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holiday to South Africa & Mauritius
Anonymous, 12th October 2023We had such a great trip and made memories to last us a lifetime. Cape Town and the safari were absolutely the highlights! I will say that I wish we had done Mauritius differently, although this is not Mahlatini's fault. We thought we wanted a luxury resort to enjoy for the second half of our trip, but I wish we had actually stayed somewhere a little closer to the south for access to the major sights, and perhaps done a villa or Airbnb and spent more time exploring outside of the resort. We were underwhelmed with the hospitality and service provided at LUX* Grand Gaube. Little annoying things like, water is free on the beach and in our rooms, but you'll get charged for water at dinner, and this felt like a money grab to us. I would not consider Luxe to be a 5-star resort. I also wouldn't recommend it as a honeymoon resort, as there were plenty of kids on the resort and only a small "adults only" area.
Accommodation Visited
Kensington Place
“Amazing hotel, the staff were so warm and friendly. We loved this hotel!”
Shimungwe Lodge
“We loved our stay here and the staff, food, game drives and hospitality were incredible. We were so surprised by the private dinner in our room on our last night - that was a really special touch. The only thing I didn't like is that we didn't get wifi in our room. There is a lot of downtime between the game drives and good wifi is a must-have.”
OR Tambo City Lodge
“Simple hotel, did the job for the night.”
LUX* Grand Gaube
“Honestly, we didn't love Lux, and I don't feel that it is a true 5-star hotel. Everything was ridiculously overpriced and felt like a money grab. Water was provided free in our rooms and on the beach, but we were charged for it at dinner.
We ordered coconut jalapeno margaritas to celebrate our first night and were disappointed that it was served in a plastic martini glass, with no garnish or presentation, and tasted awful. We politely sent it back and had the head bartender stop by our table to defend the quality of his drink (but he didn't even taste the drink). We were offered a different drink so we ordered red wine and were then surprised that the red wine was served chilled. This obviously isn't a big deal at all, but is a small example of why the hotel didn't feel like luxury 5-star quality and service. We were offered canapes and champagne as part of our honeymoon package, and the "canapes" were little stale sandwiches.
The hotel is very white, so it's easy to notice dirt and scuffs all over the walls and doors. The step to our bathroom was cracked. It just didn't feel like an ultra-modern luxury hotel.
The service was also very hit-or-miss. Some staff were incredibly warm and helpful, others were cold and made us feel like stupid tourists for asking questions or making requests. We also didn't like that the hotel was not adults-only. Plenty of children were at the pool, buffet and beach. I would not recommend this hotel for honeymooners.”
Staff Review
“We loved working with Karen and Mahlatini. Thank you!”
