Reviews of Lake Manze Adventure Camp
(93%) From 181 travellersThey do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa.
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Lovely friendly camp
We are only rating this as good simply because it is a very tired camp that desperately needs some money invested in it. Sadly the tents are extremely well worn and need replacing.
All that said, we thoroughly enjoyed our stay here. The resident managers were on a well earned holiday and it was being managed by Malcolm, who in the nicest possible way was a well liked crazy Italian and we had some extremely entertaining conversations during the evening meal.
All meals are taken together on one table and the food was served to you. Although the food was edible it was uninspiring compared to other camps. Each evening Malcolm asked what we wanted to do the following day and you ordered early morning wake up call with coffee brought to your tent, however on 2 mornings this was forgotten.
Expert Africa comments
We are sorry to hear that these travellers found the safari tents at Lake Manze to be in a poor condition. We have since spoken to the camp about these issues and they have told us that a number of the tents are due for refurbishment and replacement and eight of the twelve tents have already been attended to. Unfortunately tent no. 3 where these guests stayed is one of the last to require attention. The camp regrets that these guests did not receive their early morning tea or coffee on two occasions, and the system is being revised to make sure this does not happen again. We will monitor the situation over the coming months and keep up to date with any developments.
very much like we had imagined
beautiful camp site, at the moment without lake/waterhole. The animals, lions and elefants included, sometimes crossed the camp. interesting safaris with lots of sightings, very informative guide. Nice tents and exellent food.
Read more about the whole safariSimply perfect!
Location and accommodation gave us the feeling of really being in the wild without compromising too much on comfort.
Hosts are knowledgeable and seem to really take an interest in their guests and care about giving them a great experience. The hosted dinners were always good fun.
Our guide and our driver were awesome as well - went out of their way to make sure we got to see what we came to see and experience. We had our own guide/driver team for almost the entire stay.
Highly recommended!
So Much To See and Do
We stayed here for 4 nights following on from a 4 night stay at Mdonya Old River Camp. I have to say we loved both places. In many ways the camps are quite similar but the scenery and game viewing are very different.
Our tent here was very similar to that at Mdonya, comfortable without being luxury. The food was also straightforward and very good - we particularly enjoyed the bush breakfasts and lunches. In the evening it was fun to eat together with the other guests and Millie and Shaun, the managers, at one large table under the stars.
At Lake Manze you can do game drives, boat safaris and walking safaris. Each evening Shaun comes round to ask what you want to do the following day and then works out the logistics of making sure everyone is happy. During our stay we shared most of our activities with another couple who we got on very well with.
We really enjoyed our boat safaris with Abdullah. This guy clearly loves being on the water and was keen to make sure we saw everything. He was very good at pointing out the birds and giving us information about them. We also saw several monitor lizards digging up crocodile eggs and eating them, as well as loads of hippos, some terrapins and various other mammals who came to the water to drink..
Our game drives with Ally and Elie were also great fun. Ally was an experienced driver and Elie was a young but very knowledgeable guide. The were both enthusiastic about showing us all types of wildlife from small owlets and bats to lions and crocodiles eating their kills. They were also good company and fun to be with. By the time we left they were also our friends.
Shaun and Millie do a good job running the camp and are always around to make sure everything is going smoothly. They were also very responsive to any requests we made and were keen to make sure everyone had a good time.
All in all we had a great stay here,
My favorite view at Lake Manze
Of the three camps I stayed at, Lake Manze had the best view right from the camp, with a stream of elephants sauntering by our dinner table the first night. This was the one place where I decided to take an afternoon off from game drives, and just sit and watch.
The hosts, Shawn and Milly, were warm and friendly and enthusiastic about life in the bush, and always there to see us off on a game drive, or greet us upon return. The food was excellent and they were very good about catering to the vegetarian while I was in camp.
I would have the same advice for Expert Africa here as for Mdonya - give a clearer idea about the tipping as the guide, the driver and the general staff each expect $10 per day. Also, in each camp, I was directed to a small store and encouraged to by local handicrafts. I would have not had a problem doing this, had I not been squeezed for cash. Thanks!
Expert Africa comments
Tipping is a tricky subject. Our travellers come from a variety of different countries, and so have a variety of different tipping cultures in their home locations; plus each safari camp has different advice and different tipping practices. So for us to give out universally good and specific advice on anyone's trip is a challenge.
We've started to address this need for advice with a new Tipping in Tanzania page. We want to revise this over time to improve it; if any of this site's readers have constructive suggestions or thoughts, as to how we can modify this further to improve it, please let us know.
2nd visit, enjoyed as much as 1st one.
Wonderfull tented camp with wildlife regularly walking through camp.
The management team of Shaun & Milly great hosta and fun to share the evening meal with Staff very freindly and guides extremely knowledgeable, not just about the animals but about the birds aswell. This time we went during the dry season and saw about the same amount of game as during the wet season although everywhere looked nicer during the rainy season.
Main highlights were finding a juvenile leopard then her mother and of course, seeing the pack of wild dogs, also the lioness with her 4 new born cubs and a freshly killed Wildebeeste.
All in all, a camp we would highly reccommend.
Lake Manze Adventure Camp review
The facilities at Lake Manze are exactly as portrayed on the website - not as luxurious as some of the camps but kept spotlessly clean at all times and perfectly adequate for the time spent there. It is great to be able to see the animals from your bed as soon as you wake up.
What is exceptional is the service and atmosphere created by Shaun and Mellie. Nothing was too much trouble, we were asked each evening what we would like to do the following day and everything was tailored to our wishes. There are even very cold drinks and ice - a welcome treat after a hot drive.
Although we expected to share activities, every drive and boat trip was exclusive to us. Adam and Ally were a dream team of guide and driver. Adam was very knowledgeable and Ally could spot anything there was to see. It was lovely to be able to get to know them personally. We also had a lady Ranger, Anna, who looked out for us on our walk. Everyone was unfailingly pleasant and cheerful with a good sense of humour.
A real Safari Camp
This camp really lived up to its billing as one that concentrated on the safari experience without any unnecessary extras.
Shawn and Milli are excellent hosts, friendly and well organised. Game drives and boat trips on Lake Manze were always available. You just had to decide the evening before what you wanted to do. A short walk (largely based on botany and dung identification!) was also worth doing.
The location is very good for wildlife with elephants walking through the camp and regular sightings of genets from the dinner table. The guiding and driving were good. The tents were comfortable and food good and plentiful.
Wonderful experience.
A wonderful place, extremely well organised with enthusiastic, friendly, knowledgeable staff - an absolute delight.
The game viewing was excellent both on land and water. The number of animals that wandered through the camp was fantastic.
The food was good, wine choice and price also good and laundry brilliant!
Good safari
Had been there 5 years before and really enjoyed the boat safari and seeing dozens of bee-eaters nesting - this (bee-eater viewing) was not accessible now, yet it was still quoted in the room list of available activities
Read more about the whole safari
We have always believed that acting responsibly is the only way to approach tourism and we're one of
the few companies to hold AITO's original coveted 5-star status for responsible tourism. It's a lead
that others are now following.
