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Traveller reviews

Travel reviews by Dr M & Dr Y from Richmond

Review Distribution

Excellent
Good
Average
Poor
Terrible

Total number of trips

2

Countries visited

4

Lodges stayed in

8

Excursions taken

0

Another great trip with Expert Africa

Zambia and 1 other country between 15 Jun 2011 and 30 Jun 2011

Trip rating: Excellent
"We have been lucky enough to travel with expert Africa on four occasions and the service we have received has always been exceptional.

We enjoyed the trip to Malawi and Zambia even more than our previous trips and think the two countries combine very well. A great factor in the success of the holiday was the choice of lodges/camps. The thing that we particularly appreciate is the fact that you can typically deal with one person in the organisation to discuss and plan a trip. The personal knowledge of all the various camps and lodges that the Expert Africa staff have is essential. This was very much the case for this holiday where we were unsure where to stay in the Lower Zambezi and were given specific advice which led us to change the choice of camp to Old Mondoro and we were delighted we did that.

Likewise we were unsure about whether Pumulani was right for us but again specific knowledge of the Lodge within the Expert Africa team reassured us and again this was spot on. As a consequence we stayed in 4 different camps all of which were excellent and complemented each other perfectly.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

As before the connections, pick ups etc all worked perfectly and the only minor difficulty we had was connecting to the flight to Jeki in Lusaka airport as the flight was not on the Proflight list or display board as it was a charter and they did not seem to know exactly where we should go but this was resolved very quickly by another member of staff. I am afraid I cannot add anything more constructive as all went so well - thanks for another excellent trip.

Particular thanks to Maruska who was great."

Arranged By Maruska AdyeRowe


Pumulani

Pumulani

"Pumulani perfect for winding down"

4 nights Arrived 16 Jun 2011
"We chose to start our safari at Pumulani and this worked very well, we were soon in holiday mode. The highlight for us were the charming staff, they are quite simply exceptional and led by Mara, Chris and Emma, and ably supported by Michael, Lois, Luckio, Glen, Nicolas and Joseph. They all went out of their way to make sure that our stay was something special. The villas are exceptional, luxurious, stylish and comfortable, and the views of the wonderful Lake Malawi from our villa (number six) were breathtaking. However, we did notice that some villas were more concealed in the forest and had a somewhat impaired view of the lake and this is worth considering when you are booking.

We relaxed by the pool, on the beach, in the lodge and on our balcony, and enjoyed the delicious and varied food. A great strength is the variety of activities on offer. We very much enjoyed the village walk with Luckio and would highly recommend it, we felt welcome, that we were not interfering and in no way was the visit staged or artificial. Likewise, the nature walk with Glen and kayaking back, snorkelling with the cichlids and spotting the otters were highlights. The sunset outings on the beautiful Dhow are also highly to be recommended. Finally, the incredible stargazer telescope gave us wonderful views of Saturn.

During our trip in Malawi and Zambia some people we spoke to were concerned that visiting Lake Malawi was really only for serious watersport fans. So in case you are put off Pumulani because of this dont be, we are not divers or waterskiers, and as Expert Africa told us when we booked, there is so much more to do and see at Pumulani. Our only concern was that the lodge was very quiet when we were there, with only 2 villas occupied by guests and for a couple of days by an RPS film crew. This was by no means a problem for us, but we felt that the word needs to get out that both Pumulani and Lake Malawi are a wonderful destination and we cannot recommend it highly enough."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Excellent
Kaingo Camp

Kaingo Camp

"Kaingo - perefect safari camp"

3 nights Arrived 20 Jun 2011
"Kaingo turned out to be everything we had hoped for and more. The camp has, in our opinion, found the perfect balance between remoteness, comfort, setting and serious game viewing, without resorting to the excessive luxury that seems to be the recent vogue in many camps.

The chalets are simple and comfortable and the combination of your own private deck and the more extensive main deck offer stunning views over the river, with hippos, crocs, other game, wonderful birds and to our excitement a leopard on the opposite bank during one short afternoon 'siesta'. The guiding of Ian, Patrick and Kennedy was exceptional and the game viewing terrific. We also particularly liked the fact that the animals came first and were never put under pressure even though the guides very ably positioned the vehicle to catch the light.

