Reviews of Pioneer Camp
(76%) From 62 travellersThey do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa.
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Pioneer Camp review
For an overnight stop the close location to the airport was good though we were surprised to be on dirt roads for most of the journey as the camp is out in the countryside.
The chalet was smart, clean and spacious and bar/restaurant had a bit of good character with reasonably priced drinks. Pioneer arranged the transfers perfectly and collected and delivered bags to our chalet.
Not to the standards of service as the safari camps but perfectly OK.
Good place to stay on arrival
Pioneer Camp is great for the night on arrival. The cabin was comfortable and we had a good dinner and breakfast. Evertone was very helpful and friendly. However if I was staying longer I would choose to stay nearer the city as Pioneer Camp is located out of town and there is not much to do here if you don't have a vehicle.
Please note that only soap is provided in the bathroom. You need to bring shampoo etc.
Expert Africa comments
Pioneer Camp apologised for the lack of complimentary toiletries during these guests visit. The camp tells us that they usually supply soap, shampoo and lotion in each bathroom but that they recently had some problems with their supplier. They've since changed suppliers and things are now back to normal.
Pioneer Camp also wanted us to note that they can offer transport to town and back (about 30 minutes each way), and that they can also offer tours of the city or to a nearby private game farm.
Nice place close to airport
Pioneer Camp was close to the airport, buzzing with activity from other campers/guests preparing to head home.
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Pioneer Camp review
Our arrival transport did not arrive, but we were given a lift by a friendly Zimbabwean chap who seemed to have some connection with Pioneer, so all was well. After the individual pampering of Nkwali and Tena Tena, Pioneer was a bit of a re-entry to normality, but we enjoyed that as an experience. It was fun sharing a larger area with groups of campers doing self drive, The chalets were spacious if a little underlit/gloomy.
The Manager was friendly and diligent and helped us do our online check in. We hadn't been aware that Lusaka is much higher than Luangwa, so found it chilly. Food was good and operated on a useful pre-order system so that the chef could prepare well and our excellent meals turned up on time. Transport back to the airport was on time and good.
Pioneer, clearly is in a different league to Nkwali and Tena Tena, but it serves its purpose very well
Pioneer Camp review
Pioneer Camp provides an excellent overnight location close to the airport at Lusaka. And although we did not have the time, I'm sure it's closeness to Lusaka itself would also be handy.
Very nice rooms in private locations. The meals at the restaurant were very good.
Homeward bound
Satisfactory as a stopover for an early morning flight from Lusaka.
Read more about the whole tripPioneer Camp review
This was a nice enough camp - fairly basic in terms of amenities. The bed was comfortable. The room was very large, so plenty of room to spread out. The bathroom was a bit strange – the shower/tub combination was strangely constructed. The tub itself is embedded in the floor and rather large and deep. The shower head is high above the tub. In order to enter the tub/shower, you had to step up above the lip of the tub and then down rather far into the tub itself, so this requires a bit of dexterity and balance.
I didn't use it anyway since I didn't get any hot water. I was leaving rather early in the morning, and I ran the hot water for around 15-20 minutes and never got any hot water, so I just didn't bother.
I ran into a number of people during my holiday who stay at Pioneer Camp – mainly as an overnight hotel close to the airport for early departing flights. It fulfills that need fairly satisfactorily. It's about 30 minutes from the airport.
I had a continental breakfast in the morning, and it was fine. What's nice is that there's free wi-fi here, and it worked fine and was fast enough. They were also nice enough to allow me to print out my e-ticket for my proflight flights the next morning on their printer.
Pioneer Camp review
Just a stay over before returning home. See first comment
Read more about the whole tripPioneer Camp review
Might be a short distance from the airport but a very long off-road ride in a taxi - once the taxi driver eventually appeared to meet us at the airport, after we'd contacted you; we think he was chatting with his mates and simply forgot about us. if I hadn't had a working mobile, what then?
Service would be "good" apart from that, they allowed us to check in for our BA flight home.
Pleasant enough spot but a come-down after the Delta, mostly South African backpackers and selfdrivers who weren't overly sociable.
Pioneer Camp review
some more attention from staff concerning breakfast would help. The owner, Paul, works hard and is a nice guy.
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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.
