Location was excellent, as was the room. Everything was on the pricey side, but that was pretty common everywhere I stayed in Africa. Wifi was extra and pretty pricey as well. Several restaurant in the hotel, and all had excellent food. Breakfast buffet was also excellent. Very funny to see monkeys all over the grounds like squirrels. They didn't bother anyone, though it was a bit unnerving to have them watching me through the window ;-}. The bad part was the service. The wait staff in the restaurant was fairly inattentive, and it took FOREVER to check in and out. Overall, I'd stay here again, but I wish it was a little more "homey".

Gaborone has a serious shortage of good hotels. The Grand Palm is frequently considered the best hotel in town, and has a 4-star rating. Service is reasonable, though slow (that is to be expected in most hotels in Gaborone) and not always efficient. Many of the rooms have been updated, and are comfortable enough, although not exactly attractive. The airconditioning (key in summer) is hit-and-miss and fairly noisy. The setting is quite nice, in the midst of greenery - the pool is also inviting. The best steak house in town (the Beef Baron - and beef is very good in Botswana) is a nice feature, and the buffet restaurant, bar and outdoor poolside cafe are acceptable. Internet service and wifi is extremely slow and not always available, although in fairness this may not be a hotel, but a country-wide, problem. To make matters worse, the Business Center had recently shut down when I was there last.

The Grand Palm is a slightly better option than the Gaborone Sun (the other "better" hotel in town) in terms of service and quality, although the Sun's location is probably better if you are on a business trip. A new hotel - a Holiday Inn - is expected to open soon, and will hopefully jolt the existing hotels to brush up on their service and facilities.

Gaborone is the DeBeers capital. Very nice people. The Grand Palm is a resort hotel with a casino. I did not go to the casino. I tried sitting out by the pool in the evening but the mosquito's were too prolific. Peacocks on the property & monkeys. Never bothersome, except for the peacocks sounding like a rooster does in the morning. Buffet was $20+USD but very good. Contractors staying there are very noisy & rude (Chinese contractors). Food and service were both good. Great weather. I would definitely stay there again.

The hotel is nice, clean, comfortable, the restaurant had good steak. The fatal flaw was their inability to pick me up at the airport on time. The first time they were 'only' 20 minutes late (its a ten minute ride from the airport to the hotel) and the second time, despite me calling the front desk twice to ask where the driver was, it took 45 minutes. I was livid. I had to cancel a meeting. What's the point of staying near the airport if you can't even get to your hotel quickly? While waiting, fuming, at the airport, I wrote a complaint email about the situation. When I checked out three days later I hadn't had a response so I spoke to the front desk. They said I must have emailed the general inquiry address for the whole hotel chain and it hadn't made its way to them yet, but if I left my business card they'd be sure to follow up. Sounded reasonable to me and so I handed over my card. Its been over a month, no follow up. Sure its a nice hotel but its not the only game in town. I'd stay elsewhere if I could do it again.