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The Highlands
The Highlands
The Highlands
The Highlands
The Highlands
The Highlands
The Highlands
The Highlands
The Highlands
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The Highlands
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The Highlands
The Highlands
The Highlands
The Highlands

Reviews of The Highlands

Wildlife sightings and reviews

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

Wildlife sightings by our travellers
Starting in Aug-2018, 13 of our travellers have recorded their wildlife sightings at The Highlands.
Lion

83% success

Leopard

9% success

Wild dog

30% success

Zebra

100% success

Buffalo

83% success

Hippo

83% success

Spotted Hyena

83% success

Wildebeest

82% success

Elephant

75% success

Black Rhino

50% success

Eland

45% success

Aardvark

0% success

Pangolin

0% success

Striped Hyena

0% success

Showing 1-10 of 25
Duration
Arrival date
Mr & Mrs E
Croydon

"The Highlands review"

2 nights Arrived 21 Sep 2023
"We stayed for 2 nights at The Highlands as part of our 2 week safari holiday. We were collected from a different Asilia camp and driven over to Ngorogoro by our guide Godlisten. He was a fantastic guide and extremely informative throughout our few days with him.

The drive up to The Highlands is long and bumpy, but as long as you know to expect that it’s not a problem, and the amazing views at the top more than make up for any bumps. We actually found it good fun, and it was really interesting going past the Masai villages, and navigating through people out with their cows and sheep.

The accommodation at The Highlands was beautiful. It was so different from the other camps we stayed at during our trip. We were greeted on arrival with drinks and snacks while everything was explained to us. Our room attendant Jeseka kept the room looking perfect and made sure the fire was lit and everything was cosy in the evening.

The bar is a great place to meet other guests and hear about their experiences. The option to eat together is brilliant idea, and although we did choose to have a quiet meal alone on the first night after the long drive, eating with the other guests on the next night was great fun.

The food was delicious and we were kept entertained by our waiter Eugine, who helped my husband with his Swahili." See all these reviews: 9n in Tanzania; 4n in Zanzibar
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

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

Black Rhino

1 sighting

Buffalo

5 sightings

Eland

1 sighting

Elephant

2 sightings

Hippo

5 sightings

Lion

2 sightings

Spotted Hyena

5 sightings

Wildebeest

5 sightings

Zebra

7 sightings

Mrs K.
Nice

"The Highlands review"

2 nights Arrived 7 Sep 2023
"getting to the highlands requires quite a distance over bad roads. but the trip was well worth it. it is a lovely camp with great accommodations. we especially enjoyed the fireplace and the hot water bottles to chase away the nighttime cold. and it was chilly! quite different from our first camp.

service was excellent as was the food. and our trip into the ngorongoro crater was very special due to our guide. we saw a great variety of animals and birds. a fabulous experience." See all these reviews: 14n in Tanzania
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

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

Zebra

Multiple sightings

Dr/Mrs F
Texas

"The Highlands review"

3 nights Arrived 30 Aug 2023
"Highlands was a unique camp architecturally and design wise.

The staff and guides were friendly and helpful. We enjoyed Kaenel (sp?), our guide. He worked so hard to get us to spots that might hold certain animals as well as make sure we saw the high points of the crater area.

We liked the time spent with the Masai, cultural guide, Peter. He was a lovely person." See all these reviews: 10n in Zambia; 9n in Tanzania; 4n in South Africa; 1n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

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

Black Rhino

1 sighting

Buffalo

10 sightings

Eland

Multiple sightings

Elephant

4 sightings

Hippo

10 sightings

Leopard

Multiple sightings

Lion

10 sightings

Spotted Hyena

Multiple sightings

Wildebeest

10 sightings

Zebra

10 sightings

Mr & Mrs R
California

"The Highlands review"

3 nights Arrived 21 Jul 2023
"The domes are fun. BUT they are too hot when the sun shines (one door, no windows), and they are far too cold at night. We could have asked for the fire to be re-lit at 2am, but who wants people doing that when you are trying to sleep. They need to provide electric blankets for all -easy fix. (Also, they need photochromatic glass, and insulated glass, which is harder).

