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4.5
#7 of 33 lodges in Chobe National Park
Location
Rooms
Value
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Tripadvisor gives a Travellers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travellers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
Small, Owner run property situated on the western edge of the Chobe National Park. Our remote location means our game drives do not reach the masses that inhibit other Chobe Lodges. Also enjoy boat trips on the Chobe and walks within the Chobe Forest Reserve. Muchenje offers Rustic luxury accommodation with outstanding views across the flood plains and into the Caprivi Strip.
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
HOTEL STYLE
Family
River View
Languages Spoken
English, Afrikaans, Dutch
Location
Ngoma/Kachekau road, Chobe National Park 11111 Botswana
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Muchenje Safari Lodge earns rave reviews for its immaculate and spacious rooms, which offer luxurious baths and breathtaking views. The lodge's cleanliness is regularly highlighted, reflecting a keen attention to housekeeping. Amenities, including top-notch A/C, showers, and laundry service, add comfort to the experience.
Nestled in a stunning riverside setting, the location captivates travelers with scenic vistas and wildlife encounters. Reviewers also commend the warm, familial atmosphere and the personalized, attentive service provided by friendly staff.
Location
Picturesque
Atmosphere
Welcoming
Rooms
Comfortable
Cleanliness
Immaculate
Service
Warm
Amenities
Well-appointed
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This lodge would have to be one of the most relaxing and attentive accommodations in Botswana. Staff are like family, the facilities are well maintained, the services address all your relaxation, vacation and safari needs and the managers are always at hand to ensure that any issues (not that any came up) are promptly addressed.
The Lodge: 1. Set on a beautiful escarpment just outside Chobe National Park overlooking a waterhole and the Nimibian border. The scenery is incredible and animals roam freely and birds chirp away. 2. The common area/lounge/ dining is elegant and a brilliant place to sit back, have a cool drink and soak in the atmosphere. 3. With only 11 or so lodges they facilities are never busy and the place feels like you have it to yourself 4. Staff (be it kitchen, bar or rooms, or guides) are wonderfully kind and attend to every need. It is clear they love working at Muchenje and are treated well. 5. Unlike many other lodges, their is a Walking Safari Guide, and this elevates the Safari experience to another level. 6. River cruise, lunch and standard land safari is all part of the experience 7. Laundry service is provided complimentary which is a great touch. 8. Food is absolutely delicious - there’s not much else to say. Plenty of options and it’s a luxurious home cooking style.
The suites: 1. Perfectly situated with a beautiful view of the flood plains below and far enough from your neighbour to ensure you’re relaxing time is undisturbed. 2. Comfortable beds, sitting area (although you don’t spend much time in your room) and showers. The honeymoon suite has a bath i hear! 3. I should mention that wifi is not available in the rooms and initially I thought this was a flaw but it forces you out of the room to the amazing common areas to relax and soak up everything the environment has to offer.
Management and Staff 1. Every single member has a brilliant smile and is invested in your genuine happiness. This was evident from our pick up from the airport with the lodge driver. 2. The right balance by staff keeping you in the loop about what’s going on (especially for transfers etc; updating you on what to expect). 3. Greeted and orientated to the lodge and what to expect by one of the management team on arrival emphasises their desire to ensure you have a wonderful time.
Above and beyond: 1. All requests are accommodated for someway or another. 2. We opted for an evening safari walk and on their own volition the guides organised for a Sparkling wine and delicious gourmet snack sundowner! Incredible ...
There should be absolutely no hesitation in staying at this place!
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Date of stay: January 2020Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from ToffKiddy, Resident Lodge Directors at Muchenje Safari Lodge
Responded 26 Feb 2020
Hallo Ppsflyer. Wow, this must be one of the most comprehensive reviews i have seen and it is wonderful to read. Thank you. We seem to have ticked all the boxes and we, as management, really are very proud of the Muchenje-Team. From the gardeners, to scullery, to the maintenance crew, all work together as one, to make sure our guests have the best experience while they are here. We sincerely hope that your future travel-plans will include Muchenje Safari Lodge again. But for now, we wish you all the best and also to have fun when you sort through all the photos. Take care.
