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Pelo Camp
Pelo Camp
Pelo Camp
Pelo Camp
Pelo Camp
Pelo Camp

Reviews of Pelo Camp

Wildlife sightings and reviews

10 independent comments and wildlife information from our travellers who have visited Pelo Camp and kindly agreed to share their thoughts. They do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa

Wildlife sightings by our travellers
Starting in Jul-2019, 5 of our travellers have recorded their wildlife sightings at Pelo Camp.
Lion

75% success

Leopard

25% success

Cheetah

0% success

Wild dog

50% success

Buffalo

100% success

Elephant

100% success

Hippo

100% success

Wildebeest

100% success

Giraffe

80% success

Sitatunga

80% success

Zebra

75% success

Spotted Hyena

25% success

Aardvark

0% success

Black Rhino

0% success

Pangolin

0% success

Roan antelope

0% success

Sable antelope

0% success

White Rhino

0% success

Showing 1-10 of 10
Duration
Arrival date
Pete & Nancy
Stockton

"Pelo Camp review"

3 nights Arrived 23 Oct 2023
"Pelo is a small, intimate, fairly rustic camp that is well maintained with very comfortable accommodations and tents well spaced out. Tents are built on a platform with a porch out front facing the seasonal floodplain. We spent warm afternoons on the patio in the shade, wrapped in a damp kikoy to keep cool. The temperatures were very hot, up to 104 °F, toward the end of October. We made good use of the ceiling fan in the tent. There is only a curtain to separate the toilet from the single-sink vanity and shower; so not a lot of privacy. There is WiFi in the tents and a charging station on a desk with South Africa-type socket and a UK and universal socket.

The central lounge, dining area and bar also sits on an elevated platform and is shaded by large trees and overlooks the seasonal floodplain. We enjoyed breakfast inside the dining area with a nice view. Breakfast started with a buffet of cold cereal, yogurt, fruit and muffins with a hot breakfast cooked to order if we wished. Lunch was a buffet. Dinner under the stars was beautiful and began with a starter, then a buffet of salads, vegetables and meats with dessert to finish. The food was varied and really delicious with lots of vegetables and salads in addition to meats. The pool is just beyond and is connected by a path; it’s a good place to cool off in the afternoon.

The water level in late October was too low for boating activities, but still high enough for a mokoro excursion. It was a peaceful experience and we had a very good viewing of a sitatunga twice along the way. There were lots of birds too.

Game drives were surprisingly productive given the warm temperatures. The waterways that remain are populated with many birds and red lechwe are common. We were fortunate, thanks to our guide Jhonny’s great instincts, to see a small pack of painted wolves (wild dogs) one evening during sundowner; he knew just where they were likely to cross a marshy area after seeing them earlier in the day. We gave chase and watched from a respectful distance for quite a while. We saw lots of elephants and buffalo, some zebra and tsessebe and a few lions.

There is an electric fence surrounding camp to deter elephants from breaking down the trees, but the fence is high enough to allow other wildlife to pass through camp. For that reason, we had to be escorted from our tent in the morning and back to it after dinner. In the daytime we were free to walk on our own but warned to keep an eye out for wildlife.

We thoroughly enjoyed our time at Pelo. The staff went out of their way to give us an enjoyable experience. We really enjoyed dinner and singing in the boma one evening. The landscape is beautiful with large open grassy plains, waterways, and many tree islands. Next time we will visit earlier in the season so we can enjoy the boating activities in addition to game drives and mokoro excursions." See all these reviews: 12n in Zambia; 10n in Botswana; 6n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Buffalo

8 sightings

Elephant

10 sightings

Giraffe

5 sightings

Hippo

5 sightings

Lion

1 sighting

Sitatunga

4 sightings

Spotted Hyena

3 sightings

Wild dog

2 sightings

Wildebeest

4 sightings

Zebra

4 sightings

A & K
Cambridge

"Pelo Camp review"

3 nights Arrived 22 Nov 2022
"A bit of a mixed bag to be honest. Camp was lovely and staff (with one exception) were charming.

Our welcome was not great and there were issues with catering for our dietary requirements due to (it would appear) our requests not being passed on to the kitchen. However, once we made our concerns known, the food dramatically improved, and we finished on a high with a celebratory last dinner on the deck replete with champagne – all delicious it was too. Chefs were superb. Food is help yourself buffet. Maybe better if like other camps, main course could be pre-ordered to save food being cooked unnecessarily?

