Lodge at the Ancient City

Fabulous location near the Great Zimbabwe. I loved the architectural style of the lodge that matched the ruins.

Stayed for a couple of nights to visit the Great Zimbabwe Monument. The proximity to this world heritage site was the draw. Received an excellent guided tour from Ernest, who also serves as the bar man in the evening. He makes good cocktails too ! As for the hotel, the architecture and layout is amazing but the condition of our rooms and common restaurant/bar area, whilst comfortable, are definitely past their best and looking a little tired. The staff are very friendly and go out of their way to make you feel at home. We ate breakfast and dinner at the restaurant, both of which were good.

The ambience and unique architecture of the Lodge provide guests with a sense of true immersion in the Great Zimbabwe experience. Not to be missed!

The pool was green and we could not use despite being told it was cleaned and chemicals used. Rooms were dark and unclean. Bed linen was worn and stained. Showers mouldy. Overall sadly the place felt unloved and not maintained. No attention to detail. Areas like the bar and outdoor area by the pool were not set up nicely- had storage items scattered about, Not like how I remembered it 25 years ago.

Beautiful hotel in lovely setting. Extremely spacious and comfortable room in a lovely setting. Very friendly, helpful staff. Not many guests but slightly off-season. Would warmly recommend this place as a comfortable option at Great Zimbabwe full of character. Slightly over-priced food, but worth it for the quality of setting, staff and facilities.

Amazing architecture! Impressive-looking! This lodge is amazing. If you were to build a castle in Africa, it would be like this. This establishment is on the scale of European castles but in an African style - made to mimic the nearby Great Zimbabwe ruins. The architecture is impressive with its high ceilings and everything on a grand scale, with many stone walls built among the boulders that are characteristic for this part of the country. Even the individual rooms are palatial in size. We chose to eat dinner at the lodge's restaurant on the night we stayed there. It was a bit pricey but in line with what you would pay at a higher-end lodge like this. However, the atmosphere of the restaurant was a bit awkward. It was in a huge room, and our family wasn't sure if we should engage in conversation because the atmosphere felt like we had to be hushed. The service was excellent, but the wait staff hovered in the corner and watched us while we ate - kind of creepy and part of why we didn't want to talk much (we felt like they were listening to everything we said). The general manager greeting us a couple times and wanting to engage in conversation was a bit too much and added to the creepiness factor of the staff here. This place has great amenities and spaces - a swimming pool, indoor and outdoor bar areas for watching the sunset, seating areas inside and outside in the rooms. The only thing lacking seemed to be the choice of stations on the TV.

Amazing staff. The lodge design and accommodations are incredible

I stayed for one night only on my way to the Zimbabwe monument. Great ambience. Large rooms with authentic African decor. Clean and cozy. Great food, large portions. Our party had to leave by 3:00am and the staff had packed breakfast ready for us!

The architecture of the buildings was sensational as were the surrounding gardens and overall integration of the lodge into the natural geological rock features. The lodge has a ‘wow factor’ was a standout place to stay. The menu and food could be improved to match the their aspects of the lodge.