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Traveller reviews

Travel reviews by S & J from Herefordshire

Review Distribution

Excellent
Good
Average
Poor
Terrible

Total number of trips

3

Countries visited

3

Lodges stayed in

15

Excursions taken

0

My Sep 2022 trip

Zambia between 6 Sep 2022 and 20 Sep 2022

Trip rating: Excellent
"Wonderful trip, planned two years ago and delayed by covid restrictions.

Sadly, my husband had died in the meantime so went on the trip with a friend who had not done this type of safari before. Everything excellent and my friend was encouraged by all staff on the rare occasions when she had a nervous moment."

Arranged By Claire Scott


Pioneer Camp

Pioneer Camp

"Pioneer Camp review"

1 night Arrived 7 Sep 2022
"Convenient place to stay overnight while waiting for domestic flight the following day.

Pleasant enough.

Don't really remember the meal, hence average rating."
Good
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good

Location
Good
Food
Average
Rooms
Good
Robin Pope Safaris Mobile Safari Camp

Robin Pope Safaris Mobile Safari Camp

"Robin Pope Safaris Mobile Safari Camp review"

7 nights Arrived 8 Sep 2022
"Wonderful six days."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Excellent
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Excellent
Rooms
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Kaingo Camp

Kaingo Camp

"Kaingo Camp review"

1 night Arrived 15 Sep 2022
"Lovely friendly camp, beautiful room.

Many thanks for letting two single travelling friends have separate rooms without a single supplement.

Brilliant food."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Excellent
Mwamba Bushcamp

Mwamba Bushcamp

"Mwamba Bushcamp review"

3 nights Arrived 16 Sep 2022
"Loved it.

Beautiful trips to baobab grove and ebony forest and great wildlife."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Good
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Good

Our September 2016 trip

Zambia between 18 Sep 2016 and 28 Sep 2016

Trip rating: Excellent
"All in all, a wonderful trip. More than achieved all our hopes. We were able to walk a lot, which was the main point, apart from a minor hiccup at Nsefu in the afternoons. Game viewing was brilliant, including everything we expected and several superb sightings of wild dogs and leopards. The guides were first class. The camps were most comfortable but still managed to feel as if they belonged in the bush (with slight reservations about Nsefu, see above). Food exceeded expectations, especially the lunches which were absolutely excellent. Wines and other drinks also surprisingly good. Everyone who looked after us at the camps and on the walks and drives was extremely friendly and knowledgeable. We shall certainly plan to do another trip to Zambia, perhaps at a slightly different time of year or in a different area but would particularly like to return to Luwi and Tena Tena. Nsefu would be for one night only as a jumping off point for a mobile camp."

Arranged By Claire Scott


Luwi Bushcamp

Luwi Bushcamp

"Luwi Bushcamp perfect"

2 nights Arrived 18 Sep 2016
"Luwi was one of the two best camps on our trip, the other being Tena Tena. The greeting was exceptionally warm, from Charles and all the staff, the accommodation was perfect, clean, comfortable and yet still part of the bush, and the food excellent. Our guide, Lawrence, had a fund of knowledge yet still made everything fun. To have a pride of lions polishing off an impala while we polished off our own dinner and then to see them running around only a few yards from the camp was particularly impressive. Perfect in every way."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Excellent
Luwi Riverbed Sleepout

Luwi Riverbed Sleepout

"Lewi Riverbed Sleepout great fun - magic"

1 night Arrived 20 Sep 2016
"Lawrence and Goodson were most attentive and Aran cooked a great meal over the bush fire. Loved the whole experience. Sorry that the three of them had to stay awake all night to keep us safe. Walking to the sleepout from Luwi and then on the next day to Nsolu made it all seem like a proper journey. We particularly wanted to walk, rather than do game drives (which are great but not so real) and the sleepout was a perfect interlude."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Good
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Excellent
Nsolo Bushcamp

Nsolo Bushcamp

"Nsolu Bushcamp excellent"

