flora safari in the afternoon. On our second full day we could have gone on the beach safari which entails 180 steps up and down to get to the caves though apparently one could stay at beach level if preferred. If we had been able to do this safari there would still have been nothing to do in the afternoon. I think that the choice of safaris and activities was very limited and that more should be available and included in the price. Overall this compares badly with the safaris in the game parks which had morning, afternoon and in some evening game drives.

In the main building drinks service before dinner was excessively slow. Even a bottle of wine took about ten minutes to arrive. The dinner menu was boring and unimaginative. It was unchanging from one day to the next. One of our party spoke to the manager and was told that there was meat, a fish and a vegetarian so what more was required. Admittedly the fish was a different species each night and the meat a different venison or beef but rather more variety is called for. Even a half decent chef should be able to produce menus which are diferent over the course of a week though four days should be sufficient as few people are likely to stay longer. Hog Hollow and Phantom Forest could show them how to do it." See all these reviews: 12n in South Africa