Poolside bar
Check availability

Reviews of Chrismar Hotel Livingstone

4 out of 5
Chrismar Hotel Livingstone
Plot 4035 Sichango Rd, Livingstone

Reviews

6.6
Rating 10 - Excellent. 5 out of 68 reviews" "
Rating 8 - Good. 27 out of 68 reviews" "
Rating 6 - Okay. 21 out of 68 reviews" "
Rating 4 - Poor. 12 out of 68 reviews" "
Rating 2 - Terrible. 3 out of 68 reviews" "

7.4/10

Cleanliness

7.4/10

Staff & service

5.6/10

Amenities

6.6/10

Property conditions & facilities

5.0/10

Eco-friendliness

Reviews

6/10 Okay

Jody

Liked: Property conditions & facilities
Stayed 2 nights in May 2023

2/10 Terrible

Karim

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Grand entrance - not much inside. Seats are full of insects.
Stayed 2 nights in Nov 2022

2/10 Terrible

Richard

Traveled with family and small children
Disliked: Staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Originally we were in the wrong room. Whirlpool was broken door didn’t lock. Management kept saying they were not told. No spray for mosquitoes. Nothing fixed during stay. They had food and tables but no restaurant. Definitely not a four star establishment. One towel for a family. This hotel is very close to Safari Park and the African Queen boat ride. It was very convenient to Victoria falls and other attractions. If the hotel had been run properly It would’ve been a truly stunning and uniquely African experience. The wildlife was literally right outside the property fence this could’ve been one of the finest hotels for visiting the falls and seeing the animals
Stayed 3 nights in Oct 2022
Response from GM on Nov 28, 2022
Dear KarimThank you for having chosen to stay with us during your visit to Livingstone, however, we regret to hear that we did not meet your expectations and we have taken note of your feedback which is very helpful for us to do better. Kindly note that we do have a brasserie restaurant and we also have tables around the pool area should a guest wish to have their meals outdoor. We also provide insect spray on request and the premises are frequently sprayed against mosquitoes.We hope you will be visiting Livingstone again and I encourage you to please come ans stay with us as you would find things much better.We appreciate your feedback.Kind regards,

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Traveled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
the closeness to the park the cleanliness and the setting around the compound ,
Stayed 2 nights in Apr 2019
Response from gm on May 3, 2019
Thank you for your feedback. We hope you have a great stay with us. Kindly let us know should you require any assistance

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
I stayed here before, 2 1/2 years ago. My family joined me this time and it was a great place to be together and as a base for excursions.
Stayed 6 nights in Dec 2018
Response from GM on Jan 15, 2019
Thank you for having chosen Chrismar Hotels for your stay whilst in Livingstone and we are very happy to note that you enjoyed your stay with us. We hope you will visit Livingstone again and look forward to having the privilege of hosting you again. Best Regards and have a very Happy and Prosperous 2019.

6/10 Okay

Jesse, Minneapolis

Liked: Cleanliness, room comfort
We stayed there two years ago, and decided to stay there a night to revisit some memories. We had the same waitress and bartender as two years ago. That was really nice to see. The place kind of seems to be falling apart. Doesn’t seem like many people stay there or it could’ve been just the timing though. It is such a beautiful place. It just didn’t have the same feel to it as last time.
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2018
Response from PR on Sep 10, 2018
Dear Jesse, Thank you for having stayed with us and for taking time to let us know about your stay. I agree with you that we need upgrading in certain areas and I am pleased to inform you that we have began to refurbish the rooms and will soon be changing the furniture in the Lobby and Restaurant. I would also like to assure you that we are usually fully booked and during the period you were here two groups had just checked out and we are once again fully booked. I hope you will again visit us in future and hope you will experience a better feeling than even the first time you stayed with us. We appreciate your feedback and look forward to having you stay with us again. Kind regards,

4/10 Poor

dh, Kentucky

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities
Can't go by the pictures or the stars.
The hotel has not been kept up over time. The public areas and rooms are very dated. The rooms are not very clean and they made little to no effort to avoid insects in the rooms. Our room had gaps around the door where anything smaller than a rat could get in. Our room was infested with ants. Other than breakfast, other meals were at Cattleman's which is a restaurant next door. Food was good but took forever to get it. The hotel said free wifi. That was true, although that is only in the lobby. In addition, after the first two hours, their wifi was not connected to the internet. The only redeeming quality about this hotel were the people. The staff was very nice including the manager. She tried to make it right, but we ended up moving to another hotel.
Stayed 8 nights in Mar 2018
Response from CS on Jun 24, 2018
Thank you for your review. Your observations have been well noted.

