We loved our stay. The staff are very attentive and the accommodation is perfect. Our ranger, Salomon was the highlight of our stay. He was most informative and very interesting. His passion for nature and his knowledge on the subject, including history, was a treat.
Dear ilovetobe spoilt,
Thank you so much for your wonderful review.
I will pass onto Salomon your compliments; he certainly is fast becoming an integral part of our guiding team. We can't wait to get things in place to do walking trails with him.
Also, just to share some news we are starting to work on going off the grid, by using Solar, and find this an exciting chapter to look forward to.
Take care and wishing you a wonderful year ahead.
Regards
Debbie and the RiverBend Lodge Team
Well if you want an exclusive experience this is the place for you. Hotel is set in its own private range of Addo national park We had our own wonderful guide Christiaan who’s knowledge is outside standing , he can call to the birds and they answer him , a memory I will never forget . Lots of wonderful Elephants which we had two up close experiences with the herd. the hotel is like being transported back to colonial times. Rooms are beautiful individually set chalets. Moses is wonderful host in the bar and restaurant.
An part of the Eastern Cape you must visit . Well worth the drive and money .
Dear eganlucy1,
Thank you so much for your review.
We are delighted that you loved your stay with us, and I will definitely pass onto Moses and to Christiaan your special mention.
it is aways so rewarding when Guests fall in love with RiverBend Lodge as much as we have.
Thank you again for taking the time to write your review, and hopefully we will see you again when you next in South Africa
Sincerely
Debbe & The RiverBend Lodge Team
We found the dining very expensive, and the Game drives are more than double the normal prices.
The personnel were very helpful and friendly, but the buildings need maintenance and is way too expensive for what it offers.
Good Morning geeden659277,
Thank you for your review.
I am so sorry your stay with us, left you feeling disappointed, as this truly does not happen often at RiverBend at all.
However, every review is appreciated and taken note of and to us is very important, and taken seriously.
I initially started noting our game drive rate of R1750 vs the BB up the road, where they have to drive for over 30 minutes just to get to the main camp gate, on a district gravel road and they pay R1450 per person for a game drive in the general public area vs our drive inside an exclusive private concession where the Lion sighting is an experience with your game viewer and the lions without all the other cars, but I realize this would just be academic,
as would be comparing our 4 course dinner at R560 per person to the steak house where item for item there is a total of about R30 difference at the end of the meal price, and that R30 is before you have a cup of tea or coffee, which I did not factor into the price, let alone a complimentary bottle of champagne which you would never get at the steak house, and all of this in the most beautiful 5 star setting overlooking the big 5 reserve and the opportunity at any given time to see the wild animals stroll past your area.
Be that as it may, i respect your time taken to write your review, and am again sorry that we did not hit the spot for you.
Wishing you all the best
Debbie Carinus
General Manager
Situated at a bend in the long-dry riverbed, the lodge has gorgeous gardens, a sizeable swimming pool and delightful reading spots with clear views of the water hole. Staff catered to our every whim, and our rooms were extremely comfortable - with the largest beds I've ever seen.
Our game drives were equally special. As Riverbend is situated in the Nyathi private concession, we were able to access areas unavailable to most Addo visitors - meaning that when we had a sighting, it was ours alone. In comparison, when we drove through the main park, it was less "spot the animal" and more "spot the parked up cars". Our guide, Leo, was informative, enthusiastic and generally just a nice guy. During our trip we saw lion, zebra, elephant, warthog, mongoose and a range of antelope.
We stayed for 2 nights - which was a good length of time, allowing for four drives, lots of delicious food and one full lazy day. Any longer might have been too many 4.30am starts, and too little to do through the day.
Note that although Riverbend's philosophy is to allow guests to dictate the times of game drives and other activities, there is a standard schedule to the day which is usually followed. If you'd like to do any other activities, suggest booking in advance.
Dear Aislinnvdw,
Thank you so much for your wonderful review.
I am so sorry that you were not 'heard' by Leo when he discussed or suggested times for the drives, we really do try everything we can to give Guests their safari drives at a time that is suitable to them. Often, a guide will do an early drive and then once back ready his vehicle and go out again with the next guests as they didn't want such an early drive.
I will definitely ensure that the guides are again reminded of the phrase 'luxury of choice'.
Again, thank you for taking the time to do a review, it is appreciated and noted.
Sincerely,
Debbie & The RiverBend Team
Beautiful older Lodge near Addo Elephant National Park’s Main Camp( Northern Gate)
River Bend offers safari’s with their own guides within their “private portion of Addo National Park.
We did an early morning drive and a night drive with their Safari leader Leo. Leo is a new guide and gaining experience. He is very knowledgeable and wants to help you learn . The night drive is highly recommended, you’ll see many different animals than u see on the day drives.
You can also go to the Main Addo Camp about a 20 minute drive and either do self drives or do guided safari’s with Addo staff or possibly with River Bend staff. We like doing self drives so that’s what we did in Addo. We saw lions on River Bends area but none of the black Rhino’s in either area.
The food was interesting at River Bend , it is a Continental cuisine. Was well done.
The staff was very friendly with their aim to ensure you have a good stay.
We had the honeymoon suite which had a pool but the water was too cool for us , which was the same for the beautiful main pool.
The Lodge has beautiful lounging areas and a classic bar area.
The drinks and wine are very , very reasonably priced.
The lodge was very safe and clean and well kept. The landscaping is remarkable.
We were able to see ( once each) lions and elephants from our Villa and the lodge. The lodge offers indoor and outdoor dining which was basically bug free any very pleasant.
The negatives were the WiFi was just ok, and was totally out during the 8 hrs / day of load shedding. The other negative is that the lodge while it does have a generator doesn’t have the rooms powered by the generator. This means 8 hrs a day ,4 hrs in morning and 4 hrs in evening you’ll have no power in your room for anything including air conditioning. Also twice we woke up without any running water in the morning, this lasted for hours.
We recommend River Bend. Addo is a place to see Elephants, Antelope (many breeds), Zebra, warthogs. It is very difficult to see Rhino, Leopards and Lions in Addo. Better to go to Kruger in our opinion to see the big 5.
Dear David C
Thank you for taking the time to put pen to paper and to write your review.
I am delighted that you enjoyed your stay with us at RiverBend Lodge, and yes you were lucky to see the black rhino, as well as the lion. I have been to Kruger and many times never saw a rhino or a lion, it all depends on the day and your luck at the time, but the best of it all is that we are also further away and don't have any Malaria here. A big plus.
Yes, unfortunately with the load shedding that the Government has implemented, over which we have no control, we have at times experienced, and obviously while you were here, 4 hour load shedding sessions, thank goodness that was only for a week and we are back down to 1 hour and at times 2 hour sessions. But the good news is that we are in discussions with regards to solar, and to going off the grid. Cannot wait.
Wishing you a wonderful year of travel.
Sincerely
Debbie & The RiverBend Lodge Team