1 night Arrived 21 Sep 2016
"Again, a wonderful welcome from Charity and all the staff. We particularly liked the way the staff at the Norman Carr camps introduced themselves by name when we arrived which made us feel like one of the family rather than have a "them and us" relationship. A brilliant night game drive with Prince, which was the only activity we did at that camp as we were there for only one night. We would usually have liked an afternoon walk but on this particular day were quite happy to forego it as we'd had the sleepout the previoius night and a couple of longish days."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Good
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Excellent
Nsefu

Nsefu

"Nsefu - a brilliant location"

2 nights Arrived 22 Sep 2016
"Although good, Nsefu was our least favourite camp. The greeting, though friendly, was more formal and less relaxed than those at the Normal Carr camps and the relationship with the staff slightly more reserved. Our guide, too, adopted a more formal style and although his depth of knowledge was impressive it was difficult to get him to lighten his style - we were, after all, on holiday and not back at school ! We were also firmly told that afternoon walks were not available at Nsefu, despite expressing a desire to do them and having hugely enjoyable ones at all the other camps. When we mentioned this to another senior staff member later, he expressed surprise and described this rule as nonsense in terms which are unsuitable for a family survey ! Lunches and dinners were excellent but breakfasts were boring - the only camp which did not provide cut fresh fruit. Again it just seemed as though there was not quite as much desire to pull all the stops out to make everything perfect. The location was superb but the chalets were rather too close together and, being constructed from hard materials, much less natural and "African" than at all the other camps. However, it was Nsefu which provided our two-day mobile bush camp safari, which was perfect in every way."
Good
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good

Location
Excellent
Service
Good
Activities
Average
Rooms
Good
Food
Average
Facilities
Good
Robin Pope Safaris bush-camp

Robin Pope Safaris bush-camp

"A wonderful experience"

2 nights Arrived 24 Sep 2016
"This was one of the highlights of our trip. The camp was amazingly comfortable, with an excellent bucket shower which we were encouraged to use whenever we wanted, and a very civilised loo. Our guide was Braston, who couldn't do enough for us, was hugely knowledgable and great fun. Boniface the chef was most attentive and produced superb food. The scout, Chris, was also great fun, despite doing a very serious job. In fact, everyone at the camp was incredibly friendly and efficient. Our walks were brilliant and it was very satisfying to have linear walks from A to B rather than circular walks, good though they are. The whole thing was perfect - what else to say ?"
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Excellent
Tena Tena

Tena Tena

"Tena Tena elegant and comfortable"

2 nights Arrived 26 Sep 2016
"Tena Tena was the most elegant of the camps we stayed in but still managed to seem as though it was genuinely part of the bush. The welcome from Christa and everyone else was very friendly and warm and our guide, Nyambe, was excellent. It was a lovely finale, particularly when a family of elephants almost visited our tent on our final night to wish us farewell."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Excellent

Namibia/Botswana trip, October 2012

Namibia and 1 other country between 13 Oct 2012 and 27 Oct 2012

Trip rating: Excellent
"Brilliant trip. Organisation was perfect. Camps were wonderful, as were the locations and all the game interaction.

Only reservation about locations was that Etosha was too developed and touristy for our taste, which we weren't expecting.

Only slight criticism was that we had said we wanted to do some walking and we were led to believe that this would be possible which, apart from two tiny toddles which didn't really fall within the definition of a walk, it wasn't. We would probably still have done the same trip but, as we kept hoping for walks when in fact there was no hope, it caused slight disappointment which could have been avoided it we'd been warned in advance.

Otherwise, a perfect holiday.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

Not sure I'd have embarked on this feedback form if I'd realised how long it would take - but at least it's thorough !

On literature, sending us free copies of Chris's Brandt guides to Namibia and Botswana was a nice touch and appreciated.

Only slight regret was the absence of walking. As we'd said we wanted to do this, perhaps one location that provides specifically walking safaris should have been suggested. Otherwise perfect."

Desert Rhino Camp

Desert Rhino Camp

"Desert Rhino Camp"

3 nights Arrived 14 Oct 2012
"This was a high point. We've been to Damaraland before (16 years ago) and it was just as we remembered it. Stunning landscape, wonderful animals and lovely people.