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This is a very beautiful safari lodge. Each room/ lodge overlooks the flood plains where Zebras, Impalas, buffaloes graze the grass and baboons running free along the riverside. Sunset was beautiful at the deck of the main area or just outside our lodge. The room was very well maintained and comfortable. Lodges were all Aircon and windows were covered with mosquito netting. There was a ceiling fan and a big soft mosquito net for the bed. They prepared the rooms and set up the mosquito net for the bed by sundown. We would be trouble free from mosquito and other insects for our sleep. Totally love this! All meals and drinks (alcohol) were all included in the rates and laundry service as well. This was really great as you can get your clothes washed daily after your dusty game drives. There were many safari activities in the lodge. They would schedule as many activities as you can do! Morning drive at 5:30am, River Cruise at 11am with a picnic lunch on board the boat, 3:30pm afternoon safari drive, night drive after dinner 9.30pm. Our safari guide GB was very good and knowledgeable and we were able to see many animals including the more difficult to spot ones, like lions and leopards. By our 3rd safari drives, we had seen more than 20 lions, besides the many many impalas, elephants,hippos, zebras, and giraffes in all our drives and river cruise. A fantastic safari experience with Muchenje. The lodge was also a very cozy place where managers and guides would dine with all the guests in the house every evening. We joked and laughed and traded our safari experience at dinner table. We love this homely feeling. As this lodge has no fence, there was nothing to stop the animals to come into the lodge area. For the safety of the guests, we must be escorted to and from our lodges after sunset. This made us feel quite safe even though we were sleeping within the safari. As we were here during the dry season, with their diligent upkeep, we had no complaint about any bugs or mosquitoes ! If you do plan for safari in Botswana, Muchenje is highly recommended! Hope you will have an amazing safari experience like we did!
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Date of stay: October 2023Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Room Tip:Better months to travel there would be Jun-Jul, the winter, but it may be crowded
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Toff and Kiddy, Other at Muchenje Safari Lodge
Responded 22 Oct 2023
Dumela ! Ling101028 Thank you for this wonderful review of your time spent with us. You should be a travel-writer. We are very happy to read that the Muchenje Safari Lodge-TEAM, has been successful in creating the ideal athmosphere, to enable you to have the best time here. I wish you many more such magical moments, so keep travelling. Take care and maybe we will have the pleasure of welcoming you back someday.
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Myself and my mother-in-law recently stayed here for our safari experience for 3 nights and we were immediately made to feel welcome from the minute we arrived. Within half an hour of us arriving we were out with a guide in a jeep on safari and saw so many animals it was just amazing. 3 Full days of safari, Our guide wanted us to experience everything and he was certainly on a mission to ensure that we did...from riding off tracks looking for Lions to boat safaris in the pouring rain having lunch amongst the hippos and crocodiles we couldnt have asked for more ! Every day we were welcomed at the door after our safari to a wonderful dinner sitting round a large table with the owners,staff and guides . The best experience with a very welcoming safari lodge . Thanks to Kiddy and Toff and all the staff and our especially our guide Ali (Ally ?) .
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Date of stay: March 2020
Location
Cleanliness
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from ToffKiddy, Resident Directors at Muchenje Safari Lodge
Responded 23 Mar 2020
Hi there PaulineGlanville. It is with a glad heart that i read your review. Thank you. It is our goal, to make sure every guest enjoys their stay and everything we have on offer, as much as possible. As a team, it seems we have succeeded in that. It was very refreshing to see a daughter and mother-in-law travelling together and having so much fun. I hope that you will have many fun nights, showing all the photos to the family and remembering the smells, the rain, the sounds and the peace of your stay here. Stay healthy and take care,
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Booked three nights here and wished we had made it four. You are busy seeing wildlife almost from the moment you arrive. This lodge gives you everything you go to Africa for - stunning setting high over waterholes and grasslands, charming hosts who make sure everything is just right for you, so much tasty food, guides who find invisible wildlife on the morning, noon and night time drives and one photo op after another. Wonderful. Our individual cabin had just been renovated with a rustic, very upscale bathroom that I'd like to have at home. We highly recommend Muchenje.
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Date of stay: February 2020
Rooms
Cleanliness
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from ToffKiddy, Resident Lodge Directors at Muchenje Safari Lodge
Responded 26 Feb 2020
Hallo Giselle55, Thank you very much for this short, sweet and concise review. It seems we managed to help fulfilling your Africa-experience and for that we are all very proud. We hope to be able to host you again in the future. In the meantime, have fun sorting through all your beautiful photos Best wishes
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We loved our 3 nights at Munchenje and felt very welcome and comfortable. The facilities were very clean, comfortable and more than adequate. We loved the “all inclusive” price (tips are at the end only, which should always be separate anyway). I agree with the other complimentary comments and descriptions which I don’t need to repeat.
Visitors should remember that this is Africa, not New York, Paris or Tokyo. A little dust, a few bugs and rough park roads are part of the experience not a sign of poor conditions. Game drives in plush, aircon 4WDs on tarmac would be appalling. We suggest staying 3 nights is great, more nights is more comfortable. Two nights will still be worth it but rushed and you won’t get all the experiences. We loved not having to think about organising anything. They provided my gluten free meal adjustments perfectly as if it was easy and a special pleasure.
Thanks to the whole team who were always helpful, friendly and obliging.
