Reviews of safaris to Chobe National Park

"We have had another wonderful holiday – our third trip to Namibia, and at least 9th with Expert Africa – but things could have been better.

Our feedback reflects what we have come to expect from Expert Africa – a minimum 4-paw grading for everything – therefore 5 paws are very hard to achieve and reflect something exceptional.

We were very annoyed by the cancellation of the direct Air Namibia flights; this caused us significant inconvenience. We met so many people who shared our views – from fellow travellers to lodge owners to guides – everybody was unhappy about it. Having been forced to fly via Frankfurt we thought Frankfurt airport was very poor – lack of signage, few shops, little seating and even a mouse in the Business Class lounge. Toilets were dirty. The process will make us think twice before going back to Namibia.

However........ arriving at Windhoek in the morning we found the drive up to Etosha no problem – there were 2 of us to share the driving and we stopped off for shopping and lunch on the way – we definitely prefer to get straight on the road rather than spending a night in Windhoek and effectively wasting a day. We'd recommend buying a Namibian SIM for your mobile at the airport (took 5 mins and cost around £10) – others tend not to work, even with Global Roaming enabled – and we did use it when we discovered we'd left Ghaub with the room key in a pocket!

We'd always thought the road signs on the B1 warning of warthogs rather amusing but we saw dozens on the side of the road this time! Our trip was mostly on tar roads this time, which is great in some ways but they can be very straight and boring – in particular the roads through the Caprivi. We were glad we had booked a 4X2 vehicle for driving some of the tracks in Etosha and Mahango – no need for 4x4 at this time of year.

We were so pleased we were doing a one-way trip; we met many people who had found the driving tiring and were not looking forward to the drive back to Windhoek from the Caprivi. We had tried to slow things down and space them out so that most of our drives were less than 4 hours and, where possible, we spent at least 2 nights in accommodation. This gave us the chance to take advantage of the activities on offer and relax (eg at Hakusembe).

Many lodges do not provide drinking water (or at cost) so we suggest buying a 5 litre bottle in a supermarket (about N$15) and taking it with you.

We would happily repeat our holiday and revisit any of our accommodation with the exception of Namutoni – no way!

Suggestions for improvements:

We have travelled with EA so many times it must be a recommendation in itself! We did do some market testing on this trip and found competitors more expensive. We're already organised for next summer's trip.

However, on rare occasions accuracy of quotations is somewhat sacrificed in the interests of getting them to clients quickly. This is obviously partly due to the complexity of trips but can be frustrating." Read full review: 21 nights in Africa; 16 on a Namibia trip

"Very very good. Each lodge had some advantages and some disadvantages, but on the whole they were really good. We had no real problems on the trip and some very good experiences (and animal sightings). It was one long safari, but that was really what we had wanted.

The one contact we had with Wilderness Safaris was good too - through the delay at the airport with the car hire, and the fact that we took one wrong turning on the motorway, we were on course to arrive too late in Waterberg. Wilderness had an emergency phone no and she arranged for the Waterberg gate to stay open, so that problem was solved.

We were also very satisfied with the whole procedure between our first enquiry and the actual trip. Maruska was extremely helpful and efficient, patiently giving us detailed answers to any question we had." Read full review: 20 nights in Africa; 14 on a Namibia trip

"This was a lovely trip, we enjoyed every minute of it. Lucy got it absolutely right in the order we did things. It was lovely to chill out at the Zambesi Sun for the first 4 days with the game drives at Chobe and Kafue following. This gave us the chance to get very close to all the animals we had hoped to see and to photograph them. The walking safari following on meant there was no pressure to see and get very close to any of the animals and we could enjoy the walks and savour Africa at a leisurely pace with animals getting close to us when we stayed still.

All the places we stayed in were very special and was just the sort of safari we had hoped for. There was a bit of pressure on animals in Chobe with 4 cars watching lions at one point but there was fantastic amounts of game there. The boat trip was particularly lovely and we watched elephants drinking from the river and 100's of birds.

It was very easy to move from one part of the holiday to the next and all links and transfers were perfect. Hard to imagine that so many links and transfers and border crossings could go without a hitch!

At the planning stage, Lucy listened carefully to me and made absolutely the right recommendations. She remained cheerful through 2 sets of reboookings caused by BA changing flight days. She and Anna are obviously well known and respected in Zambia. Lucy's service was so good that I have booked my next holiday to Equador and Galapagos through Sunvil, and hope to book Namibia in the future. Pity that Expert Africa didn't organise the weather!

Suggestions for improvements:

It was the quality of your service before booking that made us book with you, irrespective of price. We could easily have done this trip cheaper by making our own arrangements - but I wouldn't like to be in Africa without Expert Africa! Just the thought of the Zambia|Botswana border without Expert Africa makes me go cold. What other firm gives clients their consultants mobile numbers in case of emergencies?

Matchless service and nothing could have been improved." Read full review: 23 nights in Africa; 12 on a Zambia safari

"The trip certainly was a grreat experience and we enjoyed the wildlife and the people very much.

What is always difficult is the estimation of a good itinerary - there were some days that we were more in the car than we planned or expected to be, but it's difficult to avoid unless you go again to a place you already know a little bit." Read full review: 26 nights in Africa; 17 on a Namibia trip

"This was the most expensive holiday we have ever taken - but it was truly worth it. Botswana seems to have got it just right. There was no commercial feel to it, just observing the natural world, and being guided by locals who you felt genuinely care about the environment, love their jobs, are well trained and justly proud of their country.

