Reviews of Nxamaseri Lodge

"Fantastic location on an island in the Okavango panhandle. The trip from the tar road to the camp is even scenic and interesting.

We liked having a personal guide (Phoraki Ngoro "Mr. P") for the 3 days we spent here. If you missed a photo from the right angle with the right lighting (eagle plucking up a fish, for example), he will ensure that you get a second chance at the shot, including finding another fish! Great guide!

No big animals here, but plenty of birds, crocs and fish.

Communal dining makes it easy to talk to other guests, however the lodge owner does not live on site, so you have to interact with managers who tend to have a "commercial" attitude. The day trip to the Tsodilo hills was expensive and disappointing: the rock paintings are not as good as in e.g. Namibia, the bushman village is a disaster and the drive takes forever.

Nxamaseri is still an excellent place to get a feel for the Okavango delta while easily accessible by car.

We were very fortunate to meet and speak with Brad Bestling whose family retook ownership of the lodge. He is a diver and at the time was working with a film crew. A three-year research is underway studying crocodiles; it was a wonderful experience to hear tidbits about the work. You can watch a video about the research online: "Sixty Minutes: Deadly Encounter
Monday, July 16, 2012; interviewer: Liz Hayes"" See all these reviews: 15n in Namibia; 6n in Botswana; 3n in Zimbabwe

"This is a fantastic place to stay. We were made to feel welcome and were looked after from the first minute to the last. We saw numerous birds (all identified for us), hippos, crocodiles and a variety of plants (with explanations of their use); we learnt to fish and gained a brief insight into the life style of people on the delta. The guide was brilliant. The mokoro trip was a fantastic experience, one of the highlights of our holiday, culminating in a close encounter with a family of hippos.

The hosts were great, the food was good, all the staff were friendly and helpful. Our nut allergy was responded to by taking nuts off the menu during our stay - much appreciated.

The rooms had enough space both inside and on the decking outside and a view different enough from the common area to provide a choice.

A great location with plenty to see and to do. Strongly recommended. This is an excellent place to explore the wide open space in and to experience the emptiness of the delta.

One small detail - the totem pole is not what you might expect if you've seen one in North America and the distance from the town to the south was not quite what the instructions said. We found the guide as much by chance." See all these reviews: 8n in Botswana; 3n in Namibia; 2n in Zimbabwe

"The location in the Okavanga delta is special. Great place to go fishing for tiger fish and bream. We had a few good catches.

The presence of an inernational camera crew with Bratt and his wife, who specialised in diving with crockodiles was very interesting. Good discussions over dinner and around the camp fire." See all these reviews: 7n in Namibia; 6n in Botswana

"We met our guide at the main road as arranged and he was spot on time wise. As we had 4x4 we followed him to the river and left our car there. The trip then by boat to the lodge was amazing and to come round a bend in the river and see the lodge overlooking the river was super.

The management Justine and Chris (relief) could not do enough for us. We could go out on the river when we wanted. The atmosphere was friendly and very helpful and we felt relaxed and comfortable. The guiding was very good and knowledgeable. On leaving we were given packed lunches for which they refused to charge us.

A definite place to return." See all these reviews: 10n in Namibia; 3n in Botswana; 2n in Zambia

"Although a range of activities are advertised, this really is a fishing lodge.

Having said that, Dave's venture into fishing was very successful; Mrs. V felt a bit isolated as she was the only woman there apart from staff. Staff very friendly and hospitable." See all these reviews: 11n in Namibia; 3n in Botswana

"We arrived this place with high expectations, but the manager was not a very friendlly person, and he was both rude and arrogant. However, the fishing and the boat trips were great. We had a great guide named Small, and thanks to him we had two nice days in the panhandle.

If you want to come here you must know beforehand what to do, as the management is not very helpful in suggesting what to see or do. Obviously fishing and birdwatching are the attractions." See all these reviews: 10n in Namibia; 3n in Botswana

"There were indications of some complacency at the more senior level of management in the camp.

That said, everything else about this site and the associated activities were excellent. We enjoyed superb wildlife sightings and thoroughly enjoyed fishing for Tiger Fish with our guide Adam who was superb at his job and very knowledgable about the fauna." See all these reviews: 13n in Namibia; 5n in Botswana; 3n in Zimbabwe

"Fanrtastic arrival by 4WD & boat (no other way!) at a perfect location and we had the lodge to ourself! Very sociable hosts who joined us in conversation into the early hours!

Excellent activities - especially if you're into fishing & bird life - our guide ('Small') was first class & knew where to find the wild life both from the boat & the mokoro. There's not much larger wildlife apart from crocs & the hippos we could hear close by but could not see!

Overall Nxamaseri provides a very enjoyable, relaxing & interesting contrast with other lodges." See all these reviews: 9n in Namibia; 4n in Botswana; 2n in Zimbabwe

"The start of the Nxamaseri experience was very promising given the magical location of the lodge. From that point onwards it turned into a progressive disappointment.

The welcome was mediocre and the first 20 minutes spent on signing liability waivers. Management does not appear motivated and overall service levels were poor. The rooms did not resemble the room used in their advertisement. The only bright light of the stay was Adam the guide. Overall very poor value for money" See all these reviews: 12n in Namibia; 2n in Botswana

"An amazing little hideaway in the Botswana pan handle. The drive from Namibia to the lodge was interesting and easy. Just leave time for border crossings and remember that Botswana is on different time to Namibia sometimes!

The water was high; the papyrus and reeds were thick. At this time of year (May), it was a place for hypnotic boat trips, some tiger fishing and an incredible array of birds. We also did the awesome (and bumpy) day trip to the Tsodilo Hills - a spiritual place with 3000 year old bushmen paintings. We'd highly recommend this.

The lodge itself has been family owned and run for many years and has a unique style and character. However, it has been struggling in recent times and new management has come in with what sound like reasonable plans for re-marketing and updating up it. We hope they keep the same special character and wish them well. The staff are part of the family and our guide, Socks, was excellent!" See all these reviews: 6n in Namibia; 3n in Botswana; 2n in Zambia