Reviews of Okonjima Bush Camp

"A fantastic end to our trip. Whilst reasonably heavily curated (and because of this of course), the wildlife experience (Leopards on several occasions in lengthy close up and Rhinos) was nonetheless superb. After some more remote and active stops in wilder locations the extreme and leisured comfort was very well appreciated.

The camp, larger than most we visited, was luxurious, well managed and still with plenty of charm. There is a strong menu of optional activities (paying although I think an all in rate is also available) and it would be a mistake to come here and not take full advantage. We can recommend the night hide, Africat visit, and the (free!) self guided trails in addition to the on foot Rhino trek and, of course, the Leopard drives. Very good food if a little less adventurous than in some lodges we visited. All in all this was one of the highlights of our varied itinerary and the excellent guide (John M) contributed much to this sentiment." See all these reviews: 16n in Namibia

"Excellent accommodation but rating "Good" because wildlife was a little disappointing.

The accommodation, food and service really was terrific by Nambian standards and to have two living spaces, one of which operated much like our own private photography hide would bring us back to Okinjima. June 2022 was early post-covid days so the only downside were some staff being more focused on tipping. We found this to be the case in most places we stayed throughout the 3 countries we visited, and is entirely understandable given people had very little or no economic support for 2 years.

Okinjima has conceded it can't sustain Cheetah conservation as the area is not natural cheetah habitat and reintroduction is not effective.....disppointing but understandable. That said, we applaud every effort to preserve wildlife in Nambia, and Okinjima is doing an excellent job with other species. Our guide there went above and beyond to ensure we saw brown hyena which was our only sighting in the six weeks we spent in Nambia.

We stayed at Okinjima for 2 nights/1 full day so while our only chance for a game drive was not as fruitful as we hoped, another couple staying there had terrific leopard, aardvark and pangolin sightings." See all these reviews: 15n in Namibia; 7n in Zambia; 5n in Rwanda; 1n in South Africa

"We got upgraded to Bush camp which was fabulous.

Fantastic experience leopard tracking" See all these reviews: 14n in Namibia; 1n in Botswana

"The most spacious room, actually one plus an additional animal watching room.

All nice and clean and beautifully made." See all these reviews: 21n in Namibia

"What an amazing camp this is. We first stayed here in 2005 (when Okonjima only had one camp) and have subsequently stayed at Plains Camp twice which is a great camp, but lacks the very personalised service provided at Bush Camp.

First of all, we were warmly welcomed and shown to our chalet by Jason - a fantastic chalet with kitchen area, sitting area, fire place, indoor and outdoor shower, terrace overlooking the bush and bird feeders / bird bath right outside the window. We were privileged to be guided by Denny, who took us for all of our activities - leopard tracking, for a nature drive, for a visit to the night hide, and for the two highlights of our stay - pangolin tracking and for the Africat tour which not only allowed us to find out about the work of African foundation, but also meant we were able to see 5 cheetahs and the two lions currently being supported. Amazing!

The food and every aspect of the service here was of the highest quality. Great dinners, very fresh breakfasts (served after the morning activity with coffee and muffins before you go ) and friendly and caring staff.

This is an excellent place to stop on the way to / from Etosha but is also worth a visit in its own right, 2 nights at least, to make the most of everything that they have to offer." See all these reviews: 22n in Namibia

"Our last two days were spent at Okonjima - a very comfortable and well appointed lodge. Here the furnishings are very much african based with a very comfortable lapa area, pool and dining. Food was excellent and the staff very attentive and pleasant - although perhaps not quite so personable as elsewhere - its a slightly more formal sort of place. Our room was excellent, lighting perhaps a little subdued and towels a fraction limited - although probably had we asked they would have been produced.

Our guide John was quiet but very knowledgable and he showed us lots. The leopard tracking with telemetry was interesting and secured us two close sitings of different leopard. We also visted Africat and entered a couple fo the enclosures where cheetah are kept - the latter were beautifully maintained and plenty of space for the animals - but it did feel a fraction like a Safari park at home.

Our best outing was an evening game drive - plenty of time looking at the general wildlife, the birds and a chance encounbter with one of the leopards was lovely." See all these reviews: 12n in Namibia

"Okonjima gave us slightly mixed feelings. The camp itself is wonderful and spacious with a very attentive staff, good food and a nice pool area.

The chalets with their separate 'observation units' are equally impressive and very comfortable. It's the electric-fenced part of the reserve that makes the experience as a whole a bit odd. Entering "Jurassic Park" as it was called felt in a way like visiting a zoo and tracking collard wildlife a bit fabricated.

On the other hand, unlike Botswana or Zimbabwe Namibias parks are fenced and collaring animals is an important part of protecting them. It also gave us a chance to see mating leopards, the elusive pangolin and bat eared foxes. We also got up close and personal with two white rhinos and a few brown hyenas. All pretty impressive. So, while tracking animals may not seem authentic safari-like, for us it was actually fun and a memorable experience. Surprisingly, birding was not on the activities list, but luckily our guide was easily persuaded to try this and decided on the spot to do it more often.

In all, the two nights we spent at Okonjima were well worth it." See all these reviews: 16n in Namibia

"I was worried this was going to be really naff with tame cheetahs and collared leopards, but actually it was brilliant. The rooms are well designed – stylish and very private with lovely views. Each one had its own little bird bath/mini water hole for the animals to drink from, and you were also provided with a tub of bird seed to sprinkle outside. We had steenbok and springbok come and visit, as well as an assortment of birds. The day starts with a light breakfast of muffins and/or fruit and yoghurt, before heading out on a morning activity. Then brunch when you get back (bread, cheese, cold meats and fruit, plus a cooked breakfast if you want it), lunch (if you want it), afternoon tea followed by an afternoon activity with sundowners, then dinner, followed by an optional night activity. In general the food was good and the service at the lodge was also efficient and friendly.

Our guide, Martin, was great. He had amazing eyes and was great at explaining things. He also understood about light for photography. He showed us some amazing things.

We did leopard tracking on our first afternoon, but actually the highlight was some fabulous brown hyena sightings. This was followed by pangolin tracking (fabulous). Then the next morning was the Africat tour, where he took us inside the cheetah enclosures in the jeep, and also arranged for us to watch the lions be fed. That afternoon it was back for more leopards followed by a night hide/drive (more amazing brown hyena sightings). Then rhino tracking the next morning (2 white rhinos) with a fabulous sighting of a group of 10 sable antelopes on the way back to the lodge.

In general, I thought this was a really well run lodge, with excellent guiding, that really surpassed my expectations. We also had a really good sighting of a sable antelope here, but it wasn't in the list below." See all these reviews: 18n in Namibia

"Brilliant room - loads of space. Good food.

Guide was incredible (and also found my phone that had been lost off the back of the truck in the dark - absolute legend).

Well designed and decorated dining room / social space with lovely garden views.

Really good work being done for animal conservation.." See all these reviews: 13n in Namibia

"Excellent accomodation with the glass wall in the sleeping area and the "outside lounge" where we were entertained by the visiting guinea fowl and red hornbills.

Again everything was brilliant - our guide Opari, the staff and the food. Had a great morning at the Africat centre to see the rescued cheetahs, etc. In the afternoon we tracked, on foot, two white rhinos. Got pretty close but we were always confident that our tracker knew what he was doing. Plenty of wildlife in this area as it was not as dry as the areas of the other camps.

Our day finished with a close up encounter between a leopard and a brown hyena. A lot of growling but nobody got hurt." See all these reviews: 9n in Namibia