The Royal Livingstone Hotel

“Scorpions in the room”

Beautiful Hotel, Amazing Setting, but a Serious Room Issue We had just finished an incredible 9-day safari in Botswana, and our three nights at the Royal Livingstone were meant to be a relaxing way to unwind and enjoy some time out of the bush. In many ways, the hotel delivered. We had a beautiful… more

Beautiful Hotel, Amazing Setting, but a Serious Room Issue We had just finished an incredible 9-day safari in Botswana, and our three nights at the Royal Livingstone were meant to be a relaxing way to unwind and enjoy some time out of the bush. In many ways, the hotel delivered. We had a beautiful river-facing room with a balcony, and it was an incredible experience to see zebras, giraffes, and impalas freely roaming the grounds. The location is fantastic, and the hotel itself is stunning. Unfortunately, on our first night, our experience took a very unexpected turn. After stepping out of the shower and into the room, my wife stepped on a scorpion and was stung. We immediately contacted the hotel, and the manager on duty and a security officer came to the room to help. We were all searching for the scorpion because, depending on the species, a sting can be very serious. What was frustrating was that the staff initially seemed skeptical that it was actually a scorpion and suggested it could have been a spider or an ant. My wife was certain of what she had seen. Ultimately, I was the one who found the scorpion hiding in the closet and killed it. Thankfully, it was a non-fatal variety, but the sting caused my wife severe pain for approximately 8–10 hours. Our biggest disappointment was what happened afterward. While the hotel responded initially by sending staff to assist, there was no meaningful follow-up or gesture to acknowledge what had happened—no complimentary dinner, room night, or other form of recovery. I mention this as someone who has worked in hotel management at the executive level for decades. I completely understand that unexpected things happen, particularly in a setting where wildlife is naturally part of the experience. What often makes or breaks a guest's experience, however, is how a hotel responds and takes care of its guests when something goes wrong. Despite this incident, we genuinely enjoyed our stay. The hotel is beautiful, the location is spectacular, and the staff overall were wonderful. Seeing wildlife roaming the property was a truly memorable experience. I would happily return, but I hope the hotel takes this feedback seriously—both in terms of checking rooms for scorpions and, perhaps more importantly, improving the guest recovery process when an incident like this occurs.

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“Time for some basic upgrading”

we tipped usuing the norm provided by travel agent- HOusekeepih and 10% for all the restaruants we dined in . We tipped porterS . According to the guidelines provided by agent