Reviews of Mowani Mountain Camp
Wildlife sightings and reviews
159 independent comments and wildlife information from our travellers who have visited Mowani Mountain Camp and kindly agreed to share their thoughts. They do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa
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"Mowani Mountain Camp review"
"Mowani Mountain Camp review"
We took the early morning trip to find the desert adapted elephants & were lucky enough to find them. Our guide was excellent & was a good story teller.
The food, as usual in most of the lodges, was very good & the staff very attentive.
well worth a return visit" See all these reviews: 14n in Namibia
"'Out of Africa' views"
The abundant hyraxes around the rocky camp pathways were amusing. After a good search we found and spent some time with a troupe of desert-adapted elephants. Despite its attraction two nights is enough as having done the elephant trip and taken in the amazing scenery there's not a great deal else to do. Safari walk from the camp interesting but not as dramatic as one imagined these things to be.
Morning drive - With the drive needing to be stretched out to fill its allotted time I had the slight suspicion that we could have found the elephants rather more quickly than we did. With plenty of trees around the area was not particularly desert-like but the elephant herd, about a dozen, was worth tracking down and included Oscar, a young male which has given trouble in the past though we were not told what actually happened. We spent a pleasant half hour with them whilst they browsed on a few clumps of the trees. Our guide was very knowledgeable and entertaining." See all these reviews: 16n in Namibia
"Mowani Mountain Camp review"
Food was excellent.
The next day we were moving to the Suite so we went out on an activity to see the desert Elephants. our guide was Frederik and we had 9 people in the jeep. of all the places that we had been so far we had a max of 4 in a jeep. We felt that this was ridiculous and felt that it was more like a disney park rather than a Namibian activity to search for the Desert Elephants. Frederik's driving was not great and was far too quick in the conditions, causing many of us to be swinging out of the side of the jeep.
We saw plenty of elephants but the first lot that we saw the guide didn't just sit still to see them and for us to enjoy them, he would move the jeep every few minutes. We felt that this was more disruptive to them and we were not able to just sit and admire them. We then went off and his off road driving was not the best and as a result of this we got stuck in the sand. this was a combination of having too many in the jeep and his driving.
We had to radio for help from the lodge. we were lucky that another camp came and helped us out. It involved us all getting out of the jeep and getting into the other jeep as the elephants were walking straight down the river bed where we were stuck. This was in actual fact the highlight of the trip. It was a little touchy for a while as there were lots of baby elephants and matriarchs, but the experience and the heart beating fast was an amazing experience. If we had not gotten stuck in the sand it would have been a very disappointing acitvity,
We then returned to the lodge and went to the suite. It was such a stunning room, outdoor shower and bath and 2 outdoor decks. lounge, bedroom, and bathroom. we again had dinner in the room on the deck. THis was a real luxury and was a real treat." See all these reviews: 13n in Namibia
"What a location!!"
The staff made a real effort to make our honeymoon special with a surprise private dinner under the stars and a private breakfast at the viewpoint - lovely.
The excursion to see the desert elephants was fabulous, we didn't expect to get so close to them.
It's a really little thing but it felt like the staff have been told to say "I hope you enjoy it" after everything - it got a bit repeatative." See all these reviews: 19n in Namibia
"Mowani Mountain Camp review"
Staff were very friendly and professional. we had a great waiter called Eugene who looked after us very well.
As we were on honeymoon we had our dinner by the fire pit which was really romantic. the food was excellent with a very good selection of South African wine! Rooms were very comfortable and we had champagne and a fruit basket in our room!" See all these reviews: 13n in Namibia
"Mowani Mountain Camp review"
Sun downer drinks from their viewpoint were unbelievable." See all these reviews: 14n in Namibia
"Relaxing mountain camp with great views"
The tents themselves were perhaps the most basic accommodation of our trip, but the bed was very comfortable and not too hot either when the side "windows" were left open. The tents could perhaps do with a little fridge to keep water/drinks cold and also insects would tent to make their way into the tent as they can never be 100% sealed off, so it is good to be aware of this.
We had a great waiter, Eugene, who would serve us breakfast, lunch and dinner and he was a very affable character and we enjoyed the banter we would have with him at meal times. He was both efficient and friendly, and we received great service from him. The food at Mowani was good and portions large, but somethings such as pastries, break etc. were not as good as in some of the other lodges. The sundowners on a big rock provided great views, but when there are a lot of people at the camp it can become quite busy and private sun-downers may also be an option. We felt that there was at times some underlying tension between the camp management and staff as well, which did not always make the sun-downers the most relaxing experience.
In terms of activities, Mowani focused on the rock painting excurions and desert-elephant tracking. We went on the elephant-tracking excursion one morning, but did not find them despite our guide's best efforts. Interestingly, a couple we met later on our travels had stayed at Damaraland Camp at the same time and had sighted three herds of elephants so maybe that may be a more reliable lodge to go in April as the elephants will often travel around depending on where they think they can find water.
The scenery around Mowani is amazing and the plentiful rains in Namibia in 2009 meant that the ground was covered in knee/waist-high grass which made the surroundings very picturesque and interesting to photograph. Overall, Mowani was an enjoyable place to stay and experience something different, though if visiting Damaraland again, we may be tempted to try another lodge (e.g. Damaraland Camp or Doro Nawas) to experience something different as well." See all these reviews: 9n in Namibia; 1n in South Africa
"Mowani Mountain Camp review"
The food was excellent, and service in general was of a very high standard. Sun-downer drinks from the viewpoint, complete with a bar and nibbles was really special. We were on our honeymoon and they went to amazing extra lengths to make it feel special for us - a table for two by the camp fire under the stars for dinner one night, followed by breakfast for two on top of the viewpoint the next morning.
Vincent the manager even helped us change our flat tyre! Unfortunately due to the rains there was very little wildlife, but it was an amazing place just to sit and enjoy the sun and scenery." See all these reviews: 16n in Namibia
"Mowani Mountain Camp review"
It is a fun place to stay with every comfort, and finding the desert elephants and spending time with them was very special.
We have lots of photos of the singing, the sunsets, the staff and warm memories of out stay." See all these reviews: 14n in Namibia
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