6/10 Okay

Adan, san diego, ca

Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Not walkable, everything is broken, weak internet
They were nice to let us check in early. The toilet didn’t work, called the front desk, a repair person came to fix it, the next morning and then the next didn’t work again. A guest should not have to deal with. This place has a bar in the middle of the pool. They have tried to hard to make it look “African” but it looks like Disney .

4/10 Poor

Tom, Maputo

Disliked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities
The room was boring. the wifi did not reach beyond the reception area, big disappointment.
Stayed 3 nights in Nov 2017
Response from PR on Dec 5, 2017
Dear Tom, Thank you for having chosen Chrismar Hotel for your stay while in Livingstone. We greatly appreciate your feedback and assure you that we have taken note of your observation and request that should you visit Livingstone again, please do come and stay with us as I am confident that you will find a great difference. With regards the WI-Fi, at the time you were with us, the network was being worked on hence the disruption. We sincerely apologize if you were not informed. Thank you once again.

8/10 Good

Steve, London

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Nice hotel. Lovely setting.
Spent 7 days enjoying the area around Victoria Falls and this was a good base. It's near the falls with a national park on the doorstep and not too difficult to get a cab into Livingstone.
Stayed 7 nights in Oct 2017
Response from PR Dept on Nov 30, 2017
Dear Steve, Thank you for your feedback which is much appreciated. We hope you will visit Livingstone again and choose to stay with us. It was a pleasure hosting you. Best regards

8/10 Good

Jan Louis

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Aging but still good
This hotel is getting a bit rundown but the service and staff are really good.
Stayed 4 nights in Jul 2017
Response from Robert on Jul 22, 2017
Dear Jan Louise, Thank you for having stayed with us and thank you for your observation. The Hotel is now in operation for 11 years and your observation has been duly noted. I am however pleased to inform you that we are refurbishing the rooms, renovating the Pool Bar and we have 40 extra new rooms under construction and almost completed. We hope you shall visit Livingstone and stay with us again as I am confident you shall be pleased with the changes you find. We are hoping to complete the above exercise by Mid next Year but some rooms will be ready by the end of the year. We once again thank you for your review and hope to host you again.

6/10 Okay

Nicole, Chicago, IL

Disliked: Staff & service
Far from town
Hotel facilities are nice but it is far from town and expensive/difficult to get taxis. Hotel staff capacity is low. They can only assist one person at a time, causing long wait times, and unwilling to make change (either providing smaller bills or converting currency). Check out was quite a long process. Internet is slow to non-existent when large conferences are at facility.
Stayed 6 nights in Jun 2017
Response from Rima on Jul 8, 2017
Dear Nicole, Thank you for having chosen Chrismar Hotel for you stay while in Livingstone and thank you for your feedback. We have taken note of all the concerns raised and assure you that we shall address them. We hope you will visit Livingstone and hope too that you will stay with us as we assure you that you will find a great improvement in all the areas you have mentioned. We greatly appreciate your feedback and hope to host you again.

8/10 Good

family, from wales

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Nice hotel, friendly staff and close to attractio
The food was a let down....every thing was over fried.

4/10 Poor

Verified traveler

Disliked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Clean hotel. Not that up to date. Breakfast not great, limited options. Pool was green. Hotel staff were slow.

4/10 Poor

Verified traveler

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
I won't be going at this hotel

6/10 Okay

kajilo, Swindon. Uk

Liked: Cleanliness
You get what you pay for
I didn't want a cheap bed and breakfast so thought a middle of the range hotel would do. Hotel is ok but at £150 a night only has one outdoor restaurant. Breakfast is good though staff should just let the guests get on with it. I got told I was using the wrong plate for my full English breakfast! Wifi is diabolical. A bit extra will get you a superior hotel like the David Livingstone which by the Zambezi itself.

6/10 Okay

Adriaan

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort

6/10 Okay

Verified traveler

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness
Overall nice experience. Very friendly staff, quick to solve any problem. Food was good too and at reasonable prices. The rooms were cleaned on a daily basis but before going to bed it was necessary to make sure there were no dead bugs over it. Also there was a strong smell in the room, as if it was recently fumigated.

4/10 Poor

Verified traveler

Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
could be better
we knew it wasn't the best place in town, but it wouldn't take much to improve. The bed was tiny, made much smaller by the mozzie net, water pressure was terrible, room was hideous, bottled water was expensive and the pool was dirty. It was much more expensive than an equivalent place at home but cheaper than many in Livingstone.

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Good hotel for good price
Leisure environment. Nice vicinity.

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Good property
Good location midway between town and the falls. Rooms are large. Some rooms are better than others from a location standpoint as some face the back of other units. Although each room has a small patio, there is no furniture on them making them unusable. They also need to supply towels for the pool. The restaurant is quite good and reasonably priced.