And the road to the action in Ngorongoro is long and painful, meaning earlier starts in the morning." See all these reviews: 11n in Tanzania; 4n in Rwanda
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Average

Location:
Poor
Service:
Excellent
Rooms:
Good
Food:
Excellent
Mrs G.& Mr H.
Moelln

"The Highlands review"

3 nights Arrived 6 Sep 2022
"It was my wish to visit this lodge, but we didn't like it too much.
First: It is a very long ride from the airstrip to the camp (2 1/2 hour). The roads are very bad.
Second: We were not lucky and had a lot of rain. It was very cold in the rooms. They had a fireplace, that put the room to a nice temperature, but later on the fire went off in the night, so it was very cold (3 degrees celsius in the morning). Of course they told us, that we can phone someone, to put the fire on again, but we think that it is not very nice to get someone out to our room, just for lighting the fire again.
Third: Some of the staff couldn't speak Englisch very well, so it was sometimes difficult to understand what they said.
Fourth: Our guide was more than a driver. He just took us to the places we wanted to go and then there was not much more he did for us. We made the hiking to the Empakaai and to the waterfalls, but he never went with us. We saw other guides who did so. The drive in the crater was ok.
At least the visit of the Massai village wasn't so nice. It was about 60 Dollars we have to pay for and we stayed there one hour, just walking around a little. At the end there were a lot of women presenting their stuff and we were told before, that we have to bring a little money for buying something. The prices weren't small, one little plate, where you can put your wineglass on, was 10 Dollars." See all these reviews: 21n in Tanzania
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Average

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

Black Rhino

1 sighting

Buffalo

10 sightings

Hippo

5 sightings

Lion

2 sightings

Spotted Hyena

1 sighting

Wildebeest

10 sightings

Zebra

10 sightings

Ms E.
London

"The Highlands review"

3 nights Arrived 27 Aug 2022
"We loved the modern feel to the place. Staff and food were great. Our guide Emmanuel was well informed and personable.

It gets very cold there even with a fire in the room. The staff did there best and even ordered an electric blanket for my husband.

We would have liked the option for longer hikes (around the lake in the crater)." See all these reviews: 11n in Tanzania; 6n in Zanzibar; 1n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good

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

Buffalo

Multiple sightings

Elephant

Multiple sightings

Hippo

Multiple sightings

Lion

Multiple sightings

Spotted Hyena

Multiple sightings

Wildebeest

Multiple sightings

Zebra

Multiple sightings

Simona
London

"The Highlands review"

2 nights Arrived 24 Jul 2022
"This was a fantastic lodge. The location is amazing, the staff really friendly, the rooms super-comfortable.

It can get cold at night and early morning, so dress up!" See all these reviews: 5n in Tanzania; 3n in Zanzibar
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

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

Buffalo

Multiple sightings

Eland

Multiple sightings

Elephant

Multiple sightings

Hippo

Multiple sightings

Lion

Multiple sightings

Spotted Hyena

Multiple sightings

Wildebeest

Multiple sightings

Zebra

Multiple sightings

Mr & Mrs A.
Oregon

"The Highlands review"

2 nights Arrived 4 Oct 2021
"This is a truly unique and magical place.

The staff and service were amazing, the accommodation exceeded our expectations and views were beautiful.

The food was very good and we loved having a drink at the cool bar tent before dinner.

We also enjoyed the educational walk with a Masai guide from the camp to a nearby Masai village. We really felt like part of the family that lived there." See all these reviews: 11n in Tanzania
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

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

Buffalo

10 sightings

Elephant

10 sightings

Hippo

10 sightings

Lion

Multiple sightings

Spotted Hyena

Multiple sightings

Wildebeest

10 sightings

Zebra

10 sightings

Ms T.
OC, CA

"The Highlands review"

3 nights Arrived 16 Sep 2021
"Property is gorgeous. Staff is excellent. Room was great, though it definitely got warm in the late afternoon - staff brought us a fan which helped along with keeping the door open.

We enjoyed the separate bar area (very cozy!) and drinks before dinner. Also really appreciated that the chef confirmed the menu for the day and was able to adjust to preferences.

My only issue is it was way too much food every time! Appreciated the variety but two meats and six sides for two people is just too much and felt wasteful.

I really enjoyed the Olmoti hike - the view from the top is just stunning. It is difficult though - steep and there’s hardly a path. Having the Maasai and ranger guides definitely helped!" See all these reviews: 11n in Tanzania
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

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

Black Rhino

1 sighting

Buffalo

10 sightings

Elephant

5 sightings

Hippo

4 sightings

Lion

4 sightings

Spotted Hyena

5 sightings

Wild dog

5 sightings

Wildebeest

10 sightings

Zebra

10 sightings

Mrs M & Mr D
Germany

"The Highlands review"

2 nights Arrived 5 May 2021
"Definitely a unique place to stay in the Ngorongoro NP at 2700m above sea level. The architecture and views are just amazing.

The camp is nicely located away from the crowds, and therefore ideal for those looking for more than just the normal Ngorongoro safari. The camp offers various cultural activities (suspended during Covid), as well as highly recommended guided hikes to the Empakaai and Olomoti crater.

The staff was very friendly and food was very good too.

Compared to other Asilia properties visited, the Covid 19 protocol was probably handled a little less strictly." See all these reviews: 12n in Tanzania
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good

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

Zebra

Multiple sightings

Showing 1-10 of 25
91%
25 reviews of The Highlands by travellers since August 2007
Overall rating by our travellers
16
7
2
0
0
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