We’ve been to quite a lot of places around the world on 7 continents, in different ways and to Africa a few times. Of all the places, we would come back to Muchenje as soon as we could. Special thanks to Kiddy, Toff, the chefs and the safari guides. We were very, very lucky with animal sightings although everyone sees lots - it’s Chobe’s advantage. Special thanks to our excellent guide G.B. (“Lucky”) who found amazing sightings and surely couldn’t have been better even at the end of long tiring days. He treated us as special guests and every question as if it was very helpful and new to him!
1. Make sure you’re prepared for cold nights and mornings, even though lined ponchos are provided. Take a light face muffler to reduce dust and cold air in the back of the open 4WD’s. (Kiddy, perhaps you could sell these?) 2. Get an early flight in and a late flight out if you can.
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Date of stay: July 2023Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Room Tip:1. Take warm clothes and headgear, even though the ponchos supplied are great.
2. Stay as long...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Toff and Kiddy, Other at Muchenje Safari Lodge
Responded 23 Jul 2023
WOW, BDHughes, what a great review. "Lucky" GB, will be thrilled with your compliment. Thank you. Making your holiday THE best experience for you, is our aim... Organising everything, is our game.... We seem to have succeeded in making your holiday-experience with us, a memorable one and are thankful that you can share some thoughts and suggestion with all. We hope to welcome you back again soon. Keep travelling and stay safe.
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Where to start...! From the moment we arrived Muchenje felt like home. Even though we arrived later than expected the lodge still arranged for us to go out on a game drive. The lodge itself is beautiful and the rooms have great views. Our game guides KB and Rambo were amazing. The guides discuss the drive options each evening so you can choose what you’d like to do. We tried to fit everything in we could. Nothing is too much trouble for any of the staff always trying to make sure you get what you want. This was epitomised when my husband surprised me with a renewal of vows at the lodge, we were both completely overwhelmed by the effort from each and every staff member! It made it a truly unforgettable stay, huge thanks to Toff and Kiddy!
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Date of stay: January 2020Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from ToffKiddy, Resident Lodge Director at Muchenje Safari Lodge
Responded 16 Jan 2020
Dumelang Rra le Mma...(means greetings, man and woman/Gent and Lady)Just to add a bit more culture for you. We have always prided ourself on our guides, guiding and flexibility of our activities. It allows our guests to relax more and to feel part of the decision-making. It is, after all, your holiday. Thank you for choosing Muchenje Safari Lodge as the venue, for this absolute wonderful re-affirming of yourselves as a married couple. It was a pleasure doing the renewal ceremony and the staff had as much joy and pleasure, as yourselves. Maybe we will see you again in a year or two, for a well-deserved holiday. Salang Sentle (meaning stay well)
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Highly recommend. I've been to 8 different safari lodges in southern and eastern Africa and this lodge ranks as 1 of the top. The accommodations are very confortable-great bed and shower pressure. The air con is welcome and strong. There's mosquito netting and bug spray in each room. The room decor is lovely and rustic but very comfortable and the rooms are very clean. I did not find it outdated. It felt like a well-appointed safari lodge and not a run of the mill hotel. Each room has a beautiful view of the Chobe river and plains, along with a large sitting area, where you can watch Zebra, giraffe and elephant. The animals often cross through the lodge grounds so at night the there is a night watch to ensure you get to your room safely. The open air lounges are very comfortable with lots and lots of leather sofas and the bar is nearby. Eating is family style so you get a chance to meet others. Kiddy and Toff are the managers and are extremely welcoming and enjoyable to talk to. I can't say enough abut the staff, including Wame and Jost and all the servers, housekeeping and night watch. Everyone is so kind and wonderful at hospitality. During one night of our stay my brother had his birthday and they set up a private table for our party with champagne. Then they brought out the bday cake at the end of our meal. The whole staff was singing a Botswana song and dancing and the other guests came out to help clap. It was surprising and so special. Just an example of the extras this lodge does for its guests. The guides are fantastic. Tips was our safari guide and knew where to find the leopard and we did. It was thrilling. He was great at finding the lions and cubs and positioning the jeep so that we always had great views. Lips was our river safari guide and he was also fantastic. Both he and Tips also knew their birds. We stayed for 3 nights and had a remarkable time. We met lovely people from all over the world and had a truly magical time staying at this true gem on the Chobe
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Date of stay: October 2023
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Toff and Kiddy, Other at Muchenje Safari Lodge
Responded 23 Dec 2023
Dumela Mamagoose75. Thank you so much for this lovely review. It was truly lovely to host your party and the fact that you all enjoyed it so much, tells me that the magic that is Muchenje Safari Lodge is still going strong. The surprise Birthday choir was indeed really nice and the other guests loved being part of it. Just like a family would. Our Managers, our Guides, the Chefs, as well as the whole Muchenje Team, all have one goal - Making our guests feel at home....and i think we succeeded. ;-) I sincerely hope that your future travels will include a stay here again, because Botswana still has many more great areas to show you, using Muchenje as your first or last stop. Maybe next time, it will be your own birthday we can celebrate. Keep on travelling and take care.
