Reviews of Jongomero Camp

"A beautiful secluded camp situated on the banks of a sand river up which elephants roamed every afternoon.Spotlessly clean and spacious accommodation. in canvas tents under thatch with lovely hard wood floors. Food very tasty and staff very ( perhaps a little over) attentive.

The managers Chris and Sam were very friendly and approachable but we felt that they could do more to integrate the guests. We still do not like separate dining and their way of keeping everyone apart is ridiculous when there are only a few people staying. We were given very little opportunity to talk to anyone else however we did know that this was their policy before we went so were prepared for it.

We were assigned our own guide, Allen, for the whole stay. He was good company very experienced and showed and taught us a lot but it reenforced the separation of guests.

Ruaha was beautiful and we had excellent sightings of lion, leopard, lesser Kudu and many new birds" See all these reviews: 10n in Tanzania

"We came to Jongomero following a fly camping experience that was second to none......so the expectation levels were high. That said, the desire for comfort, a shower and space to stretch out was higher!

We were not disappointed by the facilities on offer - a 'real' shower, a flushing toilet and space were very welcome.......the other guests (Tsetse flies) were less welcome, but I guess that's outside Jongo's control!

The rest of the stay was enjoyable with a good walking safari and game drive - the meals were good too.

Some of the elements felt a little stilted or formulaic, however - the chef announcing the dinner menu was a nice touch, but too formal for us. The focus on the 'bottom line' also felt too corporate and less relaxed than we'd have liked - we were charged for sun-downers, for example. Rather than a celebration of the day, it felt like an exercise in accounting. I don't mind paying (we consumed it after all) but don't recall every seeing a wine list or price list anywhere.........maybe I should have altered my expectations.

Jongomero had all the right components, but lacked some hard to define sense of warmth or 'family'." See all these reviews: 8n in Tanzania

"As the elephant herd came right up to the camp dining room wall to wish me a happy birthday how could I have anything but praise for Jongomero?

Our 4 day stay was packed with sightings by our very knowledgable guide Prosper. He gets my vote as best guide of our 14 day safari. The food was excellent and beautifully presented but I would have liked it to have a bit more African tilt.

The tent was spacious and comfortable and you could view game in or across the riverbed just by sitting on our deck. The park around Jongomero had a different vegetation (larger trees, more water) than the other places we stayed so I was happy to see the difference in animal/bird viewing.

Don't worry about the tsese flies. They don't eat much and hurt less than the ones on the Jersey shore." See all these reviews: 9n in Tanzania; 2n in Zanzibar

"Much more luxurious than our previous camp, the rooms were amazing, hardly felt like you were in a tent! We had everything we could possibly want including wonderful views down the river. Again all our needs were met, hot water bottles, tetse fly swats, burning elephant dung to ward off flies! They had thought of everything.

The food was quite exceptional, we were seriously impressed with it, the chef is a genius!

Lovely pool where we were able to watch elephants and baboons on the opposite bank!

The guiding was good, but not excellent, our guide was very knowledgeable but sometimes seemed reluctant to give us more information about something we had seen. That said, we had some fantastic game drives, it is extraordinarily beautiful around Jongomero and the feeling that you are so far from anyone else and not seeing a single other car was really special.

We were very well looked after here." See all these reviews: 16n in Tanzania

"It is hard to separate lodges from locations, as although much more game here than Sand Rivers I would not recommend the lodge. The hosts are very 'professional'. The manner the chef announces dinner is very grand and serious. Its their way, but not for us. The lunches here were better than Sand Rivers, dinners OK.
Tsetse flies do spoil some of the drives, smoke blows across photos from burning elephant dung, and also affects eyes, especially when you stop. Although they vehicles go off roads, compared to other more central lodges in Ruaha we saw more animals in the Kwahala camp, that may be why the camps are placed there?
Zipped tents - good accommodation -" See all these reviews: 15n in Tanzania; 5n in Zanzibar; 1n in Kenya

