Reviews of Bagatelle Game Ranch
Wildlife sightings and reviews
198 independent comments and wildlife information from our travellers who have visited Bagatelle Game Ranch and kindly agreed to share their thoughts. They do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa
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"Bagatelle Kalahari Game Ranch review"
Good food.
Nice location of chalet with pleasant outlook." See all these reviews: 11n in Namibia
"Grass on the red sands (again)"
I was here in 2006 and there was a lot of grass, this year there was a lot more grass. Great stop over which deserves 2 nights." See all these reviews: 12n in Namibia
"Fantastic evening meals, great host!"
The food here was simply amazing, weather permitting you eat outdoors with all the other guests at tables close enough to each other that you can exchange pleasantaries with other guests. The meal is different every day and it's very well-presented. Dishes are carefully chosen and it's buffet-style so you can go back up for seconds!
We did two trips here, a short visit to the cheetah enclosure and a longer sundowner game drive. The cheetahs were great to see up close. The guide on the sundowner drive was great, very chatty and informative. We also went off on our own to walk along the dune, which we'd recommend as you can take things at your own pace and discover things for yourself. However, be aware of the sun - after ten in the morning the heat can start to get very unpleasant, unless you're used to it. Since this was at the start of our trip, we hadn't acclimatized yet. This is a great place for stargazing!" See all these reviews: 16n in Namibia
"Bagatelle Kalahari Game Ranch review"
The Location of the Dune chalets is excellent." See all these reviews: 10n in Namibia; 7n in South Africa
"Bagatelle Kalahari Game Ranch review"
It felt like staying with a family since the place is quite small and homely, with own pet springbok and oryx (Biscuit and Jackie) and the staff were very open and chatty. Having said that, the room was very stylish and cool, with fantastic bath overlooking the Kalahari.
The guide we had was extremely knowledgeable and nice. The setting for dinner outside was amazing and generally the attention to detail was great." See all these reviews: 13n in Namibia
"Bagatelle Kalahari Game Ranch review"
It was a lovely place to start: relaxed, some interesting game viewing, and staff who were all very keen to give us the best of service and conversation, which they did. The cheetah experience with Paul taking us out of the vehicle in the large enclosure, once he had stepped out to give the 3 males their daily feed, was quite something, more than we had expected, and to get within a few metres of cheetah in the open was great. His enthusiasm and well communicated expertise, and that of other staff, was much appreciated.
The dune chalets are very good (air conditioning!) and being set up one of the Kalahari red dune ridges was nice. . In the Bradt Guide, Bagatelle is shown in the wrong place, on the M41 instead of the D1268 on page 182 3rd edition." See all these reviews: 16n in Namibia
"Bagatelle Kalahari Game Ranch review"
The sofa bed in our 'family' room was ok for a one night stay but really only suitable for two small children or one 12yr old - my two twelve yr olds found it uncomfortable and I don't think it would be suitable for an adult.
Paul, our guide was a lovely chap from South Africa and made us very welcome at our first stop" See all these reviews: 12n in Namibia
"A fine end to our trip"
The staff were friendly and attentive and the food very good. It was an extremely fine venue to spend our last night and following morning before our return to Windhoek.
Recommended" See all these reviews: 12n in Namibia
"Bagatelle Kalahari Game Ranch review"
The highlights for us were the very busy meerkat gang, which we spent a long time following, and the four cheetahs that Bagatelle home, particularly the young female that we got really close to." See all these reviews: 13n in Namibia
"A fine start"
Had these been our final nights, we might have been disappointed in the variety of wild life available on view tho' some magnificent sighting of hornbill and lilac breasted roller; guide very fully informed and entertaining.
Keeping, feeding and, in one case, an invitation to pat a cheetah, all rather tacky. Our choice of this venue substantially influenced by advertised resident meer cats - in fact, none were there, absent elsewhere where food was more plentiful.
Highlight - bright fire, cheerful company and exceptional cooking.
Lows - the collection of domesticated 'wild' animals and the phony experience of 'captive' cheetahs." See all these reviews: 25n in Namibia
The "captive" cheetahs at Bagatelle are in a large 12ha area, approved by the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF). The CCF rescues cheetahs from farmers who used to kill cheetahs as vermin, and they have relocated a couple here for their own safety. Bagatelle are happy to take care of these cheetahs.
Bagatelle also has various habituated, almost ‘pet’ animals, including the cheetah, called Pepper, and the meerkats. For various reasons they are very used to humans (whether they were orphaned, hand reared, or have just live close to humans and are now not bothered by them). These animals are free to roam and are not restrained at Bagatelle in any way - hence, the absence of the meerkats when these travellers visited. Apparently they went off foraging for a number of days, but Bagatelle are very happy that they are all back "home" again now!
"Southern Africa Manager"
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