Name: Covane Community Lodge
Address: Massingir Dam, 0001, Lagoa Nova, Mozambique, Massingir, Massingir, Massingir, 0001, Mozambique
Rating: 8

Garden

General

Room service

Shower/Bathtub

Shower

Linens

Mosquito net

Rooms

Laundry

Services and amenities

Diet menu (on request)

Bottled water (at extra charge)

Meals

English

Languages Spoken

Fishing

Recreation

Parking

Swimming pool

Beach/pool towels

Pool and beach

Meeting and presentation facilities

Business

Pets Not Allowed

Pets

Location

At the hotel

Room amenities

Covane Community Lodge

Massingir

There is no wifi at the lodge. The owner was so kind that we could use her office wifi to check some information online. The camping ground was pretty basic, there is no electricity point but there was a building with toilets and a shower. The view from the  terrace over the lake was great. Unfortunately the view from the camping was not so great to many trees in front of the lake. 

Basic but good stay at the camping

Covane lodge website is deceiving.. The picturesque setting is not what you get. We were a group of 22 and booked 4 lake view lodges(sleeps 2) and 4 bush lodges which sleeps.. Host told us 1lakeview was not ready.. No roof!!Host tell you you get a true bush experience.. But what they mean is they don't maintain their bush lodges.. Rat and bat poop all over the bathroom so u can't really use use it.. The mosquitoe nets which serve as windows have large holes and keeps nothing out.. The mosquitoe nets over the beds do nothing as the holes are huge and are simply repaired by knots being tied so the nets become smaller and smaller. No fans supplied and Temps reach close to 40 deg.. You can barely breath.. And the cherry on the top is that your host will tell you later that they run their electricity on a generator from 5pm to about 9pm!!! Too bad if u don't have a candle in your bag cos they don't supply u with one or if ur fone is not charged or if u don't sleep by 9pm..only the Lakeview lodges are supplied with a teeny weeny light..
Oh and if u brave enough to walk around be careful of the resident "baby" croc ... And if u too hot would u be brave enough to jump into the murky waters of the splash pool... Then wonder where croc is??
After a long hot drive through a beautiful country... The beauty  of the Massingir Dam will take your breath away.. But this is definitely not the place to stay.. .zero star rating as host gives you info in bits and pieces as she remembers.. Ie where the gas taps are to turn hot water on. I will pay for a better bush experience elsewhere thanks.. By the way.. Most of the kids slept in the cars and  we left the very next morning.
Shamim peer

Covane.. No way!!! 

What a wonderful experience. Beautiful setting, clean and comfortable accommodation. Delicious food!!!! Coffee and rusks every morning at the Lapa
Andre and Marina are the best hosts, friendly, helpfull. They went out of their way to make us feel at home. Marina's home made chilli chutney is to die for!
After a day of Tiger fishing with the best skipper of Massingir called, "Gei-Gei" we relaxed with a R&R watching the sunset over Massingir Dam. We will definitely be back.

Eat, sleep, Mozambique... REPEAT!!!

I spent 2 of my planned 4 nights at this beautiful place. The place itself is quite beautiful, there's a view of the lake and lots of greenery. There aren't all that many activities to do except for a boat cruise on the lake.

I have on Sunday afternoon and was greeted by a fairly friendly woman who showed us to our rooms. Her son offered us drinks and everything was okay. There was another old man there- not the friendliest white old man I have met, I mean he never uttered even a hello to me and my colleague, but it was whateves.

The lake view rooms are clean and spacious although the reception for Vodacom is not great (get a Movitel sim instead). The food was absolutely amazing and the cook is super friendly.

The trouble came the second night when we were having supper and we were told we are too loud. Fine my colleague and I quietened down and continued to eat our food. The following dat we were moved to the bush huts. My colleague was greeted by rat poo in her bed, while I was greeted by rat poo on my shower wall. Later that evening there was a spider invasion in our room and when we screamed out of fear, the old man shouted at us (this was the first time he ever addressed us) and told us that "you people are not the only people here!" We tried to explain to him that we were screaming because we are scared of the huge spider in the room but he didn't care. Okay fine. Next, I saw a fat ass rat behind my colleague and both of us being afraid of rodents we screamed and headed for the door. We explained to the host that there was a rat in our room and she laughed at us. We ended up leaving the establishment earlier than we had planned.

