The Victoria Falls Hotel

Stayed 2 nights at the Victoria Falls hotel The staff across the entire hotel were fantastic The room was clean bed comfortable but dated rooms. The hotel history and view was the reason for staying and was a bucket list item. Overall a decent stay but you are paying for the old school charm and as long as you accept this you will have a good time.

While I loved our stay at the Victoria Falls Hotel, I wanted to leave a review of my meal on the Stanley Terrace. I had the teriyaki salmon salad. It was so salty that I could not eat it. What was odd, was it seemed that the salad was salted, as well as the salmon. I cannot conceive of adding salt to a salad. I just could not eat it. The rest of our stay was lovely.

Our four night stay at the Victoria Falls Hotel from 8-11 May was simply fabulous, starting with the excellent advice and support received from Charlorencia in the reservations team before we had even arrived. We ended up booking a Deluxe Suite rather than a moderately more expensive Executive Suite because the room sizes were the same and we still had access to the Bulawayo Room private lounge. That was well worth it, by the way. I think our room number was 67, which was on the ground floor and had a small juliette balcony with a lovely view out over the gardens to the Falls. As an aside, the flow over the Falls while we were there was spectacular after the rains. I recommend that travellers consider this aspect when deciding what time of the year to visit. We were spoiled from the moment we arrived, being whisked inside to a private check-in by a very friendly porter who I think went by the name of Livingstone. Check-in was conducted quickly and professionally by Edson who, during our stay, proved to be attentive and very helpful whenever we visited the Bulawayo Room but without ever being intrusive. He is a credit to the hotel’s management, as is every staff member we met. The suite was spacious, very comfortable and kept meticulously clean by housekeeping. We were celebrating my wife’s birthday later during our visit to South Africa and Zimbabwe but were delighted to find a few small but meaningful gifts waiting for us in the room when we arrived. That was a nice touch and much appreciated. We had a pretty full schedule each day whilst staying in Victoria Falls but still managed to visit all dining venues in the hotel. First off was the Livingston Room for dinner. Noting the history and elegance of this flagship restaurant we chose to dress appropriately for what was a special occasion, even though the hotel has relaxed the formal dress requirements slightly in recent years. We are glad we did as it added to our enjoyment of the evening, aided significantly by the high standards of service, the excellent food and the extensive knowledge demonstrated by the sommelier and other staff members. Even though we were joined later by another group of diners who were dressed in shorts, which in my view was too casual for dinner in that venue, we are glad we made an effort to properly enjoy a great meal in elegant surroundings. I would recommend that anyone staying in the hotel does the same. We didn’t have dinner at the Jungle Junction but had a fabulous breakfast there every morning. The choice offered in the buffet was extensive and the eggs to order were perfect. On a couple of mornings we were looked after by Sam, who was very professional and attentive, again without being intrusive. The location and outlook from the Jungle Junction was a great way to start each day. High Tea on Stanley Terrace is an absolute must. Edson arranged this for us on our last day and we enjoyed a relaxing couple of hours taking tea whilst watching the Falls as the afternoon light faded into the evening. Also fabulous were the drinks from the adjacent Stanley’s Bar. The Victoria Falls Hotel is in some respects a reminder of the colonial past but it offers guests the opportunity to enjoy very comfortable accommodation with unrivalled views of the magnificent Victoria Falls. We were delighted with the hotel, the room, the meticulously maintained gardens, the food and drinks and, most importantly, the staff. I’ve stayed in a number of historical and elegant hotels elsewhere in the world and The Victoria Falls Hotel is on par with any of them. I have no hesitation in recommending it most highly.

This hotel is a great place to stay when visiting Victoria Falls. The mist from the Falls and the bridge between Zimbabwe and Zambia are both visible from the back of the hotel and you are close enough to hear the “roar”. This is an older but very nicely refurbished facility with large, comfortable rooms. The staff is friendly and helpful and the hotel is very clean and beautifully decorated. The grounds are beautiful and there are many public places inside and out from which to enjoy the views. I really enjoyed all the fountains. There are restaurants on site (as well as close by,) and the food was very good. We enjoyed both menu selections and buffet offerings during our stay. You’re within walking distance of shops but don’t miss the gift shop in the hotel lobby. They have some beautiful linens as well as the usual tee shirts and hats and it’s worth a few minutes of your time. Overall we enjoyed our stay and would certainly stay there again.

The hotel itself was clean and well maintained. With regards to food, we only ate breakfast, which was splendid. The grounds are extensive although the advertised private walkway to The Falls have been closed since Covid. Staff were friendly and helpful but let down by one receptionist who, in the middle of helping me with obtaining a boarding pass, completely ignored me once a couple arrived to check in. to the hotel. This showed lack of training and an amateurish approach to customer care. Overall, although we enjoyed our stay at TVFH, it's standards, I felt, fall short of 5*.