We stayed here for three nights in a superior room.

The lodge is in a quiet, tree-lined street. While the outside looks uninviting, having the high walls typical of many suburban properties in SA, once inside, the surroundings are delightful.
The garden around the house is well tended and has some lovely flowers. There is a small swimming pool. All the rooms and facilities are ground floor and it would be easy access for a disabled person.

Our room had two double beds and was very comfortable
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There is a writing desk and lamp, as well as a dressing table (without direct lighting).
Two comfortable chairs faced a large screen TV and DVD player (no DVDs are provided) and there was a fridge, microwave, toaster, kettle and crockery and cutlery. The very clean bathroom had bath and shower, good towels and toiletries. Overall bathroom lighting is bright but a light over the basin mirror would be helpful.

Breakfast was good, if not exceptional, comprising fresh fruit, yogurts and home baked muffins. Four standard cereals are provided, but not muesli. Decaffeinated instant is available. A “full English” and variations thereon is available. A nice selection of spreads and preserves is provided.

What differentiates the Rosebank Lodge from other guesthouses is the superb customer service. The owner was away for a few months and had left Robyn in charge. She could not have chosen better as nothing was too much trouble for this young lady. She booked taxis, ordered takeaways, printed out maps, gave us advice, let us use the office computer to check-in for our flight and much more.

The lounge has the daily paper and a nice selection of books. There is wi-fi throughout, although you seem to need to be near the lounge/office to establish the connection initially.

I had wanted to stay in the Rosebank area as I remembered it as a safe and relaxed suburb from a previous stay some years ago, and this proved still to be the case. We felt no threat when we walked around in the day or evening. I mention this because so many people in UK are frightened to visit any part of Johannesburg.

The Mall of Rosebank and adjacent shopping areas are less than ten minutes’ walk. (By the way, avoid the Kuzina restaurant, see my separate review). The Gautrain, direct to the airport, is near the mall, although it does not run after 8PM. We walked to the Zoo Lake in about 25 minutes. Sandton, with its huge shopping and eating facilities, is about 20 minutes by taxi (we went to the theatre there).

Strangely enough, after almost 3 weeks in high-risk malaria areas, this was the only place where we had to exterminate a couple of mosquitoes in the room each night. They may not carry malaria in Jo’burg but their whining noise (and bites) can be quite annoying. I had my own electric mosquito killer which we used after the first night, but perhaps guests should be warned and a killer unit or spray provided.