Exterior

Reviews of River House Bush and Safari Lodge

4 out of 5
River House Bush and Safari Lodge
25 & 27 Visarend Street, Fish Eagle Bend, Nkomazi, Mpumalanga

Reviews

8.4

Very good

Rating 10 - Excellent. 14 out of 25 reviews" "
Rating 8 - Good. 6 out of 25 reviews" "
Rating 6 - Okay. 2 out of 25 reviews" "
Rating 4 - Poor. 2 out of 25 reviews" "
Rating 2 - Terrible. 1 out of 25 reviews" "

8.2/10

Cleanliness

8.2/10

Staff & service

8.0/10

Amenities

8.0/10

Property conditions & facilities

8.8/10

Eco-friendliness

Reviews

10/10 Excellent

Wolfgang

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Great view over Croc River, with animals to watch, great sunst. And a charming "old South Africa" feel around it.
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2023

8/10 Good

Heinrich

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Close to nature
Very nicr view over the Crocodile River into the Kruger park. Elegant, hippos Crocodile and manny more to see on the deck with n sundowner in you hand.
Stayed 1 night in Jun 2022

8/10 Good

Radena, RENTON

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
The wildlife views from the large deck overlooking the river were phenomenal, the home cooked meals were really good, the staff was friendly, and our room was comfortable. It was also a great location for day drives into Kruger.
Stayed 2 nights in Mar 2022

10/10 Excellent

Julia

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Fabulous lodge with great staff in a wonderful location.
Stayed 3 nights in Oct 2018

10/10 Excellent

Andrea, Lecco

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Excellent and comfortable Lodge for Kruger
River House Bush and Safari Lodge is an excellent location for visiting Kruger National Park. We have been in the lodge a few times already and we think it is the best option for visiting Kruger from Malelane. The lodge is small and comfortable, nicely furnished and very well managed. Johann and is staff are able to make our stay excellent. Last but not least, considering that the dinner and breakfast are included, this is one of the best option also from the price point of view.
Stayed 1 night in Jul 2018
Response from Johan Daffue on 9 Aug 2018
Dear Andrea, Thank you for this positif and wonderful review. I'm so glad that you enjoyed every part of River House.From all my staff and myself thanks again for the compliment. Hope to see you and all your friends back soon. Kind regards, Johan & Staff

8/10 Good

KA MAN

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Excellent experience
The host was very friendly and made my stay so welcome. There are many collection display around the whole property, and feel the heart of how the host decorate the place to make their guests happy. Overseeing the "hippo pool", there are always hippos having fun there. The meals are lovely, home-made food. I have had a very good experience there.

10/10 Excellent

Rolf

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Familiar and very cosy
Friendly and uncomplicated owners, beautiful surroundings, amazing decoration in the house, view deck over the river is a Highlight. Not only the owners, even the cat seems to enjoy you staying with him.
Response from General Manager on 1 Jan 2017
If our guest love the old fashioned house / lodge + Diesel our cat , then we know that they enjoyed their stay , and hope to see u and all your friends in 2017 Kind regards, Johan Daffue

10/10 Excellent

Michele, Houston, TX

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Fantastic
Best location ever right on river - elephants and hippos in throwing distance. Hosts could not have been more welcoming, kind and accommodating in this packed, interesting and eclectic lodge - we will be back! Thanks Johan and Duffy
Response from Daf on 26 Aug 2016
Hi Michele, sorry for late reply, it was wonderful to share our house/lodge with !!! u were wonderful guests and hope to see u and all your friends soon XXX Daffue ( Johan)

10/10 Excellent

Duncan, Sydney, Australia

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Amazing place
I felt like I was returning home when I got a warm 'welcome back', the second time I visited the River House. It's a lovely place with lovely hosts and a stunning view across the Crocodile River, past the hippos, into the Kruger National Park. The breakfasts are amazing and it really is a good option if you want to do day trips into Kruger as it's so close to the gates. Personally I book-ended my trip to Kruger with a bit of luxury by staying at the magic River House on the way in and the way out.
View from my loft room
Viewing deck out the front
Response from Daf on 6 Jul 2016
Dear Duncan , sorry for late reply , it was wonderful to share our Lodge / House with u, thanks again for they very , very nice review and kind words, Hope to see u people again and with all your friends, always welcome. Thanks again . !! Johan Daffue and staff .

