Kings Lodge

The Lodge is well sited and the grounds are excellent. Staff strive hard and are very efficient and attentive. This lodge is well appointed and provides excellent accommodation and cuisine. Service cannot be faulted. Our experience with the organisation of our safari was however below par. The freelance naturalist did his best but appeared to have been not adequately involved in the organisational process. A night safari had been part of our itinerary that had been put in place months in advance. For reasons that were never explained, it had not been organised in advance and we were asked to wait at the lodge where we could clearly see that last minutes efforts were being made to obtain a permit! It was only when I expressed my discontent, that we got going, a good 45 minutes late. The naturalist who accompanied us was clearly flustered and it did not make for an enjoyable outing. I can only hope that our experience was an exception.

What a lovely surprise. Room was lovely and service was second to none. Housekeeping even visited room during he evening to carry out the turn down service which included a hot water bottle each. Mornings were cold with the early strt but we were provided with nice warm blankets and more hot water bottles. Driver was excellent and we were most fortunate to see 5 or 6 tigers on the afternoon drive, 2 of them really very close. Food was excellent and staff were brilliant.

We had a great stay at King's lodge, from all points of view! Food was excellent, and the cook took extra time to check our preferences out, and worked extra hard to provide delicious gluten-free food for my wife. Outdoor dining at the fireplace was a nice experience (we always chose the Indian option, and I still often regret returning to Western food regime...). The room itself is very large, lovely designed, with a large bathroom and good shower. Safari drives were fabulous, we saw tigers in every second drive we did! Our naturalist's English is very good, we learned a lot about the local fauna - he took time to hunt down the rare species not seen so far (leopards were uncooperative, unfortunately). We appreciated the documentaries shown in the evenings, and got to meet many interesting fellow travelers! The only thing we VERY much disliked was the shattered dream of silent nights, awaiting to fall asleep while listening to the noises of the jungle! No way - noisy jungle we got... at the wedding parties in the (rather far) village! Blaring music until late night... knowing that sound intensity decreases inversely proportional to the square of the distance, and the distance must have been of several kilometers... those guys must have used the energy of a small nuclear bomb to fuel their sound amplifiers!! Now, this is not all the fault of the lodge - only partially! Knowing that you can't stop people from getting married, and knowing that you cannot fight the obnoxious tradition of explosive music... it is time to invest in some soundproofing of the rooms, not?

My partner and I had a fantastic time at King's Lodge. The lodge is beautifully presented, the food delicious, and the staff so helpful. The lodge is close to the safari gates, and the naturalists and drivers are knowledgeable and passionate about wildlife and conservation. We highly recommend staying here.

We had a fantastic time during our stay at Kings Lodge. The staff cannot do enough for you and it’s the little details that make this place stand out. We arrived mid afternoon after a flight followed by a 4 hour drive. We were met with refreshing towels and a cold drink and offered some mixed pakoras as we hadn’t had lunch. The food here is outstanding, the chef talks to everyone individually about their options for the evening meal and ***** with his team the food is freshly prepared using local ingredients. The breakfast supplied to eat on the morning safari is also delicious and plentiful. There are also appetizers every evening before the 3 course meal. ***** with a 3 course lunch of Indian cuisine you definitely won’t go hungry here. Also the homemade cookies in your room and available with the pre-safari breakfast are worth a mention. Two evenings the meals were set up outside with plenty of fire pits to keep us warm and the mosquitoes away. After the evening meal someone always walked us back to our room. The room was comfortable and cleaned 3 times a day - with the evening service also leaving hot water bottles in the bed. A special mention to Ramesh Singh our safari driver/guide who looked after us for all our safaris. He had a very good knowledge of the area and worked really hard to show us a tiger - we managed to see 3 during our stay and watched them for a long time as well. He seemed more disappointed than us when he didn’t find any - but we all know sightings are not guaranteed and we were so happy we saw 3 on our trip. The hot water bottles and blankets provided for the early morning safaris kept us warm until the sun came up. Overall to all the staff we thank you for giving us a wonderful stay. We would definitely recommend you to anyone looking to do a safari in India.

Kings lodge is an excellent choice of accommodation if you are visiting Bandhavgarh. They offer cottages or stilt cottages. We had the former, the main room was well appointed, the bathroom had tired decor but did not detract from the general relaxed feel. Filtered water is available, ***** with tea, coffee and cookies. Wi fi was a good strength. No TV but if you are taking safaris you won’t have time to be bored. There is a nature walk on site as the property is next to the Park buffer zone. I wasn’t thrilled about walking from the cottage to main building when it was dark, so an escort was always at hand with a smile. I thank you for that. One huge highlight is the food. The chef is always around to see how you are finding the food and to explain the evening meal choices. Two evenings we ate outside, which was quite wonderful. You might need a fleece in the winter months as we did, but there are fire pits dotted around so it never felt cold. The chef has a very cute organic vegetable garden you can wander through. Pre Safari tea and coffee and a light breakfast is laid out should you want it. Each evening there is a documentary relating to the local wildlife with popcorn and drinks being offered alongside. The staff are attentive and caring. If I came back to this area I would certainly stay at Kings Lodge again. Thank you for a lovely stay.