"I would not normally stay in such a luxurious camp as Jongomero provides. I prefer a more 'wilderness experience' .Although very remote with no possibility of seeing other vehicles , Jongomero is more like a professional hotel in the bush than a true bush camp where the main focus is firmly on the quality of the wilderness experience that comes from superlative and flexible guiding.
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My main reason this time for combining a stay at Jongomero with my favourite camp of all time in Kwihala, was because last October my daughter and I enjoyed an amazing whole day out to the western part of Ruaha in the vicinity of Jongomero and beyond.
The different scenery , varied habitats, plants and wildlife , especially the upper reaches of the Ruaha River ,the miombo woodlands and above all the Makindi Springs area, , convinced me to stay at the only camp in this part of the park.

It was most unfortunate therefore that the long rains had been particularly heavy this year ,such that the very areas I wanted to visit were still unreachable and to cap it all uncontrolled bush fires nearer camp prevented us accessing the roads that were otherwise driveable .
But all of this was clearly out of the control of Jongomero camp.
It is very true that the camp is well run ,if a little formal .The 'tents' are very large and luxurious ,well positioned with hot water available pretty much all the time and the food consistent with city-style fine dining -to the extent of sugar work on the crème caramel -in the bush!
While there was communal dining at lunchtimes,guests dined separately at breakfast and dinner. This limited time to exchange stories and adventures among guests and staff, which for me is an essential safari experience that I missed. . Pre-dinner drinks (not included) were taken in the bar area and not around a convivial fire -such a shame.
As a solo traveller however Chris ,Sam or Theo ensured I had good company at dinner. A nice touch.
When I discovered the first game drive didn't start until 8am instead of 6 or 6.30am, the reason given was that there were not many animals about that early so I didn't pursue the matter ,which I regretted .
While there was opportunity to linger and watch interesting wildlife ,nevertheless the morning game drives were always back by 12 noon on the dot . I knew not to expect the same level of wildlife in this area or so early in the season but even so the game was sparse. However the butterfly ,flowers and birdlife and scenery were really very good .I enjoyed sitting on my veranda before breakfast and watching the sun rise behind my tent and touch and warm the trees on the opposite side of the dry river bed .
My guide Theo ,who I was lucky enough to have to myself on 3 occasions ,proved very responsive and indulged my request to spend time to make a confident identification. Indeed when the game drives proved a little thin and frankly a bit monotonous he was amenable to my suggestion of having a birding session for an hour or so in camp .We sat on a sand bar with binoculars and book, enjoying what flew past and on the look out for elusive green pigeon. We invented a sitting safari to make the most of what was on offer.

On reflection I think that Jongomero would appeal especially to couples or small groups who value the time to spend together in luxury ,as much as, if not more than the wildlife itself ." See all these reviews: 11n in Tanzania

"Generally this camp was excellent, but unfortunately the guide was not quite as good as he could have beeen" See all these reviews: 12n in Tanzania

"We found the tetsi flies rather aggravating in this area, the level of accomadation was excellent as was Siwandu.." See all these reviews: 9n in Tanzania

"Jongomero is well located away from other camps and enjoys some quiet isolation. It's (dry) riverside location assures an ongoing parade of various animals as they use the open area of the riverbed.

The camps straddles the line between elegance, luxury and rustic quite well, but it all depends on the perspective. For the more adventurous there is fly camping, which in our opinion and experience was the best part of being there! Best to do at least 2 nights in the fly camp for the best experience.

The couple managing the place, Chris and Sam are very nice, friendly and easy going. The walks we did in conjunction with fly camping were pleasant and informative, covering a nice variety of terrain. One of the highlights for us was our assigned guide for the duration of our stay, Theo who drove us on all game drives. He is a great guy, friendly and knowledgeable, a good judge of character able to relate to his guests in a way most suitable to their personalities and preferences." See all these reviews: 12n in Tanzania

"Leonard our Guide, was fantastic!" See all these reviews: 11n in Tanzania