Name: Kyambura Game Lodge
Address: 1Ntugamo Katungulu Road, Kichwamba 256, Uganda, Western Uganda National Parks, Western Uganda National Parks, Western Uganda National Parks, 256, Uganda
Rating: 8

24-hour reception

Smoke-free property

Ticket assistance

Garden

Terrace

All Spaces Non-Smoking (public and private)

General

Non-smoking rooms

Room service

Shower

Toiletries

Rooms

Laundry

Concierge services

Dry-cleaning

Luggage storage

Services and amenities

Breakfast

Restaurant

Bottled water

Meals

Free Wi-Fi

Internet access

Internet

Tour assistance

Tourist services

Barbecue grill(s)

Picnic area

Barbeque

Recreation

Parking

Swimming pool

Outdoor pool

Pool and beach

Beauty and wellness

Family/Kid Friendly

Kids

At the hotel

Room amenities

Kasese Airport

Kyambura Game Lodge

Western Uganda National Parks

My husband and I stayed here two nights during our trip to Uganda. We loved this place. The rooms are nicely spread out and all have a lovely view. The landscaping is cleverly designed so you feel isolated in your cottage despite there being others close by. The room is spacious with room for your things and a comfortable bed. The bathroom is unique and creatively designed with a large red tub/ shower. There is a small balcony for each cottage. There are so many beautiful birds around the grounds. We spent considerable time in the afternoon and morning just watching and photographing the birds. There is a nice sized pool with towels waiting for you there. The pool, like the cottages, feels very private and remote despite being close to the restaurant and cottages. The outdoor space by the restaurant/ bar is perfect. We saw an elephant and antelope from the area and so many nice birds. We enjoyed a nice bottle of wine before dinner on the patio/ balcony. The chairs are not the most comfortable on the balcony but it was barely noticeable because of the amazing view. I cannot say enough about the staff at Mazike Safari Lodge. They were incredibly attentive and polite. Although there is not always someone visible at the bar area, we really really liked the two nice men who worked there. He brought us drinks to the pool, pointed out wildlife and always had a huge smile. The reception area was excellent as well. Every place we stayed offer a hot towel at check-in but Mazike offered a hot towel every time we arrived from an activity which was so nice. I would highly recommend this lodge!

Excellent layout! Great views! Great staff!

Our tour company had booked us as Park View, which is a sister hotel that, despite its lower star status, actually had a much better view and nicer rooms. When we showed, they'd gotten some big group and shuffled us off to Kyambura (still called Mazike Valley on their signage) without informing our tour company, probably figuring we wouldn't complain since it was officially an upgrade. Unfortunately, this couldn't have been farther from the truth. Instead of being on top of the mountain, like Park View, it was down in the valley in the village. Yes, we saw the park, but pretty much at ground level. In addition, the room's walls are canvas with mesh windows which have to be left open for ventilation since there's no a/c and no fan (not even a portable one). This resulted in our feeling very unsafe since it would only take a knife to get into the room easily (we'd been warned about previous thefts at the location by our guide). In addition, it meant we heard everything in the night, including the call to prayer at 5:30am, waking us even with earplugs in. Though the bathroom was beautiful, the shower had nearly no water pressure and was either boiling hot or freezing cold. 

Despite statements otherwise, there was NO wifi in the restaurant. Speaking of the restaurant, the waiter had trouble understanding English and the food was terrible. I was given a "pork chop" that was about 2" across and 1/8" thick and was over salted and overcooked, just like the bit of veg. The "roasted potatoes" were whole boiled potatoes, also overcooked. Then came dessert... pineapple that was fried in burnt butter and tasted like charcoal (see pics). When we complained, the manager said it was "chocolate sauce". This wasn't the first thing he lied about. When I asked if they had a first aid kit, since I'd cut my finger earlier that day, he said it was "expired" and didn't want me to use an inferior product. When I pushed him and noted that all kitchens have to have a first aid kit, he said they were "waiting for a new one," i.e. they didn't actually have one. Also, at the original reserved property, our guide would have been given a room and food, so we asked if he had been taken care of and the manager confirmed he was housed at the other facility, which turned out was a bald faced lie. 

We were offered nothing in the way of compensation until I noted to the manager that I worked in hospitality and if it were me, I would have at least offered a free drink to displaced people. He said then that I "hadn't given him a chance" (the conversation happened 2 hours after checking in) and offered us one free drink each. NOTE: beers in Uganda at a 4-star run about $2 each... not exactly a big compensation for a room that normally goes for $420 a night.

The next morning, I planned to ask our guide in front of the manager if he was given a proper room, but they didn't allow our guide any closer than the distant parking lot and the manager was conveniently absent (despite his assurances that he'd be there in the morning) when we checked out. Breakfast the next morning was mediocre in quality and even the fresh fruit wasn't ripe (which is almost a challenge in Uganda). In addition, though breakfast officially started at 6:30 and we told them the night before that we'd be arriving at 7am (we had a 7:30 departure), we weren't served until 7:20, after a couple was served first who arrived 10 minutes AFTER us.  We didn't use the pool, but it was tiny, with broken tiles and mildew. All in all, not even worth the money we paid for the lesser priced Park View.

At least no one stole money from us. :D

Don't waste your money

The hotel was wonderful as was the setting. The restaurant was lovely and the rooms were very comfortable.
However, watch out for the staff. There were 2 gentleman carrying out bags. We had not change so we asked them if they could split a $5 note. One said yes and ran off with the note. The other refused to leave our room and became quite intimidating to me and my mum. So we had to give him another $5 just to leave. This incident ruined our stay here. Although apart from him the rest of the staff were lovely.

Watch out for the porter

This lodge has a chronic problem with theft by staff. We had a significant amount of money stolen from our room. The situation was handled very badly by management. During a two-hour unpleasant experience with the Ugandan police, we discovered that they had investigated several thefts at the property. Both the hotel management and the Ugandan police attempted to victim blame and the whole situation felt as if several people were involved. Hotel ownership reimbursed the money after pressure from our travel company, A & K but that took a few days. No safes were provided in the rooms. 
Accommodations and food were nice and staff was friendly but we didn’t know who was in on the scheme and we did not feel particularly safe.

CAUTION

We have just spent three days staying here and have been blown away by the Staff ( Peace is a beautiful Manager who looked after all 6 of us). The kindness and attention to detail is faultless. They serenade you at every turn and have just given us a bottle of Champagne on the house as a farewell present at the end of Dinner. The Bandas( Accommodation)are absolutely to die for in every way. Heaven.

Kyambura Game Lodge

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