Namibia: reviews from our travellers

"This was very much a 'trip of a lifetime' for us and we certainly weren't disappointed. With the benefit of hindsight it might have been better to visit fewer places and have more time at each, but, the downside is that we wouldn't have seen the range of landscapes etc that we did. Nevertheless, the high mileages we necessarily clocked up meant that what appears on the schedule as 2 or 3 nights, in reality, translates into only 1 or 2 days and we hadn't really factored that in.

With a trip such as this there were 'highlights' just about everyday (which itself tells it's own story) but, that said there was, of course, still a personal 'pecking order' which for us would be this: spending 3 nights/2 full days with Bruno Nebe at Mundulea was, quite simply, a dellight and a real priviledge and was, by a long way, the best highlight for us.

Next would be Zebra River Lodge which was so relaxing and where the welcome and hospitality from our (stand-in hosts) Merle and Thom oozed genuinenss and care (something we found rather llacking at most of the 'up-market' lodges where it felt like everything was done to a standard format of 'one size fits all' mentality rather than looking at the requirements of the individual guest.

Joint 3rd would be our day spent with Allie and the trackers at Desert Rhino Camp and with Wayne, Alexandra and Heidi on the Sandwich Harbour trip. Finally our very sincere thanks to Maruska who organised every part of our trip from start to finish with both professionalism and great proficiency and, at at all times a really friendly disposition - even in the face of my multiple e-mail enquiries and on the occasion when I answered her call on my mobille with a greeting of "Hi babes!" (mistakenly thinking it was my wife Joy calling!!). She was even kind enough to say that it made her day!

On that note thanks once again to Maruska, Chris and all the staff at Expert Africa for masterminding such a wonderful holiday. We are now saving our pennies so that hopefully we can undertake another big trip in the not too distant future" Read full review: 20 nights in Africa; 18 on a Namibia trip

"Brilliant, better than we had expected!

Suggestions for improvement:

No, we felt we were in very good hands and thanks to Tracy." Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 12 on a Namibia trip

"This was our first trip to Africa and we had only a vague idea of what to expect. The whole trip was fabulous. All the arrangements worked. All the staff were friendly, knowledgeable and enthusiastic. All the accomodation was lovely. Even the basic camp on Mboma island was a hoot.

Although we are not birdwatchers, the array of birds pointed out by the guides and spotted by us has made us keen twitchers. Binocculrs are a must. Enjoyed all the food, even the more exotic. The night skies were a treat.

We were a bit surprised to find how cool it was in the early mornings and after sunset and found the ponchos and hot water bottles very useful. Loved the daily sundowner routine. Our highlight was coming upon a cheetah in the early morning and following it for 45mts. There was nobdy else around.

The ballon flight was great fun. skillfully managed by pilot and support staff.

Suggestions for improvements:

I think the way we did ie(Livingstone-Chobe-Linyanti-Khwai) was good. Took too many evening clothes and not enough warm clothes. Picking up the luggage at Jo'burg everytime was a bore and it would be nice to be able trust the security enough to not have to do it. The singing and dancing from the staff at the lodges was hugely enjoyable.

We did spend a lot of time travelling after we left Maun and the drive to and from Kulala was tedious and stressful in parts. Would have preferred a day each in Maun and Windhoek and possibly flown to Kulala as other guests did. The river was ok but could have given it a miss. Overall, it was a fantastic experience which we will recommend to friends" Read full review: 19 nights in Africa; 11 on a Botswana safari

"An excellent experience, well planned.

The distances were OK but with not much to see from the road took up an undue proportion of the holiday time - maybe travelling between locations by light aircraft would be better. The lodges etc. were all very different, which was good, but on a lot of the game drives we tended to see the same animals. We were pleased not to have stayed at any of the camps inside Etosha as they lacked atmosphere but they did look very clean and Okaukuejo's water hole, not to be missed and with good viewing facilities, had an amazing number of wildlife visitors.

