Botswana: reviews from our travellers

"This was our second booking with Expert Africa and as last year, it was excellent with all of the transfers and arrrangements working extremely well.

We appreciated the help and advice given when booking the holiday; if we had been left to our own devices we would have chosen a hotel on the waterfront in Cape Town but after discussing options with Lucy we chose to go to Bishops' Court. We are very grateful for the recommendation, having now visited the waterfront we realise that being based there would not have suited us at all.

You are definitely our first choice for another African holiday." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 6 on a Botswana safari

"Our trip was well planned around the bookings in Kwara and Lebala.

Thanks to Lucy and Chris (from Expert Africa) whose professional help and planning ensured the success of our trip." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 8 on a Botswana safari

"This is the full yext of an email sent without prompting.

We are back from our hols and I wanted to say thanks for your help and guidance.

The holiday was fantastic and we even managed to hold onto our luggage, which many people didn't.

The camps which you recommended at Kwara and Lebala were both fantastic. Exactly as you described as ''lacking the chic of CCAfrica'' but very comfortable with good food and very high standards of game viewing. We had a great time at both camps with great staff and great game viewing. Our guides (Steve at Kwara and Vundi at Lebala) were first class in all respects.

The 'tents' at Kwara are new and very smart, whilst at Lebala they are older and a bit tatty in comparison.

The only slight hesitation with Kwando is that all camps seem to serve the same meals on the same day each week. so anyone doing 3 or 4 Kwando camps would spot this. The food was always good and more than enough, so it is a very minor issue meant to be constructive.

The transit arrangements at Jo'burg worked very well, though the transit lounge only has one scanner and so there is a large line to get through.

Now the negative! Luckily it was the single element of the holiday that we insisted upon so you are totally in the clear.

We returned to Nexabega because we enjoyed it so much last time. The camp was largely unchanged from 5 years ago and the food and accommodation is superior to Kwando in small details such as style and the quality of the cuisine. However with water levels in the Delta very high this year the game viewing at Nexabega was very poor. The staff admitted that some 5 weeks back they considered closing the camp because of water levels and the lack of game. The range of area available for game viewing was limited due to the water depth. There were loads of Elephants, Giraffe and great bird sightings. No big cats at all (no Lion for the last 4 months), though there is a Leopard in the area which we did not see..

It is a bit like going skiing when the hotel has failed to mention there is virtually no snow! I would be very careful of sending other customers to this location. It is still pretty scenic with all the water but so is Kwara ( with Boat and mocorro trips) and Lebala (no water based activities) but lots of lagoons to drive around, and there was massive animal populations with daily Lion and Leopard sightings. We also saw large herds of Zebra and Buffalo. We saw 4 big cat kills with Kwando and Lebala which had daily sightings of Lion prides and Leopards at both camps, Nexabega was very sparse in comparison." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 10 on a Botswana safari

"Great guidance on choosing camps from Maruska. They suited us ideally in terms of standard of accommodation, variety in environments, game viewing, fellow guests.

All arrangements worked out well - the few minor comments are in the individual sheets but given more as constructive feedback than complaints.

Quilalea a great add on but it will be better when there are better flight connections." Read full review: 31 nights in Africa; 12 on a Botswana safari

"The most important thing about any trip is to make sure it is well organised, everything has been booked and you have been well breifed. I would like to thank Expert Africa for taking care of this part of my holiday, because then i just need to turn up and follow the instructions.

What happens on a safari is largely out of your hands, i did not want to spend 3 days in an ash/dust bowl, but seeing that is what was on offer and the is nothing you can do about the weather, it's best to make the most of it and enjot the expereince.

Wildlife does not have an agenda and there is never any guarantee, go with an open mind, expect to see nothing and then be amazed a what nature can provide. This is my 7th safari and I had my first sighting of a wild cheetah, in pretty poor light, but the experience was stunning and well worth the wait." Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 11 on a Botswana safari

"Superb holiday - simply the best.

The hotels/lodges/transport etc all worked like clockwork. The combination of accomodations suited us well - teenager friendly, good quality, good food etc. People incredibly helpful and friendly.

Would change little in retrospect - probably only a direct flight from Cape Town to Maun." Read full review: 21 nights in Africa; 6 on a Botswana safari

"The trip was great, well organised and most of the time things happened as they were supposed to. My husband is now nearly as fond of Africa as I am!" Read full review: 17 nights in Africa; 7 on a Zambia safari

"My goals were to show my grandaughter:

1. conservation efforts in southern Africa,
2.a glimpse of how average people live/work in rural and urban areas,
3. some of the geology and animals of Namibia and Botswana.

All goals met and we had a wonderful time!!!

The only thing that didn't work out was that I did not realize that virtually none of the shops/restaurants in either countrywould accept American Express credit cards. Even at the airports! I had allowed enough cash for gasoline, camp tips and misc but was relying on my AMEX card for the bulk of shopping and meals. This made for a very tight trip, especially at the end in Windhoek where we totally ran out of cash.

Please let people know which credit cards are accepted in these two countries!" Read full review: 21 nights in Africa; 11 on a Namibia trip

"We learnt so much about Africa on this trip but through our experiences we also learnt some new things about ourselves.

The time spent at Swakopmund was a welcome break from the rigours of travelling by jeep. Okinjima equally offered the perfect balance. If we had to change one thing it would be the trip to Linyanti which was probably one safari too much. However if we had then we would have missed the buffalo, lion kill ......" Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 2 on a Namibia trip

"The trip was well organised, long drives nicely broken up, acommodation at times even exceeded high expectations. We felt that Claires recommendations for alternative accomodation were particularly good.

It is our feeling that the situation in Etosha will need careful monitoring. If the prices continue to rise dramatically then Hobatere might make a more cost effective alternative. The metalled road to Hobatere once complete also makes this more accessible.

We both felt that Etosha may try to price itself at luxury prices. Game drives at night in Etosha were 450 Namibian dollars, ridiculous compared to Hobatere." Read full review: 23 nights in Africa; 16 on a Namibia trip