Palm River Hotel

Location is quiet and away from the hustle of town and only about 15 min drive to the Falls. Right on the Zambezi River with wildlife on property. They provide the first stocked minibar (sodas and beer) complimentary and have a nice coffee and biscuit selection in the room. Good shower pressure. While sitting in the dining room one evening, we felt as though we were in Zimbabwe during the Victorian era which was a lovely feeling. Agree with others as this is definitely not a 5 star hotel at least by US standards. Room and bath were spacious yet room lacked the extras. No robe, no slippers, no Kleenex just a little 4 in a travel pack, no proper closet or chest of drawers. The soap dish on the bathroom counter was glued down! Definitely not a 5 star trait. The check-in process was not ideal as there was another family and they gave us all the speech at the same time and the other family monopolized session. Then when she returned passports she gave all to the other family and left to us to sort out. Not very personalized service. Our room was a little tired with stained and ripped carpet. It is the little things that they seem to be missing. For example, we had a note pad but no pen, when they refreshed the coffee station, they did not refresh the sugar nor wash the spoon we used the previous day. They did not replace the Kleenex travel pack until we asked. As others have mentioned the dinner menu selection is limited (but a decent variety) and the service is very slow. We had dinner at their sister property and the food and service was much better. We booked through a package but I did an online reservation check and our room (standard) would have been $700+ a night. That is Ritz Carlton level pricing but this hotel is definitely not RC level. We are very seasoned travelers both throughout US and internationally and I am a previous hotelier so have a good sense of the various levels and would say this property is 4 star at most.

Pros: The hotel is located near the Zambezi river and the reception is quite nice. Room has a nice comfy bed. There are no extras like robe, slippers, extra towels.. The entrance is through an open corridor which gives a motel like feel instead of plush and luxury. The bathroom amenities are very cheap looking and is not fit for a 5 star property. The dinner menu is so limited and there is no variation at all with specials.. the bar could not serve Dirty Martini in spite of requesting for 3 days. On the positive side the servers work hard to give you attentive service. Breakfast is great though. Save your money and choose some other property if you can..

I love this hotel so nice , thy have boat cruise rai Kan with affordable prices the food so delicious and they have bush dinna

We just returned from a visit to the Palm River Hotel. We stayed two nights with our family and enjoyed the property immensely. The pool area was wonderful. In fact as we were swimming two adult and two baby elephants walked by about 20 feet from us. It almost felt magical. The restaurant also was a highlight. The included breakfast was delicious and appealing and the dinner menu was great for a variety of tastes including the pescatarian's in our party. We would suggest this property to anyone traveling to the area! The staff was very kind of all our needs were anticipated and met.

We stayed here for 3 nts in mid June. The hotel is in a great location on the Zambezi river, making for great views and a peaceful atmosphere. The property hosts baboons, warthogs and hippos on the lawns which was so fun to see. Also an elephant wandered through the back lawn while we were there. No worries as there is an electric fence so the animals cannot get too close. The physical property is beautifully designed as are the rooms. They offer sunset cruises on the Zambezi River which are phenomenal. This property has only been open a few years and could use some minor improvements to up its status to 5*. Our room temperature controls were not working and were not corrected for 2 days. Our bath was lacking enough towels and I had to ask for more. There is no Kleenex in the bath except a tiny travel size packet. There are no robes/slippers (which after a trip to Victoria Falls where you get drenched, great time by the way!) to use after a hot shower. These are minor issues which could be easily addressed. Palm River also has a sister property in Victoria Falls called Ilala where we had dinner one evening. It is lovely and close to artisan markets. I preferred the quiet of Palm River. If you visit, seeing Victoria Falls is a must! Also we went to an elephant sanctuary where we got to touch the elephants, walk with them and feed them!! What an experience!