I think the very least that could have been done is to ask us if we are okay and if we want them to get rid of the rat. But no such help was offered. We were scared out of our minds, we could not even go back into the room to fetch our luggage for fear that the rat had gotten into our luggage but we were offered no help whatsoever. She just laughed at us in our faces. It was an unbelievably unpleasant experience.

2/5 because no one should have to go on holiday with rats.

An unforgettable experience

We stopped here en route between Kruger and Massinga Beach lodge. Super chilled. Room was lovely (we had a lake view), pool is a must, and the dinner was well made, delicious comfort food. Exactly what we wanted :)

Lovely spot on the lake

Travelling from Kruger to Bilene, we booked into Covane for a 2 night break en route. Lovely lodge with a beautiful view over the dam. Unfortunately the hosts really put a damper on our stay and we will never re-visit. There was no one at reception when we arrived (or for most of our stay) and the housekeeper seemed confused about our booking. Never mind we said!  Our children were given mattresses on the floor in our room for which we were charged the equivalent of a 2nd chalet. Value for money? Definitely not. We had to negotiate with other guests for space on the only boat so that our boys could go tiger fishing. I'm not sure what would have happened if someone wanted a game viewing cruise. The food was good but my husband was left hungry and when we asked if we could order extra lunch, we were told no. Overall, I felt like we were an inconvenience to them. I was surprised at check out to find that the fishing was double charged and that the bed and breakfast rate does not in fact include breakfast. When I questioned this, I was treated so rudely - I am not sure I have ever been treated like that in any travels anywhere in the world. Just such a pity.

Beautiful place, terrible hosts

Although there is no permanent electricity, there is a generator and then the owners. The lodge is owner run and spotless. Happy people and great South Africa food. A perfect overnight stop when entering or departing Mozambique via Giriyondo boarder gate. The road through the national park can be very rewarding with its wildlife but also can be very quiet. It's a bad road but it's not impossible to drive. A 4x4 is recommended however a high clearance 2x4 will Al's be fine. Covane lodge is not only an overnight stop but those who would like to spend maybe 2 days there can also enjoy a boat cruise on the massive Massingir dam. A sunset cruise or try your hand at a bit if fishing. The vicious and powerful tiger fish lurked the waters, they can be over 7kg as well as barbel, bream and massive Carp occupies these waters. It is well worth the stop over. We were fortunate to travel with imagine Africa safaris based in the Kruger national park. A perfect and professional company. Thank you we will be back.

Epic

A great stop when using the Giriyondo border post. Centred in a mopane forest on the banks of the Massingir lake the lodge is welcoming and lush. The bar and restaurant area command amazing views of the lake. A boat ride is possible which captures the true farmer side of the Mozambican people. The accommodation is basic but very clean and comfortable. The food was tasty and the beers cold. There is a dirt road to access the lodge and high clearance vehicles will be needed to launch boats.

Peaceful and practical.

We stayed in the bush chalets while on a tiger fishing tour.
The place is amazing. I would suggest a high-clearance vehicle to access the lodge. The fishing was amazing and the boat well kept. The food that we were served was incredible and they even brought us a braai for the one evening!
Highly recommended.

Tiger Fishing

We booked a night at the Covane Community Lodge because their website mentions that Covane Community Lodge is owned by the local Canhane community, and proceeds from your reservation benefit the community directly. The Lodge has only the community name and the associated tax (community tax). The place is very beautiful, the views are beautiful and the rooms are very clean, but it's a shame that the products are mostly imported from South Africa. For a community-based accommodation it lacks cruelly local in every sense of the term. The owner is still very welcoming and charming, but I feel like we have been misled about the product and if we knew this place was like another lodge we didn't really take an interest in this community road.

Covane Community Lodge

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