Reviews of Siwandu

"The hospitality and the set up at the camp was great. It was really good that we had separate tables at mealtimes because we do not like forced 'getting to know people'. However, the camp did try to force us to get to know other people which was a bit irritating.

The wildlife was not brilliant here. Everything else - the service, the camp, the food etc was great. However, I am not sure we would recommend it because there were long drives without seeing anything." See all these reviews: 13n in Tanzania

"A lovely welcoming camp. Helen was so helpful and accommodated our wishes even when we changed our minds.
We loved the views at lunchtime, sitting around the fire before dinner, eating out under the stars and chatting with our fellow guests in the bar afterwards.

A lovely, cool, spacious tent but not overly keen on the arrangement whereby the flaps tied back afforded a view of the toilet but we did like the outside shower.

Heard interesting and sometimes scary animal noises in the night!
Great boat trips on the lake (including a surprise lunch on the boat)" See all these reviews: 8n in Tanzania; 4n in Zanzibar

"Siwandu was a haven of luxury and rest after the long drives of the Northern safari. The rooms with views of the lake - elephants, hippos and crocodiles was wonderful and showering under the stars so memerable. The pool and lounge area was very nice and the food was London restaurant quality - imaginative and delicious.

We appreciated having lunch on the boat and adored the fly fishing with the crocodiles keeping an eye on us. The walking safari with Allan was magical - I loved all the details of the tracks, birds and animals.

There is not as much big five wildlife as on the northern circuit - but plenty of hippos, crocodiles, lions and hyenas and birds of course. The game drives - two a day always with a sundowner at the end were interesting.

The service - especially from our amazing butler Matthew was superb and so much fun.

If you want a more luxurious time and not be in a jeep all day then this is the perfect place. We were lucky enough to have both experiences and I loved the northern circuit which we did in 8 days and see different parts of Tanzania - which is such a beautiful country with happy, positive and fun people." See all these reviews: 13n in Tanzania

"The staff and the activities organised at Siwandu were excellent. The rooms were comfortable and well appointed.

The only thing that let the camp experience down was the food served in the evenings....the Chef tried too hard to serve fusion local/Western food and failed spectacularly...suggest he simplifies his menus to serve straighforward meat and vegetables." See all these reviews: 12n in Tanzania

"Siwandu is a well run professional operation with very good rooms and meals. The managers take great pride in supporting ecological endeavours and making the camp a part of the environment. The meals were very good and it was wonderful having a pool available during the day. We saw a great variety of wildlife which often required some off-road exploration." See all these reviews: 7n in Tanzania; 4n in Zanzibar

"Siwandu was our 4th safari lodge in mainland Africa starting in the Masai Mara, then more recently Botswana and Kruger. We chose Selous because of its reputation as a less touristy reserve as was the case. The welcome was very good from the airstrip and to the lodge. The tents (really?) were excellent. Lovely views to the lake with wildlife wandering through regularly. Facilities were very good with good protection from bugs and mosquitoes. We can't fault the accommodation.

We are not fussy and fully understand wildlife can be fickle and unpredictable but viewing was not as good as Botswana or Kruger (Kenya was 32 years ago so not a fair comparison). Surprised leopards were rare and we expected more buffalo (we saw one lone bull). If you want to see a giraffe, then go here! We got the impression that the wildlife on the other side of the lake was better during our trip over there. We were very surprised that safari's normally started at 8am. Everywhere else we've visited started at dawn and we wonder if that may account for it. We were invited to an early start on one morning which, co-incidentally, was a boat trip across the lake to meet up with the land rover and the best viewing. By no means was it bad but, on our visit, not the best.

The food quality and quantity was very good. The service generally was excellent and any specific requests (tea in the tent) were no bother. The breakfasts in the bush, lunch on the lake and dinner under the stars were great.

We had one trip where the guides forgot to offer a coffee/rest break so we spent some four hours in the vehicle. We feel sure this was due to our guides trying to find some wildlife and just forgetting the sensitivities of tourists. We mentioned this to Conrad and he dealt with it for future trips.

We certainly enjoyed the safari experience here and would thoroughly recommend it for location, accommodation and food. The variety of wildlife may deter some visitors (if ours was typical)." See all these reviews: 12n in Tanzania

"Siwandu is beautiful and your photos on your website do not do it justice. Your advice on rooms was spot on and we had the two that we requested.

The service that we received was outstanding, being allocated our own 'Bush Butler' , room cleaner and guide. It felt as if there was a fabulous culture at the camp, with all enjoying their jobs. Max and Mohamed did a fabulous job of looking after us and we were sad to leave them.

It was nice to have a range of activities, along with the flexibility of being able to choice what we did and when. A highlight of the stay was to be told that we were having lunch on the boat on the lake one day. There we were as a family of four with Max, a chef and boat driver being served a beautiful lunch amongst the hippos and crocodiles. Very special.

We specifically enjoyed drinks around the 'Bush TV' (the fire) with all, before being able to eat as a family under the stars, watching the elephants stroll past and the bush babies in the tree." See all these reviews: 10n in Tanzania

"This was our first safari in Tanzania having been to South Africa, Namibia and Botswana previously.

The selous was so different in terms of the diversity of the terrain and it didn't disappoint. We had some great sighting aided by the passionate and knowledgable guides. Siwandu camp was superb and every member of staff seemed genuinely pleased to have us there. The food was great with plenty of choice.

Our luxury tent style accomodation was also very good although I think the lavatory needs to have a bit of a screen around it for a little bit of privacy.

Would definitely recommend Siwandu to anyone." See all these reviews: 18n in Tanzania

"We spent four nights at Siwandu. It is an excellent camp, very well managed by Conrad and his team. Very comfortable tented rooms well spread out from each other and overlooking the large lake. We enjoyed the variety of game viewing activities - drives, boating and walking.

It had been unseasonally wet for two weeks before we arrived, so there were areas of Selous that were inaccessible. Consequently we were unable to find most of the predator species during our stay, although we did see a pack of wild dogs. However, there were remarkable densities of several other animals, notably giraffe and zebra as well as impala, along with sightings of less common species such as kudu, waterbuck and eland. Being the green season, the bird life was prolific. Flocks of carmine bee-eaters around the safari vehicle were particularly spectacular.

Our guide, Mohamed, was very knowledgeable and competent, as was Allen, who led our game walk." See all these reviews: 11n in Tanzania

"Very good service from helpful and attentive staff. Dinners under the stars as in the bush. The tents are very comfortable, too dark, lamps should be brighter.

Game drives were well organised and lunch at the boat perfect! I enjoyed Allan our guide, he really is very experienced.

The airstrip could not be used for arrival nor for departure due to the heavy rains, but everything was an adventure." See all these reviews: 6n in Tanzania