About this hotel
General information
Royal Chundu Island Lodge is the most secluded part of Royal Chundu, Zambia’s first Relais & Châteaux member. Just four spacious villas stand on Katombora Island in the middle of the Zambezi, reached only by boat. The island is largely untouched: 23 baobabs, 200-year-old jackalberry trees, knob thorns, fever trees and python creepers, with decks looking over rapids and the wide, glassy river.
Interiors are done in cobalt blue and earthy tones, with furniture handmade by local craftspeople. The island is designed above all for couples and honeymooners; it can also be reserved in its entirety for one party, which is the only way families with children stay here. Stays are fully inclusive of meals, local drinks, river activities and transfers. The whole team is Zambian, the lodge runs on solar power and reuses its water, and every stay helps fund a school for children from neighbouring villages.
Location
Katombora Island lies on a private 15 km stretch of the Zambezi, between the Katombora Rapids upstream and Victoria Falls some 32 km downstream. The far bank is Zimbabwe’s Matetsi Game Reserve. Return road transfers from Livingstone’s international airport are included, and guests cross to the island by boat.
Spa
There is no spa building: massages and treatments are given in the villa itself, indoors or on the river deck. The therapists come from nearby villages and grew up with the healing lore of local plants, so the treatments rely on natural plant-based products.
Sports & leisure
Included in a stay are a daily sunset outing, river cruises, birding, fishing, canoeing, a cultural tour and a guided walk along the Zambian side of Victoria Falls with transfers.
- Sunrise cruises with hot drinks and blankets and sunset cruises with cocktails and canapés, often along the Zimbabwean bank, with giraffe, buffalo, waterbuck and otters, and African skimmers nesting on the sandbanks in the dry months
- Guided inflatable-canoe trips from the Katombora Rapids through the island channels to a picnic under jackalberry trees; motorised canoes too
- Catch-and-release fishing for tigerfish, bream and Upper Zambezi yellowfish from a boat with skipper and guide; tackle can be hired at the lodge
- A guided walk across Katombora Island on the trees and their traditional uses
- The Riverstead programme: garden and farm mornings, foraging and cooking with the chefs, basket weaving, whittling a mokoro, the traditional dugout canoe, sewing chitenge cloth with a local makers’ group, bush skills and stargazing
- Visits to the Royal Chundu Foundation School supported by the lodge
- Day trips to the Chobe River, helicopter flights over the Falls and, from August to January, a swim in Devil’s Pool, the natural pool on the lip of the Falls
Restaurants & bars
The island has its own dining room with a deck over the water, and its own bar. The Zambian chefs cook pan-African dishes and international classics from local produce — cassava and pumpkin leaves, African aubergine, kapenta, bream from village fishermen and eggs from the lodge’s own hens, with vegetables from its gardens and neighbouring farms. In the evening a tasting menu pairs each course with a South African wine. Dinner can also be served beneath an old baobab on the island, on the villa deck, aboard a boat, or as a picnic on a hidden island bank with rugs, hammocks and a pizza oven.
Swimming
An infinity pool looks out over the river, and every villa has a bathtub set out on its deck above the Zambezi.
Rooms
The four villas, sold as the Island Lodge Suite, are spread across the island, each opening onto a large private deck facing the rapids.
Air conditioning, ceiling fan, mosquito net, Wi-Fi, minibar, safe, iron, dressing room, desk, bathroom with bath and shower, outdoor shower, double vanity, bathrobes and slippers.
Island Lodge Suite
A villa with a king-size or two twin beds, a sitting area, balcony and a private deck with an outdoor bathtub facing the river. Sleeps up to three adults with an extra bed.
Photos are for illustrative purposes only. Actual room layout, furnishings, décor, views and amenities may differ from those shown and may vary between rooms of the same category. Hotel and room descriptions are based on information provided by the property and are believed to be accurate at the time of publication, but are not guaranteed. The hotel may renovate or change its rooms, facilities, restaurants and services at any time without notice. The final details of your stay are confirmed at the time of booking. See our Terms of Use.