Reviews of Splash Camp
Wildlife sightings and reviews
98 independent comments and wildlife information from our travellers who have visited Splash Camp and kindly agreed to share their thoughts. They do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa
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96% success
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66% success
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84% success
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80% success
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100% success
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100% success
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99% success
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99% success
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98% success
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87% success
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71% success
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44% success
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34% success
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29% success
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1% success
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1% success
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0% success
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0% success
"Splash: the enclave"
There are animals that come to the pan, lions and cubs early one morning playing was a highlight, wild dogs another morning, its exciting. My concern, though not my husbands, was the way we saw the wildlife. We followed a pack of wild dogs and puppies for two hours one morning, until they successfully hunted and killed. Three trucks travelling fast on the tails of the dogs, for my husband exciting, for me not so much.
There is nothing bad to say about splash if you are looking for a well-run lodge, good food, good sighting, then this may be for you. If your looking for a more intimate experience then you may be disappointed" See all these reviews: 17n in Botswana
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Cheetah
1 sighting
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Elephant
Multiple sightings
"Splash Camp review"
The concession is large, varied and interesting. At the time of our visit the area around the camp was dry as the water had not arrived this year. There was still water in the area in some of the waterholes. This did affect the game viewing a bit but made the wonderful sightings so much more special.
The central area has comfortable sofas, rows of long, high seating and chairs around the campfire. There is a self-service bar with a wide choice of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. The dining section needs a bit more character as it looks a little austere at the moment.
There is the main camp and then an area with further accommodation that can be private. We did not really understand the layout but it did not matter. The buildings are wooden and raised off of the ground. The rooms are huge and have a balcony. The front is netting and has a lovely view out to the waterhole. There is a large bathroom with inside and outside showers. The toilets have a view too!
Your guide works hard! They wake you up in the morning, eat breakfast, brunch and dinner with you, drive you around and then take you to your room at the end of the day. Our guide, G was lovely and full of information but could, perhaps, deliver a little more of the life stories about the animals which all of the guides know intimately. Nothing like telling a story about a pride of lions or a cheetah to get guests really involved! He very kindly organised with another vehicle to add us 2 to their group of 4 as only 3 vehicles are allowed at a sighting and we were the fourth and would have missed out. They were following wild dogs who were hunting and we saw so much because of his decision. G then used the time to go searching and found a cheetah for us to see after we had finished with the dogs.
The meals are served buffet style and everyone sits at a communal table for lunch and dinner. You have a morning bowl of porridge or cereal and fruit around the campfire and then go out until around 11 when you come back for a substantial brunch. At about 4 you have high tea and are then out until you come back for drinks and dinner. The bar is open and self-serve and wine is served with dinner.
One of the trips was a visit to a heronry which was fascinating but so cold to start with! That morning we had a cold snap come through from South Africa and it was around 6 degrees first thing, very unseasonably cold and this lasted for a few days. On our trip we saw that other camps had warm ponchos to help with the cold which would have been very, very welcome in the vehicle and on the boat. The blankets we had just did not keep out the wind and cold. Ponchos are worth considering for the future I think.
For some reason at the camp when we were there we had a lot of hunters who kept on deliberately bringing up the subject rather than avoiding it when realising how uncomfortable it made others. This caused a lot of polarisation and discomfort. Worth going on safari knowing what to avoid and accepting what you might come across!
While we were at Splash there was a medical emergency which was handled extremely well by the management. They went well out of their way to help the gentleman affected and deserve praise and lots of credit.
Lovely camp, nice staff, beautiful area and some wonderful wildlife sightings with a knowlegeable guide. Great stay!" See all these reviews: 14n in Botswana; 4n in Namibia
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Buffalo
5 sightings
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Cheetah
2 sightings
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Elephant
10 sightings
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Giraffe
7 sightings
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Hippo
4 sightings
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Lion
2 sightings
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Sitatunga
1 sighting
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Spotted Hyena
1 sighting
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Wild dog
2 sightings
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Wildebeest
5 sightings
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Zebra
10 sightings
"A Gem in the Delta"
Great staff, great food, outstanding guides, wonderful safari/game viewing experiences and we really enjoyed the boat and mokoro canoe excursions" See all these reviews: 10n in Botswana; 4n in Rwanda
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Buffalo
6 sightings
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Cheetah
1 sighting
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Elephant
10 sightings
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Giraffe
10 sightings
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Hippo
5 sightings
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Lion
6 sightings
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Wildebeest
10 sightings
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Zebra
10 sightings
"Splash Camp review"
One small point: I had to buy some sun-screen. The price ($24) was twice what it should have been. And when I asked whether I could pay by card the exchange rate was pretty poor and I was told a 3% addition would be added. This is not generous and not the way I expect to be treated in such a high-cost resort." See all these reviews: 9n in Botswana
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Buffalo
1 sighting
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Cheetah
Multiple sightings
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Elephant
Multiple sightings
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Giraffe
Multiple sightings
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Hippo
Multiple sightings
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Leopard
Multiple sightings
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Lion
Multiple sightings
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Spotted Hyena
1 sighting
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Wild dog
Multiple sightings
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Wildebeest
Multiple sightings
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Zebra
Multiple sightings
"Splendid new camp"
As with Lagoon Camp, our driver and tracker tended to spend far too much time searching for a particular animal (1 hour looking for leopard in this instance - on 2 occasions) when we had already had good sightings of it. Then we missed viewing elephants at a waterhole which was the stated intention of this drive at the outset. This detracted from our otherwise extremely good experience at this camp. We stayed in the Enclave section of Splash (4 lodges) which was about a 6 minute walk from the main camp (8 lodges). Breakfast and then after-dinner drinks around the camp-fire was an added bonus." See all these reviews: 11n in Botswana
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Buffalo
2 sightings
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Cheetah
2 sightings
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Elephant
3 sightings
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Giraffe
5 sightings
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Hippo
5 sightings
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Leopard
3 sightings
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Lion
4 sightings
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Wildebeest
7 sightings
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Zebra
10 sightings
"Splash Camp"
I didn't enjoy the food as well: I had to be vigilant about my food issues because the servers didn't seem to be aware unlike everywhere else. It was the first time there was much talk about Trump and one of the guests seemed to enjoy being a contrarian. The night drives were just a late return from the afternoon drive but we didn't see anything on either of the two I did (I didn't bother with the third one because it was a late return for no good reason). Our guide complained to us a bit about the tracker keeping the light too high to see anything but he didn't say anything to the tracker. He also told us the grass was too high to see any of the smaller night animals. I suggest they not do night drives if the conditions don't make sense.