The central area is very attractive, the food extremely good and the light lunch on your own deck a very nice touch. The atmosphere in the camp was very relaxed and great fun thanks to Derek, Issy, Lisa, the guides and all the staff, who work tirelessly to optimise your experience. Access to the hippo and elephant hides as part of a midday activity was such a bonus and offered wonderful views and photographic opportunities. In addition, the willingness to take us at any time of day to get the best view of an interesting sighting such as elephants crossing the Luangwa was very much appreciated and added to the air of excitement in the camp.

We would recommend Kaingo v highly and hope very much to return."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Excellent
Mwamba Bushcamp

Mwamba Bushcamp

"Mwamba - great bushcamp"

3 nights Arrived 23 Jun 2011
"We chose to walk to Mwamba bushcamp from Kaingo (highly recommended) and were lucky to have Derek Shenton as our guide which we very much appreciated and seeing lions on foot was an added bonus.

Mwamba is a lovely small camp, with a great atmosphere and combines perfectly with Kaingo. Although a bushcamp it is very comfortable and we loved the chalets which are cleverly located, private and immersed in the bush. We saw elephant, impala, puku, baboons etc from our veranda. The open bathroom is wonderful and the view of the stars through the chalet skylight as the lions roared will live long in our memory. The camp host Debs worked tirelessly to make our stay special and our guide Mayem was excellent, extremely knowledgeable and accommodating.

Being a smaller camp with a single guide and six guests the activities need to be agreed in advance, this was not a problem, but perhaps this might be explained to guests on arrival to avoid confusion. We had wonderful game viewing, delicious food and great company. Finally, we loved being woken by the drums at Mwamba and Kaingo and the top drummer Zimba followed us to Mwamba - wish I had asked for a lesson!"
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Good
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Excellent
Old Mondoro Bushcamp

Old Mondoro Bushcamp

"Old Mondoro Bushcamp review"

4 nights Arrived 26 Jun 2011
"Old Mondoro proved to be the perfect end to our holiday. This was our first visit to the lower Zambezi National Park. The flight into the Jeki airstrip gave us wonderful views of the magnificent Zambezi valley. Expert Africa had recommended Old Mondoro to us and they were absolutely spot on. We had thought that Sausage Tree camp and Chiawa would be too luxurious/expensive for us. Old Mondoro proved to be the perfect solution.

We were driven to the camp by Reagan and greeted by the charming hosts Beukes and Jacomine. In their first season they are doing a magnificent job. The atmosphere in the camp was terrific and all the staff were extremely friendly, engaging and determined to make sure we had a good time. Our main guide was Levy. He was an exceptional guide and great fun. He made sure we saw all aspects of this beautiful park and was also an excellent walking guide. He was ably supported by Morat and we also much enjoyed the boat trip with Andrew and Peter, incredible bird life as well as game on the river bank and of course crocs and hippos. Although a bush camp, Old Mondoro is not basic, the chalets are extremely comfortable all with views of the beautiful Zambezi.

The camp was full of game, and sneaking tree to tree with our guide to gain entrance to our chalet and avoid 3 huge bull elephants was terrific. We then sat on our veranda and watched them swim across the river in front of the chalet. One point to note, the Lower Zambezi was very cold in the morning and evening in late June/July and much colder than South Luangwa, so go prepared. The camp was perfect but we would have fancied a cup of coffee on the morning game drive rather than a cold drink! Lower Zambezi and Old Mondoro combined perfectly with the South Luangwa camps and we would love to return."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Excellent

Ruaha and Selous perfect combination

Tanzania and 1 other country between 5 Sep 2009 and 20 Sep 2009

Trip rating: Excellent
"We had a fantastic trip.

If we were organising again I think we would do 3-4 days in Zanzibar first to wind down and get into holiday mode and then go to the Ruaha and Selous to get maximum benefit from the safari. We loved both parks and they provide an excellent combination with contrasting scenery, fantastic game viewing and game animals and different activities. The camps were quite exceptional and we would love to visit them and perhaps go all the way to Katavi.

The organisation and those all involved in it here and locally went entirely smoothly.

Suggestions for improvement:

I know this is probably not that helpful but this is the third trip you have organised for us and on each occasion your service has been exceptional, we would not dream of going to Africa with anyone else - many thanks."

