Travel reviews by Mr & Mrs G from Richmond
Review Distribution
Total number of trips
1
Countries visited
2
Lodges stayed in
5
Excursions taken
0
Tanzania
Tanzania and 1 other country between 8 Oct 2011 and 21 Oct 2011
"The safari element of the holiday was great and with only the problem of the delay with the plane at the start - out of Expert Africa's control - to take the edge of a really good experience. Beho beho was excellent.
Matemwe bungalows were a little disappointing - not as smart as it looked! The location wasn't great as it has a beach with a reef and for most of the day you cannot swim - it would have been nice to have had a beach in the resort so you could walk in for a swim - this is probably the same for all of the resorts on the east coast. Maybe this is common knowledge but not to us.
Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:
A good service with all transport and guides as arranged"
Matemwe bungalows were a little disappointing - not as smart as it looked! The location wasn't great as it has a beach with a reef and for most of the day you cannot swim - it would have been nice to have had a beach in the resort so you could walk in for a swim - this is probably the same for all of the resorts on the east coast. Maybe this is common knowledge but not to us.
Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:
A good service with all transport and guides as arranged"
Mwagusi Safari Camp
"Mwagusi Safari Camp review"
3 nights
Arrived
8 Oct 2011
Good
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good
Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Good
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Good
Beho Beho
"Beho Beho review"
4 nights
Arrived
11 Oct 2011
"A really fun place to stay. Plenty of choice on activities and so well organised. Food was superb - breakfasts cooked out on safari, delicious teas, and evening meals really special - even lobster thermidor! Sundowners served in beautiful spots watching sunsets and appreciating the scenery.
Pool is small with little space to sit - not a problem when we were there but if more wanted to use this facility there wasn't really a large enough area. We understand this may form part of their forthcoming expansion plans."
Pool is small with little space to sit - not a problem when we were there but if more wanted to use this facility there wasn't really a large enough area. We understand this may form part of their forthcoming expansion plans."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent
Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Excellent
Beho Beho Tree-house
"Beho Beho fly-camping review"
1 night
Arrived
15 Oct 2011
"Didn't really think this was worth the extra cost. The camp spot is not very far from the main lodge.
The guide joins you for dinner and we thought you should be asked if you would rather eat alone - especially if you were a honeymoon couple.
Food very good."
The guide joins you for dinner and we thought you should be asked if you would rather eat alone - especially if you were a honeymoon couple.
Food very good."
Good
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good
Location
Average
Service
Good
Rooms
Good
Food
Excellent
Feedback response
Beho Beho acknowledge that a bush night is quite a supplement – but this is due to the fact that they require four staff members to run it. They have three people behind the scenes and then a guide who hosts their stay. They are sorry that these guests did not see it as good value – but are not able to reduce the costs whilst maintaining their usual high standards.
In regards to the guide joining you for dinner – this is largely a safety reason because dinners are taken out in the bush and so the camp would prefer not to offer guests the option of eating alone. However this could have been explained to the guests so that they understood why their meals were hosted in such a way.
The bush night is quite close to the main camp and this is so that guests are able to walk there and back. If the camp were located too far away this would not be an option for most guests.
In regards to the guide joining you for dinner – this is largely a safety reason because dinners are taken out in the bush and so the camp would prefer not to offer guests the option of eating alone. However this could have been explained to the guests so that they understood why their meals were hosted in such a way.
The bush night is quite close to the main camp and this is so that guests are able to walk there and back. If the camp were located too far away this would not be an option for most guests.
Matemwe Lodge
"Matemwe Lodge review"
4 nights
Arrived
16 Oct 2011
"The brochure and website pictures do not match up with the reality! The place really needs an refurb. Our shower was worn out and sprayed water everywhere. Holes in mosquito nets. Mosquito coils not lit at night and no useable matches left to do it yourself. All looked a bit tired.
We took the guided walk of the town. This was poor. The guide hardly spoke any English and just took us to see the school and that was it.
Tried to arrange a boat trip to Mnemba - just told that we could have a boat to go to one of the resorts back down the coast - not very helpful. Not enough options.
Toilet in reception needed checking more regularly - ran out of paper / towels, etc. and not replaced even when I told them! Flowers were nice in the facility but should have been removed when dead.
Food very good and service very friendly."
We took the guided walk of the town. This was poor. The guide hardly spoke any English and just took us to see the school and that was it.
Tried to arrange a boat trip to Mnemba - just told that we could have a boat to go to one of the resorts back down the coast - not very helpful. Not enough options.
Toilet in reception needed checking more regularly - ran out of paper / towels, etc. and not replaced even when I told them! Flowers were nice in the facility but should have been removed when dead.
Food very good and service very friendly."
Average
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Average
Location
Average
Service
Good
Activities
Poor
Rooms
Average
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Average
Feedback response
We were sad to hear that these guests did not enjoy Matemwe as much as they had hoped. The team at Matemwe are planning a refurb and so this will go a long way to sorting out the issues mentioned by this traveller. They have also taken on board the other comments made and will work with the team at the lodge to improve things.
Serena Inn
"Serena Inn review"
1 night
Arrived
20 Oct 2011
"Had asked specifically for a bed with no footboard (tall husband) and this was not arranged. Hotel were very helpful and managed to change us to a room with a wider bed so it wasn't so much of a problem.
Facilities very good - lovely pool in a great setting. Food in the seafood restaurant was excellent.
Had a guided tour of Zanzibar - guide OK - again his English was difficult to understand and he did spend a portion of the excursion on his mobile phone!"
Facilities very good - lovely pool in a great setting. Food in the seafood restaurant was excellent.
Had a guided tour of Zanzibar - guide OK - again his English was difficult to understand and he did spend a portion of the excursion on his mobile phone!"
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent
Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Average
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Excellent
Our visit was somewhat spoilt by ignoring the advice given to lock valuables in the office safe. On the one occasion my husband left money hidden in the room - it was taken. Use the facilities offered!
Showers a little unreliable - which seemed odd as at the next camp we stayed they always had hot water even when the sun didn't shine."