8/10 Good

Arthur, Lusaka

Liked: Staff & service
Improve on Standards
The stay was good,staff friendly,only the geaser was not switched on and we had to wait to get water heated,and the TV reception on most channels was hazey and not clear.There is a need to improve on the TV entertainment.Noticed rooms and surrounding ares need constant inspection and more efforts to cleaning properly,also bath requirements MUST always be refreshed.

4/10 Poor

delia, new york

Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Not worth the money - sadly disaapointing
I misconnected on my flight to Livingstone and I ended up stuck in Lusaka, instead of arriving at Livingstone. I called the hotel at 5 p.m., let them know I was stuck in Lusaka and would not arrive until the next day. When I arrived the next day, they told me that I had to pay for the night anyway because they have to be notified 7 days in advance if you are not going to be there as scheduled. To me this is a stipulation meant to take your money. I arrived there at 10:30 on Thursday morning and they told me that I couldn't check in because checkin starts at two and the hotel was full from the night before because they had a lot of guests. I was dumbfounded. After two room switches, I ended up in room which was in front of the pool and right next to the outdoor kitchen. In the morning, I was awoken by staff noisily banging pots and talkiing loudly. My other issue is that they begin to serve breakfast at 7 a.m. I was leaving to go to Chobe National park and I had to leave before 7 a.m. The hotel that I stayed in in another part of africa served breakfast at 6:00 a.m., so everyone who had to leave early was able to eat something before leaving. When I went to the dining room at 6:30 a.m. they told me that nothing would be ready before 7 a.m. and handed me some cereal to eat. When I came into the room on Friday afternoon, it had been cleaned, but there was a dead fly sitting on the side of the bathtub, I was grossed out.

6/10 Okay

Jack, Corbridge

Liked: Staff & service, room comfort
It has all the bits but the glue is missing!
This hotel has all the things you expect of a good hotel but for some reason it does not come together as a good hotel. When things don't work when you arrive you wonder what is the quality control like? The staff were friendly and helpful and the activities centre staff were very helpful in getting the adventures sorted.

6/10 Okay

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Disliked: Staff & service
Mixed review
My mother, my sister and I stayed 2 nights at Chrismar hotel. Overall, we liked the hotel decoration, room and the service. Particularly, a staff whose name was Innocent, was very helpful. But we had a problem with one staff there. He called himself a manager for the hotel restaurant and also a driver for the car service. In one morning, he approached us and offered us to arrange a taxi service to go shopping and then go to the airport in the afternoon. He gave us the quote of the price and we agreed to use the car service. When the taxi showed up, I asked him to confirm the price again so I will have cash ready for the driver. The price he told us was much more than the one he told us in the same morning. ( $25 more US dollars) I later found out from the driver that he was getting paid $65 whereas we were told to pay the driver $40. $40 was already expensive for is but I thought of being a supportive tourist for he local tourism. Once I realized that he tried to cheat on us, I lost trust in the staff at the hotel. One thing is that you can get wrapped off on the street but I didn't expect to be cheated at the hotel.

8/10 Good

CCS, Malaysian

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Nice hotel
Overall it is very nice hotel and the hotel will arrange for all the airport transfer. Free Wifi in hall and dining area

6/10 Okay

Sandra

6/10 Okay

Journeytime

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
A very nice and quiet environment ....
... Sometimes, what you see on the website is not really what you see on arrival. I spent only 2 nights at this hotel, and I was very impressed .... This is a great place (near the city & the falls) for the price you pay. I plan to come back for a longer stay.

8/10 Good

Tom, Utah

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Two nights inn Livingstone
Very comfortable stay with excellent staff, including the breakfast. We did not eat in the restaurant, so do not have any comments about that. Beautiful setting.

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
stay was great but traveling back through border countrol each day was a problem

4/10 Poor

Gawshams family, Lusaka

Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Too expensive for what you get
Moved from a room with a busted tele to a room with a busted air conditioner. The breakfast was extremely disappointing, options were eggs, beef sausages, rice, potatoes and baked beans. The swimming pool is a health hazard with the canopy over the bar leaking water and covered in algae and it cost me almost USD 200 for the night.

4/10 Poor

Verified traveler

Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Overpriced!
Badly needs a renovation. Pool was very dirty, grass needed to be mowed, ac broke in our room and leaked everywhere, bed sheets were very dirty, meals were expensive and not cooked properly at times, no Internet unless you pay or sit at hotel lobby. It wouldn't have been so bad but for the price of it we definitely expected more. On the positive side, the majority of the hotel staff were quite friendly and nice to talk too.

