Reviews of Tau Pan Camp

"I spent 3 nights at Tau Pan in early December, 2013 and would highly recommend the camp to anyone. You simply must include the Kalahari on your itinerary if at all possible.

The staff at Tau Pan was simply exceptional, striking just the right balance between involved and giving you some breathing space. The guides and trackers were really excellent. Vasco and Scupa were great to spend my days with and I would particularly like to thank Russ, who was simply not willing to accept that I hadn't seen a cheetah yet and hustled me into the safari vehicle at 5:45 on my final morning - we found a cheetah at 6:05! (I know that was pure chance, but still).

I really liked that Tau Pan had Botswanan management - as I was travelling alone, it made for great conversations for me, learning about local culture. The rooms are gorgeous, the setting is amazing (though of course no animals come to the water hole in rainy season - that would be awesome to see) and the staff was fantastic. The game drives were many and frequent and we even did a full day drive - left at 6am and returned at 6pm. Oh yeah, I was the only one in the vehicle, so I had a full day private game drive! The highlight of the whole trip was seeing a pride of 4 lions devouring a recently killed oryx.

One caution for travellers: the game is less dense in the kalahari and even less dense in December, so you can go long stretches of driving seeing only birds and the odd bat eared fox, but given the flat open terrain, when you do find something, it can be awesome. But because you are in a national park, you have to stick to the roads also." See all these reviews: 11n in Botswana; 2n in Zambia

"It was great to have the entire camp just to us (especially after Jack's Camp which was so crowded). The location with its views over the vast landscape of the Kalahari is breathtaking, we particularly enjoyed having our morning tee/coffee at the fire watching the sun rise over the desert, watching animal activities at the waterhole (e.g. kudus and giraffes) from the camp's pool as well as having dinner under the stars.

Wildlife was very good, even though the Kalahari was already very dry for this time of the year (early April). We loved the many bat eared foxes (we often saw them quite close), giraffes, and of course the many lions and one leopard (in the middle of the road!). On our last morning, the lion pack resident at the camp returned after they had been away for several weeks and we had the chance to follow them while they prepared for hunting. Alex, our guide, and Vota, the tracker, were very knowledgeable and created a wonderful safari experience, which was very relaxed , informative and entertaining at the same time.

Service and food at Tau Pan were excellent, all staff was very helpful and friendly. We particularly liked the fact that Kwando is a company based in Botswana which takes great pride in employing local people (also for the management). It was great to see how enthusiastic all staff and management were working for this company. Wonderful experience!" See all these reviews: 16n in Botswana; 2n in Zambia

"Great location with a wonderful lookout of the Kalahari.

My guide Lucky tried everything to show us as much as possible - great.

I recommend the bush walk with the Bushman Scuba. Absolutely great and very interesting." See all these reviews: 13n in Botswana

"We enjoyed 3 nights at Tau Pan just before Christmas. The setting is spectacular, with views over the vast Central Kalahari reserve. The accommodation surpassed expectations - the rooms are the biggest and probably the most luxurious we had in Botswana. Outdoor showers are a bonus. Food was very good (buffet style in the evenings), and the timing of meals is very well planned with a small breakfast, good-sized brunch, afternoon tea before the late game drive, and an evening meal later on.

Game in the CKGR definitely isn't on the same level as in the Okavango Delta, and the park is best enjoyed for its scenery and the vastness of the landscape rather than trying to seek out particular animals (though we did find a cheetah), particularly since vehicles can't follow animal tracks off road or drive after dark. Though Kwando provide a tracker in the vehicle, we felt that the quality of the guides here was generally lower than in the delta - both in terms of expertise and in listening to what we wanted (we ended up on an 11-hour game drive on one very hot day, having asked for a shorter drive in the morning). And this was the only camp where our party of 4 was asked to share a vehicle with other guests (though there is a maximum of 6 per vehicle, in 2 rows of 3 people).

It's worth being aware that the "bush walks" offered are a short stroll to a "demonstration area" near the camp, where a tracker will describe survival techniques used by local people.

Overall Tau Pan is a very good camp and worth a couple of nights to experience the CKGR." See all these reviews: 7n in Botswana

"We arrived as the summer storms set in, and witnessed some spectacular sound and light shows. Saw a solitary collared wild dog contact calling, and also a pack of 8 near the camp. Also saw a previously unsighted group of 1 sub-adult and 2 female lions near Pukwe Pan. Excellent tracking by Voter

Onty (plus OB) and the tireless Ras. worked hard under dIffiicult weather conditions to keep guests happy. Beautiful staff singing before dinner enhanced the experience." See all these reviews: 13n in Botswana; 3n in Namibia

"lovely lodge, beautiful rooms, good food, good staff.

But again relatively poor safari drives compared to other countries. It was good to have seen the Kalahari but in all honesty this place is disappointing in terms of animals. We were not sorry leave. It was not exciting." See all these reviews: 10n in Botswana; 2n in Zambia

"Our first camp on our honeymoon - we had an excellent time here.

All the staff were very friendly and the food was fantastic - especially the roast chicken! Great view of the watering hole from breakfast, and lions passed through the camp on several occasions (once only a few metres away from our room!)

Day trip to Deception Valley is worthwhile, though it is a long day. Bushman walk also very entertaining and informative - definitely recommended." See all these reviews: 10n in Botswana; 5n in Seychelles

"We really enjoyed our stay at Tau Pan. The camp itself is lovely with beautifully designed and very comfortable rooms. We particularly liked how well visually integrated the camp was with its surroundings. Staff was very friendly in general and the evening campfire fun.

Our guide, Lucky, and tracker, PK (sp?), were wonderful. They were friendly and extremely knowledgable. We'd never been on safari before and so had no idea what to expect. Lucky and PK taught us a lot and were simply good company over fairly long days. Lucky is particularly knowledgable about birds, and PK's bush skills are fascinating and impressive. The guides were all quite friendly, and we had a great time with them one evening when they regaled us with stories from their guiding experience. Another staff member, Milady, was a gracious hostess.

We saw quite a bit of wildlife including three separate groups of lions, antelopes galore (primarily springbok and oryx, but also hartebeest, kudu, steenbok, duiker), bat eared foxes, jackals, ostrich, lots of birds and an impressive looking cobra. Others in camp at the time saw a cheetah hunt. Birds spanned the range from eagles and vulture through ground birds to lovely little bee eaters.

The bushman walk with PK was excellent and a nice break from the jeep. The trip to Deception Valley is well worth it but LONG and covers some rough terrain.

The food was of generally high quality but the remoteness of the location means there's a little less fresh food than some other camps and more of an emphasis on stews and roasts." See all these reviews: 12n in Botswana; 2n in Zimbabwe

"Wonderful staff! Beautiful facilities. The food was fabulous. To be truthful, I was worried about the guides not having guns in the jeep, but all worked out well!... My daughter loved the outdoor shower! This was our first safari and a wonderful memory to share with my daughter.

The camp managers Tuso and Nalady were outstanding in their people skills! WONDERFUL CONVERSATIONS!

Thank you!" See all these reviews: 7n in Botswana

"Lovely people, average sightings(time of year), great food, very nice accommodations" See all these reviews: 7n in Botswana