The Lodge - Safari Kamers

The Lodge was really bad! old bedding, old mattresses! bathroom was disgusting! for that prize I could have stayed in the holiday Inn! no coffee or tea. Only ceiling fan. You should really think again of using them on your website!

It is unfortunate to say that our stay at The Lodge was the most horrible overnight stay I've ever experienced. I advise that you remove them from your listing because they are way below SafariNow standards. Nothing wrong with the guy at reception, Ayanda. He was friendly and hospitable. The room was dirty. Full of years' of dust. The one bed didn't have new bedding on. The toilet was so dirty I was afraid to use it. We had no warm water!! The was no M-Net channel, only SABC 1-3 and E-TV. The warm water tap on the basin was not working. The shower was dirty and the shower curtain disgusting. I don't know where you got the photo from that you display as one of The Lodge rooms, but it most definately is NOT looking like that any more. To pay R544 fot that room is a shame. We weren't even able to shower/ take a bath because there was no warm water. We had to ask for towels and the coffee, sugar and creamer were served in Glad zip lock bags. Who knows what was put in there? I will complain about this directly to The Lodge and on Hallo Peter! I will e-mail you pictures of how dirty everything was. Unfortunately I cannot provide you with pictures of our horrible experience.

Establishment's response

Good Day Elzette,

Thank you for your email.

The last time we slept at the Lodge all was fine, but obviously some things have changed.

We have spoken to the manager / owner at The Lodge and would like to assure you that some changes have been made as a result of your complaint:

Changes Made: 1) DIRTY ROOM: The Lodge cleaners are supposed to clean well after each stay, this obviously did not happen. Thank you for bringing this to our attention, as each new guest should have a clean room, linen and bathroom. The cleaner who was responsible for the low standard cleaning and bedding has been fired. 2) Old linen and shower curtain has been replaced. 3) The owner has indicated that they will be refunding you a portion of your payment. We are waiting for payment from Safarinow.

Not Changed: 1) No Hot Water & Towels: When staying at a lodge or guest house, the reception is available 24hrs to help with things like this. The geyser just needed to be switched on outside your unit, and that would have solved the problem. Towels were available at reception. 2) Tea & Coffee Zip-bags: That’s how the Lodge works at the moment, but thank you for bringing this to our attention. We are suggesting some changes. 3) Mosquito screens unfortunately get damaged all the time. We will be recommending that they rather be removed. 4) Price: December is Beaufort West’s peak season and therefore most accommodation is fully booked and prices are high, the places on the N1 tend to have higher prices and less facilities than the guest farms in the area. (Perhaps try a guest farm next time, or book well in advance to get more affordable accommodation that has better facilities)

Shouldn’t be on your List: 1) M-net: The Lodge has never advertised M-net, only Local TV channels are advertised. We’re not sure why this is on your list.

Once again we and the manager / owner apologise for your stay being very unpleasant to you, they assure you that there will not be an experience like that again. Your partial refund follows shortly, please send bank details in the meantime.