We also found out the last day there was a boat option and a walking safari option but they weren't offered to us until the last moment. I suspect there was a work/customer distribution problem and trying to maximize number of people per vehicle. As I say teething problems. We had already had 3 boat trips by this point (one from Okuti to Splash) so we didn't need another one but I had been hoping for a walking safari the whole time in Botswana. They seem to want their guides to do everything from walking people to and from cabins to hot water bottles to helping with transport concerns as well as guiding. I think our guide was exhausted.
I also was disappointed that there were no internet opportunities here. When I asked one manager about being able to check in for my flights he said they could phone that through for me. Another manager said it wasn't necessary. As it happened, I wasn't able to check in in Maun for my connecting flight from Johannesburg to Cape Town and we very nearly missed the flight to Cape Town. If I had been able to check in, this would have been handled in a timely way.
Finally, our safari vehicle had a battery problem on Day 2 and needed a boost. But the same thing happened the next day and while we were right next to the leopard family. There was another truck but they drove off and I got nervous. I asked our driver and he made a joke about us being there all day. Then the other truck appeared again. Not a good time for a joke and don't they know that once a battery goes flat you need to replace it?
They didn't seem interested in real feedback. We were all strongly encouraged to sign the guest book but that's not really a place for this kind of feedback." See all these reviews: 8n in Botswana; 4n in South Africa; 2n in Zimbabwe
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Buffalo
Multiple sightings
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Cheetah
1 sighting
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Elephant
Multiple sightings
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Giraffe
Multiple sightings
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Hippo
1 sighting
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Leopard
1 sighting
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Lion
Multiple sightings
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Spotted Hyena
1 sighting
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Wild dog
1 sighting
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Wildebeest
1 sighting
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Zebra
Multiple sightings
"A modern camp"
We spent very special time with lion cubs, leopard cubs and wild dog pups. It could not have been better. Also spotted a serval on night drive.
Boat trip nice and calm after all the “extreme off-roading “ with spectacular sunset. Mokoro trip enjoyable too.
Staff and guides very attentive. Altogether a comfortable place to spend a few days." See all these reviews: 10n in Botswana
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Buffalo
1 sighting
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Elephant
10 sightings
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Giraffe
10 sightings
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Hippo
10 sightings
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Leopard
2 sightings
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Lion
3 sightings
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Wild dog
2 sightings
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Wildebeest
4 sightings
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Zebra
8 sightings
"Guaranteed top wildlife viewing"
Every game drive included excellent sightings, with the highlights being a relaxed leopard mother with two very young cubs, a wild dog den, and two close encounters with the two resident male big lions. Herds of buffalo and wildebeest were seen every day, and we were lucky enough to see the cheetah. The encounters with the elephant were unique - the family groups were defensive and the males were eager to see us off, which taught us a lot about their behaviour and body language. Highly recommended if you want to see what an irritated elephant looks like.
The Kwara concession is HUGE and extremely game rich, and the atmosphere on the mokoro and boat trips is great as it's deep in the heart of the Okavango. There was lots of time spent travelling and enjoying the scenery, as although there are lots of animals about they are very spaced apart.
Camp staff were very friendly and welcoming, food was varied and delicious. The camp itself felt a bit crowded at times with groups of 20+ including the staff, but the game drives were always very personal and had no competition for game viewing as this is a private and very large concession with viewing rules. This isn't a great camp for night drives or walking safaris because of the concession size and density of the plant life which makes tracking very hard, and because of the unpredictable nature of the particular elephants here preventing a safety risk. Walking safaris for examining the ecosystem and smaller animals would work, but you're not going to get any great big game viewings on foot.
Highlights include atmosphere near the water, close encounters with hippos, and the quality of the lodgings. The sheer number of elephant families, hippo families and giraffes was also great, and only possible in a top safari camp like this." See all these reviews: 6n in Botswana; 3n in Zimbabwe; 1n in South Africa
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Buffalo
4 sightings
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Cheetah
1 sighting
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Elephant
10 sightings
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Giraffe
10 sightings
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Hippo
10 sightings
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Leopard
2 sightings
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Lion
3 sightings
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Sable antelope
Multiple sightings
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Sitatunga
Multiple sightings
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Spotted Hyena
3 sightings
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Wild dog
3 sightings
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Wildebeest
10 sightings
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Zebra
8 sightings
Holiday styles & special interests in Botswana
From birdwatching breaks to walking holidays, find great ideas for your trip in Botswana.
Other lodges in Okavango Delta Safari Reserves
Alternative places to stay in this same area.