Reviews of Halali Camp
(78%) From 181 travellersThey do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa.
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Halali Camp review
Before you get to Etosha if you are using cash make sure you have drawn some out before you get there as there are no ATM's at any of the camps/gates, credit cards can be used. Remember that you need to pay an entrance fee everyime you go there including if you stay at one of the camps in the park, sounds obvious but we forgot!
Obviously been inside Etosha, Halali is in a great location. But the camp really seems to lack any type of atmosphere, the two other lodges in the park seemed to have a lot more going on. The watering hole here was very disapointing, but to be fair there had been a fire in this area recently and we had heard it had scared some of the animals away. I didn't find the staff very helpful either.
That said if your spending a lot of time inside the camp between sunrise and sunset you are probably in the wrong place! The the full reaches of the park are easily in reach from here, and we found that some of the watering holes you had to drive for ages to were often the ones with the best sites like Ozonjuitji.
Remember to look at the side of the roads under the trees as this is where the lions seem to like to lay out! The guide books will advise on the best watering holes, but checking the books in the reception of the camp for other peoples sightings was often a really good way to gage activity especially around Halali as some activity had changed since the fire.
Halali Camp review
Comfortable and functional.
The only drawback to Halali was that the on-site shop does not stock a very wide variety of food, and with there only being one other dining option, the choices are pretty limited.
Great Etosha waterhole tour
Very nice cabin accommodation with a BBQ. However the camp shop has a very limited range of food items and the cabin had no cooking utensils, not even a bottle or can opener so one is totally dependent on the restaurant for dinner and as the staff were a bit vague about what was available it took some time to put together a reasonable meal. We do not recommend fast cooked mutton but kudu is lovely.
Overall not good value for money. Fortunately breakfasts were good and plentiful and it is wise to eat well as lunch can be a challenge,we suggest putting together a picnic from bits and pieces from breakfast and a few items from the shop. Unfortunately most of the roads around camp were closed for repairs and therefore several water holes were not available.
Two nights would have been enough.
A disappointment
The waterhole was often without any animals at all. We sat one night for one and a half hours without seeing an animal visit
The organised safari was disappointing and was ruined by the roads being regraded due to the poor condition thay were in.
It took two hours to leave Etosha due to the extremely poor condition of the gravel roads, which in effect were corrugated bedrock!
Halali - good location within Etosha
My comments about the food at Okaukuejo also apply to Halali, and I would add that my room was never cleaned. Strangely, someone came to empty the ashes of the wood I burnt the nights before, but as far as I could tell no cleaner came inside the room. In the helter of getting up and going out on the road, I never did get around to asking at reception if this was normal for a 3 nigth stay or an oversight.
My accommodation at the camp was on the very edge and I faced scrub and forest, and at night it gave a real feel on being IN the bush! There was a an overnight power loss one evening and while I was out on a night game drive, somone had very kindly placed a candle and a box of matches between my screen and front doors, which was a lovely touch I thought.
I founf Halaii's location better suited to the type and variety of waterholes and other places I wanted to visit, and although I saw rhino and some other animals at its fllodlit waterhole, it is almost inevitable a bit of a disappointment after Okaukuejo. But Halali was good fun and agin all the staff were very friendly.
Just another government run lodge
We were debating whether to stay inside or outside the Etosha National Park but have decided to stay with Halali Camp and wish we have stayed outside with one of the lodges outside. There was no service to speak of in this camp. The staff were disinterested in serving thier guest be at the reception, restaurants or shops. The restaurant was serving canteen food. The only good thing about this place is its waterhole, we have seen elephants, rhinos, jackals, zebras and kudus. Some guests have spotted leopards during the night
Read more about the whole safariHalali Rest Camp
Bush Chalet good. Loved the waterhole. Lovely position below the koppie.
Saw herd of elephants twice.
Tourist shop much better than Okaukuejo and food better. Smaller made it more friendly.
Halali Camp review
Like okakuajo its the location that makes this a great place to stay.
Read more about the whole safariHalali Camp review
The accommodation was adequate for 2 but was intended for 4 and the 'living' area was very cramped. It proported to allow for self catering but there were no cooking facilities, the base of the BBQ having rusted out some time ago: although there was a fridge, crockery and cultery, there were no pots and pans nor a stove which would've been disappointing if we had stocked up on food to cook.
The food in the restaurant was adequate, but the fact that they BBQed in doors both in the evening and for breakfast meant that it was very smelly.
The floodlit waterhole was well worth the visit and is well designed to accommodate a number of people.
a different view of Etosha
going east in Etosha the lanscape and game changes.
Halali was a little more wooded than Okaukuejo. again a lovely stay.
We have always believed that acting responsibly is the only way to approach tourism and we're one of
the few companies to hold AITO's original coveted 5-star status for responsible tourism. It's a lead
that others are now following.