10/10 Excellent

berith

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Safari lodge
Fantastisk lodge med utsikt över crokodile river med flodhästar som lekte. Kändes som att bo mitt i krugerparken. Ägaren fixade en safari åt oss och vi såg alla big five.
Stayed 2 nights in Dec 2018

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Service exceptionnel, maison de caractère
Excellent séjour. L'endroit a du caractère, mais surtout les hôtes vous accueillent sans communes mesures. Un service rarement vu, même dans les palaces. Ambiance très "à la maison", qui n'est pas pour tout le monde, mais avec du personnel extrêmement charmant et attentionné. Bel espace surplombant la rivière ou voir les éléphants et autres animaux se rafraichir en buvant un verre.
Stayed 1 night in Jul 2018
Response from Johan Daffue on 9 Aug 2018
So sorry that I did not get your name, but thank you so much , for this good & wonderful review, hope to see you + friends & Family back soon. Kind regards, Johan & Staff

6/10 Okay

Jean

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Exzentrische Unterkunft am Fluss
Grosse Lodge direkt am Crocodile River mit toller Aussichtsterasse. Das Haus ist vollgestopft mit einem Sammelsurium von Kunst und Gegenständen vergangener Zeiten und wirkt ekzentrisch, staubig und dunkel. Das Zimmer und seine Einrichtung war originell aber nicht sehr praktisch, die Klimaanlage vermochte das Zimmer kaum runterzukühlen. Das Essen war sehr gut, die Köchin sehr nett, der Service durch die beiden Hausherren locker aber nicht sehr professionell. Vor dem Servieren des inklusiven Abendessens fragte niemand nach unsern Wünschen, als wir nach der Vorspeise doch noch sagen konnten, dass ein Hauptgericht vegetarisch sein sollten, klappte es dennoch. Die vom Hausherrn in Aussicht gestellte Hausführung fand nicht statt, und als wir bei der Abreise die Abrechnung der unserer Meinung nach sowieso ungerechtfertigten 10% Schlussgebühr bemängelten, da sie deutlich mehr als 10% betrug, wurden wir vom Herrn am Empfang angeschrien, er sei nicht für die Abrechnungen verantwortlich, das sei Sache seines Partners. Die Differenz konnte er aber nicht erklären, und nachdem er 15 Minuten geschmollt hatte, zahlten wir ihm das, was wir für korrekt hielten, und wurden aus dem von innen abgeschlossenen (!) Haus gelassen. Preis-Leistungs Verhältnis schlecht.

6/10 Okay

Anne, NRW

Preis- Leistungsvehältnis stimmt nicht.
Die Lage des Hotels ist gut, unser Zimmer war jedoch sehr dunkel und hatte nur eine minimale künstliche Beleuchtung. Das Abendessen war okay. Bei Abreise wurde auf den schon in Deutschland gezahlten Hotelpreis nochmal eine 10-prozentige Servicepauschale gefordert.
Stayed 1 night in Nov 2017

2/10 Terrible

BRUNO

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Horrível. Não reservar
Reservei a acomodação baseado nas avaliações lidas, mas tive uma incrível decepção. O local é muito abaixo do esperado e o pior lugar que fiquei nos 20 dias de África do Sul. Reservei outros lugares muito mais baratos e com muito mais qualidade. A África do Sul surpreendeu no sentido qualidade, receptividade e preços na hospedagem com exceção desse lugar. Chegamos a noite, é um lugar escuro velho e com aspecto de sujo. Muita quinquilharia velha amontoada. Não fomos recebidos de forma calorosa como em todos outros lugares na África. Fomos recebidos com piadinhas sem graça e sem nenhum zelo. O quarto que fomos encaminhados que seria para 4 pessoas estava terrivelmente quente, sendo que eu já havia avisado algumas vezes o horário que chegaríamos. O ar condicionado poderia ter sido ligado sabendo que o dia havia sido de muito calor. No quarto tudo velho de mau gosto. Roupas de cama com aspecto de sujo e 2 camas de solteiro ficavam em uma espécie de segundo andar com acesso externo e sem acesso ao banheiro. Muita sujeira e não tinha frigobar e nem TV. Com isso, Solicitamos a troca de quarto. Um pouco melhor mas o mesmo estava sujo e com mau cheiro. Ficamos 2 noites, pagamos muito caro e foi horrível. As refeições inclusas eram simples e não condiziam com o valor pago. Falta de preparo de todos para atender. Não era culpa dos funcionários, mas via-se que nunca haviam sido instruídos pelo proprietário. No Check out Uma outra surpresa. Cobraram mais do que estava acordado! Horrível
Stayed 2 nights in Oct 2017