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

6/10 Okay

Jan, Australia

Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities
Not convenient for those who want to spend time in
Too costly to travel/ move between Livingstone and Victoria Falls. No where to go after dark. No entertainment either. Pool was a little dirty and several items broken or poorly repaired at pool area and in rooms. Class this hotel as a three star only standard.

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Extended
Liked the place and extended an additional night.
Response from Robert on Nov 23, 2013
Thank you for your support and extending and additional night. We strive to make Chrismar Hotel Livingstone the hotel of choice. With reviews like yours, we can see our hard work is paying off.

8/10 Good

Steven Fish, Bali

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Elephants outside the gate
Nice place, reasonably priced for Livingstone. There were occasionally Elephants right outside the gate as the property is adjacent to Mosi-oa-Tunia National Park. A bit out of town so you are stuck with the hotel restaurant unless you want to taxi in.
Response from Robert on Nov 23, 2013
Thank you for your review. Sometimes the elephants, buffalo and hippos walk right down the street in front of the hotel and you have been one of the lucky guests to have experienced that benefit of our location directly next to the game park. The Chrismar Management, staff and myself are happy you enjoyed your stay and hope you come visit us again.

8/10 Good

patel

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Response from Robert on Nov 23, 2013
While you did not post details of your stay, you took the time to give us a 4 star rating and The Chrismar Hotel Livingstone family appreciates you for it.

8/10 Good

phil, omaha nebr. usa

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
nice people from robert on down .... we liked it !
Response from Robert on Nov 23, 2013
Hi Phil, Thank you for your compliment. We are glad you enjoyed your stay and are grateful for the review. Your family and yourself were wonderful guests as well and hope you come visit again sometime. Regards, Robert

10/10 Excellent

Saara, Finland

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Wonderful waterfalls and relaxing holiday
The staff was very nice and arranged all kinds of things for people staying there: wifi, taxis and tours and they even let some people sing in the pool - they were very patient with customers - even some people weren´t polite enough to staff. The hotel has a lovely pool area, clean rooms, no bugs. I really recommend it. I had a very nice and relaxing five days. only mosqitoes bothered me outside in the evening, but no harm done.
Response from Robert on Nov 23, 2013
Hi Saara, Thank you for taking the time to write a review. Its great to hear from a guests standpoint that our staff was patient with even less polite guests. Many times as a hotel manager I only hear from the same less polite guests so getting a different perspective is greatly appreciated. We are very happy you enjoyed your holiday and hope that you can come stay with us again in the near future.

8/10 Good

Afonso Carmo

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

10/10 Excellent

Kathy

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great Location!
The hotel was just what we needed! With the swimming pool just outside our door, restaurant and bar few feet away, it was very lovely in the evenings! Staff very helpful, although the bartenders could have been more friendly. The rooms we're comfortable, breakfast buffet very well organized, filled with delicious food! The food was amazing! Great place for the price! I would go back there again!

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great Hotel for couples, single people and family
I really enjoyed Chrismar, it was a very quaint, authentic hotel and the staff were very attentive. I would definitely stay there again and i would recommend it to anyone traveling there.

6/10 Okay

Amanda, Oxford

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Disliked: Property conditions & facilities
Slightly decaying luxury
We experienced a lovely warm welcome from the staff, who were very attentive, warm and friendly. The hotel has great facilities (poor bar = amazing!) and nice rooms, and while we were there we were pretty much the only guests. However, I'd check every facility in the room as soon as you arrive, while the staff are still showing you the room, as it quickly transpired that our phone didn't work, the shower was pretty awful and we only discovered the spa bath didn't work on our last night there when the manager had already gone home for the night - I'm sure it would have been sorted out quickly if we'd been able to ask sooner, however. If you're staying for more than one night I also consider organising other places for dinner (depends on your personal taste in food though I guess!)

8/10 Good

Andy, Ohio, USA

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Mosi ou Tonya
Everybody who worked we came in contact with were very helpful, very kind and always available. They helped us with booking daily trips and even made calls for us. At one point we had a problem with a cruise where the attendant would not take a credit card unless a cash transfer was performed. The people at Chrismar stepped in and arranged for everything so we could continue on the cruise on the Zambezi River. The rooms and grounds are very nice.
Tasty
A nice pool to relax in

2/10 Terrible

Laura, Washington

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Avoid this hotel
The hotel tries to be helpful but it has many problems. Decor is horrible, there were bed bugs, food is poor and location is very poor..not close to anything.

4/10 Poor

Verified traveler

Disliked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 2 nights in Aug 2019
Response from Guest relations on Sep 30, 2019
Thank you for your review.

6/10 Okay

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, room comfort