Reviews of Busanga Bushcamp

"This was a higher end camp which was fantastic. It felt even more special as we were the only ones there.

However,there were so many staff fussing around us, it spoilt it a bit. The schedule although was meant to be relaxed at times seemed hurried.

The guiding by Willard was excellent.

The busanga plains were stunning with plenty to see with lots of antelope,lions,elephants,hippos and crocodiles.

The tents were very good on a platform with excellent internet connection." See all these reviews: 13n in Zambia

"Long drives were required over the extensive plains to see game. No walking safaris were available, but balloon trips possible is somewhat expensive. dissappointing not to see Cheeta or Sable antelope. Some areas were troubled by Tsetse flies! Wonderful viewing on the Papyrus marshes but this was some way from the camp. The game viewing over the grassy plains were seriously reduced by prolonged drought." See all these reviews: 6n in Zambia; 4n in Zimbabwe; 1n in South Africa

"Staff were very helpful and the food was the best we had on the holiday" See all these reviews: 6n in Zambia; 3n in Mozambique; 1n in Malawi

"Camp was in a beautiful setting looking out across the Busanga plains.

Staff were very attentive and friendly. Food was extremely good and plentiful. The kitchen was very obliging when small requests were made.

Our guide Aaron was very good. The balloon trip was fantastic." See all these reviews: 10n in Zambia

"This is another small camp but with a few more amenities i.e. running hot water and electricity. The staff were all very friendly and attentive and we felt very spoilt on the day we had the camp to ourselves. The meals were very good and the little extra touches, such as different places to eat the evening meal, were much appreciated - particularly enjoyed the last night on the viewing platform which really felt out in the bush. We also liked the hot water bottles in the blankets on the morning game drives.

The camp's location looking over the plain was excellent with large herds of lechwe and puku always present - and even 2 roan antelope one day- and there was a lovely pair of bushbuck under the tree by our tent (a tree which attracted a suprisinging variety of birds during the day).

We saw plenty of lion including one group with cubs and saw another pride firmly planted under the other vehicle from our camp appreciating a bit of shade. On our last morning four lion had taken up residence near the camps fire-pit and when disturbed by the staff getting breakfast ready slowly moved across the plain in front of our tent at about 6am - all observed from the comfort of our bed!

There were three of us travelling together and we had a vehicle and guide to ourselves for the 3 days including the transfer up from Musekese. The transfer was the only time the tetse flies were really troublesome - you just had to drive faster than they flew. At Busanga they were not a serious problem except by the airfield in the daytime.

I had arranged this trip to try and see some of the large antelope and was delighted to see 2 large herds of roan and one of sable - both seen in the evening when the light was great. The eland will have to wait for the next trip.

The balloon ride with Eric was a real highlight of the whole trip. The animals are very well habituated to the balloon now allowing some amazing low level game viewing and ascending up over the trees shows what a huge area the Busanga Plains is - quite hard to imagine it covered with water. It was beautiful to see the lechwe emerging through the low lying mist back lit by the rising sun and then fly over a hyena protecting a kill from a flock of vultures.

This is a very different area to any other we have visited on our trips to Zambia and made a real contrast to our other camp in Kafue (Musekese). The activities are mainly game drives and often require travelling some distance to see the more interesting game but there are plenty of species to see (elephant, buffalo, wildebeest, zebra, hartebeest, oribi, honey badger and lots of different birds including Fuelleborn's and rosy-throated longclaws.)" See all these reviews: 15n in Zambia

"Welcomed by masses of tsetse flies on the airstrip but once away from there the tsetse were not too much of an issue. The camp was in a great setting and the tents were spot on. As the only guests for 2 of our 3 nights (and they had been empty for the preceding 4 nights) we were a little overwhelmed by the attention at times but the staff were unfailingly friendly and the service was excellent with thoughtful touches and excellent food. Having had reservations regarding the balloon trip, we are now converts to what was a magical experience which enabled us to see cheetah both from the air and then by vehicle. Good bird sightings." See all these reviews: 15n in Zambia

"Difficult to rate the camp. It was much too "corporate" for our tastes.

The camp itself was excellent and could not be faulted, with excellent accommodation and food and very friendly and attentive staff. The only downside, as far as we are concerned, is that you eat separately rather than together and we enjoy the social aspect - however, we did meet some German guests there who said they preferred to eat alone.

The camp is the same size as Musekese but has 1 guide, compared with Musekese's 3 and the only option is rather tedious game drives. There are a lot of animals on the plains but not much variety and the guides main interest was to show us lions. (We did see, before the guide, a clawless otter and a monitor lizard devouring eggs from a nest it had dug up).

The balloon ride was excellent - much better than a flight I had over the Masai Mara many years ago - because it flew very low.

The ride to the airstrip, through a tsetse area was very unpleasant and it was difficult to get into the plane without being accompanied by a swarm of flies!" See all these reviews: 18n in Zambia

"Superb location, very friendly staff, good food and facilities
Game drives were superb with a very knowledgeable guide
Balloon ride was special and was the icing on the cake!
Camp manager was very flexible and managed to change our onward flight enabling us to fit in another game drive" See all these reviews: 11n in Zambia

"A wonderful place to start a holiday in Zambia & disconnect from everything: it is truly beautiful and peaceful.

The standards of the rooms are excellent with the extremely comfortable beds! Food is delicious. Immaculate attention to details & excellent coffee brought to your room every morning. The Staff is lovely: Ondyne was most helpful in liaising with other people to successfully retrieve my lost luggage from Lusaka. Pyben is ideal in his role.

The game drive routes may seem a bit repetitive but we had excellent lions sightings (including an adorable cub) and a picture perfect leopard "hanging" in a tree! The hot air balloon trip was amazing with Erik, a very skilled and entertaining pilot ." See all these reviews: 17n in Zambia

"A lovely camp on the plains. Unknown to us before we arrived, due to spending 3 nights there a free balloon safari was included. This was a wonderful way of seeing the animals and the plains.

Initially we were informed that no walking safaris were available. However the information stated otherwise and it was all sorted out very satisfactorily." See all these reviews: 21n in Zambia