“What the world needs now is love, sweet love. It’s the only thing that there’s just too little of. What the world needs now is love, sweet love. No not just for some but for everyone…”
Of all of nature’s forms, the rivers of the world speak to the romantic in us most – from the East River of New York City to the Rhône running through France, from the Nile, once considered to be a causeway from life to death and the afterlife, spanning half of Africa, to the Zambezi, our Zambezi. Perhaps it’s because rivers are so much like love itself… “an untamed force,” as Paulo Coelho wrote, the “glamour which turns the dust of everyday life into a golden haze, ” as Elinor Glyn said. Rivers are a thing of romance. Artists throughout time have shown us that, painting love scenes on river banks that they peeped at from afar or merely imagined, felt moved to create, or painting the sunsets and rises that frame our days with their “golden haze”.
Romance by East River NYC, by Ylli Haruni
Starry night over the Rhone, by Vincent Van Gogh
Red Umbrella in Venice, by Christopher Clark
We have been privileged to witness the effect our river has on our guests, on the lovers, young and old, on sweethearts exchanging vows on the riverbank or celebrating anniversaries, honeymooners and couples who’ve been married for over 30 years. While we could leave it all up to the river itself, we like to go one step further in creating romantic experiences for our guests.
Beyond pulling out the Aretha Franklin records, these are our…
Top 5 Romantic Experiences
1. Bathing under the stars
Along with a romantically prepared room and breakfast in bed, slip into a bubble bath at Island Lodge, alone or with a partner, as the river flows past below. Some call this the best bath in Africa…
2. Private Dining
Dine in… in the privacy of your suite’s riverside deck or a special beach dinner set up on the riverbanks.
3. Private Picnics
After a canoe or boat trip along the river, arrive to a romantic picnic spot beneath the trees on the riverbank. A discreet hideaway with hammocks and Persian rugs to curl up in, a glass of champagne or a different tipple of your choice, and a picnic breakfast or lunch… it’s the perfect setting to take in the romance of our river from.
4. Couples Massages
Enjoy spa treatments with your beau in your suite or on the deck overlooking the river. We recommend the Mwami (King) experience for him and Dyango (Queen) experience for her, but whichever treatment you choose, the beauty of it lies in being able to share it with your other half.
5. “La Dolce Far Niente”
Sometimes our guests forget the joy of this simple experience… the sweetness of doing nothing. We can get caught up in the doing and forget about the being… But our setting on a private slice of the Zambezi is ideal for simply switching off, being still, in the company of a loved one or alone, taking in the gentle sounds of the river as it flows past in the background, the odd hippo grunt or fish eagle call.
Of course you could practice this art on the river itself, letting our guides take you on a private voyage of the Zambezi at sunset, while relaxing with a sundowner and enjoying the courtship of life itself…
P.S. A trip to the Victoria Falls, downstream from our home on the Zambezi, is a great experience to complement your romantic rendezvous… Discover more in our blog, Magic in the Moonlight, and on our website.
Planning a wedding or honeymoon?
There are so many moments in our lives, moments grand, moments almost missed, that are worthy of a little more time, a little more attention. The love between two people, the bonds of a family that grow with each passing year, the accomplishment of dreams… Give them the attention they deserve.