Mwagusi Safari Camp

Mwagusi Safari Camp

"Mwagusi - a great bush camp"

4 nights Arrived 6 Sep 2009
"We loved Mwagusi - an informal top quality African bush camp. You have the benefit of sleeping in a tent, combined with the luxury of a beautifully designed, spacious and private banda. We particularly liked the flexibility and the fact that Riaan or Kimberley (the managers) asked us each evening what we would like to do the next day. Even on our last morning we were offered 3 different options and provided with our own vehicle to allow a morning drive, return for breakfast and then a leisurely game drive to the airstrip to catch the 11.30 flight.

The guiding was excellent with both a guide (Daniel in our case) and a driver and the morning drives typically lasted 6 hours with a gorgeous breakfast (the cinnamon roll really is as good as its reputation!) and careful thought taken into which part of the park they would take us on each drive. The park is scenically dramatic and varied and we were lucky enough to see a wonderful variety of game, which was particularly dense around the Ruaha river.

Although we dont chose a camp based on its food, dinners at Mwagusi are a highlight and foster a terrific atmosphere in the camp, which is further enhanced by the presence of the owner Chris Fox.

My only criticism is that the camp undersells itself on its website, such an important influence on travellers today - I would recommend Mwagusi to anyone who wants to retain a real bush atmosphere and high quality guiding with a significant degree of comfort."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Good
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Good
Beho Beho

Beho Beho

"Beho Beho lives up to its reputation"

4 nights Arrived 10 Sep 2009
"We had great expectations of Beho Beho and these were fully met. The Selous combined perfectly with Ruaha, providing different and contrasting scenery and excellent game viewing, while maintaining the feeling of complete isolation. For example we had long game drives to Lakes Tagalala and Manze without seeing another vehicle all day.

While the location of other camps on the Rujifi river in the Selous may have some advantages, particularly in the dry season, the location and views from Beho Beho are stunning and the easy access to the lakes allows tremendous game viewing as the animals move in to drink and the predators follow - we saw 4 separate lion prides. The guiding (Salum and Sean) was top class and evening walks from the camp with Sacha were a particular highlight for us and led to close encounters with elephant, buffalo, giraffe, etc.

The bandas are exceptional and the food and variety of dinner and lunch locations was excellent allowing continual game viewing in the valley below and at the local waterhole where we were lucky enough to see a leopard during dinner. The atmosphere in the camp was excellent and Tam and Sacha's easy manner made us feel very welcome. Beho Beho is luxury in the bush and for us combined very well with the more earthy Mwagusi in the Ruaha."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Good
Facilities
Excellent
Matemwe Lodge

Matemwe Lodge

"Matemwe bungalows very relaxing"

5 nights Arrived 14 Sep 2009
"We spent a very enjoyable 5 nights at Matemwe bungalows.

The room and its location were stunning and watching the sun rise each morning with the fishing boats going by was perfect. In hindsight 3-4 nights would have been ideal and as we were a little restless we opted to hire a car which the lodge helped us to do and at very reasonable cost. This was a great success and allowed us to see more of the island.

The lodge is very relaxed, the food was good and the staff extremely friendly and helpful. We very much enjoyed the reef walk and snorkelling over the Pemba reef. However, we felt other activities were relatively expensive hence the average rating. The beach by the lodge is lovely but the adjoining village beach has major sewage problems, which spoilt our walks along the beautiful coastline somewhat.

This is clearly not the fault of the lodge who are committed to helping the village and reminded us of the huge difference in living standards between the tourists and the locals."
Good
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good

Location
Good
Service
Good
Activities
Average
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Good
Facilities
Good
Zanzibar Palace Hotel

Zanzibar Palace Hotel

"Zanzibar Palace Hotel review"

1 night Arrived 19 Sep 2009
"Expert Africa suggested The Zanzibar Palace Hotel for our night in Stonetown and it proved an excellent choice.

We were not there long enough to really appreciate it but our room was superb, with the highlight a roof top bathroom and veranda from which we watched the sun go down. An excellent dinner was served in the hotel and they went out of the way to make sure breakfast was available before we left at 5.30am.

We would highly recommend."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Good
Service
Excellent
Facilities
Good
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Good

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