Reviews of Flatdogs Camp
(97%) From 33 travellersThey do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa.
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Great for a short stay with family
Flatdogs was very good for our family trip. I have been on many safaris but was taking 2 family members who had never been before. The family room was ideal, although the lack of bathroom facilities for the 3rd bedroom caused a bit of inconvenience. The accomodation was spotless and we never saw the cleaning staff as they managed to get the room done while we were on game drives so we were never disturbed. All the staff were friendly and helpful and our guide, Malamba, was very good.
We saw all the main game - leopards, lion, elephant, buffalo on the game drives and it was really exciting to see the elephants walk through the camp. Night drives were good, but I don't think we needed 4 of them as they got a little repetitive.
Food was good in that there was a great variety to suit all tastes and we liked the fact that meals could be taken any time of day, which gave us lots of freedom. However, service in the restaurant was quite slow and we had to wait quite a long time for breakfast.
The South Luangwa park is great for game with plenty to see but we found the overcrowding by vehicles a bit disturbing in that once a leopard was seen it would be quickly surrounded by as many as 6 vehicles. However, the guides were very good at giving way to each other so all clients got a view.
I would recommend Flatdogs for a family trip, but maybe not if you are a seasoned safari goer or couple and want a more secluded experience.
Great safari, great guide
Great stay. We were in the family chalet; we didn't have many animals roaming around nor blocking our comings and goings. The rooms were quite comfortable and the chalet was intimate.
The food was good. It was a good idea to have us order supper before leaving on safari for the afternoon and night drives.
Our guide Malama was great, very knowledgeable. We saw plenty of animals. The guides seem to know were they hang out. We started of in the morning earlier than in the other camps and had a longer break in the afternoon. They accomodated us to prolong a morning drive with sandwiches til almost noon.
Flatdogs Camp review
Great camp in a very convenient location. Very friendly and helpful staff with a lovely relaxed atmosphere. Our luxury tent was superb with a great view of the river. Our guide Ed was excellent and provided a brilliant introduction to us as safari novices.
The only negative is that this is at the busier end of South Luangwa so there were a few times when we saw a lot of vehicles and some guides (thankfully none from Flatdogs) acting a little irresponsibly. This took the shine off our experience a little.
However this is still an excellent camp and brilliant value for money.
Great budget-friendly option
Great option for those who are on a tighter budget. Good hosts - Jess & Ade. Good accommodation - new tents with everything you need. Good food.
Last but not least, we had great safari experiences with Malama (our guide for three days). When I say "great" I do not mean that we had some exceptional sightings (though we saw quite a lot being particularly lucky with leopard sightings). With Malama and his assistants I am referring to their desire to show us as much as possible even if it required driving us further afield. Malama was really giving it his best and we could tell his affection for the place he was at. They were also trying hard during night drives.
We mentioned that we wanted to see bush babies and on our last night with him we must have driven for an hour looking specifically for them. No bush babies (perfectly fine with us: it's not a zoo, after all). However, Malama and the spotter showed us what real "tracking" is about when they found a leopard who was hunting high up on a tree. What impressed us were the combination of good tracking skills and dedication to do a good job.
It's worth mentioning that we liked the atmosphere at Flatdogs partly because the camp was not even half-full. They only had eight or ten guests including us. If the camp was full, it may have been different: busy, noisy etc. As we experienced it, Flatdogs is highly recommended. We'd stay there again. However, this area of SLNP is certainly busier than further North
Flatdogs Camp review
We chose Flatdogs on a room only basis as a relatively cheap start to the holiday in order to 'recover' from the journey to Zambia and not undertake a full set of activities
The only minor grumble was that the quality of the guiding on the game drives left something to be desired (compared to the remainder of the holiday). This however did not diminish the enjoyment of the start of the holiday.
Overall Flatdogs started our holiday in exactly the way we planned.
Even though we were only on a room only basis, they tried there best to accomodate my diet (diabetic) providing us with un-sweetened bread (+ marmite and butter).
Flatdogs Camp review
The game drive vehicles -Toyota Land Cruisers - were the most comfortable we experienced.
Our Guide -Jeves- was the most knowledgeable and sophisticated of those we dealt with - and to say this is not to denigrate any of them. The overall standard we thought was superb.
The meals were good and their continuing availability most welcome.
Our tent was the most comfortable and best resourced of those we stayed in.
We were very unimpressed by the rant Adrian delivered to the kitchen staff in the hearing of 20 guests on the night of our arrival, and annoyed by the prices asked for very ordinary cask wine, and the evident instruction given to the waters to "push" it
Flatdogs Camp review
The tents were fine but the overall impression was that it looked a bit unkempt and scruffy.
A big plus was that we could order any food at any time of the day which is very convenient when going on game drives. I did not like the overpriced and cheap (cask) wine and the staff pushing you to order drinks all the time.
Fabulous Flatdogs
We found every aspect of Flatdogs perfect for our needs. The relaxed atmosphere, the flexibility of meals, the quality of food and the safaris and guiding were excellent. Our hosts Jess and Ade were so kind and sensitive to all our needs and all the staff were always happy and helpful especially Charlie. The ability to walk around the camp and along the river gives Flatdogs the edge over the more restricted camp inside the park. Also the use of fans in the tents ( not available at Kaingo ) made the sleeping so much more comfortable.
Our thanks go to Malama and Edward for providing memorable safaris full of information and excitement.
All in all we could not fault Flatdogs.
Flatdogs Camp review
We had an excellent stay with a dedicated guide for our drives. It was really nice being the same, small group (we were only 4 people) for a couple of days, so that the drives became a continuation from the day before. I do not know any of the other guides, but Edward was a knowledgeable storyteller. Not all people are.
We learned so much about the bush - the guide being a photographer himself, made him always look for the best ways for us to see the animals aswell. Having a good guide makes the whole difference for how your stay is, we experienced later on drives with other guides/other camps.
The food menu was a bit "boring" - the specials better, though.
The chalets were spacious and nice, and all the people lovely and helpful.
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.
