Ditholo Game Lodge

What People are saying

Wonderful place in a beautiful setting

Biffro on 13/05/2017 18:15

We stayed here in December after Christmas and I have been meaning to submit a review for so long. We came here for 2 nights and we had such a lovely stay in what is a beautiful setting. Sadly the weather rained most of the time that we were here and we weren't able to experience any game drives but we still had a very enjoyable time.

The staff were so friendly and welcoming and really went out of their way to make our stay comfortable and memorable as soon as we arrived.

There is a viewing deck next to the pool with great views across the surrounding grasslands. From here you can see the hippos in the pool and along the banks below as well as giraffe on the distant grasslands and lots of weaver birds in the reeds below as well as lots of other birds.

We wanted to have dinner on the viewing platform on one of the nights and in spite of the rain, the staff made it happen under the canopy. It was very special and we sat in candlelight with the sound of the crickets and frogs below us which was dreamy and truly memorable.

There is also a great bar next to the water which is well stocked and it was nice sitting in here looking out over the water with a nice cold drink.

Our chalet was lovely and the bed was very comfortable and the chalet clean and we had a small fridge. A small point is that the bathroom is looking a bit dated compared to the rest of the chalet but this is the only point.

The lodge has a nice swimming pool and loungers to escape the dry heat. The food here was pretty good too.

We thought that the staff were exceptional and really made our time here truly memorable. We would definitely recommend a visit here and hope to come back in the future.

From Hero to Zero :-(

Mosidi M on 13/02/2017 10:04

My husband and I initially fist visited Ditholo in December 2011 and we had an amazing time, the cleanliness the service the entire experience was just perfect. We decided go go down memory lane by visiting Ditholo a second time & unfortunately this experience was a huge let down. The issues all really began when we were unable to get in touch with the Lodge in alerting them we were not going to make it to the gate by 9pm. The numbers that were on the website rang without any response thus making our drive to the lodge really stressful. When we finally got to the lodge we were welcomed by a friendly man Sibusiso who let us know that the phone lines where unfortunately down. Nevertheless he had kept some dinner for us knowing we could be hungry which was kind of him. The room allocated on the booking form was a standard room even though I had paid for a Deluxe room DBB rate. The only deluxe room that was available did not have a working AC, we settled for a fan however, this was disappointing. Even though the chalets have thatched roofs the amount of cob webs that were around the walls, bathroom & by the pillows was appalling. The windows were dirty & had not been cleaned in a long time, there was a huge stain on the carpet & the room smelt of damp. When we went for breakfast I was told that I couldn't have fried eggs as the chef didn't have any whole eggs only scrambled. There was no dedicated bar man at the bar, the bathrooms by the bar were so dirty filled with droppings and insects. The viewing deck had also not been cleaned in a long time, the chairs were full of dust and the loungers were broken. When we checked out the billing statement was incorrect, we were charged for dinner for both evenings even though I had paid for a Dinner, Bed and Breakfast rate. Overall Ditholo was a such a let down and it's clear that it needs proper maintenance with dedicated staff. It needs to be resorted to what it used to be.

Lovely place but need some attention

Thandi V on 04/01/2017 16:07

Very friendly staff and what a beautiful and relaxing setting.

Unfortunately though the food was nothing to write home about, in fact the dinner was very disappointing as well the meagre wine list, I would expect much more from a 4 star resort. The rooms don't have wifi like advertised, you need to be standing close to the conference room. The chalets were clean enough but looking a bit tired, in need of a paint and spruce up. For the price I feel that more needs to be done.

Oasis

TonyBosman on 01/01/2017 15:13

We spent the New Years weekend at Ditholo Game Lodge outside Bela-Bela for the express purpose of peace and tranquillity. In that aspect we were in no way disappointed. The setting is beautiful and the atmosphere fantastic. A rich green oasis in thorny bushveld, although even the bushveld is green after the good rains. We were greeted by Lebogang who made us feel most welcome and Cosmos who booked us in was absolutely professional. In fact, the staff are fantastic. Cosmos and Jarred who are on loan from Safari Lodge in Rustenburg were awesome and for Cosmos, nothing was too big to resolve. Daniel, the barman, is an absolute star who made sure that refreshments were on hand before you knew you needed one.
On the less positive side the facility is starting to look a bit tired and could do with some attention. The towels were frayed and one had a hole in it. The carpets are wearing and marked. Half of the lights in the chalet didn’t work. There was no hairdryer although it is advertised as part of the deal. The Deluxe suite which we booked was supposed to have wifi in room but this is only available to guest near the conference room. For a 4 star facility the selection of TV Channels is very poor. Two were too snowy to watch and one channel was repeated so from nine you could effectively watch five of which none were of any real interest.
The deck outside of the bar as well as overlooking the dam is showing its age with ecoplastic planks starting to lift and part of the railing falling off.
The food is good but not great and dinner on Friday was 35 min late. Having said that Cosmos was willing to cater for our needs when we requested a lighter meal for dinner.
Overall a very pleasant stay but not worth of the four stars they advertise at the price at which they advertise.
Also warn visitors that there is 13km of sand road to access the Lodge. In a rainy season if you don't have the appropriate vehicle you may well have a problem.

Disappointing

jnw57 on 31/12/2016 06:35

We had a disappointing stay here . We're weren't impressed with the room in that it lacked some of the basics which tended to give an underwhelming impression. Small examples; empty tissue box, leaking toilet.
The dinner ( a buffet) was very average and certainly nothing to write home about.
We arrived in rain ; and the access road ( untarred) portion was in poor condition; there should be some prior warning to prospective guests that this is a potential issue. We were fortunate in that I was driving a vehicle that could handle it fairly easily.
We had to leave early so we're unable to appreciate some of the game viewing that has received very good reviews from other guests; so that was a pity and we are sure that it would have been great.
To conclude more attention on the room at arrival would be good and the dinner!!
No problem with the breakfast or general service and friendliness of the staff!!