The view from the lodges were spectacular with Elephants and Giraffes walking around and easy to spot.

The rooms are dispersed around the main lodge with relatively low level lighting which makes them quite dark at night whilst enhancing the experience of being in the bush and hearing the animals

Secluded rooms with everything you could want. Main area fantastic with a superb staff, couldn’t have wanted it wished for more

Nothing

The lodge is absolutely beautiful. Fireplace/heaters and electric blankets for the winter and boma fireplace and pool for the summer. Staff are very kind and accommodating!

The road requires a bigger car or 4x4 for the last bit of the gravel road. We came in a Prado which handled the road well.

We booked Barefoot Addo Elephant Lodge based on the photos online, but unfortunately the real-life experience didn’t match expectations. It felt quite misleading compared to what is shown — overall the stay was medium at best.

We stayed in a “Superior Suite”, but it was essentially a converted tent with newer furniture. The room was not very clean and clearly needs renovation. There was also no air conditioning, and we had to walk quite far to reach our suite. That said, the balcony area was nice, and having an outdoor shower as well as a bathtub was a great touch. The lodge does have wild animals on the property, including elephants and giraffes, which sounds amazing. However, it didn’t feel fully natural to us, as we were told the elephants are fed and locked in every night, which took away from the authentic wildlife experience. The location is another big downside. The road to the lodge is around 30 km of rough gravel/off-road driving, which we wouldn’t recommend with your own car. We arranged a transfer through the lodge, which was convenient, but very expensive. On top of that, the Addo Elephant Park entrance is about 1.5 hours away, making it inconvenient if you’re staying here mainly for park visits. Food was average and not very tasty. Drinks are not included and are overpriced. The pool was also not usable during our stay, as it was completely green. The staff are friendly and sweet, but not proactive — we had to ask for everything (seat pillows outside, lighting the fire, etc.), which doesn’t feel like hospitality at this level. Overall, this lodge might work if you keep expectations low, but for us it was disappointing considering the price we paid and we wouldn’t return.