Reviews of Linyanti Bush Camp
(90%) From 34 travellersThey do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa.
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Linyanti Bush Camp review
A very different environment to our previous lodge. For more than 20 years the Linyanti area has been dry but this year it is full of water. Photographically the area is stunning.
The camp is smaller and more intimate than some and very well organised by Noreen and her team. Our guide, Tati, was a lovelly man. He was a real gentleman and tried to give us the best views of the game that he safely could. He was informative and for my money deserved a medal for patience with one tourist who would have tried the patience of a saint. One guest had a birthday whilist we were there and celebrations duly took place including singing by the staff and the cutting of a cake.
The wildlife highlight was the hunting by lions of a herd of buffalo. Whilst we did not see a kill we did track the lions for some time and got many photos and lots of video. For those that like it, the birdlife is superb. After dark a spotlight is used so that the action continues well after sundown. All the water this year meant that there are plenty of mosquitos but nets and repellant are provided to keep the worst at bay.
This is a place where you quickly feel as if you have been a resident for much longer than you actually have. That is a real compliment to the staff. At the time of our visit there was no qualified guide for walking safaris but that will be rectified soon.
Rising waters are changing Linyanti
The Linyanti River below now has water for the first time since 1980 I believe. This has transformed the plain below to a mixture of river and marsh, with lots of reeds. Hippos are much in evidence, we saw a croc too, and it is now great for birdlife of all types.
But whereas before I guess one of the main attractions was sitting on your terrace above the plain viewing the animals, this no longer applies. And because water is everywhere now, the animals can drink anywhere and are no longer concentrated in a few spots even on the river bank.
In the bush and trees back from the river there is still good game viewing though.
The camp, in terms of staff, service and comfort, is very good (except the thermostat on the shower was particularly sensitive!). In recognition of the situation described above, our guide (Anthony - excellent) took us on a full day game drive down to Savuti, which was great and much appreciated as above and beyond his call of duty - almost our last sighting was a leopard! This was a long day though and may not suit everyone.
As the river situation is changing at the moment I'd recommend checking the latest situation with Expert Africa.
Birding in LInyanti
Noreen is an excellent hostess and ensured that the guests interacted - for example by asking everyone for their sighting of the day around the camp fire. The atmosphere is relaxed and easy going and, as in Little Kwara, there is a 'family' feeling.
The tent is well furnished although again the shower was frustrating.
Our guide Tati took to heart our statement that we were interested in birds. Given that we had seen so much wildlife and big game at the other three camps he focused on driving us very slowly through the areas where he pointed out everything, including birds so small we didn't know they were there. He seemed to memorise Anne's sightings list and made a big effort to fill in the gaps. It was, for us, the perfect way to end the series of camps.
The mopane woodland is a different environment and we saw few big animals - but that was because of what we did and the other guests had a number of good sightings.
The walk was interesting - there were five guests and Tati led with Pilot as backup . Pilot discovered that there were lions nearby but they went away before we could see them. Anything can happen on a walk.
There were various routes here which could not be accessed because of the high water levels.
Linyanti Bush Camp review
Excellent guiding from Tati, very keen on birds as well as game, knowledgeable and took the time to impart it.
Great variety of bird life, big game more difficult to view due to Mopane woodland and not being as concentrated as normal because of higher than normal water level, but often felt more rewarding when seen in bush rather than savannah grassland
Very comfortable tents, excellent food
Welcoming and helpful attitude from manager and staff, flexible re meals if guests occupied in guiding.
Just six tents made it feel more personal and allowed us to have the benefit of our own guide and landcruiser for our family of four, which was brilliant
Generally felt less corporate and more welcoming than Ker and Downey at Shinde
Wildlife not as expected. Camp Excellent.
Wonderful area for birds. Dissapointed with the lack of predators. No lion, cheetah, leopard, hyena or wild dogs. We did have a rare veiw of a aardvark. Good to have a walking part to the safari. Camp facilities were excellent and food exceptional. We were the only ones in the camp which made the camp time special.
The main reason we went on a safari was to see wild dogs and predators and we missed them at this camp. Would not recommend this camp for people who want to see a variety of animals.
Linyanti Bush Camp review
We had the camp to ourselves. Brilliant guide (Dennis), brilliant hostess (Gertrude) and brilliant food (London restaurant standard!).
Excellent camp, no reservations about it. (Tho we later became used to having hot water bottles in our beds in other camps - a welcome luxury).
The camp manager Martin was conspicuous by his absence throughout our stay - we felt the staff were compensating for a lack of leadership from him.
Linyanti Bush Camp review
We would normally rate this stay as Excellent but becuase of the unusual amount of water in the area - the plain in front of the camp was now a swamp ! The game was exceedingly sparse - however the white faced ducks were spectacular.
Further, again because of the water our game drives were limited to one small area - we are sure that in a future visit we will see more !
The accommodation is luxurious - for a tent - and having hot water on demand is novel - the layout and 'public areas' were splendid.
The staff were helpful, cheerful, charming and de cho di monate !
Linyanti Bush Camp review
A camp of considerably lower standard that any of the 20 camps I have stayed at on this and previous visits. I would not recommend it to anyone
Read more about the whole safariA Gastronomic Experience at Linyanti
We arrived just before the afternoon game drive but were given a very warm welcome. The literature indicates swamps and vast numbers of game, in fact the swamp area has been dry for 20 years. We did see many of the species we expected but not in huge numbers.
The tents were excellently furnished but rather overheated in the date time and would have benefited from any outside shaded viewing facility. The food was definitely the best we experienced in Botswana.
An ice making facility would be very beneficial. The cold towels on return from the bush were much appreciated.
Expert Africa comments
A few of our travellers have commented on the lack of verandas at Linyanti Bush Camp. As a result of this feedback the owners have now added shaded verandahs and outside seating to each of the tents.
Great introduction to Botswana
Our first stop on a 3-stop safari in Botswana. The rains had just started so the elephants had moved out, but they moved back the next day. We got to see a Serval twice, but no other cats. Good birds.
Read more about the whole safari
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.
