Reviews of Mwagusi Safari Camp
Wildlife sightings and reviews
115 independent comments and wildlife information from our travellers who have visited Mwagusi Safari Camp and kindly agreed to share their thoughts. They do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa
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"Mwagusi Safari Camp review"
The general staff were polite and looked after us satisfactorily but one got the impression that they were fairly new to the job, had very limited English, and, as a result, were rather nervous. Ryan was clearly extremely knowledgeable but didn't really initiate any conversation at mealtimes and perhaps we noticed this particularly after the warmth and friendliness of the Selous managers & staff.
Plus points were Jimmy, our really excellent guide, who was brilliant at spotting the game and went out of his way to give us memorable viewing and photographic opportunities. Also we liked the different settings around the river bed for the evening meals and the camp fires and lamps created a lovely atmosphere.
The accommodation was artistic - nice to have the natural materials and various artefacts - and the veranda overlooking the river bed was lovely. We would have preferred to have the bathroom area also enclosed in a linked tent as mosquitoes and little animals could get in that area (something made a deposit every night!) and it was a pain to keep unzipping the flaps when using the bathroom area.
We thought it was unusual that we were asked not to tip the guide separately and were a bit surprised that there was no indication of the price of any of the drinks and we got a hand written scrap of paper as our bill at the end. We suggest the camp should have a guest feedback form.
We were pleased that we combined Selous with Ruaha as the vegetation, degree of dryness, and quantity of game viewing were very different." See all these reviews: 8n in Zanzibar; 6n in Tanzania
"Camp four of four!!!!!!"
The accommodation was superb, food wonderful, guides exceptional, organisation excellent and the most wonderful evening meals.
Cannot fault any part of our stay." See all these reviews: 16n in Tanzania
"Mwagusi Safari Camp review"
Areas for improvement: lighting and mirror at basin not great eg for shaving. Slippery floor in shower (but quickly provided an improvised non-slip mat when requested). Safaris were excellent but little option other than in vehicles.
Good to be able to get camera batteries charged but because of limited window to do so it was necessary to have spare batteries.
Laundry service was excellent." See all these reviews: 6n in Tanzania; 4n in Zanzibar
"A good starting point and great game"
We saw a lot of game and had a very good time there but just felt the Mwagusi experience didn't come together in such a way as to give it the Wow! factor." See all these reviews: 8n in Tanzania
"Mwagusi"
However, we did find the management at Mwagusi were a little offhand on arrival and, although very nice, were more focussed on running their camp than ensuring their guests were happy. The meals were excellent but the same applies here as at Selous - when there are children/teenagers they need to ensure there is something they are happy to eat.
Dining in the open air is a wonderful experience but was not conducive to spending an evening chatting with fellow guests after dinner. We had a special last evening at a water hole watching the sun go down with a herd of elephants taking their evening drink whilst we had ours - perfect." See all these reviews: 14n in Tanzania
"A real experience"
I liked the accomodation but did feel that the ambience generally could be improved by making a bit more of sundowners, not always eating out and allowing guests to use the dining area after dinner (which they did on the last night).
The food was fine if a little curry focussed and the staff were brilliant about trying to accomodate my sugar intolerance" See all these reviews: 9n in Tanzania
"Mwagusi Safari Camp review"
As an aside, this was our fisrt trip to Ruaha - this is a fantastic park, suitable for first safari and afficionados too: it is also a very attractive area: rolling hills, baobas, woodlands and the river. Very photogenic." See all these reviews: 9n in Zanzibar; 7n in Tanzania
"Mwagusi for 3 nights"
Our guide Joffrey was excellent and we had six great game drives, all to different locations. The scenery was stunning and we encountered lions from five separate prides.
Dinner was served in a different place each evening under the stars. Most of the food, especially the lunches, was delicious, (the only exception being some very tough lamb). Attention to detail in the housekeeping was extraordinary to the extent that every piece of our clothing was refolded and rearranged! We were a little disappointed that the only activity on offer was driving - no walks were possible. Riaan is an excellent host and we very much enjoyed his company." See all these reviews: 9n in Tanzania
"A very special stay at Mwagusi"
The camp has a great bush feel with large tents set within thatched open bandas overlooking a dry (in late October) section of river-bed where wildlife can and does pass through as we found with some ellies who made for a couple of facinating close encounters. The owner Chris Fox was on hand for much of our stay and gave us our first game drive - a fascinating character with a real passion for wildlife and his safari business who made for great company.
It seemed to us a well-run and happy camp with a really adventurous feel where Kimberley was a great hostess and Samson an excellent guide. A private dinner on the river-bed under the stars on our last night to celebrate our anniversary was a special highlight made just a little bit magical by the camp staff bringing out a specially made cake whilst singing a Maasai traditional song at the end.
This section of Ruaha had fantastic diversity at an interesting time of year when the water sources are really drying up. Great sightings of cats and other big game together with a few rarities such as wild cat, lesser kudu, klipspringer and egyptian mongoose. Activities are generally restricted to game drives but, in late October at regular 40C temperatures by mid-day, that suited us fine - particularly given the extent of different habitats to see and very few other vehicles about.
Food is fresh, varied and plentiful with various options/combinations available. We'd prefer to see drinks included in the overall rate as is more often the case with the top-end camps rather than wondering how much we'd spent by the end but that's small beer in the scheme of things. All said, definitely one of the best camps we've stayed in." See all these reviews: 14n in Tanzania
"Mwagusi Safari Camp review"
The only negative whatsoever was the reliance on solar power for lighting in the banda. This limited the amount of available light (the bulb in the bathroom did not work). I doubt if the long term environmental advantage is particularly compelling. On the other hand Ellie recommended that we took head lights, which we did and they were invaluable in making up for the lighting deficit.
The solar heated water was fine." See all these reviews: 9n in Tanzania; 5n in Zanzibar
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