Babylon Lodge

What a fantastic place! The rooms were great, the staff were incredibly friendly and helpful, and the food was absolutely spot on—great portions, delicious, and plenty of variety. I definitely look forward to coming back. If you’re into outdoor adventures and exploring the area, have a chat with the staff. They’re more than happy to help you discover some great experiences. Highly recommended!

The Babylon Lodge is my favorite of all the hotels I experienced in my two visits and total of 3 months in Tanzania. To start with, the grounds are beautiful. Flowering plants and vines line all the stairways and courtyards with a profusion of multi-colored blossoms and interesting tropical foliage. All the rooms seem to have balconies or small patios. I had a balcony that was tucked under tropical foliage, and when I sat on it I could hear nothing but the sound of bird song. This hotel, located in the foothills of Mt. Kilamanjaro, is such a serene oasis. The rooms , while simply furnished, are designed with thought and care for a guest's needs. Ample closet and storage space.. Beautiful large bathroom with limitless hot water. Good reading lights by the bed. Wonderful mattress and pristine white linens. Hot water kettle with coffee and tea supplies. The place is spotlessly clean and the staff are kind and caring. They go out of their way to make sure you are happy. There is a dining room and a bar that are both open all day long... they will bring you a cup of tea in the garden or deliver room service to your room. I stayed here twice by myself for some rest and relaxation after teaching in Moshi. Both times I would have liked to stay longer.

Extraordinary service, Excellent atmosphere and surroundings, Great staff and management.

This was a cozy base for my 5 day 4 night Kili trek… I wanted to be near the gate as it is at higher altitude and may have made the difference for my successful summiting… it was great to come back to for 2 days of recovery as well…The staff will help with private shuttle to Moshi or even a public if you can manage… Bobby, Innocent and staff were very welcoming and helpful… Highly recommend as I find Marangu village much more interesting than Moshi town!

I made a short stop at Kilimanjaro and stayed at the Babylon Lodge for 3 nights. I truly enjoyed my time there. It is minutes from Kilimanjaro National Park. The staff are super friendly and helpful (special shout out to the incredibly sweet woman at reception, Alisha the waiter, and the hotel manager). The hotel itself was a simple resort style and very pretty, with plants growing everywhere and detached rooms. The hotel room was clean and there was ample hot water. All meals were included in the room fee and were delicious traditional food (the different soup starters every night were divine - many thanks to the cook). The hotel arranged for all activities I wanted to do, including a day hike to the mandara huts on Kilimanjaro (12m/16km round trip) and a walking culture tour through Marangu to visit a cave, waterfall, historical traditional houses, trek in the banana forest past village homes, and a coffee making tour. The coffee making was super cool. I assumed we would see the equipment with a guide and drink some coffee at the end. No, we took beans that were dried in the sun, pounded them in a big wooden container to remove the outer shell, sifted the shells off, roasted them in a pot over the fire, pounded the roasted beans in the big wooden container, sifted the finished coffee, boiled it in a pot over the fire, and drank it. Delicious! All while everyone sang in Swahili. Such a unique experience. Ludovick was an amazing guide who shared the history, culture of the Chagga people, and identified all of the birds and plants. For some reason, I guess visitors are so focused on climbing Kili, that few people do the culture tour. They are definitely missing out. Highly recommend doing it if you are visiting. All in all, two enthusiastic thumbs up for my stay at Babylon!

We went with a large group (20) and they were very accommodating. The rooms were very clean and staff were very nice and friendly. All our meals were great , the food was very good. Our evening meals were outside on a beautiful patio. I really enjoyed our stay.