There had been a lot of rain this year so the grass was tall and hid e.g. cheetahs which might have been there. The reserves did not have the 'wildness' of e.g. the Masai Mara. We had no problems at all with our bookings and ExpertAfrica are to be congratluated on this and all other aspects." Read full review: 19 nights in Africa; 16 on a Namibia trip

"Marvellous (despite the problems with air Namibia)

Suggestions for improvements:

I honestly can't think of any suggestions. The service you offer has been excellent & we are also grateful for your ongoing help while we sort out our insurance claims" Read full review: 21 nights in Africa; 15 on a Namibia trip

"This was our third trip to Africa and certainly one of our best.

Our itinerary as prepared by Expert Africa perfectly and the recommendations of our agent, Gwynneth, for Xigera in Botswana, and Erongo Wilderness Lodge and Olive Grove Guest House in Namibia, lived up to our expectations.

We like the flexibility of being able to combine our own travel arrangements with those made for us by Expert Africa." Read full review: 34 nights in Africa; 12 on a Namibia trip

"The holiday was like no other, it was a wonderful, exciting experience, the people are extremly helpful and a lot of fun.

It was really good to see that they are so passionate about their country and that recycling has really taken off here, everyone seems to take it so seriously.

The scenary and wildlife are incredable. A really memorable time was had by all of us." Read full review: 16 nights in Africa; 10 on a Namibia trip

"Namibia was stunning and the perfect destination for a fly-drive. Due to the heavy rains that they have experienced this year we feel that a 2wd car is insufficent for some of the gravel roads and would recommend vehicles with more clearance or a 4x4.

We have no hesitation in recommending Namibia as wonderful destination

Suggestions for improvements:

Keep the good work up." Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 7 on a Namibia trip

"The whole Honeymoon trip to Namibia was absolutely fantastic. Working for an airline for many years we have both travelled to many exotic places. We wanted to go somewhere different and do something different for our honeymoon. This was the best trip that we have ever been on.

We would not normally book through an agent but Expert Africa were excellent and veyr attentive to the details. The are extremely knowledgeable about the lodges and the area and this really is an excellent service that they provide. Normally we wouldn't trust someone to guide us so much with an itinerary or accommodation. We had a rough idea of where we wanted to go and what we wanted to do but Sabina was excellent at putting this all together and arranging everything. She was responsive and quick to follow up on any questions that we had. I would highly recommned Expert anytime for a trip to Africa!

One thing that we felt was that the private lodges were much more luxurious and attentive to their guests than the Wilderness camps. we liked the Wilderness camps but you could certainly feel the difference between the privately managed and owned ones compared to the larger Wilderness camps management and company.

As for the trip itself it was truly amazing and we would love to go back at some point as we fell in love with the country. we loved the fact that you have the freedom to drive around yourself through the parks and can stay in such luxurious lodges with a variety of activites.

We were blown away by the whole experience. We would like to thank Sabina for all of her help in making it such a great trip.

Suggestions for improvement:

I would just encourage you to invest in your people and the FAM trips to the various locations, particularly in these harder economic times, as i think this is really what makes your service stand out and go above and beyond. We really trusted your service and advice and this made it so much easier with all of the other wedding preparations and took away a lot of the stress. The whole customer experience was spot on. Well done to you all. This is something that i strive for, as a manager in the travel trade, with my staff .!" Read full review: 16 nights in Africa; 13 on a Namibia trip

"We thoroughly enjoyed our trip and all of the help and assistance that the team provided - especially Gywneth was more than appreciated!!!

Gwyneth was so helpful before and during our trip!!!! Thank you!! We found all of the information/maps/notes etc provided by the team to be invaluable for our trip and Chris's book was brilliant!!

The highlighted map was a must and we would have been lost (quite literally) without it!!!! We will definitely be recommending expert africa to our friends and family!!!!" Read full review: 22 nights in Africa; 14 on a Namibia trip