Reviews of Impala Camp

"great! faultless" See all these reviews: 5n in Tanzania; 4n in Zanzibar

"A splendid location on the river gives fantastic views from the communal areas and the individual stilted tents. The big bonus of the camp is to be able to offer game drives and boat excursions. The drives around the lagoons and the river were always interesting with plenty of activity.

Elephant ,lion ,giraffe and wild dog on land , with hippo ,crocs and abundant birdlife by boat. Barbara , Andrea and the staff were most attentive and thanks to Ally and Makumbo for the spotting on the game drives and Damon on the boat. Lunches were excellent , the diners not quite as good as some of the flavour combinations were somewhat unusual." See all these reviews: 14n in Tanzania

"This was a perfect place to take a family, beautifully located on the river, tastefully constructed but not over the top. As the camp is unfenced, we particularly appreciated having adjoining family tents, giving the children an added sense of security. Our guide Gerard was first-class, knowledgable, patient with the children and extremely professional in the face of two unexpectedly close encounters on foot in the camp: an elephant did a "fake charge" at us as we turned the corner to board the boat, and a hippo crossed in front of our daughter as she returned from the pool. In both cases, he was perfectly calm and dealt with the situation. Nobody, and neither animal, was harmed! My only suggestion might be for the managers to stress early on that such encounters are not rare but common at this camp, and the hippo and elephant concerned are regular visitors.

The safaris were excellent and varied, with the great advantage of being able to go out on the river as well as the jeep (we found a pride of 17 lions at one point, and the birdlife in February was amazing). The tents were exactly what we were hoping for: simple, but elegant and with a sense of being close to nature (that hippo munching grass by the tent in the morning again...!). The camp lay-out was very nice, though I would have added a few more chairs around the camp fire as there was sometimes not enough space for us to sit there. The managers did not seem as knowledgable about the bush, or as keen to chat around the camp fire, as others in some camps we have visited. The food was very good, with plenty of fresh ingredients and spices." See all these reviews: 6n in Zanzibar; 4n in Tanzania

"Barbara was very good and helpful and the guiding was very good" See all these reviews: 17n in Tanzania; 6n in Zanzibar

"The welcome and kindness shown on our arrival by staff and Barbara the manager were a treat. Through a slight misunderstanding that we had asked to be loacted and seperate and away from the centre of the camp they then immediately repositioned us in a lovely well located lodge with views of the river.

This camp was more up-market than Kwihala, in the Ruaha, from which we had come but not so luxurious as to 'spoil' for us the impact of the surrounding country. Sevice simply could not be faulted and we were even sung to in Swahili on evening by David our personal waiter whose smile never left his face for a moment.

The drives were excellent with a first class guide, Charles . The highlights of which were a pride of four lionesses and five cubs at close range playing like domestic cats in front of an English fire; a large herd of buffalo; a trio of two young males elephants sheperding their baby brother and the three of them swimming accross the river a matter of yards from us; hippos in abundance including one lady launching herself into the water at close range; crocodiles who would impress any good dentist; abundant water birdlife; impala and more lovely giraffe than I have ever seen. Really excellent viewing and guiding. Faultless. And whilst there were more vehicles than in the Ruaha not so many as to cause concern or 'overcrowding'.

The food was very good, faultlessly presented and varied choosing your evening menu after an excellent light lunch.

It is hot all the day with none of the cool evenings of Ruaha, but the fans in the room were a blessing .

All in all I would recommend this Lodge to anyone and most particulaly because of the boat safari wich I have never had before but which gives such a different view of the country and its animals.

Thank you to Ellie and Expert Africa in tacking this onto the Kwihala experience." See all these reviews: 7n in Tanzania

"Met on arrival, by guide a driver. Drinks and wet towels

Hussein had excellent english - instant game drive en route to camp. These 2 were our private guides throughout. Barbara ( Italian Manager) on hand for our arrival at camp. Very welcoming. 8 raised tents overlooking the Rufiji. Very Spacious with a large electriv fan. Double sinks and separate shower toilet. Very poor lighting for night reading. Guides and drivers on water and land excellent.