The staff at the camp were delightful, most helpful and efficient. The whole camp had a jolly, local air about it. Nothing too fancy or contrived.

Ali, our guide, was a delight. Very knowledgeable and utterly charming, without ever being too pushy or bossy. The other guides whom we met seemed just as friendly and informative, as were the trackers.

The only minor disappointment was the fact that, when we went before, we were able to do much more tracking on foot. We had been given to understand that this was still possible but in fact it isn't. You approach the rhino in the vehicle and only the last two or three hundred yards are on foot. This may be to reduce the impact on the rhinos, in which case fair enough, but perhaps it should have been made more clear to us so that we were prepared for it. Or was it just because we were with Mike Hearn last time that we had special treatment ?

But over all a wonderful experience."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Good
Food
Good
Facilities
Excellent
Ongava Tented Camp

Ongava Tented Camp

"Ongava Tented Camp"

3 nights Arrived 17 Oct 2012
"Camp was excellent. Again, management and staff were charming and very helpful and efficient.

Corne, in particular, helped us in many extra little ways and took us out on the only walk we managed in the whole two weeks - a rare and much desired treat. Hermine was a delight.

Our guide, Leon, really pulled out all the stops, giving us a twelve-hour day out when we drove into Etosha on our own and even coming home via the scenic route and giving us the usual evening game drive after a full day out. He also took us to visit the local primary school inside Etosha which was fascinating and will benefit the school as we're sending them a donation - everyone should have this included !

Only slight disappointment here (for one of us more than the other) was that Etosha was so commercialised and touristy. It was the only location of our four that we felt was not as unspoilt and remote as we'd hoped. Probably inevitable but it might have helped if we'd been expecting it. But the game was amazing and the second day there, when we went out on our own for the whole day and were able to get further away from the ghastly lodges, was much better.

One tiny point about the camp itself, very difficult to get out of the sun in the heat of the afternoon. Our veranda was in full sun, as was most of the seating in the main areas. A bit more shade needed."
Good
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good

Location
Good
Service
Excellent
Activities
Good
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Good
Facilities
Excellent
Olive Grove

Olive Grove

"Olive Grove"

1 night Arrived 20 Oct 2012
"Lovely place to stay for a night on the way through Windhoek.

Nadia seemed to be on duty 24 hours a day and was most helpful and charming, serving us a delicious breakfast at the ridiculously early hour we needed.

We ate at their sister restaurant next door which was excellent, if a little grand. The food was first class but the portions were enormous - warning to fellow travellers, skip some of the courses or die !"
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Good
Service
Excellent
Rooms
Excellent
Facilities
Good
Lagoon Camp

Lagoon Camp

"Lagoon Camp review"

3 nights Arrived 21 Oct 2012
"Again, a lovely camp in a beautiful location overlooking the lagoon.

All the staff were delightful and capable. Our guide, Spencer, was very knowledgeable and the tracker, Arron, was a delight. We did mention that we'd like a walk but this didn't happen, probably because we were sharing our activities with others. We had some wonderful animal moments, the outstanding one being a close encounter with the wild dogs - very special.

Nothing else to add about this one, really."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Good
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Good
Facilities
Excellent
Little Kwara

Little Kwara (Not currently featured by Expert Africa)

"Little Kwara"

3 nights Arrived 24 Oct 2012
"This and Desert Rhino were the joint winners out of our four locations.

Lizzie, Kessie and Evida (we may have spelt this one incorrectly) and Tabona (affectionately known as T-bone) were a joy and couldn't do enough for us. Our guide, George, was excellent (again just the teeniest bit bossy but this probably goes with the job) and Mike, the tracker, was first class (even spotting a perfectly camouflaged chameleon in the dark) and most charming.

This camp provided the best range of varied activities - a river trip to see the nesting storks, a mokoro trip which even included a short walk (hurray) and, of course, spectacular game drives. The highlight of these was probably the cheetahs but it was all wonderful. As in all our trips to Africa, we were leopard-failed but this gives us an excuse to go back."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Good
Facilities
Excellent

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