Our guide Lesh was charming and knowledgeable. He was competent on birds but not outstanding. Nevertheless, the birding here was possibly the best of the three camps - which more than compensated for us for the lack of big predator sightings. While we were aware that his was supposed to be a ‘water-based’ activity camp, the water levels had fallen to such an extent that the camp had reverted to more traditional game driving. Take this into account when booking. Lesh did take us on a great walking safari as well.

Our tents (with solid sliding doors) were comfortable if not quite as well equipped as our previous camps. We think some attention to maintenance is due ( e.g. a broken shower bottle holder resulted in smashed glass in the shower).

To make up for the lack of game sightings – our mokoro trip on the last afternoon was a highlight – a beautiful languorous way to spot birds and animals (some great sightings of the rare Sitatunga antelope).
A
s we said previously, the camp staff were charming but some of them lacked confidence and initiative – and the standing and watching while you eat is a bit disconcerting. Probably better when the camp has more guests – after the first evening we were the sole guests in the camp.

Overall, we’ d say Pelo is a great camp for birding and, when the water levels are high, water-based activities. Not so great for more conventional game viewing through the landscape and flora are fascinating and worth exploring." See all these reviews: 9n in Botswana
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Good
Activities:
Good
Rooms:
Good
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Good
Sightings Report

Buffalo

3 sightings

Elephant

4 sightings

Giraffe

Multiple sightings

Hippo

Multiple sightings

Sitatunga

1 sighting

Wildebeest

Multiple sightings

Mrs & Mr P
Essex

"Pelo Camp review Good substitute for Jacana"

3 nights Arrived 21 Jul 2022
"Our first visit as our favourite camp (Jacana) unavailable. Fairly basic camp but comfortable.

Good sightings of wide variety of birds, and of many animals which aren't on the sighting list eg steenbok. bushbuck,lechwe, crocodiles, warthogs etc.
Lovely location.

Due to good level of water this year, the grass was rather too high to see much from mokoros, but still a lovely experience." See all these reviews: 11n in Botswana; 7n in Namibia
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Good
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Good
Sightings Report

Buffalo

1 sighting

Elephant

9 sightings

Giraffe

1 sighting

Hippo

7 sightings

Sitatunga

2 sightings

Dr&Mrs B
Wensleydale

"Pelo a lovely small camp"

2 nights Arrived 28 Sep 2019
"We chose Pelo as it was a very small camp and usually surrounded by water, concentrating on water based activities.

We liked the small size of the camp and the staff were all very friendly. Due to the lack of water, game drives were on offer and again we had game drives to ourselves with Lech(?). He was very good at making sure I had my binoculars lined up for animal sightings. We saw 2 leopards, a sitatunga. wild dogs as well as many elephants, buffalo etc. We enjoyed a couple of mokoro trips and saw the rare Pels fishing owl, wattled crane and slatey egret.

Although there was wifi in the rooms this was not working whilst we were there.

The only concern was the lack of co-ordination for boat transfers to and from the lodge. When we arrived from the airport and arrived at the water one of the managers had just arrived and after introducing himself he said to Lech there was no petrol in one of the boats so he would have to transfer some from the other boat At the end of the trip we were ready 30 mins before departure and then heard the helicopter, for our return to Maun arrive, admittedly a bit early. However the lodge then realised there was no boat available for our transfer. Lech took us by mokoro so far and then we transferred to the boat which was returning with guests from their game drive. this was therefore a much slower journey and the helicopter pilot had to wait for our arrival and the other guests had longer in the boat." See all these reviews: 6n in Botswana; 2n in Zambia
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Good
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Good
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Buffalo

4 sightings

Elephant

7 sightings

Giraffe

2 sightings

Hippo

4 sightings

Leopard

2 sightings

Lion

1 sighting

Sitatunga

2 sightings

Wild dog

1 sighting

Wildebeest

1 sighting

Zebra

2 sightings

Mrs L
Basingstoke

"Pelo, a lovely island camp"

2 nights Arrived 28 Jul 2019
"Pelo Camp is an island camp surrounded by water but because of the lack of rains there was far less than usual. This meant that whilst mokoro trips were still possible, boat trips were not and had to be substituted by game drives.

The camp is very small and intimate with only five tents. The food was excellent and the staff very friendly and helpful, one evening providing some excellent singing and dancing prior to dinner which took place outside in their boma.