Suggestions for improvements:

You are right - it really is COLD in the mornings! Lots of layers are the best things to take - and I was very pleased I had my gloves.

We took your advice on the order we did our trip, and for safari novices it was really good - the night in Motsentsela to acclimatise, then starting the trip at Muchenje - luxurious and a good overview - then Lagoon where we got a bit more involved by following the wild dogs, and some hunting lions, and then finishing with Grant at Santantadibe where we really felt a part of the African bush.

I cannot think of anything that could have improved our trip (oh, perhaps if we could have stayed longer..)" Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 7 on a Botswana safari

"Several times on the trip staff at our various locations commented positively on how well organized this trip was, how every detail of our ongoing trip was confirmed and that people all along the way were expecting us. We were also impressed that several folks knew Chris McIntire and spoke so highly of him. Well done!

We have already recommended Expert Africa to several of our friends who are looking to travel to southern Africa and we will always use yoru services in future trips there. Thank you so much for all your work setting this up, knowing the best places to go, it was really the trip of a lifetime!

Two suggestions: we traveled by car from Gaboronne to Kasane (which we suggested and wanted to do) but wouldn't again because the road from Francistown to Kasane is the most horrendous road we have ever been on...I can't believe they even let cars attempt it...huge craters in the road big enough to swallow a VW mini-bus, we ended up driving way over on the shoulder to avoid wrecking the car. It doesn't look like this road is going to get fixed any time soon, either so please insist that people need to hire a 4x4 vehicle if they are going to drive on it.

Likewise with the road to the Rhino Camp (it wasn't as bad as the road in Botswana). It would have been wiser for us to hire a 4x4. While we managed to travel fine on these roads, the stress of not wanting to damage the undercarriage (which was not covered in the insurance) and the rush to get to the Rhino camp pick up location on time--made us with we had a vehicle with more clearance.

Overall it was a wonderful trip. Again thank you Maruska for all your hard work getting this together. We will look forward to using Expert Africa again on our next visit to southern Africa.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service

I think I've put these into the regular comments. Hard to say how it could have been improved at all. Expert Africa ROCKS!" Read full review: 28 nights in Africa; 11 on a Namibia trip

"We loved our trip! Although I had a pretty good idea of the camps I wanted to stay at, Susannah helped me to select Tau Pan for the desert camp, and I felt that she would have been willing to spend all the time required if I had needed more help with the rest of the trip. All transfers were seamless; we felt that all we had to do was sit back and enjoy, which we did! We can't wait to go back.

I have to put in a plug for the Kwando camps. We did not stay at any Wilderness camps, so we don't have a comparison, but at all three Kwando camps, the guides were enthusiastic, kind and so knowledgeable. They not only knew the mammals, they knew every bird and plant, and would spend as much time as we wanted looking at everything. We also loved having the trackers with us and felt they added a lot to the experience. The trackers and guides work incredibly hard and put in very long hours--they are amazing. We also loved the atmosphere at the Kwando camps--very relaxed, informal, and friendly." Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 13 on a Botswana safari

"The whole trip was excellent in it`s organisation. Every connection was on time with drivers, camp staff etc all waiting for us.
Our highlights were the beautiful location of our tent at Kwara and the off road driving , the boat trip on the Chobe river with Muchenje Lodge and Santantadebi Mobile camp for all sorts of reasons as mentioned previously. [Ed: in the reviews below!]

We did see many wonderful animals but we can`t deny a little disappointment at the minimal sightings of the big cats.

We felt in need of exercise after 2 weeks of doing nothing but sitting in the jeeps and eating!

We had many interesting and fun conversations with the other guests all of which made the holiday memorable.

Suggestions for improvement:

The only negative I have is that the information on prices at Victoria Falls was inaccurate eg we expected the helicopter ride to be $100 but it was $130, similarly the cost of meals had risen sharply." Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 6 on a Botswana safari

"A wonderful experience - really lived up to expectations.

Great combination of camps.

Once in Botswana, everything worked perfectly" Read full review: 10 nights in Africa; 8 on a Botswana safari

"This was our first trip to Africa and we had only a vague idea of what to expect. The whole trip was fabulous. All the arrangements worked. All the staff were friendly, knowledgeable and enthusiastic. All the accomodation was lovely. Even the basic camp on Mboma island was a hoot.

Although we are not birdwatchers, the array of birds pointed out by the guides and spotted by us has made us keen twitchers. Binocculrs are a must. Enjoyed all the food, even the more exotic. The night skies were a treat.

We were a bit surprised to find how cool it was in the early mornings and after sunset and found the ponchos and hot water bottles very useful. Loved the daily sundowner routine. Our highlight was coming upon a cheetah in the early morning and following it for 45mts. There was nobdy else around.

The ballon flight was great fun. skillfully managed by pilot and support staff.

Suggestions for improvements:

I think the way we did ie(Livingstone-Chobe-Linyanti-Khwai) was good. Took too many evening clothes and not enough warm clothes. Picking up the luggage at Jo'burg everytime was a bore and it would be nice to be able trust the security enough to not have to do it. The singing and dancing from the staff at the lodges was hugely enjoyable.

We did spend a lot of time travelling after we left Maun and the drive to and from Kulala was tedious and stressful in parts. Would have preferred a day each in Maun and Windhoek and possibly flown to Kulala as other guests did. The river was ok but could have given it a miss. Overall, it was a fantastic experience which we will recommend to friends" Read full review: 19 nights in Africa; 11 on a Botswana safari