Reviews of Ongava Tented Camp
(91%) From 59 travellersThey do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa.
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Ongava Tented Camp review
Very attractive room. We enjoyed the drive, but a private reserve will never be as exciting as seeing animals truly in the wild. The deck overlooking the waterhole was very good. Food disappointing.
Read more about the whole safariOngava Tented Camp review
Ongava has a great family feel, principally as a result of the warm welcome provided by hosts Cameron and Wendy. The check-in and initial briefing were good, the standard of tented accomodation was high and the food had a lovely home-cooked feel. We felt very safe here, despite the roaring lions at night! The waterhole adjacent to the camp is excellent. On our last night, we were provided with a private table surrounded by candles in recognition of our honeymoon. We could not find any fault with this camp.
Read more about the whole safariA real bush experience
What an idyllic spot! Made even more welcome by the pretty taxing 18 km approach drive - in truth a bit much for the 2WD Toyota Yaris, which repeatedly 'bottomed out' in spite of very careful driving. Those inexperience in driving in rough conditions may find this road rather daunting, but apparently improvements are planned.
Accommodation and meals way better than could be expected in such a location. Very welcoming and great flexibility with activities to ensure we got the maximum out of our stay. Camp 'security was very tight after recent visit by lions!
The 'one big happy family' eating arrangements are not a guarantee for success, especially with a well established larger group of rather loud Americans in residence. However, overall, we loved this place.
Ongava Tented Camp review
The management team were probably the best we experienced in our holiday and the camp was superbly run.
The activity into Etosha NP involved a long drive into the park in an open vehicle with very little to see.
For visitors planning to visit Etosha independently we would recommend that any guests restrict their activities to Ongava reserve - the waterhole is something else!
Disappointing
This was possibly the most expensive of the Namibian accommodation that we had chosen but was a real disappointment. The tents and communal areas were nice (although not particularly any better than anywhere else we stayed) but what this place lacked for us was the friendly, welcoming and knowledgable staff that we had been fortunate to encounter everywhere else.
We only spent one night here (mainly because of the cost) but really wished we had spent the chunk of money elsewhere on cheaper accommodation that would have been far superior in every way. Meals were adequate and again, were not of the high standard that had been presented everywhere else. There was a lack of explanation as to how the morning game drive into Etosha was to operate and this left us with a feeling of being rushed to leave.
In hindsight we wished we had spent the morning relaxing at the camp's waterhole as our guide did not have access to any private areas of the park and was restricted to the public roads. We were never made to feel at home here and felt that the camp simply did not deliver what would be expected at an establishment with such a high price.
Ongava Tented Camp review
The real benefit of Ongava is its private game reserve with a high density and diversity of wildlife. We spotted lions and white rhino on several occasions, but missed out on leopard and black rhino, which also exist.
Read more about the whole safariContented at Ongava Tented
The game viewing was splendid -- a white rhino with her young calf, elands, lions, springboks pronking and many birds. Rio was an excellent guide. The managers, Cameron and Wendy, were personable. We enjoyed our stay tremendously.
This was the only camp we visited where the guard who accompanied us to our tent after dinner was armed.
This was one of our favorite places during our month in Africa. But if forced to find a fault, I'd claim that sometimes it was difficult to recognize the vegetables in the thick sauces.
Ongava Tented Camp review
Ongava Tented Camp, with its smaller, simpler and more intimate style, was in contrast to the scale and pretensions of Doro Nawas and Sossus Dune, but no less enjoyable.
We were made to feel very welcome, and the policy there of mixing all the guests together at the table for the evening meal meant that we had some lively conversations that we would have missed otherwise.
Viewing in the conservancy was good, better than in Etosha itself now that the rains have dispersed the animals.
Ongava Tented Camp review
A true wilderness experience. We loved the tents and the way they where situated amongst the trees and so close to the water-hole. We were lucky enough to see two lions come to the waterhole one evening as we sipped our G&T's before dinner. The waterhole was a highlight of the camp and during the day we sat and watched blue wildebeest, kudu, waterbuck, warthog and zebra amble back and forth.
Although sitauted at the Anderson Gate entrance into Etosha the drive into Etosha proper takes well over an hour so is quite tiring to do for a morning drive. We were not offered a night drive at Ongava despite our information stating that they did undertake night drives. Whilst the food at camp was fine, I'm not sure they provided enough of it - when we came back from our Etosha game drive everybody else was already eating and there was only a few scraps left for us!
We mentioned it to the staff but were merely informed that lunch was finished. They did however offer quite nice vegatarian alternatives to the ubiquitous meat main course and the porridge in the morning was very good.
Hein (I think he was the manager) was very good but some of the other staff appeared a little surly. All in all, very enjoyable though.
Ongava Tented Camp review
Just an amazing experience, Cameron and Wendy make the place and if they ever move to another place we will follow them. Having their children with us also was just lovely. They made the place.
Water hole FANTASTIC. Food amazing. What a welcome to the safari experience. So lovely to lay in the pool watching the animals at the waterhole. Guides found us all the game we wanted, even baby rhino!!
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.
