We really loved this resort. We were there off season in March and a heat wave struck at that time so it was very, very hot!!
Our room was "mountain view" - not much of a mountain to see but we didn't care. The room was enormous and consisted of a hallway linking three rooms - bathroom, bedroom and lounge/sitting room. There was also an outdoor balcony with table and chairs. Everything was spotless and of very high quality.
There is a large hot spring fed pool inside and another large, circular pool outside. We used the outdoor one. It was very salty and warm due to the hot springs but lovely and clean. We chatted to a number of other guests, some of whom were camping and they were full of praise for the camping area and the facilities.
The only slight downside was the evening meal. There were only a couple of choices available but this was excusable as the resort was almost empty due to it being the off season. As with most of Namibia, being a vegetarian is difficult in what must be a carnivore's paradise.
We looked at other accommodation options around the canyon area, including Canon Roadhouse and Canon Lodge but felt that we had made the right choice. The camping area at Hobas was not as impressive as Ai-Ais either, we felt.
I would recommend Ai-Ais Resort very highly.

The last time I was in Ai Ais I was 9 years old (and I am a lot older now)! I was pleased to see that the area remains unspoilt and Ai Ais is a wonderful oasis in a barren landscape which is quite beautiful in itself. The resort has been recently upgraded and there are a number of things which have significantly improved - the ablutions for campers, the restaurant and bar area and the appearance of the indoor pools.

We stayed in one of the new self catering units although 'unit' doesn't really describe their absolutely enormous size. They sleep 4 and the space is way more than is necessary. The unit consists of 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom and a huge lounge dining area. There is a private jacuzzi in an indoor courtyard and an outside stoep/balcony area where you can sit and overlook the outdoor pool. The furnishings are pleasant and comfortable.

While we enjoyed wallowing in the hot springs and watching the football at the pleasant bar area we thought the accommodation was very expensive for the level of attention to detail in the accommodation and in the resort generally.

In our accommodation we experienced the following problems -
Jacuzzi not working (we were told on arrival that the heating was triping the electrics)
Kitchen poorly stocked (we had to ask for a tin opener and basics like cheese graters and salad bowls were missing)
Variable hot water supply (apparently it a comes from the springs but if there is a shortage why not have solar back up?)
Little details like no toilet roll holder and not enough work space in the kitchen made you think that the builders had only left yesterday! In fact there were still piles of bricks lying around!

In the resort we noticed -
Poor maintenance around the indoor pools (there were missing tiles and the drainage wasn't working properly so there were pools of water standing around)
The toilets near the indoor pools never had soap and clean hand towels
As a South African I speak Afrikaans, but my husband doesn't and a few staff members appeared to not be able to speak English
Access to the indoor and outdoor pools is not controlled so we had to deal with noise from the outdoor pool late into the night - absolutely unacceptable for a nature conservation resort.

We found the attention to detail very poor and the staff friendly but ineffective. The price that is charged for the accommodation suggests an upper end product which the resort does not deliver. I would suggest that anyone passing through sticks to camping.


I did address my concerns with the assistant resort manager who looked apologetic and gave us a free meal. in my view it didn't quite make up for the gaps.

Ai-Ais has very friendly staff, but really needs to upgrade their maintenance / housekeeping.

From the outside everything is really very neat and pretty. However, inside, things were a bit disappointing.

The bathroom's showerhead sprays water in every direction, except where you are. The floor is wetter and cleaner than you are, even if you use the complimentary all-skin-and-oil stripping showergel. The toilet's defective ball valve cause a constant, annoying pour of water. The basin's plug mechanism is broken.

The food ranged from dull, to sickening (literally), to OK, depending on whether it was lunch, dinner or breakfast.

The pool with the warm water was very nice, but we couldn't enjoy it that evening as the pumps were switched of.

If you want to have B&B of D&B&B, go some place else. Only go there if you're a camper / caravenr or go there for the day for the scenery / pool.

We camped here for 2 nights on our way back to Cape Town from a Namibian Holiday. I know they have recently refurbished everything, and it was looking pretty good. There weren’t many people staying there (and its was Christmas holidays!) so we had the choice of many camping spots and the ablution facilities to ourselves.

There is a HUGE outdoor pool - but it is fed with warm spring water so its not refreshing in the 40 deg heat until you get out and dry off. There are lots of sunbeds by the pool, so its great for chilling out under the trees.

We also made use of the indoor hot spring/pool spa at night - which I think campers won't be able to do for much longer as they have upgraded it (and its looking great!). We didn’t eat at the hotel but we did have a few drinks at the bar during a later afternoon thunder shower. Bar prices were reasonable considering we were in the middle of nowhere - only slightly more expensive than the tourist shop.

There isn’t much to do at the camp except swim/spa and read your book. The only day-tour they could recommend was going to the lookout point of the Fish River Canyon (second biggest in the world) which I think is worth the 180km-round trip if you havent been to a canyon before - especially if you have air-conditioning in your car! :)

Ai-Ais is perfect as a stop over as its only 100kms or so from the border - and you could chill out for an extra day to take in the canyon - but any longer than that and you are likley to get bored.