Ilala Lodge-Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
In 2017 Ash and I took the trip of a lifetime to Africa for two weeks. In the middle of our trip, we spent three nights in Zimbabwe at the lovely Ilala Lodge Hotel. We had an amazing travel agent who partnered us with a company who specializes in African getaways (see links to both companies below), and they organized everything even down to the activities for us. Continue reading to get my perspective on the hotel, and to see what mischief we got involved in while we were there.
Image taken from Ilalalodge.com
The entrance to Ilala Lodge Hotel.
With 73 luxury rooms ranging from standard, standard suite, deluxe, executive, and a Strathern suite, the Ilala Lodge has tons of options and is a delightful place to rest after your adventures in Zimbabwe. It is also family run and only an 8-minute walk from one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World, Victoria Falls.
While checking in, we perched at this lovely fountain and relaxed.
The hotel is only 30 minutes from the Victoria Falls airport, and 1 hour to the Livingstone Airport in Zambia and will arrange transportation to and from the airport for you if needed.
Enjoying a welcome drink.
Image of the lobby taken from Ilalalodge.com
The rooms on the upper tier open to private balconies, while the rooms on the lower level give direct access to the manicured gardens and African wildlife. We stayed in a standard room on the lower level and had a few special guests stop by our patio during our stay! Guests can choose from the Deluxe Wing, Garden Wing, or Pool Wing.
Image taken from Ilalalodge.com
All of the rooms feature Teak furnishings that are made from local Zimbabwean railway sleepers. They also are all equipped with high quality cotton linens and luxurious pillows to help you get your best night’s sleep.
Our room.
The rooms all include:
Air Conditioning Units
Complimentary Toiletries
Mini Bar
In Room Dining
Writing Desk
Free Wi-Fi
Overhead Fans
Satellite TV
Laundry Service
Tea & Coffee Facilities
Hair Dryers
Digital Safe
Our bathroom.
Our room also came with extra bug spray….some of the suites have mosquito nets around the beds.
Victoria Falls National Park borders the front of the property, and the spray from Victoria Falls can be seen from almost everywhere at the Hotel. The locals call it “the Smoke That Thunders” and it draws in thousands of tourists a year. The walk to the Falls is only 8 minutes, and the walk to the town is even closer.
Our patio and sliding glass door.
Warthog visitors!!
Another visitor!
We had direct line of sight to a little watering hole.
The Ilala Lodge Hotel is also home to the Cassia Restaurant (formerly the Palm Restaurant). It is an award winning restaurant famous for its delicious cuisine and diners can see the spray and hear the sounds of Victoria Falls while enjoying their meal.
Image taken from Ilalalodge.com
The restaurant offers a breakfast buffet, lunch, and al fresco evening dining under the stars.
Checking in for dinner at the restaurant.
Breakfast: 7-9:30am
Lunch 12pm-2pm
Dinner 7pm-9:30pm
Snacks Available 10am-8pm
Heading to our table outside for dinner.
Dining under the stars.
Photo taken from Ilalalodge.com
When we stayed there, it was still the Palm Restaurant, and I grabbed a photo of the menu. I had the Kudu and Ash had the Ostrich.
Kudu Wellington.
Exploring the grounds of the hotel.
Fountain at the hotel.
There are so many things to do around Victoria Falls and the Hotel will help arrange things for you if you don’t already have plans in place. Below you will see some of the activities we took part in, but here are some additional things you can choose from:
Bungee Jump off Victoria Falls Bridge
White Water Rafting Down Zambezi River
Fishing
Zipline
1 hour drive from Botswana
Game Drive
All activities also include transportation included in the cost!
We went activity crazy while here and packed in every single minute! Here are some photos and links to the things we did while in Victoria Falls. (All of ours were pre booked by Live Life African Safari Getaways and included transportation to and from the activity).
The Gorge Swing-we had to voluntarily leap off the edge of the gorge, free falling about 70 m before going into a 95 m long pendulum type swing. Some other tourists took photos and videos for us, but we were also able to buy a professional video from the company.
Sunset River Cruise on the Zambezi River. We saw elephants, hippos, crocodiles, and a plethora of birds!
We got to meet some elephants, take them on a safari, feed them breakfast, and then enjoy breakfast of our own at this lovely elephant sanctuary.
We did a guided walking tour of Victoria Falls from the Zimbabwe side (the side we were staying on).
This was super cool because you could feel the mist, and we could see the Devils Pool (which we got to swim in the next day).
We walked from our hotel to dinner one night and enjoyed the local sights. We had dinner at The Three Monkeys and ate wildebeest, zebra, impala, and crocodile.
We crossed over to Zambia to experience a dip in the Devils Pool and while waiting for our boat we walked around the property amongst the Zebras!
At the Devils Pool.
We did a Lion encounter and walked with 22 month old lions.
One of the most incredible days of my life.
We had dinner at The Boma Restaurant and tried the Mopani Worm!
There was traditional dancing, face painting, and drums.
So, if you are planning a trip, I highly recommend stopping in Victoria Falls for a few days and staying at the Ilala Lodge Hotel. Enjoy the local sights, cuisine, and activities. For us, this was not our “safari” part of our trip, but we still saw so much incredible wildlife on the river cruise, at the Elephant Sanctuary, during the Lion Encounter, driving from place to place, and even on our little porch at the hotel!!
Some products I took with me, and I recommend: