Shoestrings Backpackers Lodge Vic Falls

Great place. Nice bar by the pool, super friendly staff. Rooms are clean and comfortable.

This is hotel but they don’t have common kitchen what is standard in another lodge we stay in region

Before I spent Friday night at Shoestrings, I thought it was amazing and had only a shining review to leave. I had a bad issue with the music but there’s also many great things about Shoestrings, please scroll down to pros to read. PLEASE READ: Friday and Saturday SHOESTRINGS IS A CLUB!!! You can not escape the music, it is so loud that it woke me up at 23:30 In my tent all the way in the back. So that no one thinks I’m exaggerating, I attached an image of a sound meter from our tent and it is reading as loud music. The thing is I love clubbing and would have really enjoyed participating if I had known. But instead I booked an early activity through Shoestrings Friday and Saturday morning. No one said “hey that’s pretty early for Saturday, Friday night is is our party night you might not be able to sleep” or I would have adjusted accordingly. There was no mention of this on their website either. In fact the website says that Shoestrings is for all types of travelers of every age including families. So what happened when I was woken up at 11:30 was I talked to the staff and they said boss refused to even turn down the music a little because it would “kill the vibe”. The staff offered me a different room but it was equally loud. They told me the music would stop at 1:00am but it didn’t. I went to complain again and the boss did apologize and offer some compensation but anyway music wasn’t turned down until 1:20. The boss did say that he would update the website to read that loud music would be played late on Friday and Saturday so hopefully he does that. Update: it has been more than a month later and there’s no update. So basically I’m so disappointed because I could have partied with them but Instead was in hell trying to sleep in a club, got 4 hours of sleep and was exhausted on a super expensive trip. I’m also really disappointed that the owner did not keep his word and update the website. PROS Other than the music issue I loved staying at Shoestrings. The location is superb. The staff were nice and extremely helpful. The shared area is clean, decorated with beautiful artwork, has a nice pool and small playground for kids. I booked the tent and it was very comfortable and had good privacy and circulation. The shared bathrooms are fine, lots of mosquitoes but it’s not really the owners fault. It’s very affordable. The food is good, there’s vegan options and the price is competitive with nearby restaurants. Tuesday there’s an excellent local dance performance. The staff is helpful for questions about activities and how to book them. If they update the website and warn people about the music it’d be perfect. I decided to leave Vic Falls a day early because I wanted to actually sleep and I saw a lot of Families and older couples were staying at Shoestrings for Saturday night, I’m sure they don’t know about the music so good luck to them. It’s a huge lack of communication. In conclusion: If you want to party until 1:00 Friday and Saturday then I absolutely recommend shoestrings, it would be so fun. If you want to wake up early for Safari or like to sleep early in general stay Sunday-Thursday.

We went to Shoestrings on a 3-day trip to Vic Falls in September, and would definitely go back! Food and drink were tasty and very reasonably priced and considerably cheaper than any other restaurants we visited in the town. We stayed in one of the 2-bed tents, which was perfect for what we needed and included a working fan, which was needed on warm nights. All of the staff were so helpful when booking trips and activities, including an airport transfer, which made the whole visit much easier. I would definitely recommend it. There was also a really fun atmosphere on the weekends and a lovely chilled-out vibe during the days if you want to take some time off and lounge around the pool.

The location is excellent, as the place is very close to the town centre. OK supermarket is only a 5 minute walk, the Pick n Pay supermarket is a 10 minute walk and the Victoria Falls park entrance is a 20 minute walk. I stayed in a private room with fan and bathroom. There is a mosquito net surrounding the bed to keep out mosquitoes. I can access wifi from my room. Wifi speed is reasonable most of the time but may become slow in the evening when most of the guests are back. The electrical sockets in my room accept UK-style plugs with 3 square pins. There is a lively bar facing a nice swimming pool. While the bar is nice place to chill and meet people, the music from the bar may bother those who have rooms close to the bar. (The bar music ends late on Saturday nights) Overall, because of the affordable rates and good location, this place is good value for money as long as you don't mind some bar music in the evening.

We stayed at Shoestrings during the New Year's period and we had an amazing time! The atmosphere was fantastic with superb music and all-round good fun! The staff were super friendly and welcoming, especially Fergus who went above and beyond to ensure that we always had a good time and enjoyed the best of what Vic Falls has to offer! We can't wait to go back, and I'm sure our next visit will be even better!