Food good for the location. 3 courses would be enough for dinner. Not enough salads - probably due to location.
Game viewing was excellent. Drives probably should be 1/2- 1 hour shorter." See all these reviews: 4n in Tanzania; 2n in Zanzibar

"A very beautiful camp, with an unbelievable location on the river bank - eating to the sound of hippos in the river was amazing! The tent was stunning and felt genuinely luxurious. The food and service were both outstanding, our waiter Mohammed was unbelievably helpful and friendly.

The variety of safari was nice and we really enjoyed the boat safari and fishing (we got a few very big cat fish). The jeep safari was very different to Ruaha, with the land much drier and animals lesser in number. We did, however, see wildebeest, wild dogs, hyenas and vultures feeding on a hippo carcass. We very NEARLY saw a leopard on our last day - we found its kill (impala) in a tree but we couldn't find the leopard.

The only minor quibble is that the camp managers, whilst very nice, are obviously instructed to talk with you each time you are in the lodge - it felt like we had to give constant feedback." See all these reviews: 6n in Tanzania; 5n in Zanzibar

"A bit smart for us! Accom and location very good. Food good.

River safaris wonderful, game drives not nearly as good as Mdonya (I think that we had been spoilt in the Ruaha together with recent rains having dispersed the game) but very knowledgable and charming guide. Great english and very patient with the children's many questions. Spent a good afternoon fishing and also visited a nearby village, sat in on primary school lesson etc.

Pool a welcome bonus. Only downside a noisy electrical system in tent which we had to have fixed (promptly fixed once asked). Generators are a mixed blessing, detracting from the natural wildlife noises." See all these reviews: 14n in Tanzania

"This was our second visit to Impala, chosen because of our previous experience.

We were pleased that overall, their standards have been maintained, and, although the food was generally good, there was room for improvement, wasn't terribly inspiring. Delighted that we had Ezra and Rajabu again as our guide and driver - they were excellent! Barbara the camp manager was friendly and very welcoming.

Actually had time to use pool this time in it's new location!" See all these reviews: 9n in Tanzania

"Where to start?! Our stay at Impala was truly memorable. We arrived at the camp and were met by the very friendly staff and shown round the amazing grounds. The camp is very luxurious.

The main dining area, lounge and bar are all on a stilted platform which allows you to relax and view the surrounding area. The pool area has just been built and is great way to cool off in the afternoon heat. In the evening you can dine in the main dining area or in more secluded spots on the ground with fires and candles burning all around you. It was fantastic to stay in the Selous itself as many other camps are outside the reserve.

We would regularly see animals in the camp but always felt safe as there were lots of staff and Massai around at all times. The setting is fabulous. The camp overlooks the river and so you can see hippos, elephants, crocodiles and a variety of birds on the banks of the river below. Our safari delivered in every way. We had the choice of game drives, boat safaris and walking safaris each day and other activities such as fishing in the Rufuji river. The staff were very flexible in arranging activities to suit our needs and combining activities to ensure that we got the most out of our stay.

We had the same driver and guide throughout most of our stay. This was perfect as it enabled us to build up a rapport with them so that we got the most out of each day as they knew what we wanted to see and what we had seen already. We were mainly interested in game drives (but experienced and enjoyed all of the other activities) and saw everything we wanted to see and more.

The most notable aspects of our safari were spotting a leopard, the African wild dogs and being up close by boat to witness a herd of elephants crossing the river. The food was excellent every day and they have a fully equipped bar and a good wine selection. On the early morning game drives the guide and driver would select a spot and unpack a whole array of breakfast dishes for us to sit and enjoy on the banks of the river. On boat safaris in the evening we enjoyed champagne while watching the sunset!

There were a number of people travelling alone at the camp and it was good to see that the staff (and other guests) made them all feel very welcome. As the camp can only take a small number of guests people tended to chat about their experiences and socialise without it being too forced. Overall our stay was outstanding - the service was incredible and, even though we were there for just a few days, the staff were all so friendly it was hard to say goodbye." See all these reviews: 8n in Zanzibar; 4n in Tanzania