Reviews of Little Makalolo Camp
Wildlife sightings and reviews
19 independent comments and wildlife information from our travellers who have visited Little Makalolo Camp and kindly agreed to share their thoughts. They do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa
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"Little Makalolo Camp review"
The tents are excellent and reached via wooden pathways, the outside sitting area looks out over the waterhole where there is nearly always something going on. We also had a bird bath/pool on the edge of the deck which was good to watch from inside the tent during siesta time with a variety of birds dropping in for a drink or bath.
The main area has large lounge and dining tents and a pool deck arranged around a camp fire under a big tree which works very well. The food and service was very good and on our last night we were treated to a private dinner by the pool with elephants coming into to drink less than 10m away.
As we visited in August, the area was generally very dry and game was concentrated around the various waterholes. As part of the national park, vehicles are restricted to the tracks which we thought might be an issue but wasn't really. However, it might make following a leopard pretty difficult and our one sighting of a cheetah disappeared into the bush very quickly. The area is rich in elephants, giraffe zebra and various antelopes. The most common predators were lions and we had a couple of great sightings.
As there are a number of camps within the large concession, there is good radio traffic between the various guides and therefore a lot of pairs of eyes looking for sightings which is a definite advantage. Although we never felt there were too many vehicles around.
There is a log pile hide next to the waterhole which allows really close viewing of the animals coming into drink and bathe, most notably elephants. We spent over 2 1/2 hours in the hide between brunch and our afternoon game drive and our guide counted over 100 elephants in addition to Kudu, Zebra etc.
The lodge also has a sleep under the stars platform adjacent to another waterhole which was a great experience, although the stars were dominated a full moon.
The only issue that we came across at Little Makalolo was in respect of guiding. Disappointingly, on our third day (we stayed for three days) our guide was changed even though the initial guide was still around. I'm sure that there must have been a good reason but would have expected the camp manager to take the trouble to explain what was happening and why rather than leave it to a clearly embarrassed guide. That said we were quite happy with both guides." See all these reviews: 10n in Zimbabwe; 4n in Botswana
Buffalo
1 sighting
Cheetah
1 sighting
Eland
3 sightings
Elephant
10 sightings
Giraffe
4 sightings
Hippo
2 sightings
Lion
5 sightings
Roan antelope
1 sighting
Sable antelope
2 sightings
Wildebeest
3 sightings
Zebra
7 sightings
"A superb camp"
We had a really excellent guide, Leo(!) and all the camp staff were most charming and helpful. The highlight, once again for us, was a visit at breakfast time of a small pack of wild dogs, three adults and six pups, to feed on a dead elephant who had died overnight just in front of camp.
We watched them for 90 minutes and were delighted to observe them at such close quarters. We had some excellent game drives and saw leopard, bush baby, genet and, finally , eland to add to our tally overall." See all these reviews: 8n in Zimbabwe; 7n in Botswana; 7n in South Africa
Buffalo
Multiple sightings
Eland
1 sighting
Elephant
10 sightings
Giraffe
10 sightings
Hippo
Multiple sightings
Leopard
1 sighting
Lion
7 sightings
Roan antelope
7 sightings
Sable antelope
5 sightings
Spotted Hyena
1 sighting
Wild dog
9 sightings
Wildebeest
Multiple sightings
Zebra
Multiple sightings
"Excellent Safari & Service at Little Makalolo"
Excellent guiding and sightings
Friendly camp atmosphere
Visit to the local village was insightful and rewarding" See all these reviews: 13n in Zimbabwe
Brown Hyena
Multiple sightings
Buffalo
Multiple sightings
Eland
Multiple sightings
Elephant
Multiple sightings
Giraffe
Multiple sightings
Hippo
Multiple sightings
Lion
Multiple sightings
Oryx
Multiple sightings
Roan antelope
Multiple sightings
Sable antelope
Multiple sightings
Spotted Hyena
Multiple sightings
Wildebeest
Multiple sightings
Zebra
Multiple sightings
"Little Makalolo Camp review"
Visit to local village was an eye opener, lovely people we felt very welcome. Happy smiling children pleased to see us, asking lots of questions. Danced and sang for us brilliant performance." See all these reviews: 13n in Zimbabwe
Brown Hyena
1 sighting
Buffalo
1 sighting
Elephant
1 sighting
Giraffe
1 sighting
Hippo
1 sighting
Lion
1 sighting
Roan antelope
1 sighting
Sable antelope
1 sighting
Spotted Hyena
1 sighting
Wildebeest
1 sighting
Zebra
1 sighting
"Luxury camp in Hwange"
The detailed report on the EA website is very comprehensive and accurately covers all aspects of the layout of the accommodation and the camp itself.