The only downside were the clouds of mosquitoes which are prevalent at this time of year." See all these reviews: 10n in Botswana; 2n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Good
Rooms:
Good
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Good
Sightings Report

Buffalo

5 sightings

Elephant

6 sightings

Hippo

5 sightings

Lion

1 sighting

Wildebeest

2 sightings

Zebra

5 sightings

Mr C
Knaresborough

"Pelo Camp review"

3 nights Arrived 16 Sep 2017
"A good alternative to the land-based camps as the boat trips were more relaxing than game drives (but less exciting!).

We were there for 3 days and we were a bit surprised that we only had one mokoro trip in that time. With hindsight 2 nights here would probably have sufficed.

We really enjoyed our 'traditional' evening in the boma with the attendant choir." See all these reviews: 9n in Botswana; 2n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Good
Activities:
Good
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Good
Facilities:
Excellent
The Diplomat
USA

"A world apart at Pelo Camp"

2 nights Arrived 27 Aug 2017
"Pelo Camp was different from any of my previous 15 safari locations. It is an island and all all the activities that we took were on boats. We shared the motor boat with one other couple twice and had it to ourselves once. Unlike land safaris, boats leave no tracks. So, for the first time in Africa, I felt that i was in total wilderness. It felt as if we were the first people in the places we went, although, of course, we weren't.

David, our guide, was superb. We saw lots of animals of antelopes and elephants and, of course, many wondrous birds. It was a thrill to encounter elephants hidden among the bush on the shore, but also crossing from island to island. The watery scenery with all its plant types--and the compete absence of any sign of humans--was essential to the experience.

The camp is intimate with just five tents so this is a personalized experience, not a group one. I rate the room as average because the toilet is not very private, separated by a curtain from the room. I prefer it to be in its own room as was the case at Sable Alley. However, the views, size and privacy were outstanding. The food was good but nothing special. This is not to complain as Pelo is, after all, a camp in a wilderness. All were excellent considering where we were." See all these reviews: 5n in Botswana
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Average
Food:
Average
Facilities:
Excellent
Mr & Mrs D
Wimbledon

"Pelo Camp review"

3 nights Arrived 21 Sep 2015
"Wilderness has spent a substantial amount of money in upgrading this Lodge. The dining and lounge sitting areas have been repositioned with large decks overlooking the Delta. Tents have been replaced with new tents which have sliding full length doors and side panels and larger decks. The electrical supply has been upgraded with increased new photovoltaic panels.
The management team is well on top of everything and they are charming. Nothing was too much trouble. The guide who we had was very knowledgable and took great trouble to find out what we wanted to do and see." See all these reviews: 9n in Botswana
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Good
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Mr K
Southend On Sea

"Pelo Camp review"

2 nights Arrived 8 Jun 2015
"This camp was every thing I had hoped it would be, calm and relaxed.

The staff were friendly and helpful. The guides were interesting and informative and the managers Newman and Rauve' were exceptionally friendly and welcoming.

I would thoroughly recommend this camp." See all these reviews: 12n in Botswana
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Mr J
Arlington

"Pelo Camp review"

2 nights Arrived 10 Oct 2014
"This is a very friendly camp that is extremely well run. We arrived during the low water season, which meant taking a boat ride through tall weeds and shallow water to get the camp from the airport. That is great part of the overall experience in visiting the Delta region. Along the way we got a chance to see some wildlife and take in the scenery. The camp is very isolated, but because of the attentiveness of the camp staff, really does not feel so primitive.

The camp tents are very nice and feel luxurious in many ways. The beds were really comfortable and placement of the bucket showers outside looking out on the water was a nice touch. All of the electricity is supplied by solar power and batteries, and is more than adequate for all the basic services.

The food and meals were very nice. The food was well prepared and very tasty. The staff was able to join us for lunch and dinner which we appreciated. We were able to enjoy many good conversations and really learn about the area that way.

Our guide John took us out for our boating safaris and did a great job explaining about the area and providing perspective on things. The wildlife viewing was quite good, especially for birds. And we got to do some fishing and take a mokoro trip, which is highly recommended." See all these reviews: 8n in Botswana; 2n in Zimbabwe
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Showing 1-10 of 10
96%
10 reviews of Pelo Camp by travellers since August 2007
Overall rating by our travellers
8
2
0
0
0
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