Magnificent Olifants river property is ideal for a weekend breakaway where you can even fly in and land on the tarred landing strip located on the Estate. A Must stay property for the bush lover that have a large family and friends that enjoy each others company, African sunsets, birdlife and the luxury of a fully equipped house.
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
Quaint
Charming
Location
On the R40, 22km North of Hoedspruit, Hoedspruit, Kruger National Park 1380 South Africa
We arrived on a hot summer’s day. We booked months in advance in order to attend a wedding on a nearby game farm. The bride recommended this venue. We arrived an hour early and were served complimentary drinks whilst we awaited our rooms to be readied. We enjoyed sandwiches with it and the chef visited personally to enquire about our meal. We booked two self contained “rondawels” (circular rooms) for our party of four. Each rondawel was divided into two partial rooms – one with two twin beds and one with a double bed. A small bathroom with a shower and a small kitchenette and a separate toilet completed the room. The main building offers a deck and restaurant and a large pool – which offered a cool respite from the humidity. A water pipe burst in a nearby unit as we prepared for the wedding, which resulted in no water at our unit and thus no shower. I had to shower next door in order to be dressed and ready on time for the wedding. The owners are in the process of upgrading, but unfortunately the grounds were in places littered with building debris and planks, etc. The accommodation experience and the room facilities offered, did not match the rates charged. On the positive side the service was excellent.
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Date of stay: December 2014
Value
Service
Sleep Quality
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.
Cannot fault the accommodation (we stayed in the luxury self-catering rondawel). The accommodation was well-equipped and very comfortable. Management very helpful, setting and walks very pleasant. Can highly recommend. Our only disappointment was that the hippos didn’t visit while we were there.
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Date of stay: August 2013
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip 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.
Staff were helpful and friendly but not as close to the airport as thought so had to pay for transfer. We just paid for basic room which had no air conditioning but it was clean and neat. Swimming pool was fantastic. Unfortunately didn't sight any hippos that morning. Wifi was free but only accessible around reception area.
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Date of stay: December 2015
Value
Cleanliness
Service
Trip 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.
Run-down, ramshackle kind of place. The "restaurant" had nothing other than a very poor quality salad to offer, as everything else on the menu wasn't available. Swimming pool was green.The tariff we originally were quoted wasn't correct so we ended up spending more money than we'd expected, and the rooms were way below average! Overall, a terribly disappointing stay. Seemingly, even the hippos have left, as there was not a sound or sign of them at all either!
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Date of stay: August 2016Trip 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.
I was rarely let down by Tripadvisor evaluations, but in the case of Hippon Pools Lodge I felt rather misled by the positive marks for this guesthouse. I booked a budget standart room for what I thought was an attractive price given the positive reviews for the guesthouse. In fact, what we got was a room which met at best best youth hostel standart and after all wasn't at all good value for money. The room turned out to be a family/backpackers room with 4 beds. Everything in the room was old and worn out. The worst was the bathroom. A shower which remained cold and even didn't feature a shower curtain, so you would wet the entire room. There were no amenitites whatsoever, except for a rather small towel for each of us. There was not even soap in the bathroom. The beds were unconfortabel and you could feel the bed springs. By the way that was not the room which was promoted at booking.com but a cheaper category. Nevertheless I think this room should not be let at all without a clear warning that this is a backpackers room at the lowest standart. The resort may have some nice rooms at the poolside or above the River, but you should be very careful for what you actually get. Breakfast, which was included in our tariff was ok, but not a great deal. We were not even offered any juice or other cold drinks except coffee.
The positive points to mention are that we received a very warm welcome by the charming landlady and her little son though we were somewhat disappointed that both the restaurant and the bar were closed. The setting is very nice though except from two cottages directly located at the river there is no view on the river. There were no hippos when we were there.