Dickson, our guide for the duration of our stay, was extremely knowledgeable and managed to find lions plus cubs on our first day in camp who were fantastic to watch. Hwange is noted for its large elephant population and we often felt that they were all at Little Mak. We spent part of an evening game drive sitting in the log pile in front of the watering hole totally surrounded by at least five or six family groups totalling well over 60, including a number of very young calves. The interaction of the young as they tried to emulate their older siblings was fascinating.
Sundowners at another watering hole, again surrounded by elephants was another highlight, especially as they walked right past us, totally disinterested in our vehicle or us, in order to get to the water.
Dickson also managed to find a cheetah on a hunt during our transfer to Camp Hwange by road, as well as annoying a hippo who seemed to take an instant dislike to our vehicle and decided to charge!!. Hippos run quite fast it would seem!!
There are a couple of points we would make regarding the camp. EA states that dining style is group meals, however that appears to no longer be the case as we were seated at separate tables for our entire stay, and as the camp was far from full, this made for a somewhat isolated experience. All the camps we have visited over the years have used communal dining and this is an aspect that we always enjoyed. I don’t know if this a recent departure for Wilderness Safaris however we were disappointed by this aspect of the camp. Something they might want to reconsider.
The other point we would make is that due to the camps location you have to spend approximately 20 mins driving through dense mopane forest before reaching any of the more open areas where wildlife can be easily seen and tracked. It’s not a major issue but an aspect that needs to be taken into consideration during game drives
All in all a great camp in a fantastic location." See all these reviews: 10n in Zimbabwe
"Little Makalolo"
All activities have been on a vehicle. Sightings were absolutely thrilling, wouldn't have expected that much in terms of quantity and quality of Game sights. Lions everywhere, Cheetah, Elephants, Zebras, Giraffes. Birding was great, i was able to tick down 100 species in this trip. Great luxurious Camp.
Highly appreciated their luxury Safari vehicles, 2 single seats in a row and in the middle a box to take care of my photographic equipment.
Loved that place!" See all these reviews: 9n in Zimbabwe
"Little Mak - never to be forgotten"
The game viewing at Hwange was superb." See all these reviews: 12n in Zimbabwe
"Little Makalolo - Simply the best"
Eustace proved to be a superb guide and we were able to quickly establish a wonderful personal rapport which enhanced our shared experiences of the flora and fauna.
Elephant viewing was just amazing and we had great sightings of lion, eland, sable and many other animals both large and small as well as lots of birds.
Pumped waterholes create great wildlife viewing, especially Elephant, but it will be interesting to see how the vast overpopulation of these gentle giants can be controlled to preserve Hwange." See all these reviews: 11n in Zimbabwe
"Amazing Atmosphere in Little Makalolo"
The rooms were wonderful, including the charming loo with a view and the outdoor shower. The only downside was that warm and cold water in the sink came from 2 different taps, so getting "warm" water was a challenge. But I loved the "water babies" that were put on our beds every night to keep us warm (and also in the jeeps in the morning).
When there were questions/issues with our departure time from the camp they were great about trying to work it all out, never getting frustrated and always keeping us informed.
The log house by the watering hole was an amazing experience, the food was delicious and the conversation around the firepit after dinner was great. I would highly recommend this place to anyone wanting a great safari experience." See all these reviews: 7n in Zimbabwe; 3n in South Africa
"Happy Little Makalolo"
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