10/10 Excellent

FABIO RIGUETI

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Lugar ESPETACULAR !!!!
A estrutura é belíssima e confortavel ...proximo ao Portão do Kruger!!! Os horários das refeições são limitadissimos!!!
Stayed 2 nights in Oct 2017

4/10 Poor

Verified traveller

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
This hotel never again.
The included food was take away from nearby take away restaurant. The final bill was absolutely not conform on what we had. When asked about the details, the guy on duty said that we had to wait till 10am when the accountant would come. He was able to make a bill but did not know the details!!!!! We have been ripped off!
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2017

4/10 Poor

Rafael

Disliked: Staff & service
hotel limpo mais muito caro
foi boa, mas na hora de pagar foi cobrado a mais, além de cobrarem o 10% até sobre o game que já foi um absurdo de caro. cuidado na hora do pagamento e contratem o game de outros hotéis são muito mais baratos.

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness
Perto do Kruger
O diferencial do River House é a localização. Não apenas fica próximo a entrada do Kruger Park, mas fica diante do Crocodile River. Durante nossa estadia, passamos horas observando elefantes e hipopótamos no rio. Os proprietários são bastante gentis e conversam bastante com os hóspedes.

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Tolles B&B am Krüger Park
Sehr schönes im alten Stil gehaltenes Hotel, wirkt dunkel ist aber der Stil. Sehr freundliches Personal.

10/10 Excellent

Vyctor

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great Hotel in an awesome location
Excelent hotel! Its owner, Daff is a very nice guy and very kind! The only negative point is the poor wi-fi connection.

8/10 Good

Claudia, Frankfurt

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Unbezahlbarer Blick auf Nilpferde
Die Unterkunft ist schon optisch eine Reise wert. Man landet in Duffs Museum von fantastischen selbstgebauten Möbeln und allem, was man in seinem Leben so ansammeln kann. Außerdem gibt es eine Aussichtsterrasse von der man eigentlich immer Nilpferde und in unserem Fall auch einen Elefanten direkt am Zaun beobachten kann. Tatsächlich wird unangekündigt am Ende eine Servicegebühr berechnet, was irgendwie "strange" ist, aber wenn man darauf vorbereitet ist, auch nicht mehr so schockierend.

10/10 Excellent

Eric

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
FABULOUS!
incredibly soulful place with an extremely passionate and welcoming host. 5-star rating
Response from Daf on 1 Jan 2017
Thanks a lot, so glad that u enjoyed River House lodge and hope to see u soon again. Kind regards, Johan Daffue

10/10 Excellent

Paul

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Animal fantastic
We were warmly welcomed. The house is full of antiques and bits and bobs, which makes the place very homely. Breakfast was good and the service excellent. We ate nearby at a nice restaurant recommended by the lodge. The room is basic but the highlight of this lodge is the location. It is positioned right on Crocodile River opposite Kruger. We had views of hippos, crocs and loads of elephants. They have a large veranda with comfortable chairs to view the animals. We will go back.
Response from General Manager on 1 Jan 2017
Thanks for lovely review !! what u see on the web is what u get and I.m so glad that u loved River House, see u soon with all your friends and family !! Kind regards, Johan Daffue

10/10 Excellent

Flavia , FG, São Paulo, Brasil

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Hotel super agradável em frente ao Kruger Park
Logo na chegada nos deparamos com uma família de elefantes a apenas 50 metros da nossa janela. Sem falar que já havíamos visto os hipopótamos moradores do mesmo rio. O hotel super confortável é decorado com peças de decoração de bom gosto que nos reportam a uma casa de fazenda super aconchegante e charmosa. Tudo perfeito! Mas o melhor de tudo foi conhecer o Johan que nos recebeu com uma super atenção e nos fez sentirmos como se estivéssemos em casa!
Ao fundo, o parque Kruger
Conforto e aconchego
Response from Daf on 26 Aug 2016
Flavia, thanks for a very good report, it was such a pleasure to share our old fashioned house with u , and hope to see u and all friends here soon again. XX Daffue ( Johan)