Crossroads Lodge – Solwezi

So this is one of those lodges I haven’t stayed at myself, but I have been there a few times to book rooms for my friends. It’s one of the more “upscale” lodges in Solwezi. It was wifi and a beautiful pool area. The hotel overlooks a colorful valley. The customer service is great, the only downside I’d say is that it is quite a ways outside of town, so if you’re planning on going back and forth a lot the taxi bills are going to add up. The cheapest room is 550kwa, then 750, and 800. I think there is some deluxe premium suite (or something equally as fancy) for more too.

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Chobu Lodge

Chobu is another lodge in Solwezi that I haven’t stayed at myself but have had many friends stay there when coming to visit where I worked. It is a little off the main road and not as nice as Solwezi Lodge, but it is a good, cheap, safe, backpackers place. It is walking distance to town center. Rooms start at 150kwa and go up from there depending on whether you want AC, television, or different types of bed. The basic room has a shared bathroom but the 200kwa room is self-contained.

 

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Solwezi Lodge

So I personally have not stayed at Solwezi Lodge, but I have been there to book it a few times for friends. There is a free breakfast which I hear is really good, and the rooms are pretty decent. The front desk has very great, helpful, customer service. It is walking distance to Shoprite, and pretty easy to catch a cab on the walk towards Shoprite to go anywhere else. The room prices (as of August 2017) are below:

Double room – 350kwa

Twin room – 500kwa

Executive room – 600kwa

Executive Deluxe room – 1520kwa

 

Coming from the Copperbelt (the right of the map) into Solwezi, Solwezi Lodge will be on the left after you get up the hill after the bridge.

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Georgies Lodge

Georgies is an awesome lodge/restaurant for a getaway. It’s quiet, and along a different part of Mutanda Falls than what is normally seen. It has beautiful views, especially the sunsets. The restaurant/bar and deck area overlooks the falls. It had a nice variety of food that tasted great, and service was fast and friendly.  The whole grounds are filled with different colored roses so it smells heavenly. I didn’t use the pool but it looked clean, and the kids that were in it looked like they were having a blast. There was also a giant building in the back that looked like it could be used for weddings, or a big conference. They have kayaks that you could rent out, although if you’re staying the night it’s free, and we were told you could swim but it’s at your own risk. The water was pretty cold that day so we opted out. The rooms/chalets ranged from 500-750kwa. I stayed in a 550kwa chalet overlooking the falls with a porch, grill, hot shower, tea kettle and air conditioning. Georgie herself runs the place. She is an amazingly sweet, and dedicated woman. She even offered to pick us up and drop us off at the roadside before and after our stay which helped so much. We just needed to work around her schedule a bit which was no problem for us otherwise she offered to book us a taxi from town for 150kwa. We opted just to hitch hike to and from Georgies turnoff, which was pretty easy as it is a main road. It should not be that expensive. I stayed there one of my last weeks in Zambia and really wish I found out about Georgies sooner.

Georgies Bar and Grill Facebook Page

Georgies is the pink pin on the map. If you are coming from Solwezi you will go over the bridge, and straight at Mutanda. If you’re hitching you can either get dropped at Mutanda, or shortly past it is the turnoff to Georgies, I believe there is a sign.

Georgies

Northwest

The lodges below are split up between Solwezi (the provincial capital) and Mwinilunga (the capital of the Lunda Region). Most of the places I’ve stayed at are for budget travelers, although I do have some information on more upscale places, I just haven’t stayed there myself. So choose a place below!

Mwinilunga:

Elido Lodge

Kwahuwahi Lodge

Solwezi:

Solwezi Lodge

Chobu Lodge

Georgies Lodge

Crossroads Lodge – Solwezi

Bush Fire

Another quick outing from Solwezi is Bush Fire. It is a lodge/farm. I don’t have much details about the lodge aspect of the place although I know they’re on Airbnb (https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/14899332). If you’re staying in Solwezi you can bike here easily, or take a minibus/taxi out towards Chingola. What you can do there is take horseback riding lessons, or just ride if you already know how. It is 50kwa for about 1/2 hour to an hour of riding. It’s something different to do, nice date idea, and they have a bar you can grab a drink afterward. The guides are good at teaching and can take it slow for you if you’re nervous. We just stayed within the fenced in area but they said they have paths you can walk on once you know what you’re doing. I would try to contact Sue the owner to find what times work best. I went on a Wednesday afternoon. I found this place towards the end of my stay in Zambia, and wish I found it sooner I definitely would have gone more.

Mutanda Falls

A nice day trip from Solwezi is going swimming at Mutanda Falls.  You can get to Mutanda Lodge (not Mutanda Nature Lodge), either by hitching out of Solwezi (best place to start is after Chowama market), or taking a taxi if you have money or can split it with people. At the Lodge there is a place to swim in the water, you’ll need to pay about 20kwa to be allowed to do so, or hang out in the nsakas by the water. Keep in mind that as rain season starts to pick up the water might be too strong to swim in. Rain season starts in October and goes until about April. I would think August/September would be the best time, although I went in April/May and it was pretty good. They also sell food at the lodge but I can’t attest to how good it is. Mutanda Falls isn’t very big compared to other falls in Zambia but its still a nice and relaxing outing nonetheless.

Mutanda Lodge is the yellow pin in the map below, the orange road going of the top of the picture goes to Solwezi.

Mutanda Lodge