Ai Aiba - the Rock Painting Lodge

I love this lodge. I’ve been several times and each time I enjoy. It’s value for money. It Is located in amazing scenery, not far from Windhoek and has great guided excursions, plus a guest can do a guided tour with a bushman located at the Living Bushman Museum on property next door to lodge, which is within walking distance. Many bushman rock paintings can be seen in the Erongo mountains. The food and service at Ai Aiba lodge is excellent. The Erongo mountains are beautiful and mystical with their huge rock formations.

Welcome was adequate, given as a list of instructions. Individual houses were comfortable and well equipped. Service in the restaurant was adequate definitely not in the same league as other lodges stayed at. Advertised waterhole did not attract many animals other than one springbox. Advertised walk to see rock paintings should have more detail to outline the rock / boulder climbing that needed to be done. Staff were pleasant.

We were blown away, from the check in until the check out! Exceptional place & friendliest staff! Rooms were always clean & tidy! Food was delicous and they went the extra mile with EVERYTHING. will def visit again.

Lovely accommodation with a great pool and semi cottages along the hill. Nice dinner with two options and a great breakfast. Staff was very friendly: receptionist Yvonne helped us great with a problem with our car. We took the sundown drive with guide Cules which was really nice and where we saw the first rock paintings. The walk trail behind the lodge is a nice morning walk and also includes some rock paintings, worthwhile to do. Finally, we thoroughly enjoyed the nearby living san museum, thanks to earlier reviews 👍

Great location and great activities, I particularly enjoyed the E biking

Lovely location with every lodge enjoying views over the surrounding. Countryside to a small water hole where springbok come in the early morning . Great welcome on arrival with lots of information sharing and the daily menu is on display offering two choices and a veggie option on request . The sundowner walk and climb with our guide was excellent and the following day we did a 3 hour jeep drive / walk with Cules our guide to view the rock paintings and learn about the geology and history of the area . We were fortunate to see an oryx with her calf , springbok, and then giraffes and horses in the distance . There are also trails behind the lodges which are well marked and lead to several lovely rock paintings . The lodges are spacious with a large shower and have a fridge and coffee station. Their dark colours and poor lighting felt a bit oppressive but the small outdoor seating area was lovely . You have to hunt to find a plug to charge your phone and camera behind the fridge . The disadvantage of the lodges bring divided into two, one bedroomed apar**ents is the lack of sound proofing . It was ok the first night with minimal noise until a family of 5 moved in tge next day and the noise level escalated to 4 hours of non stop screaming infants and yelling toddlers with lots of raised voices - followed by shouting happy youngsters. Sitting out was also spoiled as their friends ( party of 9) chose to shortcut over our 2m patio within inches of our feet rather than walk around the building -.It went from bird song and peace on earth to the neighbour’s from hell . We advised staff of the issue but nothing was done . I love children, I work with children but the over crowding of a family in a poorly insulated lodge really spoiled our experience . I’m not sure what they got out of it as most of the time the kids sounded unhappy . Sadly the high level of noise started again in the early hours and continued until they left . There’s lots to love about this place and a 4x4 is essential given the road conditions and distance ., but it’s worth the journey time . The staff are delightful, Yvonne is sunshine on legs , the food is ok, the pool is a good size , the guided walks and drives are excellent and the setting is idyllic . We had one great day there but the second day was totally spoiled due to excessive noise from next door .

Stayed just one night and had a lovely stay. Try to arrive early afternoon so that you can go on the sunset hike on the top of the hill with the hotel guide. We found it very instructive and the view from the top is breathtaking. The hike up is gentle on a dirt track, the way down does require walking shoes. The restaurant is very good and so is the service, the lounge and fireplace are also worth relaxing in after dinner. The rooms are confortable and have all the amenities you would expect. We really enjoyed the Ai Aiba and whisked we had stayed longer.

Outstanding views, rooms, food, and location. Lodging was a bit expensive for what it is, but considering the location and the fact that everything has to be trucked in from the outside, where else would you stay? Food was outstanding, staff was courteous and attentive, rooms were very nice. The evening drive / rock paintings / sundowner was very worthwhile -- once. Not sure that I would do it multiple times though. However, the real star attraction was the San Living Museum located just outside the gated portion of the property! Here, the native San people provided interactive demonstrations of their culture; including hunting and snaring of animals, making fire, making native jewelry, dances, and so on. Visitors can spend an hour, a half-day, or a full day with the docents depending on the extent to which you wish to immerse yourself and learn from these people. All of us in my small party agreed that this was the very best "cultural museum" that we had encountered during our travels in Namibia.

Although we did not stay at Ai-Aiba this time, we did pop in for lunch, and we received a very warm welcome from reception which made us feel so welcome after a bad experience at a close-by facility where we were staying. Ai-Aiba is a lovely lodge in Erongo, and we have stayed here previously, and it was an excellent stay in beautiful thatched suites in lovely settings, and top-class staff making sure that you will enjoy your stay.