Reviews of Kulala Desert Lodge
(88%) From 142 travellersThey do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa.
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Dune with a View !
Another fantastic Wilderness Safaris operation.
The proximity to the dunes and the easy access via the private gate into the Sossusvlei National Park are a real bonus here, allowing one to lie-in until 5am before heading out on a sunrise dune drive (!). However it is a long (about 14km) and very rough drive to the camp from the main road.
Very welcoming staff as always, nice to find husband and wife teams again.
Very high quality of accommodation-shown by the high quality of things like the bed linen, pillows , towels and toiletries. Food was excellant.
Staff entertained us with singing in the dining room after dinner-excellant. Our guide Dawid was very knowledgeable and coped well with the mixed fitness levels in our group.
The one and anly thing I could say was less than perfect was the swimming pool which looked somewhat dirty.
Balloon flight - Absolutely wonderful.
We were almost late due to a problem with our pick up (they went to the wrong lodge), but we made it just in time. I liked the fact it wasnt too crowded-the basket held 16, and there was plenty of room.
The pilot, Astrid, was amazing, and took us up to 900m, and then down to just a few metres above the ground, and rotated the basket so that everyone got a good view of everything from all directions. We actually didnt see much wildlife - a few springbok, oryx and ostrich, but the scenery was wonderful. The flight lasted about an hour and was followed by a very good champagne breakfast. Pricey, but an unforgettable experience.
Kulala Desert Lodge review
There was a slight mix up on arrival as our voucher stated that we were staying in the desert lodge however it transpired that we were actually booked into the wilderness camp - thankfully were were able to stay in the desert camp as we would not have appreciated having to drive another 44km after a very long day of driving!!!
The camp was fine - no problems with staff - we found the food to be ok but not up to the standard we had got used to in Wolwedans! The lodge were exceptionally helpful with our car trouble and were more than willing to help with our flat tire with minimum fuss!
We also felt a bit less relaxed here as it was expected for all guests to take part in all activites with litttle flexibility re: times/type of activites. We left from this lodge to fly in a hot air balloon with Namibia balloon safaris and this was an amazing activity!!
Kulala Desert Lodge review
Lodges were clean and functional although we did experience problems with the provision of water whilst we were there that affected both the hot water and the toilet - understandable bearing in mind the remote location.
Views from the dining room and outside seating area were stunning.
More could have been made of the outside seating area of a night to be able to admire the clarity of the outstanding night sky. As a result everybody tended to congregate inside of an evening.
Walking trail was enjoyable. The ability to fly down to the lodge was a big plus as not only did it save two days travelling there and back but also afforded you stunning views from the plane.
Kulala Desert Lodge review
The setting and proximity to the dunes weere absolutely fantastic.
Read more about the whole safariAn "Interesting" place in the desert
Kulala is certainly ' different', it is exactly what you would expect if you had studied Web photographs of the place. The rooms are very well appointed with great views of the dunes. The restaurant is a great place to view the wonderful scenery whilst dining ( as long as there isn't a raging dust-storm going on).
Our visit was made even more 'different' by the arrival of a dust-storm on our first evening, which covered everything in brownn dust, and then solid cloud cover in the morning, when we should have been viewing the sunrise! On the positive side, not many people can claim to have climbed the sand dunes in the rain. In no way do we blame the owners for these two events.
Our only criticism is that there is totally insufficient shade in the pool area, unless you are on your own, you swim or fry.
You could not ask for better service from the cheerful, smiling staff.
Sossusvlei - The star
Excellent location and conveniently close to the Sossusvlei area. The private gate is a real advantage to step into the Namib-Naukluft National Park early in the morning.
The Camp itself is nicely located and perfectly fits into the surroundings.
Servicewise, although good, has lost the character of a small "private" camp, and one could sense some mass tourism. Sometimes people seemed fatigued of running the same activities everyday.
Balloning with Namib Sky Ballon Safaris (Eric) was enjoyable and very professional.
Kulala Desert Lodge review
Wonderful experience. Stunning scenery from our chalet. Management (especially Chris) very helpful and informative.
Balloon flight over desert: The expertise of the Pilot Paul and his ground support team were amazing. The flight and champagne breakfast were excellent. A truly wonderful experience which will last for ever in our memories.
Kulala Desert Lodge review
Great location - very sympathetically integrated into the landscape. The food/wine was great but more communal eating might have been pleasant.
The guides on some of the activities were not so good - for example, on the visit to the dunes the guide did not explain what was going to happen next, did not explain the sand dune walk in terms of condityions, walking techniques, what do do if not coping etc. Pretty basic health and safety stuff!
He also did not check during the walk that the whole party was coping with the sand dune walk and spent his time after the walk chatting with the other guides. The cooling system was not very good in the rooms - the fan just circulated hot air - so it was not very easy to sleep. However, the rooms were nicely decorated and comfortably furnished.
Kulala Desert Lodge
Kulalas best feature is it's private access to Sossusvlei. This meant that being there for sunrise was not too arduous.
The lodge diid feel a little impersonal. This may have been due to the lodge being managed by one person whereas in other camps there always seemed to be a couple. Having said that the manager couldn't have been more helpful when one of us was feeling unwell.
The waterhole was too small and too far away to be of interest.
Kulala Desert Lodge review
Unfortunately we were disappointed with Kulala, very surpised we were put here rather than Little Kulala which seemed much more in line with our budget etc.
Food was good but it was very rushed, dinner was over in about 45 mins
They sang at night but noone told us so we missed it the first night!
Manager pleasant but always running around
NOt a a tranquil place at all.
Staff pleasant but a bit distant, talking over the room at each other, there was no sense of calm or serenity here at all
Rooms ok but nothing special which is what we had asked for so felt let down here.
Desert trip - annoying as we kept stopping on the way in so got there fairly late! Our guide Nanguei was very pleasant though all the way through.
Expert Africa comments
We always go to great lengths to explain the options in detail to our travellers – so that they can make the right decisions about their trip: where to stay, how long to stay, what to do, etc…
Kulala Desert Lodge was in line with the budget of this trip; it was one of the more costly places included. If we’d included Little Kulala, that would have been by far the most expensive place on the trip. However, we have apologised for not discussing Little Kulala with these travellers in more detail before their trip was decided upon. Everything we do is tailor-made … so we don’t usually ‘put’ anyone anywhere.
We’re naturally concerned about the comments on the management and staff here, and have passed them back to head office, and the camp.
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.