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We were very very lucky to have both the Chobe and the lodge to ourselves, a private tour really, nothing was too much trouble, all the team were wonderful, took their roles seriously and delivered a service with a smile and with great pride in their work and their roles. It was my 60th Birthday and I was treated like a princess. The family lodge was amazing, two bedrooms, two bathrooms, all furnished to a very high standard and spotlessly clean. The views of the river are open and far reaching. Each and every meal was lovingly prepared and no two meals were the same, with tables being laid each time uniquely. The secluded swimming pool and bar are a great refreshing asset with always someone on hand to offer a chilled glass of anything you fancied. The whole team joined in with a valentines dinner, it was very very special and this lodge it s very very special place. Tourists are very welcome especially now, so a visit is a must soon.
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Date of stay: February 2022
Rooms
Location
Service
Room Tip:Ask for the family lodge if available it is worth the additional cost
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Toff and Kiddy, Owner at Muchenje Safari Lodge
Responded 14 May 2022
Hallo 716Julie, Thank you very much for your kind review. We are very pleased to hear that both of you enjoyed it so much. It is always so nice for all of the Team, to know that our guests had a good time with us. And of course, the variety of wildlife and birds and our great guides, also contribute to this. It sounds like you took some great memories and photos back home with you. Maybe we will have the pleasure again one day, to welcome you back to our little spot of paradise. Until then, Keep traveling and take care.
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Our expecatations of the lodge, the service and game viewing exceeded our expectations. A very friendly service by the managers Kiddy and Toff made you feel very welcome and at home. Great itinerary including the full day safari and the Chobe boat safari. The guide, BK, was unbelievably good in tracking down the lions.
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Date of stay: January 2020
Rooms
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from ToffKiddy, Resident Lodge Directors at Muchenje Safari Lodge
Responded 26 Feb 2020
Hi there, Hinhar Thank you for this short, but great review. We, as a team, want you, as our guest, to have the absolute best experience/s while you are here and for that reason, we have this busy itinerary, so that the whole length of the Chobe National Park is covered. KB, as well as our other guides, have a sharp understanding of animal-behaviour and habits and use that knowledge extensively. Now you have a great time ahead, sorting through 100's of photos and storing them into your memory-box. Salang Sentle (stay well in Setswana)
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I spent 4 nights at the lodge at the conclusion of my mobile safari. The chalets are attractive and contain all of the amenities you'd expect from a 5-star accommodation with the addition of the necessities of required of an African stay. The views from my deck of the animals grazing at the river were amazing (not to mention the occasional animals wandering through the lodge grounds of their own accord). The buffet-style meals were delicious and plentiful. With its location just outside Chobe National Park, options for animal viewing were plentiful, and the guides were friendly and knowledgeable, as was the rest of the staff, allowing me to be as adventurous or laid back as I desired. Most impressive, is the hands-on, attentive style of the managers. They are always on scene and proactively willing & able to assist you in any way they can. It is truly a joy to stay there and I would recommend it highly.
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Date of stay: March 2020
Value
Location
Service
Room Tip:I prefer the view of the northerly chalets.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from ToffKiddy, Resident Directors at Muchenje Safari Lodge
Responded 6 Apr 2020
Hi there, MaineSafariman. Thank you very much for your lovely review. We were all glad that the weather, the flood and the animal-sightings went so well together, to still give you a good stay at the lodge, before our (Botswana) COVID-19 lock-down, was announced. Now you have a big job of getting all your photographs sorted out. I think that will be as much fun as taking them. Please take care of yourself and your family, during this crazy and discombobulated time. Stay healthy, stay indoors, and hopefully we will see you next year. All our best wishes,
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Hi. Muchenje is in the Chobe Forest Reserve so regularly has wildlife through the camp. The rooms are bricks and mortar so night sounds are muffled but hyena and lion are often heard. Elephants pass regularly particularly in winter. The Chobe National Park is about 5 -10 mins away so our activities offer range of experiences to explore this amazing wildlife area
There are more places to choose from in the Chobe National Park area.
PRICE RANGE
₹84,424 - ₹1,14,816 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
ALSO KNOWN AS
muchenje safari hotel chobe national park
LOCATION
BotswanaNorth-West DistrictChobe National Park
NUMBER OF ROOMS
11
Prices are provided by our partners, and reflect average nightly room rates, including taxes and fees that are fixed, known to our partners, and due at time of booking. Please see our partners for more details.
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