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Date of stay: November 2013
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Travelled solo
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 HippoPools, Manager at Hippo Pools Resort
Responded 16 Nov 2013
Dear Valued Guest, Thank you for taking the time to post a review for our resort. We understand that you were "let down" and are excited to inform you that all of our family backpacker units are currently undergoing a complete renovation. We are also receiving a complete load of new mattresses and beds that are due next month. With regards to the advertising used on booking.com, we have to link our website-advertised "backpacker" to the "standard" label used on their site. We apologize if this created any confusion and invite you to come and experience the new renovations when you are next in South Africa! We will be happy to offer you a complementary breakfast should you visit us again. Kindest Regards The Hippo Pools Team
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Where to start! This is a 3 star self catering spot! What you book online is not what you get! The owner, who was away, has still not contacted us for our refund after we were woken by the cockroaches scuttling over the 'kitchen' walls. We arrived with 2 young children at about 7.30 pm and had no hot water, the fridge had not been turned on and there was no microwave to pop our dinner in. We could not use the hob or pots due to the filth and as for the revolting bathroom with no hot water, we could not take a shower. When we awoke, we were roasting in the room as we could not open any doors or windows, due to monkeys and baboons. I have travelled the world in back-packers and never been in such filthy accommodation! Never book to stay here.
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Date of stay: July 2016
Rooms
Cleanliness
Service
Trip type: Travelled with friends
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.
Lovely 'basic', rustic lodge with splendid Hippos and other wildlife roaming around. There is no air conditioning, however, so be prepared to BOIL! We were told there would be air con, but there were very slow ceiling fans instead. My friends slept on the floor and other locations to try and get cool at night. None of the doors to the toilets/bathrooms shut - no locks and all opened due to mould, swelling to the wood, hence me not being able to go to Number 2 for the entire duration of the trip for fear of people catching me in the act! Also a bit dirty and mouldy - the bathrooms need a serious refurbish to bring them up to date, get them clean and fresher. Spiders and moths all over the windowsills, however this could be just a cleaning issue - which didn't get addressed. I think the cleaner was on holiday while we were there. Main swimming pool was green so no one got in...but individual lodges had plunge pools which were nice and clean. Barbecue area good too. Staff sort of non-existent - always away on errands. Only get wi-fi at the cafe, but not in the rooms. Good bargain basement place - pretty and rustic and good if you don't want anything luxurious, as looking at the wildlife was great and there was plenty of space to stretch etc but needs better cleaning and AIR-CON!!!
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Date of stay: November 2015
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Travelled with friends
Room Tip:Ask for anything with AIR CON, if you can get it, hurray!!!
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.
. On arrival at The Kamagelo Visitor Centre in Hoedspruit we phoned the Hippo Pools for our transfer to the resort. We had organised this with the owners before our trip. We stayed at the Hippo Pools for 6 days in one of their self catering Rondavells .For 2 days we relaxed and had food, which was reasonably priced, very well cooked and tasty.The bar wasn't open but you can buy drinks at reasonable prices from reception. We hired a car because Hippo Pools is a distance to Hoedspruit the nearest town Hoedspruit has a large supermarket called Pick and Pay but we preferred the smaller one near the garage. Overall staff couldn't do enough to make your stay enjoyable.Things in the Rondavell were a bit dated but clean and working .Swimming pool was great.You can have a walk around the grounds.Plenty to see in the area.Krugar,Endangered Species Centre,Moholoholo. Remember this is South Africa and 3star self catering isn't the same as in Britain.
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Date of stay: April 2014
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip 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.
we booked for the long weekend, at arrival we found the most friendly and professional staff ready to help with every little thing and even willing to assist during odd hours, the rooms were clean and comfortable. We previously stay at other so called 4 and 5 star venues around Hoedspruit and were always disappointed.Hippo Pools were money well spent, will recommend to anyone on holiday in the area. The four wheeler motorbike trip next to the river was a great experience for my 9 year old daughter. Thanks to David, Kelly and other staff members
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Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: September 2013
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Travelled with family
Room Tip:Unit next to the river to view the hippo's
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.
We have been at the Hippo Pools few days ago - and it was an excellent choice. The place is nice, relaxing and very friendly ... and the hippos are really there in the Olifants river, few meters below the resort. David accompanied us to Kruger, to a private game drive and then a bush walk - and we enjoyed all of that very much as David is an enthusiast with a lot of experience (besides a university degree in natural sciences). In the end we paid much less than with other organisations and we had a very high quality experience. Kelly made us feeling at home together with the rest of the staff. Certainly good value for money. If we can, we will come back.
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Date of stay: August 2013
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Room Tip:The luxury rondavel, where we stayed, is probably not the most comfortable among the different...
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.
"The luxury rondavel, where we stayed, is probably not the most comfortable among the different options. Next time we will try the cottages facing the pool."
There are more places to choose from in the Hoedspruit area.
LOCATION
South AfricaKruger National ParkHoedspruit
NUMBER OF ROOMS
14
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