The Royal Livingstone Hotel Victoria Falls Zambia by Anantara

Our family just returned from a 4 night stay at the Royal Livingstone and we loved every moment of our stay. The room was comfortable and clean. The staff was great and amazing. We wanted to thank Sylvia and Phyllis at the Old Drift restaurant for taking care of us and going the extra mile to make sure we had everything we needed. We also wanted to give a special thanks to Arun from F&B. We met him one night at the restaurant and he kept his promise of offering free ice cream to my son and even gave him an early birthday dessert. My son still talks about him to this day. As for the rest of the hotel, the grounds were well kept, we felt safe at all times and its amazing waking up to zebras, giraffes, and impalas roaming around the grounds. Access to the falls are free for guest and they provide buggys for those not willing to make the 10 min walk. We would definitely go back in the future and the only thing we would change is bring more bug spray next time.

This hotel is beyond your expectations! Located in the middle of the National Park, next to the Victoria waterfalls, where you can listen the power of the water from your balcony and have your coffee with the accompaniment of giraffes, zebras or antelopes. The Zambezi river gives you unforgettable views, especially by the sunset! You have a warm welcome the minute you arrive, very nice choice of food and drinks in the restaurants and at the bar. And now, what makes the place even more special is the service. All the staff are extremely polite and helpful. Housekeeping service twice per day! Rooms are spacious, well equipped and decorated with style. I want to mention especially one name: Chola Kasengele - Guest Relation Executive, the treasure of the hotel! After visiting hundreds of hotels around the world, The Royal Livingstone will remain in our memories forever!

My daughter and I oved every minute of our stay at this hotel. Friendly and professional staff, a very comfortable room, excellent food and a beautiful setting. A plus was the close access to the Victoria Falls.

Unfortunately if you are after a 5 star experience- this is as close as you will get. So the positives- very friendly staff- Zambians are amazing people. The hotel is clean, the rooms are spotless and functional, with great air con and the water is hot. The falls are a 15 min beautiful stroll away, And they are WOW. We were on anniversary- and the staff made us an amazing petal covered welcome and gratis sparkling wine (nice touch). But that is it. Getting hold of anyone before coming through to the hotel- to advise to understand transfers or discuss anything was impossible- in fact I tried calling (phone numbers off internet didnt work), email (took 2 days to answer- and incorrectly). The pricing is extortionate- it's $$$ for anything. And by anything I mean anything. My son had a bungee booked- I had to intervene when the guest services said he could only get there by paying $15 each way to the bridge (and when I intervened it was after he said he didnt have cash- and the hotel employee said he would pay $20 each way for the hotel car). After being told that we would have to pay $20 each way for each of us- I asked why couldn't we take the golf cart - and after I was told that wasnt possible, I gently asked to speak to the manager (and hey presto the golf cart was a great idea!). Menus are in US$, bills are shown in Kwacha, and on checkout they are in US$. You need to ask pricing on everything, cos what you get is often double of what you think. The onsite managment is nowhere to be seen- only vaguely at the end of a meal- though that said at Drifters it was present. I dunno- maybe it's me but I think you'd do better going for a more genuine experience where everyone wasnt pushing each other out the way to get an i9mmediate tip.

Thoroughly enjoyed both the experience and the service. Looking forward to a more casual trip with the family